Danskin

This is not a triathlon I would have signed up for, but through the Tri Babes I ended up being a mentor and that gave me a free slot. And I don't know if you know this, but triathlons are expensive, like $80/race. And because I like splaving, I raced.

This race is a woman-only event and geared towards newbies. This was most evident in the swim. I was in the 7th wave, and the waves were starting every 3 minutes. By the time I got to the first buoy, the race course looked like a ship wreck. There were hundreds of women bobbing up and down with about 5 different wave cap colors. So, the rest of the swim was spent navigating around the floaters.

The bike course was similar, an out on back on narrow roads. It was hard to get in a groove. And it was hard because I was so excited about my new aero helmet that I forgot my sunglasses:



And I ran better than I did in the 5430 sprint, but still not as well as in May.





I hung around to see results and was VERY surprised to see I placed 4th in the 30-34 age group. However, I think there was something weird going on with the 30-34s, I would have been 14th in 25-29 and 7th in 35-39 AND 40-44. But I'll take it :)

Father's Day

Well, I think we had a pretty awesome Father's Day. My family spent the morning with me out at Boulder Res while I raced.

In the afternoon, Jeremy gave the boys much needed buzz cuts:





The buzz cuts are far from perfect, but will be serviceable for the summer. And our obligatory Father's Day picture:

5430 Sprint

Today's triathlon went well, but not quiet as awesome as last month's. By several accounts, the swim was a bit long. I felt like I did pretty well given I was in another big wave and there was a lot of contact. Plus, the timing mat was at the transition area instead of at the edge of the water. So my swim was 2 minutes longer than the Summer Open.

The bike is always my strongest leg. The Summer Open was 3 loops and practically flat. The 5430 has some up and down and real hills. My average speed dropped from 21.4mph to 19.7, and the course was also 5 miles longer.



And the run is where I'm most disappointed. It was hot and I didn't push as hard as I could. My 5k time was over 30 minutes, 2 minutes longer than last month. But I'm nitpicking, overall it was a good race.

Here I am in the middle, post race with the Tri Babes:



Me and my coach, Andie:



And I gave Jeremy the camera and he got 3 pictures. On of me on the run which was NOT flattering, one of the kids playing at the Res, and me post race:

June 18, 2009

Today, I had guest visitor Hannah. We have swimming lessons Tuesday and Thursday mornings so Hannah swam too:



Adam in his lesson, working with one of the helper boys. He looks like he's 11. He usually helps with Ariel's class:



Ariel and her class walking to the deeper pool to jump in. And by jump in, I mean the instructor gently lowers them and then bounces a few times:



Ariel coming back from the deep end:



And then we all swam together for another 90 minutes after class:



Hannah was intrigued by the noodles. And the fountains:



Ariel under the mushroom fountain:



Alex looking pensive as he sat in the sun to get warm:



Hannah checking out a ball and the pool:



So the problem with Hannah is she's two. She doesn't stay where you put her and she doesn't follow well in a little duck line. But I did manage to shower Ariel and comb her hair and get 4 kids and myself dressed without loosing anyone in the locker room.

On the way home we stopped by Taco Bell and Ariel demanded a pizza so that's what the girls had for lunch. How would Ariel even know they had pizza? They each had 2 slices and a banana.

And then it was nap time. I put Hannah down in my bed and after some mild mischief, she fell asleep:



Hannah woke up around 3:20 but was content to finish watching Madagascar with the boys and then eat more "nacks." I was out of Dee-Dee entertainment.

June 10, 2009

I must admit, so far this summer is underwhelming. I had plans for fun outings every day and so far, between my workouts and the boys' swim lessons, we haven't been doing much. The boys and I did go the the Aquarium on Monday. We took the wrong exit and also visited the capital. And who knew, Adam seems to inherited my irration fear of heights. He would not get without a foot of the balcony edge of the rotunda.

Yesterday, all three kids did their swim lessons and then spent an hour in daycare while I ran. And I ran by that red-winged blackbird again, but I was prepared and waved my hat and he didn't get within 5' of me. I also noticed that several people have outwitted that bird by going off the path and through a parking lot for that section. And then we met Ellen at Horizons and all the kids played pretty well for 90 minutes.

Today I had a chiropractor appointment and boy did I need it. I could feel I needed an adjustment the muscle testing showed both sides of my glutes were off. Gah. I probably need to go in twice a week, but I can barely afford once. Then I put the kids in daycare and went for a bike ride. I was half way up Old Stage when the nursery called and said Ariel wasn't feeling well. So I turned around. I think that's the first time I've ever had to call it quits on a hill, and I was almost up the steepest part. I did still get in almost an hour ride so it will do for today. And on the way home I went by the blackbird and he was attacking another runner. She looked very scared.

So Ariel's malady seems to be a slight fever, lethargy and extreme crankiness. We went home and she went right down for a nap.

The picture of the day is a female Broadtailed hummingbird that came to our feeder today. We saw a male on 5-29 and no activity between. Last year we had Rufous Hummingbirds but they migrate all the way up to Alaska and don't make it back down to Colorado until July. They are also agressive and will chase away the Broadtails so we'll see if we get the Broadtails to visit more.

June 4, 2009

Finally, a blog worthy day. In the morning, Ariel had her first swim lesson. She'll be going Tuesday and Thursdays with Alex and Adam (they are also doing Monday and Wednesday nights).

She sang songs:



And blew bubbles and practiced floating. She had a great time, even though it was cool and overcast. And Zach from preschool is in her class too.



After lessons, I put the kids in daycare and did a run. When I was almost back to the gym, a red winged blackbird assaulted me. Not only did it dive bomb me, but it grabbed the back of my hair. Startling, to say the least. And I *like* birds.

Next, we dined at Taco Bell. Apparently Ariel ate her first full bean burrito today, and it only took 40 minutes to eat it.

And then, we hit the Longmont Mall for the Crocs warehouse sale. There was a bit of a line:



It took us a bit over 30 minutes to get in the door. All the kids got shoes, and I realize if this was a proper blog post, I'd have pictures. Ariel got pink Sleeping Booty crocs, Alex got a regular pair in "mango" and Adam got sandals with two velco straps. Each pair was $10. Not sure if it was worth the drama, but Alex didn't have crocs for the summer yet and Adam needed sandals. Ariel, however, needs shoes about as much as her mother does.

All these activities took us to about 4:15. When we got home, Ariel was asleep in the car, and that's where I left her.