I Had a Dream

Last night I had a very vivid dream about doing my first Triathlon. It was one of those that when you wake up, you really wonder if it happened. What keyed me into the fact that it was probably a dream was the fact I did the bike portion in 27 minutes and the running in 21 minutes! (talk about a good dream!) Apparently even in my dreams I block out the swimming though because there was nothing about that! Anyways, my excitement in my dream is just another motivation to really see this through!

I will....

I will go swim.
I will not be insecure about my swimming.
I will not be intimidated by the "real" swimmers.
I will remember that no one is paying attention to what I am doing but me.
I will stop putting this off.

In other events, I loaded up my bike and went to a local park to ride. It was gorgeous with several small hills to practice on. The bike routes were not really long enough and after a couple laps, it got boring so I think I will ride there next time in order to get enough miles in. It was a nice change of pace though and next time I will remember to take my camera since it is just about the only scenic ride I have been on in awhile.

Besides the swimming goal, I am also going to learn ride without my camelback and be able to reach down and grab a water bottle without becoming one with the road. Or on the road. You know what I mean. I have been riding long enough to have the balance to do it so it is time! I keep reminding myself how much cooler I will be without the camelback and that is helping to motivate me.

I have also figured out that my 10 year high school reunion is the same weekend as the Sprint Tri I had wanted to do. It was supposed to be my first and I am loath to put it off, but it keep going back and forth. Obviously a reunion is only held every few years and they have triathlons all the time, however I do spend a lot more time working out and thinking about working out than I ever do thinking about people from HS. Hmm....still time to work it out. If I can find one in the area the weekend before or after I guess that would help make up my mind.

Since Rachel Asked....

Our first show several years ago.

Blame Rachel for this post this is not about the kind of riding I usually blog about. This one is going to be about horses! Horses are really my passion. Unfortunately, they started to take over my life so that is when I decided to get another hobby that was really just a hobby and not let it consume me, which is why I started riding bikes. I wanted something I could do when I wanted to and feel no pressure to do it unless it was something I really felt like doing that day. Horses don't really work that way. If you don't go see them, they have a way of making you feel extremely guilty.

Anyways, I ride Dressage on a black Arabian horse names Czecher. Czecher thinks he is a Labrador and has tried to climb in my car before. He is truly the perfect male. He knickers when I whistle for him and comes running. When he ticks me off, I can lock him up and not see him until both of us have cooled off. When I find these qualities in a human male, it is possible I will consider keeping him too.

Currently Czecher and I are riding at 2nd and 3rd level and compete when we can afford it. Mostly right now, we do local shows. Which unfortunately I have to organize since I am president of our local Dressage club (see what I mean about this stuff taking over and not really being a hobby any more??). It really is a lot of fun, but a lot of work too. Luckily even though we have a small group here, we are all pretty active and there is a lot of enthusiasm.

This last weekend we put on a show that was really was more like a clinic. Everyone got a chance to ride their dressage test and then the judge coached them on what they could do better and then you got to ride your test again. It was just a cool training exercise so that way you could correct what you were doing wrong and then got a second chance! Wouldn't that be cool if you could do that in races? "I am sorry, that was a really bad swim, I am just going to fix that and come back and do it for real".

Anyways, that is a lowdown on this horse stuff I do. It is a lot of fun, but keeps me busy! I hope to get in some good bike rides this weekend so I can have something to blog about!

Sleepy Monday

Unfortunately, my weekend did not allow for as much training as I had hoped due to a horse show, but luckily, the rainy weather has stopped which makes commuting by bike possible again! This morning was wonderful and cool so it made the ride very enjoyable. I am sure this afternoon will be warmer, but it is still fun and makes me feel so much better in the afternoons.

I just got an email saying the Hotter N Hell 100 will have a trail run the morning after the bike race which I think will be a lot of fun. They offer a 5K, 10K, and Half Marathon. I think that will make for a great weekend...a 100K race on Saturday and then a 10K run on Sunday. They also offer a mountain bike ride on Friday afternoon, but I think I will skip that for now until I have a little more experience on mountain bike trails.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Book Advice

Ok, I am on an Amazon kick and I need your help. Best triathlon training books? Suggestions?

