Lewiston Duathlon

The day started bright and early at 4:15am. Not because I needed to get up that early but because I just couldn't sleep any longer-it's that darn "pre-race sleep" (or lack thereof). Laura showed up at my house at 5:50am, we put her bike on the rack and we were off to get Haley. After a Starbucks stop and a mapquest debacle we hit the road with no directions in hand but we'd been there before-how hard could it be?


About an hour into the roadtrip, it started snowing....really snowing. We were all laughing out loud at the fact that the warm weather we were hoping for was disappearing before our eyes. Haley took some pictures out the window as we drove through the snow......


Haley got us there without the need for one turn around. Better than last year WITH directions. We got all ready to race and frankly just wanted to get the darn thing goin. A few minutes after 10am, we hit the pavement. This was a 2 mile run, 12 mile bike, 2 mile run. Just like at the Snake River Half marathon, I had some particular pacing goals in mind. This seems to work well for me and I was able to efficiently execute my plan at this duathlon.

I felt great on the run. One girl passed me within the first 1/4 mile and I ended up passing her before the 1 mile mark. Got into T1, had a smooth transition and was off on the bike. I was hollering at anyone I knew out on the course (that's my favorite thing about local races, seeing familiar faces out on the course and being able to cheer for one another). I saw Haley coming back on the bike as I was still going out. I knew she was the lead woman. Once I got to the turn around, I realized I didn't see any other women behind Haley. That meant I was in second place. I got onto the run and was watching everyone coming back from the turn around. Again, no women behind Haley. I really was in second!

I came in 2nd place and was really happy about that. I had another good race and felt like I paced myself really well yet pushed myself hard at the end even though I wasn't trying to catch anyone.

I was able to go back and run the last little bit with Laura as she came to the finish line. Sam had gone out on the course and found her and was cheering her on too. I was SO proud of her! She gave a great effort and held off the woman that was closing in behind her. She also beat her 'can do' time. Nice job girly! Congrats to Haley on reclaiming her Lewiston title. Here she is getting her lovely trophy.

We had a good time hanging out with friends after and goofing off even though we were freezing our butts off. Congrats to Laura for doing her first race of the season and really pushing it! I am really looking forward to our Wildflower road trip! Congrats also to Michael Berquist for winning for the men, Haley for winning for the women, Sam for getting third overall and winning his age group, and Jen, Francie and Stan all placing in their age groups! Nice work guys. It was a blast to hang out with ya'all! Here's our group shot.

Haley drove my car back so I could eat. Both Laura and Haley had something to eat after the race but I didn't. By the time we waited for awards and got all packed up and hit the road, I was starving. This is a shot of Haley really concentrating on the road and experiencing the "Turbo Volvo Experience".

Snake River Half Marathon

Well, Saturday was the first "race" of 2008 for me. It was a half marathon. Haley, Annie and I headed out on the road together with bikes in tow (for riding after) at about 7am. We got there with plenty of time to spare (thanks Coops) and warmed up while the wind kicked up. I think we all were pretty excited to be racing again and were anxious to see what we could do. Initially, we thought we'd have a head wind going out and a tail wind coming back.....I was happy if that was going to be the case. The gun went off and the wind seemed to blow a bit from every direction with a few gusts here and there but nothing horrible. Then there was the turn around-WOW. The wind was gusty, strong and never blew consistently from one direction. I was able to draft off of a guy for about a mile or so but it was difficult because I couldn't ever find a spot behind him that blocked the wind. Then I had to bust out to pick up my pace the last mile. My total time was 1:36:48. The consensus was that the course was a smidge long (more like 13.2). This was a PR for me. I had a plan going into the race and I was able to execute it, quite efficiently, even with the wind. And for that, I'm very happy. And I'm always happy when I can take a road trip with friends!

Here's Vicki and I enjoying the post race snacks :)


Here are Haley, Annie, myself and Vicki after the race during awards. We were huddled together because it was really windy and we were cold. Thanks for keeping me warm Vicki!


Annie, Me and Vicki

Here's a group picture of some of our club members that raced. From left to right, Martin & Vicki Scates, Mark Wyborney, myself, Stan Foster, Steve Rupe, Tim Swanson, Kirk Wood-Gaines & Mia Bertagnoli. Not pictured are Eric Worden, Amanda & Michael Berquist, Katie & Jake.


Here's our road trip crew. I placed 2nd in my age group, Annie (1:27:22 got 3rd overall (2 seconds behind 2nd) and Haley (1:24:32) won the whole darn thing (notice that her ribbon is thicker than ours ;). Both of these girls give me great motivation, they are extremely talented and hard working. Not to mention, really supportive friends. Thanks for a great day girls!

After Annie and I dropped Haley off at home, we decided that a lettuce burger (thanks for turning me on to those, Jessi) at Red Robin was sounding quite scrumptious. We hadn't yet ridden our bikes because it was terribly windy out. Here we are, happy with full bellies.

After we ate, Annie headed home to ride on the trainer and I went for a beautiful, sunset ride by myself. What a great way to end a challenging day. Looking forward to the next race!!