Running crash plan

This was the run plan that would either lead up to solid run at a late-August IM race -OR- would land me injured/broken by the side of the road:

week 6: 12mi
week 5: 14mi
week 4: 17mi
week 3: 20mi
week 2-1: taper


This is very aggressive and I do not recommend anyone try this. There were no easy weeks, simply because I did not have time in the calendar to fit them in. The above long runs were interspersed with 80-110mi long rides, as well as 2-4km OW swims during the weeks, on top of all the other s/b/r sessions. A few easier days here and there, but really it was go-go-go time... I imagine it would be like climbing Mt. Rainier, going up, up, up.... all the way to the top...

the week 3 run was the key marker for me. I got lucky I was able to do it in conditions as close I can get in Seattle to race day: 84F heat, in the middle of a hot/sunny day, with my actual race-day nutrition. It was a very solid run, averaging 6:2X's for the distance, except for a few miles where hills showed up, and I was going a little slower/faster. My body has held together, and I feel like I am ready to race.

It is now week 2, time to decide: Challenge Penticton or Ironman Whistler?

Summer 2013

The spring/summer of 2013 has come and almost gone. In that time, in our corner of the world, it has been busy with all kinds of activities. I have been very busy at work, but am fortunate enough to be able to leave my work at work, and be done with it when I get home. That gives me a chance to spend time with Theresa and Donovan, and, I'm not going to lie, get a whole lot of swimming biking and running done.

Water break after conquering another big climb! 

 We have grilled in our backyard and enjoyed the very mild summer.  We have gone camping, and we have ridden our bikes a lot. Donovan is now getting old enough to ride his bike on the streets with me, and, well, as a cycling-geek father, that is super cool. We wake up together, early in the morning to catch the action of this year's Tour de France. Donovan is starting to identify the riders by name better than I can. He was so thrilled to watch the ascent of the Col du Tourmalet. One of my friends sent along pictures of his trip last year to TdF and my 7-yr old immediately yelled out 'That's the Observatory! That is Bradley! And that is Cadel behind him...'

Col de Tourmalet, Observatory in the distance at the summit...

Rockstars.....

As far as triathlon goes, I have had the pleasure to work with Brian and Jen at the Univ of Washington Sports Medicine Clinic, and they have brought me back from injury and a serious state of disrepair. It has taken a long time and discipline, but I am back in one piece.  Thank you, Jen, for your friendship and patience, as you have worked with me over many weeks. I hope to make you proud before the Summer ends. I have the weeks numbered to prepare for a late August iron-distance event, and it is going to be a gamble as to whether or not I can get the necessary volume in....

We shall see... In the meantime, I'd like to leave you with a sunset as seen from our home.

Thank you for reading. Time to see if we can put it together....

Donovan's first race of 2013

It is the end of April, and here in Seattle, it usually means we are starting to move out of the cold and into nicer weather. It also means the Top Pot Donuts Kids Dash is upon us. As has been the tradition for the last 3 (4?) years, Donovan was ready to get his running shoes on, and try out his early-season form.

Once again, he had a big smile as he rounded the last corner at full speed and headed for the finish.

I still love the picture below, when at 6yrs old, he lined up in front of all the older kids, unfazed by the difference in size. Must be in his mexican genes....

At the end of the race he got to hang out with some his buddies from school as well as his buddies Neala and Kyla, so he got to experience the 'camaraderie thru sport' aspect of these things.

He also high-fived these two storm troopers, whom I assume had just ran the 5k... in any case, a good reminder that having fun is very important, and not to take things too seriously....

All in all, a cool start to his 2013 season. :-)

WTH just happened at Boston?

this is crazy. I don't even know what to say....

