Xterra 20 k White Tanks

I came back from Germany with a souvenir: a bug that caused nausea and a nasty headache. After traveling for close to 15 hrs (10:10 hr flight Germany - Denver,  1:50 hr flight Denver - Phoenix + lay over) I was ready to get off this machine. It really is not fun to sit on an airplane for over 10 hours feeling like you have to throw up any second (and I had the window seat, that could have been fun for the two next to me :-)

The next day felt exactly the same, so I mainly slept all day and complained to JR about it :-) Hihihi. 

Friday I started to feel better so I tackled a 45 min run. Saturday I also ran and everything felt 80% normal. Probably a few pounds lighter then usual due to the bug JR and I took off to go to the White Tanks for the Xterra 20 k Sunday.

Elevation

Elevation Gain:	1,946 ft
Elevation Loss:	1,998 ft
Min Elevation:	1,476 ft
Max Elevation:	2,896 ft

This is what my garmin gave me for elevation changes. YIKES. The race went out on a really pretty (aka easy) trail for about 2 miles before you had to run up a mountain. It seriously looked like a Grand Canyon Trail. I just shuffled along, feeling really good. Check out the elevation profile for this thing.

http://www.aztrailrace.com/code/documents/WhiteTanks19kelevation.pdf

My plan was...well I had no plan. I think you just have to go by feeling on long trail runs. Go with the flow. I hit some 6:XX min miles and also some 9:XX miles, depending on the up or down. 

The top of the hill gave us a fantastic view. The twists and turns were super tight and dangerous if you come around the corner too hot. The 1 mile ridiculously steep uphill felt like a stair stepper :-) On the downhill I just tried to go with how I feel, and it felt great. Until this happened:

My trail leg caught on a rock and as my garmin showed me I went down at 6:18 pace screaming down a rocky trail. According to my garmin I sat there for 2 min and 12 seconds (moving time vs finishing time), I honestly thought I broke my knee cap. I could not bend my leg. But what choice did I have, I was 4 miles from the finish in the middle of nowhere so I might as well shake it out and try to run :-)

My Garmin data:

Timing

Time:	1:39:20
Moving Time:	1:39:05
Elapsed Time:	1:41:17

The next 2 miles were still downhill and I hobbled 1 until my leg just went numb and then I just let off the breaks for the other mile. I am already bleeding so how much more can it hurt to crash again right?

Unfortunately I never found a gear on the flat part anymore and had to slow down by a lot :-( I wasted around 5 min stopping/hobbling, but despite that it was most likely the most beautiful run you can do in Phoenix. The good news is that the run (until the drop) felt great and almost too easy for a race. Maybe the three day unexpected taper helped :-)

The loop is amazing and the race organization was GREAT. I mean at one point I saw 4 ARROWS in one corner to help us stay on track. And the volunteers in the middle of nowhere were fantastic. Yet, some people still managed to run the wrong way :-)

As I got on the last 500 m this guy came up from a different trail. All of the sudden he says: You cut the course. I was like: What? I was following the other guys where did you come from? All he said was: I went the right way. And then he challenged me to a sprint to the finish. All I knew is that a guy who calls me a cheater has to go down in this sprint :-) He never passed me - hihihi. As soon as we finished I asked him what the mileage on his GPS says...11.7. Aehhhhmmm, Mister I hate to break it to you but YOU are actually the cheater because I had 12.42 miles on mine :-)

There were a bunch of people coming from that "wrong" trail, but it is too difficult to say who did and who didn't run the full 12.4...unfortunate for the ones who ran the right amount and therefore .7 miles longer.

Anyways, shit happens. Everyone still had a ton of fun. I can't wait for the Xterra race number three. I hear it is less rocky :-) Maybe my knees will be safe.

Here are Teri and me on the podium. She is a rockstar!!!

 So glad I wore arm warmers. Only minimal scratches on the elbows...and everyone always laughs that I wear the compression socks as crash guards but today they safe a lot of skin :-)

 JR also had a great race finishing 5 th overall and 2nd in his crazy competitive age group.

 All cleaned up. I had to skip my evening run but tomorrow I will be back at it. Unfortunately my wedding ring also took a beating in the race :-( I am glad diamonds are tough as the diamond-holder on the ring broke but the diamond itself looks as sparkly as always. Off to the wedding ring hospital tomorrow - glad JR got insurance with the ring (he knows me well :-)!!!

