Tuesday, Day 5, Adventure 2

After lunch, we pulled up to a business that offered guided hiking, kayaking, ziplining, horse-back riding, and I don’t know what else. We had a reservation to hike/kayak/and zipline. After signing our lives away, and promising that if we were injured, we wouldn’t sue the company (nor would our family, whether born or unborn) we all piled into a truck and headed down the road about 10 minutes, where we came to a stop and were told that this is where the hike started.

The guides, David and Joshua pointed out certain plants, some being native to the island, but most having been brought from other places in the world. We climbed a hill and rounded a corner to see a beautiful view. I thought about bursting into song, “Theeeee hiiiiiillllls are aliiiiiiiiive with the sound of muuuuuusiiiiic.” But I refrained. I wasn’t sure I could pull it off without laughing, and I didn’t know whether I should sing “The Sound of Music” version or the “Moulin Rouge” version. Now I’m thinking I should have done it. Oh well. The thought still makes me laugh. Eh-hem.

We started down a staircase towards a river. I was nervous about this next part because I’ve never kayaked before, and my grid of rivers is Idaho white water. (My last experience in Idaho white water, I fell out of the raft on the Staircase in a hole called “The Big Nasty” (See blog titled “The Big Nasty”.)) The guides quickly taught us how to paddle the kayaks, and said that if we fell out, yell, get someone’s attention (which was the startled thing to do), then stand up. We would be in 2 feet of water. Next, they started helping us into our kayaks. What I observed of this river was that there wasn’t a ripple in it until someone’s boat hit the water. When we all got in the water, we started paddling and what I saw took my breath away. We floated through a tunnel of trees, making the river nice and nice and cool, with dappled sunlight filtering through. Then, we noticed flowers, the size of my fist, floating in the water. We also floated past a couple of flowers that were suspended from the trees, hanging down at eye level. Finally the water became too shallow that we couldn’t paddle any longer, so we tied up our kayaks and started hiking again. We crossed the river about 5 times and ended up on a path that was bordered by, “The Fern of Death.”

Our guides told us that “The Fern of Death” is the second most deadly plant on the island. The reason is because this fern grows on dead, rotting vegetation. Then it grows up and there is really no solid shelf under it. So, if you step off the path, into “The Fern of Death” a person can literally plummet to their death. Ok. Avoid that one. (The most deadly plant is the coconut tree. Sitting under one runs the risk of getting beaned on the head with a coconut.)

Next, we arrived at a zipline. We got in our harnesses and the guides asked, “Who’s first?” The group decided that Paul should go first so that he could take pictures as the rest of the group came across. Once Paul got across, no one moved. Well, I probably only gave them 2 seconds before I started up the steps to the platform. Having zipped before, I knew what to expect. As I was “flying”, I looked down and saw a pretty pool with water falls, a river that fed the pool and a little picnic area. Landing on the other side, I waited for everyone to come over to the “other” side. Then, one of the guides said that Paul should stand there and take pictures while someone ran off this next platform…backwards. I jumped right up there, got hooked in and took off backwards, giving a little yelp and giggle. Something about ziplining just makes me laugh.

Next, we hiked down to the picnic spot that I had seen from the air and David and Josh set up lunch for us. There were tubes so that we could put them in the water and go swim. Everyone jumped off a small cliff into the water. Everyone, that is, except me. And I’m ok with that.

After lunch, we hiked back to our kayaks, returned down the river in the kayaks and hiked back to the vehicles

Cory didn’t go on this adventure with us, but had an adventure of his own. When he came to pick up Becky, Karin and me, he drove us to a bay (I think it was Hanalei Bay). I noticed a man with long grey hair pulled back in a ponytail, and his long grey beard, was also tied. I won’t go into what he was wearing because I’m not sure you want the visual. I stopped to watch what he was doing and talk with him about the different boards that he had on the rack of his truck. He said, “Oh, you probably don’t see these in Idaho, do you?” and then kindly told me how they were different and how you use each one. One was a lay down paddleboard (you lay on it and paddle with your hands). He mentioned that the sensation of this paddleboard is really cool as your face is so close to the water. There is a 32-mile(?) race from one island to another that people come from Australia, New Zealand, and different surfing communities to participate in. This type of boarding is a good way for surfers to keep in shape during the off surf months. After talking for a little longer, he proceeded to load his kayak and we parted ways.

