Girly-Girl

On Wednesday morning I noticed a little cat on our back porch looking in our back door. Since I am a total cat-person and it's in my genetics (on my dad's side) to feed every cat that comes to my door, I brought this kitty a bowl of food. Now as you may or may not know, I have an 18 pound miniature horse that eats like a fiend. This tiny 5 pound cat easily out-ate my monster cat. She was so tiny and thin that I figured she must be a stray. She was super friendly though, so I wasn't sure. She came back to eat several times that day.

On Thursday morning she was back. We continued to feed her and keep her company. We were worried that she was a lost cat, so Janda checked the ads in the paper and he found one that might fit her. It was for a black and white cat who might be pregnant and who might be found in Gloucester or Rockport. We live pretty close to Rockport, but not that close, so we weren't too hopeful, but Janda left a message anyway. Before we went to the parade last night we fed her again and I christened her Girly-Girl.

This morning she was back. She is just a total sweetheart of a cat and she would eat an army's worth of food and then hang around with me or Janda for a while. Late this morning Janda got a phone call from the people who had placed the ad, Feline Rescue of Cape Ann. Apparently a very pregnant cat had escaped from its foster home on our very street! There was only one problem, this cat was now very thin. So we spent a couple of hours hunting for the kittens. We knew that Girly-Girl had found a dry place to hang out because after every rain storm she would saunter over to our porch completely dry, so that was a good hint. Janda found a broken window that lead into a teeny-tiny crawl space at our neighbor's house and Girly-Girl was very protective of that area, so we are almost sure that her kittens are somewhere in that crawl space, but we can't verify it because it is so small. Girly-Girl might also have an infection of some sort, so now we are feeding her, giving her medicine and hopefully creating some sort of shelter on our back porch that will make her want to bring the kittens to it when they are a little older.

The situation isn't exactly under control, but at least we know what's going on with Girly-Girl. We still can't be sure about her health or the health of any kittens, so please send Girly-Girl and her kittens your best wishes!

Last weekend

This past weekend was crazy busy for me and Janda. In Gloucester our annual Fiesta took place this past weekend, so there was more than usual to do here in town.

It all started on Thursday with a cookout at our friends place. We walked over, had some good food and conversation and walked back.

Then on Friday our friends had another cookout and then did a little dancing downtown. We walked home in time for the US Olympic Trials for track and field and we got to see local favorite Shalane Flanagan (who ran in my conference in high school) win a very exciting women's 10K.

On Saturday we celebrated my mom's birthday. My mom loves crepes, so I made them for dessert. They were so good- I tried a new recipe and they came out better than ever. After my mom's party Janda and I headed down to Hingham. One of Janda's clients was going to be in the same race as Janda on Sunday, so he invited us to stay with his sister in Hingham the night before the race. That was extremely nice of Alex and his sister and it worked out great for us. Alex, his sister and her husband kept us in stitches until it was time for bed.

Sunday was race day so we got up nice and early before 5am and we were all on the road around 6. Alex and Janda rode their bikes down to transition and I hoofed the 2 miles there. Cohassett was obviously very beautiful, but we could barely see it it was so foggy! Practically everyone that Janda and I know who do triathlons was there, so it was a pretty fun race. Janda and all his athletes did really well,so it was a good day all around.

Janda finishing.

Janda on the podium with Olympian Jarrod Shoemaker.

After the race we went back to Alex's sister's house and had a nice BBQ. His sister's house is built practically in the woods and we saw deer, turkeys and rabbits. It was pretty neat until we saw a coyote stalking Alex's dog! Luckily once Alex saw the coyote we all jumped up and scared him off.

After the BBQ we headed for home and then headed out to Fiesta. We watched the Seine boat races and the Greasy Pole. Then we got some carnival food and walked around the Fiesta a little bit before heading home. Later that evening we watched more track until about 1am!

All in all it was one busy weekend and I slept about 12 hours over the course of Monday!

This Week in Training

Again, I can't remember what day I did which workouts, but here's what I remember from last week.