See you later Germany :-(

Every vacation comes to an end and so it was time to pack my bags and leave the motherland...when   got to the airport in Frankfurt I just had to take a picture of these guys...they are like speedy delivery people riding bikes like crazies through the airport. But hey, I think it is a genius idea: get stuff done fast, get a workout in and get paid!!! He was so fast the pics are all blurry :-(

Now I am back in the US and enjoying the wonderful Arizona winter weather!!!

Family fun

The toughest part about being away from Germany is not to see my family that much :-( My family is super close, we hold together like glue.

One of my brothers has two little ones: one three year old and one 8 months old. Both are sooooo cute. Unfortunately I only get to see them once or twice a year... just like the rest of my family :-(

So whenever we do get together we totally enjoy things. Today we toured my old track-club grounds in Renningen, my first ever track club, where I learned to race the 800 m and where I learned that I am...yeah...well...not that great in throwing events (javelin, discus and shot put)... After joining the club I stuck with being a middle distance runner.

Here are my family and I walking along the track/sports complex in Renningen:

 again: great running trails

 There might be a future pole vaulter in my family!!!

 Saying hello to some statues. They looked lonely.

Then we went home and cheered on the German SKI JUMPING team!!! Ski jumping is really really famous over here. And guess what: we also cheered for the one and only AMERICAN in the field... Lets just say that he didn't win, but at least there is a USA member in the competition :-)

 Not sure why Ski Jumping hasn't taken off in the US yet. IT IS SO INTERESTING!!!

 We definitely enjoyed it.

 The little one preferred practicing his crawling skills. For 8months of age he is a very speedy little man.

Lucky for me my brother and his family are coming over to Phoenix to visit me in a few months and I can't wait to show them and the kids Arizona, with Cactus, Citrus trees and maybe some Scorpions and Rattle Snakes (preferably behind glass :-)

Since my trip ends pretty soon I had to stock up on some things I can't get in the US...Ritter Sport Chocolate is already in my suitcase, Haribo was bought today and Ouzo also found its way onto my bag.

It is amazing to compare ingredients of GERMAN MADE Haribo to Not-sure-where-made Haribo that you can get in the US. First of all they have much more variety in German bought Haribo, like GINGER-LEMON, but the ingredients also differ. Same with the Chocolate. So I always have to stock up on JR and my favorites :-) And if you can, have someone bring you a sample from Europe so that you can taste the difference for yourself.

On the running front: 1.5 hr run through the forest, lots of mud, lots of sun, perfect temperature and tons of perfect trails. One week until the next XTerra trail run - but that will be in Phoenix :-)

Germany for Christmas

It shouldn't be a surprise to people who know me: I am in love with the running terrain in Germany. 

Miles and miles of running trails in the forest, you don't have to be scared of any animals eating you (well, unless there is an extremely hungry deer somewhere...), the ground is soft and it smells like leaves, you can go on a different route EVERY TIME you run. It is beautiful, refreshing and motivating.

The weather is unusually warm. I was hoping for snow...but having fall like weather is much better for running.

The great thing about Germany is also that EVERYONE is so active here. Not everyone is necessarily a runner or cyclist or triathlete, but people just enjoy to be outside. Everyone walks EVERYWHERE!!!

Unfortunately time goes by wayyyyy too fast and this 10 day trip will be over in no time. Lucky for JR he gets to spend 8 weeks over here pretty soon for work...but with his luck the snow will come as soon as he steps on German soil :-) And JR really really loves snow ;-)

IMAZ and Thanksgiving

IMAZ was crazy. Spectating is a tough job :-) I spectated with my peeps Elliot, Mindy and Kris. They came prepared. Japanese warrior headbands, Cookie monster on a stick, cameras ready, vocal cords ready.

Elliot was, off course, cheering for Linsey. And his favorite triathlete WON the race. Elliot got to hand off her cowboy hat for the final hundred meters. I am pretty sure that was one of the happiest moments in his life:-)

Here are some pics from the day:

 Mindy and Elliot fighting over the cookie monster. Kris and I stayed out of it.

Elliot cheering on Linsey on lap 1!!!

Elliot trying out his inner Yogi.

Note the drawing on the sidewalk :-)

Mindy, Kris and Elliot went all out on artwork up curry hill.

The crew!!!

Elliot posing half naked while Linsey goes on the last lap!!!

SHE DID IT!!! 

Well, after the spectathlon we all slept for 20 hrs. We were pooped. But it was a ton of fun. Luckily the work week only had three days and then I was off to North Dakota. It was a beautiful 15 degrees during the day, perfect for running!!! 