Day 5: Tuesday, Sept 6th, 2011: Adventure 1

The whole lot of us went to the North Shore for a couple of adventures. Several of us wanted to see Queens Bath, a pool that is ringed with lava rock and has an area that opens up to the ocean. We parked the cars and unloaded, found the little trail to take us down to the ocean (which wasn’t difficult, there were several people coming up the trail that had just been down there) and started our hike. The path was beautiful, and not too difficult. We followed a stream and saw a small waterfall. Rounding a corner, we saw the ocean smashing into a “beach” of hardened lava.

As we were making our way across the lava, I couldn’t help but think about what the area looked like before the volcano erupted. It is a striking contrast between the blue ocean, white ocean spray and black, porous rock. My thoughts were interrupted by someone telling us where to stop and watch sea turtles. Making our way over to the spot, it took a little while to find them, but there they were. It looked as though they were getting pounded into the rocks, they were so close to shore, but they just kept hanging out there. To me, watching the turtles was like watching a fire. It’s mesmerizing. They are graceful and aren’t in a hurry to get anywhere. A flipper would roll up out of the water, then a head, then the turtle would go underwater and

swim for awhile, then repeat the process, sometimes in the same place, sometimes in a different spot. After turtle watching, I continued on my quest to find Queens Bath (and to catch up to the rest of the group).

Upon spotting the pool, I sat down to observe. I could see the bottom from where I sat. The tide appeared to be low, but every so often, a wave would splash on the side of the lava rock and make its way into the pool. Fish were in the pool, being observed by snorkelers, being observed by me. I felt that I could sit there a good portion of the day without getting tired of the view. But the time came that we should start on our next adventure, so we got up and headed out.

Day 4: Sept 5th, 2011

Monday, Day 4, the plan was to Scuba Dive. Before I left home, I did a discovery dive in a pool, and must admit that I did not love it. I mentioned that to a certified diving friend of mine, and she said that she didn’t love it in the pool either, but once she got in the open water, there was so much to look at that she immediately fell in love with diving. Knowing that part of our group was certified and wanted to dive, and there were some uncertified who wanted to try it. I decided to try it.

We had to be at the site by 7:30, and were told that the “biggest, baddest truck” down there would be the one that we were looking for. We got to the site, and sure enough, what made me think of a bread truck was sitting there, waiting for us. When I saw the guide, the first thing I wondered was, “If my life needs saving, can he save it?” I could not answer positively. My second question was, “Do I trust him to save my life if necessary?” I did answer ‘no’ to that question.

All the gear was out, and our guide guessed who everyone was, correctly, except for Becky and me. He got us mixed up. We sat through the presentation, put our wet suits on, put on the vest with tanks and went to get in the water. We swam out a little way and held on to a life ring. The certified divers went out a little farther to wait while the uncertified group went through a couple of exercises.

When it came time for me to do my exercises, I told the guide that I decided I really did not want to do this, and to please take me back to shore. He asked me why, and I told him that I couldn’t relax, and that when I put air in my vest, I was starting to hear a hissing sound. He responded, “You need to communicate these things to me right away.” I said, “I am right now. I just noticed it.” What I didn’t say was: “when am I supposed to communicate this to you? You were under water with my new friends and I can’t talk to you with my face in the water, a regulator in my mouth, making everything from my mouth past my esophagus, into my lungs dry from the canned air. Take me back to shore thank you very much!” He did.

I was feeling frustrated with myself and sat in one of the chairs for a few minutes. A lady from another dive group came over to check on me. She asked if I was ok, and I said yes, that I just chickened out. She said that she had only been certified for 3 weeks and had been a little nervous for her first dive of the morning, but seemed ok at that point.

