Training Camp

My first semester of school is done and I am very happy with how I did. It is a lot of information to get through and to know but I am really enjoying it and am happy with how the first semester went...but now that finals are over I am enjoying a 2 week break before we begin again for the summer semester. On top of studying for my exams this week there was some more drama, you would think I would be used to it by now, lol...anyways all I can do is hope that eventually they will be able to move on from the anger and hurt and realize that things could go smoothly if we worked together and that is what I hope for... the girls and I are doing well and are getting through all the ups and downs of this past year....hard to believe a year has gone by but life has gone on and we are doing well and I know each year will get easier. So we just keep moving forward.

Since I have a break from school we decided to do some training...tri season is fast approaching and as we are working out what races we want to do, we thought it would be fun to get away and push ourselves...we had looked at a few options and decided to try something new. Barrie Shepley, the head coach for the Olympic Triathlon team for the Sydney games does a camp each year and this year we thought his camp in AZ would be a good fit for us. SV knew some of the guys who were going to be at the camp riding and it promised to have some great rides.

Getting here was a little hectic as our connecting flight was pulling away from the gate as we raced up, we ended up having to spend 2 hours in the Denver airport but it really wasn't too bad.

Day one was great, we headed to the pool which was at a resort for a nice little warm up swim, 4 of us did 4200 yards and I felt a little sluggish, SV and I think it could have something to do with the time difference and the altitude...we then headed to the park where Barrie's wife Caron, led the group in a yoga session, SV even gave it a go and said it wasn't so bad, lol! Later in the day we headed out for a ride...everyone was riding at least 70km and there was an option to continue on and do a 12 mile decent and then turn around and head back...we decided to do the extra but about half way down, I started thinking to myself that it may have been silly to do the extra as it meant 12 miles of climbing a 7% grade to get back up for the last 35km...in the end it wasn't that bad, I was tired as we rolled back to the condo's...total for the day was 110km and the legs could feel the climbing but I felt good so I was happy. We found a great little Mexican place and then crashed for the night!

Day 2 started bright and early as we drove over to Mt. Lemmon....I had heard about this ride and knew it was going to be a challenging one but I was looking forward to it...we started 4 miles away from the start of the climb and I was anxious, everyone was talking about how hard it was going to be and I was a little intimidated, but I figured I would just ride my own ride, stay where I was comfortable and I would get to the top when I got to the top. The ride starts at a sign that says mile 0 and ends at mile 25 and a cookie stand (there is an option to do an extra bit to the ski resort but I opted out of this for this ride) it ends up being 5500 feet of climbing and you reach over 8000 feet elevation and once you get to mile 22 there is snow on the mountain..... I ended up loving this ride, it was hard and challenging and at points I was begging for a break in the climbing just to have a minute of coasting but I felt strong and comfortable the entire way. There were tonnes of people out doing the climb and at tough sections I was motivated by the people who were on their way down...it looked awesome.

We got to the top and as promised the cookies were huge. We sat for a bit eating our cookies and talking with the other athletes before heading back down. There are 2 small areas of climbing as you head back out, that after eating a giant cookie and slice of pizza are really no fun at all....but the rest of the ride down was fast and fun and I have to admit at times pretty scary. We finished this ride and I was tired we had done 95km and the legs were happy to be done...and I had McDonald's fries for the first time in years (can't even remember the last time I had McDonald's french fries, but the salt was worth it!) Barrie and SV said that I did a good job and I can tell that all the trainer rides we did have really helped...I'm getting there! Now we are lying around having a beer and trying to get excited to head out for a short run and then head to the pool for a swim (which is going to be ugly but the pull buoy should help, lol) and then a team dinner....So far I am very impressed with Arizona for it's riding, we have done 2 rides and they were great ones! I have a feeling this camp is going to kick my butt a lot but hey that is what we are hoping for!!