Busy, busy weekend! Nicole's out of town, and I really miss her, but fortunately I kept myself occupied, which helped.
Saturday: cleaned house at 6am, volunteered for the Chinook Half/Oly, picked up the bike for a quick ride, went for dinner with my cousin who was in town, then had a few beers and japanese-hobbit-style second dinner sushi, then a late movie (Angels and Demons- good if you haven't read the book, bad if you have).
I didn't realize until that evening that I'd forgotten the sunscreen- I was a little pink around the neck and face, and my calves still feel a little tender. I spent the early part of the morning watching the race starts, chatting with fellow volunteers, and wondering/asking what I was supposed to do. I had time before I had to be out on the bike course at the (third) aid station, so I cheered people on with the cowbell, and directed traffic as the Olympic racers were coming out of the water. A lot of UCTC folks were there-- about 8 by my count (I have to admit I recognize everyone, but sometimes it's hard to learn names...) including coach Tony. I don't know how anyone felt about their race yet, but I noticed that the club took two age groups, and 4th in another.
I've been reading a few blogs by some of the participants, and it sounds like it was a tougher day on the Half Iron course... and I've been thinking. It was not a super-hot day, but it was very sunny, with just enough wind to make you feel it wasn't that hot. Which might explain why I felt so drained, even though I didn't race!
Sunday: hike in Kananaskis with Dad and brother Dan, dinner at their place, then grocery shopping. Poor Milo was starved for attention-- and worried that he'd run out of food. (He was fine until this morning, when the dish was *gasp* empty. He tap-danced on me at the crack of dawn to let me know, though). The hike was great, though overcast and a little damp. Maybe dad will send me some pics to post.
Tonight's workout was supposed to be "Cruisy Monday", but it turned into anything but "cruisy". I'm not complaining, it was great! It was me, one of the gals who is fast in the pool, Mike, and Tony. Because of the looming rainclouds and the wind, we decided to go west instead of east, and stay along the Bow River Pathway. Pretty soon, it was just me, Mike and Tony-- apparently our fourth rider felt slow (I don't think she was that slow), and told us to go ahead.
Without really talking much, we kept picking up speed, staying in a tight pack. I have to admit, Tony and Mike did most of the leading, but I did take a turn or two at the front. We went all the way from the Zoo to Edworthy Park, saw Coach Jill running with a few ladies, and decided to do a couple of hill repeats! I zipped through the parking lot to try and get a head start (I'm a Clydesdale, not a climber!) and kept looking behind me. I was shocked that Tony only caught up to me on the last pitch, but apparently he stopped because Mike had a flat.
After two times up, we zipped back on the south side of the river-- I'd never ridden the first stretch, and boy does it have some tight corners! I dropped right back to give myself a little more confidence, so I didn't feel bad about not leading, because I was gapped anyway, not getting pulled in the slipstream. It was a fun, challenging ride, and felt really good. I have to say, though that we were lucky not to run into a radar gun.