The last 3 months...

have gone by quickly. The last 3months have had  lots of life happenings, some happy, some sad, some ups, some downs. Thinking back post new-year, this is what has come to pass in our corner of the world:
Los Reyes Magos came by, dropped off some goodies for us. Donovan returned to school.
I turned 39, my Father turned 69.  Started doing some more physical therapy.
Celebrated Valentine's Day.  Got sick.  Celebrated Theresa's birthday.
Traveled to Houston to bid farewell to one of my best friends, hugged his family tight and hard.
Came back to Seattle and to my own family. My Father got sick. He got better.
We remembered Mona's passing.  Donovan got sick, gave it to me. 10 days later, I'm still not done with it.

Every time we go see these fish, we remember Mona...

Sigh... and so here we are, almost ready to celebrate Donovan's 7th birthday. Which is awesome. This past weekend was Milan-SanRemo. Without me saying anything, Donovan went and sat down in front of the computer and was relaying the action to me play-by-play, as I was taking a shower. "Sky Team just crashed!" "They were riding in the snow, Papa!" "Fabian is winning!"

Wishing everyone a nice spring....

Christmas 2012

It is that time of the year, our home is once again filled with Christmas, from the fresh smell of a nice big tree to appropriately-themed music. Well, actually, the christmasy music has been playing since Halloween, which is fine (I think by the time New Year comes, I’ll be ready for an auditory break from decking the halls and techno-frosty).

A ver... vamos a checar esta serie.... ¿Están prendidos todos los foquitos?

Though hard on the grown-ups to be upbeat this season as we remember Christina’s passing one year ago, Donovan  is all excited. One of the most vivid memories I have of Christmas with my family was helping my father check the strands of lights prior to placing them on our tree. I remember a feeling of satisfaction when I would replace a burnt out light, and its neighboring bulbs would once again light up.

Hope this season is full of happy memories. Thanks for reading.

JC

From CX to Xmas season

Christmas music and decorations started to fill our home since shortly after Halloween.  Donovan is full of anticipation as these last few days tick by, and he crosses them off the calendar.  A growing list of injuries ended my (lackluster) cx season, and that has given me ample time and reason to enjoy activities with friends and family. Fun in the mud was still great this year, and even though I didn't have the success I had last year, it was offset by seeing Donovan having fun with the sport.

At full speed and committed to his choice of line as he goes into a corner...
(Photo by Janet Hill)

Diligent physical therapy and strengthening will hopefully deliver a more solid me for 2013. In the meantime, there is a dark beer and some cookies somewhere with my name on them.

Happy Holidays!

....

I have been hesitant to publicly write my thoughts in the wake of the events last Friday. Mostly b/c I was really mad. I still am. Hell, this is my little blog and I can write whatever the heck I went. Nobody reads it anyway. So here is what I think-

I am not going to try to wrestle with the mental aspect of this tragedy. I am ignorant of how a person's mind and decisions go from A to where this guy went. Boggles my mind.

Guns. Illegal. Period. It is the one thing I really dislike of the US. I'm sure I would get an earful from the hunting/target shooting enthusiasts I know. And I don't care. The 'guns don't kill people' argument is stupid. There. Said it. Take my homeland- Drug people getting decapitated? Cartel associates' bodies piled high inside (choice of vehicle), or broken & packed into concrete-filled drums? Check and check. Cars driving by, spaying homes with automatic fire? Sure, happened around the corner from my house. Drug family members targeted with car bombs? Check, saw the lovely aftermath of one of those. Large number of innocent casualties? Yep, check, just look at the statistics. Young children shot at school? Uh...wait... what? WHO targets kids? WTFF!? C'mon... For all the truly brutal crimes that happen in Mexico, this type of atrocity does not happen. There are no metal detectors or armed guards at schools. Heck, there are no "Gun-free zone" signs at schools. I'm not saying it's not dangerous, and sure, criminals probably have it (very) easy getting their hands on something that goes BANG!. My point is fire arms should not be ready to be had from your parents' closet for when u decide to loose your marbles.  And I would be foolish to pretend some parents I knew didn't own guns back then, mostly obtained illegally and for the sake of safety. Still, with that violent of a platform, this is unheard of in a struggling 2nd world country. You tell me-How does this take place in the US?