I know I haven’t blogged in two weeks, but I simply didn’t have the inspiration. However, I am more inspired today (and this week in general) than I think I have been in years.
Last weekend, my friend Jacqui and I went out to attempt the Usery Pass, again – determined that we could do better than the 1:42 we had pulled the week prior with Matt. Jacqui has become, interestingly enough, one of my favorite people. Ten years my junior, there is simply something about her that is utterly enjoyable. She begins every conversation (with me) with a huge smile and we follow it up with hours of laughter. As we headed out at 7:15am (should have been 7, but she failed to remember her helmet and had to go back for it – and she knows I am safety-girl), we talked about the ride and how we struggled to get up the mountain on the backside the week prior with Matt. We both agreed that there is an intimidation factor when riding with a seasoned cyclist.
Interestingly, we conquered the huge, hard, back-side of the Usery Mountain area with strength. As we pulled into the park we started from – I looked at my watch: 1:37:52. We beat our last time by nearly 5 minutes. Jacqui and I felt great. Our friend, Sue, was there waiting for us to kick out a run – and she knew Jacqui and I had no idea if we’d be able to pull it off. The run was lousy – but we all laughed it off at breakfast 30 minutes later.
The very next morning, I went out again with more of my co-workers for a 20 mile ride, after I had already completed a 1500 meter swim an hour prior. Matt led the group of us (yes, Matt from the “Holy Crap” post the week prior). I followed and allowed the remaining group members to fall in line behind me. Naturally, that didn’t last long. As we crested the first substantial hill in Ahwatukee, Jim flew passed me like he was on a motorized bike (sigh). My thighs were on fire from the Usery Pass the day prior, so my confidence was dwindling. It was moments like that one that really put things in perspective – Jim is 60 and absolutely kicked my ass on that ride. I should also mention that while I was swimming, he, Matt and their friend, John, were crunching out a 20 mile ride (yes, prior to our ride). So humility be damned – Jim is pretty effing amazing on a bike. Fortunately, I ended the ride strong and enjoyed breakfast at Jim’s before heading home. I certainly felt accomplished last weekend.
On Monday (President’s Day), I went to my gym and happily pushed out another 2000 meters in the pool. I am pretty slow at this point, but getting stronger and faster each time I get in the pool. I know I can get through the swim part of the Triathlon, now, so I just need to really focus on my bike to run combination.
Tuesday – the Triathlon Team (of my co-workers) and I all left for St. Charles, Illinois, for a work academy. I pushed out a 10K before getting on the plane – for fear that the Chicago metro area would be too cold to do anything while we were there. But, fortunately, as we all checked into our hotel (which was more like a dormitory than hotel), we learned about a 13 mile trail just feet from the entrance and along a beautiful lake.
Wednesday morning the temps registered 37 degrees in St. Charles, with some snowy residue on the ground – nothing substantial – so Jacqui, Matt, Brian and I all went for a run. We had planned 3-4 miles, but I was feeling so good in the humid temps, that I pushed us to go a little farther. In the end, we’d completed 4.5 miles and were ready for breakfast.
Thursday morning was more of the same – but Matt was less inclined to run at 630am, so Jacqui, Brian and I headed out for a couple more miles along the lake. It was colder and super foggy (we saw no lake), but we chatted and laughed for a couple of good miles and enjoyed the time together.
As we all waited for our plane in the airport on Friday evening, Matt piped up, “Usery Pass on Sunday – followed by a trail run?” Jacqui and I agreed.
Saturday I pulled another great workout in the pool – over 2000 meters and never felt the need to really change strokes. Up until this point, I had been alternating between Free Style and the Breast Stroke. I simply could not keep up Free Style for the entirety of my swim. But, Saturday was different. It was as if something had significantly changed – I found absolutely no need to switch out my strokes. I realized I was really getting somewhere with my swimming. (grin)
So when my alarm went off this morning to join Jacqui and Matt for another torturous ride through the Usery Mountain Pass, I was actually excited. The excitement was more about seeing them, again, and doing it together than it was able the ride/run. I have trained for a marathon only once with two of my best friends – and it, too, was one of my favorite experiences. This certainly rivals that time in my life.
Matt and I parked in the Usery Mountain Recreation area, this time, and were meeting Jacqui and her husband a mile or so into the ride. It was a “first” ride for Aaron, and the poor guy really struggled. I remember our first ride a few weeks ago and I remember thinking it was among the most difficult workouts of my life. Now I acknowledge the difficulty knowing I am able to conquer it without dying.
After we crested the backside of the mountain, Jacqui stayed back while Matt and I finished another 10 miles back into the recreation area. Matt is a MUCH more seasoned cyclist than I and I am so appreciative that he is willing to work with me to help me become a better rider. I feel humiliated a lot of the time as he glides up and over the hard hills and I struggle behind him, but he glances back often to make sure I haven’t tipped over or given up.
Interestingly, we finished the ride and were raring to do the trail run. By now, there were hundreds of people in the recreation area hiking and mountain biking. The first couple of miles were actually downhill – so naturally I was worried. Matt asked how I felt about a mile into the run and the only things bothering me were my shins. Having never experienced shin splints on a run, I was not terribly thrilled. But, I hung with him for a little while. Truth be told, this was my first ever trail run and I learned a lot about myself. Even though running is VERY much my thing, cardio-vascularly, trail running is completely different than running on the roads. My heart rate would elevate and then need to come down – over and over and over. It’s a lot like cycling, actually – so this kind of exercise is totally different for me. I felt like a failure and decided to take it slower, allowing Matt to go ahead of me. Just under 3 miles into the run, I told Matt I was walking to remainder of the way. He was kind enough to stay with me – and we moved at a decent hiking clip back to our cars. (Sorry, Matt.)
I mentioned at the beginning of this blog that I am feeling more inspired than ever, now. I have developed friendships – really good friendships – with a couple of fantastic people: Jacqui and Matt. And, while I look forward to our work time together – I completely prefer our challenging rides and runs. They push me and help me realize a lot about myself. I am capable of a lot more than I realized and I am relishing it. I will likely spend the remainder of the day on the couch thinking about tomorrow’s swim, hoping I can do as well as I did, yesterday. I remain hopeful that these friendships continue and even though I know it will bother Matt enormously that I quoted Garth Brooks in my blog (since he lamented our friend Craig’s play list on the plane on Friday) – this is genuinely how I feel, today:
Yes my life is better left to chance
I could have missed the pain but I'd have had to miss the dance
I could have missed the pain but I'd have had to miss the dance
Thanks Matt and Jacqui – I (heart) you both!
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