Pain, Agony, Glory

This was a beautiful, brutal weekend. On Saturday morning in Athens, TX, our team ran the 22nd Annual Athens Triathlon: 300 m swim, 14 mile bike and 5K run - it was good practice to run the course among 400 other runners, though I learned a few lessons about fueling during the race. I really dragged during the run (worst run ever). The sun was shining and the people were great, though. Athens was charming. All in all, a glorious day.

THEN, yesterday, Bret and I rode out the Trinity River trail to Benbrook to meet the cycling team, rode the cycling course, and then rode back home on the trail. Total trip: 55 miles. THEN we went for a run. This is getting a little insane... Love it. The worst part of cycling 55 miles is in the neck and shoulders. I've got a permanent shrug going on...

20 days till the race.

Last few weeks...

OK - we're down to the last few weeks of training before the big race in Hawaii... Everyone is in good shape and doing crazy things (like riding for 2 hours before breakfast, swimming til 10pm, etc). I don't know who these people are, but they're out there doing it.

Ed Bradley

Again, I'm behind on the posts, but I've been meaning to post this for some time now... Great story on NPR revealed so many things about Ed Bradley (who died of leukmia in November). Apart from his incredible journalistic accomplishments (one of the last Americans out of Saigon, wounded and crying, getting loaded onto a helicopter; his interview of Lena Horne, in which he seemed to fall in love with her; Cambodian refugee crisis; Oklahoma City bombing; etc, etc), he had an alter ego, "Teddy Badly", who would join his friends on stage for his rendition of "60 Minute Man". Incredibly interesting life...

Peter Boyle

This may be old news, but Peter Boyle died of multiple myeloma (a type of blood cancer) and heart disease on 12/12. I didn't see Young Frankenstein, but Damn he was great on Everybody Loves Raymond. He had 5 Emmy nominations for that show, and an interesting life... Among other mentionables, John Lennon was the best man at his wedding.

Inspirational Pic

OK - here's one to keep me going. This is from the 2005 NYC marathon, with me there on the right looking extremely cool. I know I can get that fist up in the air! If I just concentrate. And close my mouth.

*Apologies to running partners Andrew Persson (l) and (now IronMan) Major David Rozelle (c). Great NBC coverage on Saturday, David - now THAT was inspiring.

Blogging

OK - I haven't been posting here for the past 5(?) weeks because I've been training so much! [Ed. note - this is totally false]. Ahh, were that it were true. I have been sticking to a good training regimen, due to the support and encouragement of elite athletes and uber-bloggers Team Starr, but that's not the reason for my lack of posts. Truth is, I'm trying to overcome my aversion to writing down my thoughts and feelings for the multitudes (you should see the hits on this site!). So, for now, I'll just catalogue my/our accomplishments as they happen, and leave the rest to fate.

So. The past week has included the following workouts:

Saturday - 4 mile run (7:30am), Swim workouts for about an hour or more
Sunday - skip the White Rock Marathon in favor of a Salvadoran feast with Andy Brown and the Nurse. Team Starr went riding in the wind and rain, uphill.
Monday - Swim workout for 30 min(?) at the Ft. Worth YMCA - the pool there is dirtier than at the Sid Richardson center, but much more convenient. Nice gym, too.
Tuesday - Spin Class! A previously ridiculed pastime has turned into a habit. It's actually fun, and the cheesier the music, the better. We got jiggy with it just a few weeks ago, in fact. Still, no spandex here - rocking the camo long shorts, much to the chagrin of the rest of the class... Rocky would be proud, I hope.
Wednesday - Bret and I went for a 6am run at the track down the block. Slow run mixed with sprints for 30 minutes - still riding the high from that (hence all the typing going on here). Will crash shortly - right after lunch...

New Kid On The Team

hi all - new to the totally rocking team, and I have a long way to go!!!

looking forward to it.

more soon...