I left the dive site and went back to the hotel. I sat out on the balcony, looking over the ocean and called my Mom. We talked for a while and she was encouraging. After our conversation and still sitting there, trying to sort through my feelings I decided to email my brother. I didn’t expect a reply since I thought he would be out fishing, but got one within just a few minutes. The words that he said to me really encouraged me. I don’t know why. They just did. He reminded me that it’s ok to not do something that I’m not comfortable with, then encouraged me by saying that he felt he saw more snorkeling than by diving. Go get out there and snorkel. I replied, then texted Kathie, asking where she, Corrina, and Liann were. Kathie texted back a few minutes later and said that they were snorkeling across the road. So, I gathered up my stuff and headed on over.

I found Kathie-she was resting, but Corrina and Liann were still in the water. Kathie and I talked for a little while and Corrina and Liann came back to shore. Pretty soon, Kathie and I got up to go snorkeling. I wasn’t prepared to see what I saw under the water. The last time I snorkeled was in Salinas, Ecuador-which also happened to be my first time

in an ocean. The scenery there was NOTHING like what I saw off of Po’i Pu beach. I saw pink and purple anemones (that word always makes me think of “Finding Nemo” where the teacher fish says, “Don’t hurt yourself, Kid.” As Nemo tries to say where he lives.) I saw the coolest white fish with skinny black stripes down their sides. There were angel fish, fish with neon purple stripes on their backs, fish with yellow and pink squares on their sides, totally AMAZING!

About 12:30, we decided to head back to the timeshare and get lunch. The divers were back by now, and Cory, Karin, and Becky were discussing what to do next. We ate and headed off to the North Shore.

It took us 2 hours to get as far as the paved road would take us on the North Shore. The road ended at Ke’e Beach, and the water was really smooth. We all got in the water with our snorkels and masks and started swimming around. I followed Karin around, and at one point, she got my attention and pointed up. We put our heads up out of the water and she asked me if I had seen the thing that looked like string down on the rock. I said yes, that it looked like white silly string. She said, “Watch this.” Down she dove, and gently grabbed a piece of the string, and let it go. It slowly retracted itself. Karin and I put our heads out of the water and she let me know that was something she learned at the dive that day. I thought it was so cool that even though I “chickened out,” I was still able to see something that they had experienced.

Next, I turned and saw a school of tiny fish, all swimming as one. There was a huge group of them. I don’t know if there were two schools or if it was just one. I remember thinking they looked like diamonds the way the sun glinted off of them. I moved my hand and all of the “diamonds” moved, very suddenly as one, away from me. Then, they were right up next to me.

As soon as I moved my hand, they “flew” away from me again. I tried to laugh with the snorkel in my mouth but it didn’t work well, which made me laugh even more.

From there, we went to find Tunnels Beach. We were done snorkeling and really just wanted to walk down the beach for a while. I was amazed to find that the sand that I had experienced on the south shore was so much more fine and soft than the sand here. This sand felt like tiny little pebbles, mixed with broken shell. We sat down and watched a kayaker in the sunset before heading back to the car to find some food and head back to the Timeshare.

Day 3. 9/4/11 Marathon Relay

At the finish line

Day 3 was marathon relay day. I was comparing how I felt on this day with how I felt before my century ride in Tahoe. No comparison. In Tahoe, I was a bundle of nerves. It was wet and cold and I had crazy butterflies in my stomach. This day, I was calm, quiet, and collected-and also not quite awake, but having a good night’s sleep behind me, I was ready to go. I having run for only 5 weeks up to this point, I hadn’t yet decided if I love running or not. We loaded in the two Jeeps and headed out to the starting line. It was still dark, in fact, it was only dawn when the race started.

10 minutes after the race started, Paul and I had to get to the shuttle that would take us to the 1^st to 2^nd leg hand off. When we got to our starting point, we waited for awhile, watched several National Guard runners come through, laughed as the water stop volunteers competed against each other by trying to get the runners to take the drink that they were offering (water or ultima) rather than another volunteers water down the line a little way.

Paul, being 6’4” had a slight advantage. He can walk a 10-minute mile. When I do intervals of 2 minutes running, 2 minutes walking, my mile tends to be 14-16 minute miles. This day, I felt as though I was much slower. I didn’t time myself because I couldn’t be bothered. I was there to have fun and see the sights that I wouldn’t have gotten to see without this event.