1 17 mile bike ride
1 40 mile bike ride
1 easy sprint workout (50's)
1 4 mile run
1 3 mile run

Over the course of July my pre-season training will be becoming more and more structured. This week I'm throwing in body weight exercises and this week or next I'll probably start hitting the weightroom again.

This Week in Training

This past week of school we had finals and my last one was on Wednesday morning, so it was a pretty laid-back week for me and I managed to get in a few training sessions.

I can't remember what I did when, but here's the list:
3 3-4 mile runs
1 easy sprint workout at the track (50's)
1 hard 18 mile bike ride
1 easy 33 mile bike ride

I'm going to keep it relaxed this week also, but then I'll start doing a more structured base training schedule the first week of July. This past year was my worst ever for training and racing, so I'm really going to focus on getting where I need to be for Sept and pre-season training. All of my training will be dedicated to being absolutely ready for pre-season sprint training for Sept and October so that I can begin hard-core training in November. That's what has worked in the past, so that's what I going back to. The most important thing is to not burn out or get injured this summer and make it through wanting more.

Summer's Here!

School's out for the summer!

I am so unbelievably excited that summer is here. 2 months to pursue my own interests and not be stuck driving to Marblehead every day, especially since the cost of driving there doubled since i got my job. It's also a good thing that I only have one more class to take in Cambridge for my Master's, b/c that certainly adds to my gas expenses.

There are a lot of fun things planned for this summer. Janda and I will be going to Rhode Island 70.3, Canada, Timberman and then back to Canada in September, right after school begins. In between all of his trips I have a to do list about ten miles long.

Three cheers for summer!

Eagleman 70.3

Boy was it a hot weekend in Maryland (and everywhere on the East coast) last weekend! We left Boston on Friday with temperatures for the previous two days having been in the 50’s and 60’s. When we got the BWI at 8:30pm that night it was already hot. It was quite a shock for us as we’ve had a mild spring this year.

A high school friend of Janda lives in Alexandria, VA, so we headed down to his place. We didn’t think that it would take that long, but we must’ve chosen the wrong route b/c the traffic was insane. It wasn’t just heavy, it was actually stop and go at 11pm. After an incredibly long ride we finally arrived. Rob’s place was really nice and it was also air-conditioned, so that was great. The next morning Janda and I went for runs. I only did about 25-30 minutes plus 50m strides and I was actually drenched. I could tell that Sunday was going to be a tough day.

After breakfast we headed back up to MD. Another high school buddy of Janda’s that was staying with Rob took us on the scenic tour and we got to see all of the sights of DC, although from afar! The ride wasn’t too bad and we got to packet pick-up in plenty of time. After Janda got everything that he needed, we headed over to our homestay. We have really lucked out at Eagleman, getting an awesome homestay that is only about 3 minutes from transition. The woman, Marge, who so generously opened her home to us, is a graduate of my alma mater, Drew University, and just a fun person. We talked to her for a while and then headed out for a quick lunch. After lunch it was time for the pro meeting, shake-out ride and swim and then bike racking.

Finally at about 6:45 we headed out with Marge to meet up with one of Janda’s athletes, Dave, his wife and their friends. Janda has athletes all over the country, some of whom he never meets, but at races we often get to meet these guys and girls- luckily there are pictures on Janda’s blog! Dinner was ok and we had fun talking to the other couples. It was Dave’s birthday so his wife got an awesome cheesecake sampler, so that was a nice ending to the meal. Then it was back to Marge’s and off to bed.

Janda in transition

The next morning it was already hot by 5 when I went outside to take a picture of the sunrise. Yikes! We had some breakfast and headed over to transition to get ready. Janda had just gotten into transition when the announcement was made that the swim would be wetsuit illegal, contrary to the announcement made in the pro meeting on Saturday. I could tell that Janda was a little worried about that, but he shook it off. He did all of his pre-race stuff and then it was time to race.

Janda's in the middle, adjusting his goggles.