Tour De Nowhere

I love this name for a bike ride in Levelland, Texas. It is so appropriate! And the bike ride really did seem to take us to the middle of nowhere!
After way too few hours of sleep on Friday night and waking every hour afraid that I had over slept, I loaded up the car to make the 30 minute drive from Lubbock to Levelland. I ended up getting there before they even opened the registration desk. Oops. I at least had a full hour to sit there and get all of my stuff ready! Luckily I brought my ipod along and so I was able to sit there and try to relax before the race started.
This was a pretty small race; there were probably about a hundred riders spread among 5 courses. I really only saw about 10 people on mine. There was a nasty headwind that made me wish I had just stayed home and in bed. Luckily the race did a loop so the second half was bliss!! I was practically singing! In retrospect I wish I had done the 78 mile route, but that extra 35 miles could have made a huge difference between loving it and hating it. Plus it was nice just enjoying the morning and getting home early enough to take a short nap and then getting other things done in the day!
I think overall this was a good thing for me to do because each ride I do alone gets a little easier and the nerves calm a little more. And eventually maybe I will be able to convince someone to ride with me so I won't always be alone!

P.S. I got compliments on my super bright pink handlebar tape! From a guy!!

Shopping Trip

It just dawned on me that since I am going on a ride tomorrow, that means I can go shopping at the bike store! (yes, I know I am hardly going any distance at all, but I still get to go shopping!!) I need tubes, co2 cartriges, gu.......oh, maybe some new handlebar tape. Maybe they still even have that bright pink I wanted!!! Hmm...maybe this ride will be more fun that I though. I am such a geek. Is everyone like that about getting accessories from the bike store? I love going in and scoping out all of the bikes I can't afford and then finding all of the little random stuff that I don't have to have but want anyway. And the smell.....bike shops have a certain smell...and I love it! Mmm...nothing like the smell of new bike tires in the morning!

Bike Ride!

Yay! I found a bike ride in a town about 20 miles away that is this Saturday! Usually I spend a lot of time planning out which rides I am going to do but since I have not done a great job of planning this year, I decided to get on the ball and just take the plunge. Now, I just have to figure out how many miles I can do. Luckily they have a lot of mileage choices so if I am feeling wimpy that day, I can do a 30 or 44 mile route. :)

Stolen Tags

So I decided to steal a tag that has been going around just for fun.

10 years ago I was:
Just graduated from high school and getting ready to pack up and go to college where I thought life would be easy breezy and college life would be just like it was in the movies. WRONG!

5 years ago I was:
Completely consumed by a guy that I thought I would be with forever and certain I would die if we were not together. Still alive and kicking though and have moved on to much better! I was also just starting to get into cycling about this time.

1 year ago I was:
Is it bad I can remember 10 years ago more clearly than just last year? Egads. I honestly have no clue what I was doing except for this time of year I was probably frantically trying to get in shape to do the Hotter N Hell Hundred at the end of August.

5 things on my to do list today:
Go to Spinning
Wash my comforter and sheets. (stupid cat)
Attempt a run. Or at least a jog. Even a short one. Hmm..maybe a tennis game instead.
Cook something for dinner.
Attempt to reconcile with the stupid cat for being gone so much lately.

5 snacks I enjoy:
Anything with Avocado
Yogurt with blueberries and strawberries
Mixed nuts
Fiber One Bars
chips and dips

If I were a billionaire I would:
Quit my job.
Move out to the middle of nowhere and build a house with lots of trees.
Build a barn with a heated/cooled indoor arena.
Hire a personal trainer and nutritionist/chef.
Start a free bike program for kids.

5 jobs I have had:
Professional Sno-Cone Builder/Car wash attendant
Horse trainer/groom/teacher
Working at a company that made radiation monitors
Customer Service Rep for a bank
Trust Asset Associate

If you want to play, go right ahead!

Back From Vacation!

I am sorry about the lack of blogging during my vacation. I kept meaning to get online but at the end of the day, I was exhausted. Which was not a bad thing because I am one of those people that really feels like you should really try to fit in as much as possible every day of your vacation to really make the most of it. My boyfriend that I dragged along is the total opposite. I think he is still sleeping trying to catch up on sleep after being back for 3 days. :)
I was able to spend 7 wonderful days in Florida and we really did have a blast between the Disney Parks and a quick fishing trip. I have lofty goals to run every morning but a few things hampered my progress. First of all, the humidity. Yes, everyone know Florida is humid, but when you come from a very dry west Texas, it almost robs you of your ability to breathe. Second, walking 8 million miles in each of the Disney Parks each day chasing after various nieces and nephews really makes you feel like you have done a workout. Lastly, I just got tired and lazy.
Now that I am back I am very eager to get back on my schedule. It amazes me how quickly I lost what little toning I had before I left! And nutrition....really working on that again. Like eating things that actually might have some nutritional value. All good goals.
The best part about coming back from vacation.....catching up on all the blogs I read and seeing what people have been up to for the last few weeks! (Yes, I know I am a dork!)