Paul and I spotted Cory and Karin and got into position to be tagged by them so we could start. I had a hard time not running because of the amount of energy that the 750 participants exuded. Paul and I started running, but then I told him I needed to walk to warm up. My left calf was angry, as was my right ankle, but as I warmed up, then stopped to stretch, they both quieted down and settled in for the journey.

Our 5.6 mile leg consisted of two hills that didn’t look so steep when we were driving the course the day before. We ran/walked through neighborhoods-where residents sat out on their front lawns cheering us on. I was feeling really warm when I looked up and saw someone on the front lawn (or was it a shop?) with a hose. He had a nozzle on the hose that made the water come out like a nice refreshing rain. I decided to skirt around it a little bit, but not stay completely out of it. It appeared that Paul decided to run right through it. The person holding the hose said, “That’s gonna cause some chaffing somewhere,” and laughs. We each grabbed a cup of water and kept going.

The next attraction that we saw, we heard before we could see it. There were 8-10 drummers, drumming out a beat, distracting the running participants from any pain they might be feeling. They were drumming on a nice shady corner, and I wanted to applaud and watch them as I ran by, but it came out as clapping and running to the beat. I smiled and kept my head turned towards the drummers, and caught one percussionists eye, and they smiled back-I was still running and clapping in time.

The final attraction (besides the scenery) was a tent with hula dancers. I can’t remember exactly where the hula dancers were in conjunction with the first hill. I did pretty well doing the walk/run intervals up that first one. But at one point, Paul was running along beside me, then next thing I know, I was still running and Paul was walking, right next to me. When I noticed that he was walking and I was jogging, he said, “Don’t worry, I will stay with you.” I had to laugh. I knew I was slow, but REALLY? =-)

The second hill…Uugh! I walked the majority of that one. But I soon realized that as soon as I got to the top, there was not much of our leg left to go. I decided to run, partially to catch up with Paul, which I eventually did, and partially because I had been bad at the running part of the run/walk intervals. I intended on running the next solid 2 minutes, but ended up running the remainder of our leg, which was all downhill (probably 6-8 minutes). Rounding the corner, we saw the tag line for the third leg, and Paul and I both picked up the pace. I didn’t come to a full on sprint, but I did finish strong.

The 3^rd relay leg met the 4^th relay leg in this same spot, so Paul and I hung out to watch the next tag, then 4 of us caught the shuttle that took us back to the finish line while 3 continued on. While we were waiting for the shuttle to leave, I fell asleep-which is typical for me after a long ride or run.

After everyone re-assembled at the finish line, we went back to the timeshare and took naps. After the naps, Becky, Cory, Karin and I went to Shipwreck Beach to just hang out. It was a lovely way to spend time recovering from an event.

While I sat on the beach, I watched a couple get married, listened to and watched the water hit the shore, then make the rocks clack as it receded. I was asked to take a picture of a couple who appeared to be there on their honeymoon, carried on a conversation with another marathon runner (we recognized each other by the shirts we were wearing), and I just sat, taking in the gorgeous scenery.

One thing I neglected (forgot) to mention is that the day before, I got really sunburned. I did wear sunscreen, but didn’t re-apply (Yes, I know better-but didn’t realize how long I’d been in the water.) I discovered on event day that sunburns and sports bras do NOT play nicely together.

Day 2. Saturday, 9/3/11.

The plan for this day was to go to the beach and hang out until Liann and Corrina flew in. Then we would meet up with everyone for lunch and head out to get our event packets for the marathon relay the following day. Before we left, and as we put on sunscreen, I told Cory, Becky, and Karin that today was going to be my 2^nd time EVER in the ocean. I’ve spent time ON the ocean commercial fishing with my brother, but not IN it. Once they picked their jaws up from the floor, we headed out the door towards Gillin’s Beach.