Wetsuit-less, Janda headed off on the swim. I found a nice place to sit by the swim finish and started waiting. About 20 minutes later the first guys started hitting the pavement. Then a few minutes later the mid-pack guys and the girls started coming in. Then, just when I was about to send out the Coast Guard to look for the body, Janda made it to shore, in a personal worst swim time! I felt so bad for him- after this past track season I know how PW’s feel. Not quite as nice as PR’s!

I ran over to transition to encourage him, hoping that it was bad swim and not a bad day. After I saw him off on his bike, I went back to Marge’s, dropped off our stuff and went out for a run. Even at 7:30 it was hot and sunny! I ran pitifully slow for a while and then ended up finding a spot in the shade to watch the bikes come back in and then the run out and back in. Even though it was at least in the 80’s, the humidity was so high that for the 2ish hours that I sat there, my running clothes didn’t dry! After about an hour of waiting and watching the age groupers go by, the first pros started trickling in. Janda’s Craft teammate Chris Bagg was riding in 2^nd when his group went by me. He ended up posting the fastest bike split of the day. Janda came by a few minutes later in about 12-13^th place. He was looking pretty good and moving up, so I was glad to see that his bike was going reasonably well.

Janda coming in on the bike.

The first pro runners started coming by and a few of them were already complaining to the spectators about the humidity as they went by the 2.5 mile mark. I was glad to see that Janda had already passed one or two guys by the time he got to me, so I was very encouraged. On the way back, he had passed a couple more and was looking pretty well in control. I raced down to the chute to see his finish. He had run his way into 9^th place (we didn’t realize that he had gotten 8^th until Monday actually, when we found out that someone in front of him was DQ’d). Of course he was toast after that race, so he chilled in the water for a little while and then we headed back to Marge’s to clean up.

Janda sizzling on the run.

After cleaning up, hanging out a little, eating a little and packing, we headed back to the airport. This year we got there in plenty of time and good thing that we did. After we had gotten out boarding passes and began to look for a dinner spot, Janda realized that he had left his cell phone in the rental car. He quickly began calling the rental car place and we hopped back on the shuttle to the car drop-off. Luckily the phone was indeed there, so we grabbed it and managed to hop back on the same shuttle. We were back in a half and hour. Then we managed to grab dinner, and get on our flight, which was delayed 15 minutes getting back into Boston. We finally got home to Gloucester around midnight.

I know that Janda wasn’t pleased with his race, but I think that he did a good job in a tough situation. It’s hard to play catch up for nearly 70 miles, but he did it and didn’t give up. I know that if he had had a better swim and had been able to actually race the other guys he would’ve had a great race. The good news is that Janda thinks that he pinpointed his swim problem and has already begun working it out, so I think that the guys at the next race will have their hands full with Janda!

Unfortunately with the end of school and all of the functions that I've had to attend, etc..., my training has been pretty sporadic. I've decided to finish this week out just doing whatever I want and then resume structured training next Monday.

Columbia Tri

Before it’s time for the next race, I should get to the first one, don’t you think?

Janda in transition before the race

May 16th Janda and I went on our first triathlon trip of the year to the Columbia Triathlon in Maryland. We dropped the kitties off at my parent’s house and we were in the air at 6:30. We made it into MD at 8ish, got our luggage and the rental car and took off. Luckily our hotel was pretty close to the airport, less than a half an hour. After we found our hotel, we kept driving down the street in search of food. We found a supermarket, so we got the supplies for the weekend. By the time we finished that, the only restaurant in the area that was still open was Burger King. I don’t mind fast food once in a while, and I suffer no adverse effects from eating it, like some people, but eating it at 10:30 at night wasn’t the best. My salad and burger were pretty good though, and I always like a good french fry.

The next morning I went for a short run, 15 minutes out and back. After I saw what was around our hotel, I was pretty glad that we just stopped at the Burger King and didn’t go looking for another restaurant- we wouldn’t have had much luck. After my shower Janda and I headed to the race course. We weren’t sure exactly where to go, so we got directions to the park from the desk clerk. We got back on the highway that we had been on the previous night- but you can only go one way, so we had to get off at the next exit and turn around. Now on the other side of the highway, we drove to the next exit past our hotel. We got off at that exit and turned right. At the next stoplight I realized that we were at the intersection with the Burger King, which I had just run past that morning. We definitely wasted 10 minutes getting back on the highway, turning around etc… when we could have just made one right turn. I don’t know where that desk clerk was from but he clearly wasn’t from Columbia!