JR and I did A LOT in the 3 days we were up there, but unfortunately JR (who had been sick for 2 weeks) got me sick too, so 30 min runs was all I could do :-(

We went back to where we were married: THE BUNKER.

 Great memories of Pam speaking German at my wedding, my family almost not making it over to the US from Germany because of the vulcano that decided to erupt, lots of Ouzo at the wedding :-) Ahhh, that was a great weekend.

Cold cold cold.

Jamestown.

JR and I built our first snow man of the season. He was tiny, but we got it done. Skittles as eyes, twig as a nose and a aluminum foil hat. Perfect.

When we got back to Phoenix, we noticed that someone important just landed. Two miniature United States airplanes. We never found out who it was but it was pretty cool to see those airplanes.

Well, with the setback in training from being sick I am not sure what to do for racing. I was out for almost 4 days, had to skip my long run and now have to decide if I want to run a half marathon or 5 k this weekend :-( I am leaning towards a 5 k on Saturday and another one on Sunday. School is done in 3 weeks and then I can finally return to normal training :-)

Until then I will try to keep squeezing in 3 mile runs here and there.

Ironman Arizona Part 2

Day 3 at the Expo:

today was CARAZYYYY. Last minute shopping for everyone. Best of today was:

Oh I forgot my gels - well, that can happen

Oh I forgot my SLIK - well, that can happen as well

Oh I forgot my bento box - well, that one is a question mark

Oh I forgot my shoes - well, you will most likely get blisters with brand new shoes

Oh I forgot my race outfit - well, that one was my favorite out of the day...where did you think you were going? That is like forgetting your passport when you fly to a foreign country :-)

Good for them, pretty much EVERYTHING can be purchased at the IM village. Everything from socks to bikes. Today was my favorite day at the Expo, it feels good to help people calm down and make them understand that no matter what happens, they will be fine!!! 

I got to meet up with some great friends who I don't get to see a lot. Here is Mirjam Weerd, a very very speedy European...who already went 9:02 this year!!! She looks ready to rock this event tomorrow. Unfortunately I only get to see her once a year :-( 

 And here is another super speedy lady. I met Amber at the Zoot training camp and it felt like we were twins separated at birth. We can giggle ALL DAY LONG. I cannot wait to cheer her on tomorrow!!! Amber is an amazing athlete!!!

And then we have Elliot. Elliot is not racing, but he gets the BEST DRESSED award. He will be out there all day tomorrow cheering. We found the perfect cycling jersey for him and after Linsey Corbin signed his headband I am not sure if he will ever take it off again :-)

That pretty much sums up what is going on at the Expo of an IM event if you stick around all day. It is a lot of fun!!! One more day to go, and tomorrow it is all business and no party. Tomorrow is RACE DAY (or SPECTATHLON DAY for Elliot and me)!!!

Ironman Arizona Part 1

The spectator view:

I have to admit it. I like working at Expos. I have been at Tour de Tucson a few times, Rock'n'Roll AZ a few times and now I can add Ironman to my list. It is so much fun to hear about people's journey's to get to this race. 

Today I got to meet:

-firefighters from Phoenix, I told them they better be ready since they can train on the course

-people who claimed 63 degree water temperature was FREEZING

-people who said 63 degree water temperature is perfect

-people who are doing their FIRST IM

-a dude who races for boobs :-)

-small people and really really tall people

-or this person on the picture: he is doing IMAZ as a tune up for a DOUBLE IRONMAN

...but his ultimate goal is to do 10 IM distances in 10 days!!! I told him he needs a lot of Skinstrong for the 10 IM races :-)
The best part: he is racing for a charity!!! What an inspiring person.

Well, you get the point. IM draws in people from ALL KINDS of backgrounds and parts of the US.

Ironman time is crazy. People at the Ironman tent are purchasing all kinds of Ironman things to remember their journey to Arizona. The line is usually so long that I get to meet about 15 people/hr, because they have to wait and I keep them entertained :-)

I am also lucky enough to have VIP passes for Sunday. Hopefully JR will be over his sickness by then and we can go watch and cheer all day!!!

I am so excited to watch everyone race, the race is stacked with horsepower. It will be a fast race with perfect weather. The course is fast as well as it has non of this: COBBLESTONE :-)

Fast and flat, no wind and highs in the 70's. That just screams course record. And I will be there to watch it live :-) Now if that doesn't get you going for the 2013 season!!!