After driving paved road, turning onto a red, dirt road with a few potholes, and coming out in a clearing, Cory parked the jeep and we got out. (Barb joined us for this excursion.) There were a couple of paths that could be taken and so we did. The trail was short, and didn’t disappoint when we found ourselves on a beach, with some shade and lots of ocean. Becky and Cory quickly donned their snorkel gear and swam off. Karin hung back with me, and Barb pulled her book out and relaxed.

Karin showed me some things that I should be aware of about where we were and off we went to float in the water. It took me a good hour to relax and get the hang of floating in the ocean and letting it push me in towards shore. I would laugh every time a larger wave would lift me up and push me to shore. It was a wonderful gliding sensation. For some reason, on this beach, the rocks in the surf and I were attracted to each other. When we got out of the ocean, I had a few scrapes on the top of my foot from getting too close to the rocks.

The time came to load up and head back to the timeshare. When we got back, we found that Liann and Corrina had joined our group, so now the whole group was present and accounted for.

Next was lunch and then we all headed out to pick up our event packets for the marathon relay that we were signed up for. This was the 3^rd annual Kaua’i marathon, and the first year they had a relay. I was assigned the 5.6 mile leg (at my request since I had only run 5.25 miles up to that point, and it felt like I was dying later on in the day). Picking up the packets didn’t take long, and then we drove the marathon course. The hills that I had to run didn’t look bad. After that, we headed back to the timeshare and started a pasta dinner.

Pasta dinner eaten and cleaned up, it was now time to head to bed for an early morning the next day. (The marathon started at 6:00am.)

Kaua'i Sept 2-9, 2011

On Sept 2^nd, I embarked on a trip that would include several “first times” for me. My dad picked me up and took me to the airport at 5:00am. (Thank you, Dad!). When I got there, the line through security was incredibly busy, not to mention mostly colored in blue and orange. The majority of the travelers were headed to Atlanta for the BSU game. Though it would have been fun to be headed towards Atlanta for the game, I was happy and excited to be headed to the island of Kaua’i.

Standing in that blue and orange line, I overheard someone ask, “Do you see Karin or anyone?” I looked to my right, thinking, “I know the name Karin,” and saw Paul and Barb in the line immediately next to me. I verbalized, “Hey! I know you!” (I had met them once, in a meeting about this trip.) I jumped over into their line and we went through security together. We all went to Becky’s gate and greeted her, then Paul and Barb went to their gate. Pretty soon, here comes Kathie. We left Becky at her gate because it was getting close to boarding time, and Kathie and I headed off to our gate.

2 hours later, Kathie and I land in Phoenix. How Phoenix is on the way to Kauai, you got me. After 7 hours, the 4^th Pirates of the Caribbean movie, And “Just Wright”, we landed on Kauai.

2:00pm Kauai time (6:00pm Boise time): First order of business-locate Paul and Barb. They were off getting the rental car (Jeep). Next order of business, get to the timeshare, see if we can check in early, and drop our luggage off. Next, off to the shops to get groceries. This ended in the early evening, and we came back and put groceries away. After that, the evening was a blur (and no, not because of yummy umbrella drinks). I think we all sat around and talked for a little while, planning the schedule for Saturday, then went to bed. (The sun comes up about 6:00 or 6:30am there and goes down at 6:30pm.)

AMBBR Here at last!

Sunday morning, I woke up to find liquid sunshine falling out of the grey skies onto the already sopping wet roads. I was nervous, as I always am before a long ride, but there was so much energy reverberating around the place that nerves were giving way to excitement.

Sitting in the lobby of the hotel, we donned the last of our rain gear and waited. And talked. And laughed. And waited. And took pictures. 6:00 rolled around and we headed outside to go to the start line. We were all together, talking and laughing as we joined the rest of the Team in Training group (from all over the U.S.)