Anyway, we got to the park and got directions to the packet pick-up from one of Janda’s athletes. After a slight misstep, we got there in plenty of time. We stopped at the mall across the street for lunch and they had my favorite Japanese food- Teriyaki chicken, white rice and steamed vegetables. As usual, Janda ate all of his and half of mine. Honestly, I don’t even know how he fits so much food in his stomach!

Next we headed back towards the park and drove the bike course. It was out and back with a loop, so Janda hopped out and did a spin around the loop to get used to the hills and turns. I kept driving ahead, taking pictures and waiting for him. It was a beautiful, rural area.

The rolling hills on the bike course.

The cows on the bike course.

After his spin, we headed back to the park and he racked his bike in transition. It was pretty cool to see his stuff down there with Macca’s and the other pros. Next we hit the pro meeting. Figuring it would be a pretty big room and there would be plenty of extra space, I went with Janda. It was a small room with not much extra space, so I tried to be unobtrusive standing by the door. It didn’t work, the race director insisted that I sit at the table and the head official said that I should save my legs for the next day. Since all I would be doing was spectating, I laughed on the inside. A couple of other pros had someone with them, so I didn’t feel that bad, but it was funny.

On our way back to the hotel we drove the run course also. It was also an out and back loop, half on trails, half on the street. The section out on the street looked pretty challenging, if you ask me. We stopped at a little Italian place for dinner- it was ok. Then back to the hotel for a little packing up and little TV watching. We watched most of Hitch, a Will Smith movie, but we didn’t get to see the end. I guess that we’ll have to rent it sometime.

Nice sunrise.

The next morning we were up at 4:30 and on the road by about 5:15. We ate a little breakfast, got our stuff to the car and headed over to the park. There was plenty of parking and we got a pretty good spot, a 1 minute walk from transition in one direction and a 1 minute walk from the start and finish in the other. Janda got everything all set and then we headed to the swim start. At this race they get the athletes in the water only a couple of minutes before the start. They got to swim around a few strokes and then tread water waiting for the start. The swim went pretty well for Janda, 20:22 for a 1500m, and he was only 3:30 out of 5th place.

It's hard to tell, but I swear that's Janda warming up.

Janda's so fast, he's a blur coming out of transition.

I didn’t get to see him until he came back in on the bike, but by then he was less than 3 minutes out of 5th place. He had a really good bike, averaging 24. for a very hilly course. He headed out on the run and I raced over to the 2 mile mark to cheer him on. When I saw him he was closing in on a couple of people. I headed back to the finish and waited for him to arrive. The first 4 guys came in pretty well separated. Then I could see the 5th place guy and Janda crossing the road about a ¼ mile from the finish. Janda made up a lot of space on the 5th place finisher, but didn’t have quite enough to pass him, so Janda ended up in 6th place, only 3 seconds behind the 5th place guy (who beat Janda out of the water by nearly 4 and 1/2 minutes- I guess that we know what Janda will be doing with the extra time he has once he leaves teaching!). Janda had a pretty good day on the run, he was less than 30 seconds off the run course record and had the second fastest run- 34:14. The guy who had the fastest run, Dereck Treadwell, had an awesome run and smashed the course record by nearly 2 minutes, 32:04. Yikes!

After the race we hung around for the award ceremony and then we headed off to get a shower and lunch. After lunch we hung out at Barnes and Noble for a while since we had been up since 4:30 and needed some rest. Then we went to Baltimore to kill some time before our 8:55 flight.

Historic Baltimore.

Janda on the Coast Guard ship.

Janda's famous (again)!

Check out my boyfriend, soon-to-be-famous triathlete, Janda at Slowtwitch!

http://www.slowtwitch.com/Interview/Meet_Janda_Ricci-Munn_349.html