The first 9 miles were nice and slow-a good flat area for a warm-up. Around mile 9 we started climbing our first small hill, and had to stop for the check station. Here, they checked for a bracelet, our event numbers, and a sticker that we had to have on our helmets. For this section, they closed the road to traffic so that it was safer for the cyclists. Coming up was our first big hill, which included 4 switchbacks. The safety speed for cars was 10 mph around these curves, so you can imagine how tight they are. As soon as some cyclists rounded the first corner, people were jumping off their bikes to start walking up the hill. At this point, I was starting to breathe deeply. Half way up, the first though of getting off my bike and walking crossed mymind, but I kept telling myself that I CAN DO THIS!!! I DON’T HAVE TO WALK!!! About .75 of the way up, I noticed a funny noise and, realized it happened every time I inhaled. My throat was whistling! I contemplated pulling over for a few minutes and then started thinking about what I had been told about going up hills. Sit up straight. Relax the shoulders, neck, arms, hands. Breathe deeply. Then I realized that my throat was tight, so I relaxed that a bit-and opened it wide up and interestingly enough, the whistling stopped. The heavy breathing didn’t. I was sucking air and was desperately hoping that this was the hardest part of the course. Because if it wasn’t, I thought I might die. When I got to the top, Brad (coach/friend) and Becky (Team mate/friend) and Julie and Heidi (friends/cheerleaders/encouragers) were waiting for me up at the top of what is called Inspiration Point. I stopped, caught my breath, and gave hugs.

We continued on and had nice flats and down hills. There were several areas where I would have loved to bomb down the hill, but the roads were so wet, that I decided to keep my speed in check. One thing I noticed is that every bike was shooting out a rooster tail of water off of their back tire. If you got too close, the dirty road water would spray you. The faster a cyclist would go, the longer the rooster tail.

We turned to start our out to Truckee and back portion of the ride, and the rain stopped, and the roads actually started to dry out just a little bit. When I got to the Truckee Rest Stop, I called Heidi and Julie and they didn’t answer. We stuck around there for a little while, eating, resting, using the facilities, and filling our water bottles. I took off my rain pants and my middle layer so that I could cool off a bit. Brad was wonderful to carry my middle layer for awhile, and I rolled up my rain pants and shoved them in my jacket pocket. I never did find Julie and Heidi at this rest stop. Apparently they didn’t see me either, because they hung out, posted on FaceBook that they lost me, and then headed on to the lunch stop.

On our way out of Truckee, the biggest, blackest clouds started gathering overhead. A bit of a wind picked up, so I tucked in behind Brad. Then the rain started falling. And the rooster tails started flying. At this point, my glasses were getting splattered with mud and water, which impaired my vision, and water ran down my nose. As the rooster tails started to fly, I got sprayed in the face, up the arms, and, of course, up my back. The cloudburst lifted and we saw blue-sky overhead, when we rounded the north side of Lake Tahoe. The water would change from green to blue to grey,depending on where the clouds were and how the sun was hitting. SOOOOO pretty!

Next stop, Kings Beach. We rounded the corner and there was Julie, standing out on the curb with a mass of people, cheering the cyclists in for lunch. When I got stopped and put my bike down, Julie took a photo of me and posted it to FB stating that she and Heidi found me, “and my 5:00 shadow”. I looked like I had been dirt biking. I filled up my water bottles, ate a couple of red potato sections, an orange wedge and then we headed back out. We didn’t eat too much because we knew what was coming up. We were at mile 70. Mile 80 was at the bottom of a 6-7 mile climb. Off we go. (We picked up Allison at the rest stop and rode with her for nearly the rest of the ride.)

I think it was somewhere between the lunch stop and the climb, Becky must have sensed that I was getting discouraged. She said, “Julie! Whose pictures are on your back???” I yelled back, “Phyllis! Isaiah! And Randall!!!” Becky asked, “Julie! Who are you riding for?” I responded with tears in my eyes, “Phyllis! Isaiah! And Randall!” That was enough to keep me going the rest of the way and stop thinking about my discomfort. (Thank you, Becky!)

We started the climb up Spooner, and I was pleased to see that it wasn’t a solid 7 mile climb. It gave a couple of reprieves, (Up, up, up, flat here, up, up, up, up, a little downhill there, up, up, up…). There was a rest stop half way up. Just before I got there, I saw A.J. coming down the hill. I sat up straight, smiled and waived. He said, “JKDowner!” crossed the street, and rode up the hill with me. When we got to the rest stop, I re-filled my water bottle and decided to keep on moving.

When we got to the top, there was a sweet patient honoree cheering us all on. She must have been about 11 or 12. She had a gorgeous knit hat on her head with pretty little knit flowers, and she was just smiling. Another reminder of why I was riding that day.

Then, DOWN HILL! WAHOOOOO! The clouds were gathering, but the road was dry, so I let myself bomb down this hill. After 7 miles of climbing? OH YEAH! But much to my chagrin, there was another up hill, and another, and another. Allison and Becky had gone on, but Brad was still with me. So I was talking to him about how these hills were beginning to really make me mad. He said, “Good! Kick their butts!” I was feeling like they were about to kick mine, when there were only 2 more hills. We rounded a corner and there was Becky, waiting on the side of the road. From this vantage point, we could see our hotel. When Becky saw our hotel, she decided that she wanted to cross the finish line together. So we prepared, and Brad led the

way, up to a point.Then he said, that there was one more hill, finish strong, this is it. I turned the corner, and started running on my bike up the hill. It was SO good to be done. The Boise team who had gotten there before us were there waiting, and we waited for all of the Boise team to get in. (This is us doing our BBQ Chip Toast.)

What an amazing experience! I have never felt better at the end of a ride, physically, or the day after. I don’t know if it was the energy, the excitement, the fact that I had been training for a year, maybe a combination. But even though the weather could have been better, it could have been worse, too.

On the way out of Tahoe the following day, there were 3 inches of snow at the top of Spooner. It didn’t snow on Sunday. There wasn’t much wind on Sunday. All we had to contend with was a little rain and grime. And in the process, the 15-1600 Team in Training members that participated in this “little” ride raised 6.8 million dollars for the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society. Just that much closer to finding a cure! That was a GREAT day!

6/2/11 2 days to go

This is Thursday, June 2, 2011. 2 days to go until America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride (AMBBR). My wonderful team is spilling into Tahoe. Some are running a relay beginning tomorrow morning (Friday) and then will cycle 100 miles on Sunday. My friend from Texas is arriving tomorrow and a friend and her family from Boise are arriving on Saturday. These two friends are going to “chase” me around the lake on Sunday.

I’m currently in an old hotel room listening to a saxophone play a jazzy happy birthday to someone downstairs. The walls are paper-thin. The floors are not on the level, and in some places I walk downhill after walking up. My room until tomorrow is one of 8 in a hotel with 37 rooms that has a private bath. The bathroom has a claw foot tub and toilet, but no sink. The sink is on the other side of the hotel room. No counter, just a corner sink with two faucets; hot and cold. There is a radiator sitting in front of one of the 6-foot tall windows, and at night, the pipe next to the radiator clinks. I hear trains go by every-so-often. Last night, I slept with my head sandwiched between two pillows. I think tonight, I’ll start with earplugs.

When I arrived yesterday, I got in to my hotel just as the snow started falling. I watched as the flakes got bigger, and the snow accumulated on the nearby roofs and trees. Today, I woke up to a little bit of snow, tiny flakes. But that didn’t last long. Pretty soon, there was a patch of blue sky here and there, and before long grey was the minority. As I am typing this, the sky appears to be clear. Forecast for Sunday is 40% chance of rain and a high of 53°F. I’m hoping for sun and 60’s-but regardless of the weather, the ride will be good; so long as I remember the WHY of this ride.

WHY: raising funds to find a cure for blood cancers. Did you know that to date, Team in Training has raised over $750 million dollars to go towards research and helping cancer patients? 75% + of what is raised through TNT goes directly towards the cause. AMAZING! It’s not too late to donate.

http://pages.teamintraining.org/oswim/ambbr11/jkdowner

I am riding in memory of Phyllis Keeton and Isaiah Rodriguez.

I am also riding in honor of Randall Price.

Thank you!

Julie

Friday Night, May 27th.

(Not listed in any particular order…)

Arm warmers-check

Leg warmers-check

Ear warmers-check

Socks-check

Wind/Water resistant jacket-check

Gloves-check

Helmet-check

Shoes-check

Sunglasses-check

Jersey-check

Bike shorts-check

Sustenance-check, check, check, check

Hydration-check

Sunscreen-check

Air pump-check

Biiiiiicycle, Biiiiiiicycle, Biiiiiiiicycle, Biiiiiiiicycle…check

Salad-check

My head-check

Ok, I’m ready for Saturday’s 80-mile ride. This is the last long team ride before A-M-B-B-R, BABY! WOHOOOOO! 8 days and counting.

1 year ago

5/21/11

A few weeks ago, I received a comment, as I was getting ready for one of our long rides. “You look like an athlete!” Hmmmm. I don’t think of myself as an athlete. Yesterday I was called a hero. I don’t feel like one.

I am just me.

I bought my bike and cycling gear just over a year ago, after thinking long and hard about doing a century ride with Team in Training. I vividly remember the day my friend was training for her marathon with TNT-she was running 19 miles up towards Lucky Peak. That same day, I passed my Broker’s exam for Real Estate and wanted to find her, cheer her on, and tell her the good news. When I found her, she was over halfway done and was headed back-in pain due to knee problems. We talked for a couple of minutes, and I offered to take her back to her car. She said no-she needed to do this. I said, “OK.” As she took off, her coach stopped and asked when I was going to start training for a marathon. I said not with the knees that I have. Then he asked about a century ride? I remember saying something like; my back and neck go out of whack pretty regularly, so-no. He said thanks for supporting my friend. My friend couldn’t quit, even when she was in pain, because her mom fought cancer for 3 years and didn’t have the option to quit. Just a few weeks after my friend started training for the marathon, her mom passed away.

We are down to 12 days until our event in Tahoe. Last week we rode our bikes to Idaho City from Boise, a 71-mile ride. This week, I’m doing a lot of stretching and am taking a ride either Tuesday or Wednesday-probably the dump loop. This Saturday is our “last” long training ride before our event…80-miles. Where? I don’t know yet, but I’m sure it’ll be a decent representation of what AMMBR will look like. After the ride, we eat BBQ. Yu-u-u-mmm-y! And prepare our decorations for our helmets.

The ride to Idaho City was fantastic, but it was not without incident. (No one was seriously hurt, just a bike, a skinned knee, a few bruises, and a bellyache.) The weather was gorgeous. The bantering was enjoyable. The pace line was fast and “fluid”. It was nice riding beside the creek, smelling the pine trees, feeling the fresh air on my nose, and breathing deeply, not from lack of oxygen and due to heart pounding, but because of deep contentment.

71.11 miles

5 hours 6 minutes. (?) I bumped my computer and lost the data for the first half of the ride

14.6 Average Speed (for the 2^nd half of the ride).

33.5 Max Speed (for the 2^nd half of the ride).

Total Miles on my bike: 1,643.5

Total Flats-1

Sneaking up

Only 30 more days till America's Most Beautiful Bike ride!

Took a short 14 mile ride yesterday on the prettiest day of spring so far. Did hill repeats on what coach Brad likes to call the mini dump loop. That was a GREAT hill! And as always, super fun to go down.

Half Century

Alarm

Snooze

Alarm

Snooze

Alarm

Get up

Feed the dog

Prepare and eat breakfast-consisting of toasted English muffin with homemade marionberry jam and egg, banana, water

Put cycling clothes on

Let the dog out

Pump up front bicycle tire

Rotate back bicycle tire to pump it up

Notice that back tire has a bulge in it

Flat as a pancake

Pump it up

Let the dog in

Load the bike in the car-hoping the tire will hold air

Load me in the car with all gear, food, and drink

Drive to meeting point

Unload bike

Flat rear tire

Received help changing the tube (THANK YOU!)

Decided not to wear leg warmers

Decided to wear my windbreaker

Communication throughout the ride: Going! Stopping! Spitting! Trailer! (Laughing) 8 seconds!

Cheered on TNT runners running a mock marathon “GO TEAM! WOHOOOOO!”

Started up the 4 mile climb of Hilltop

Passed like I was standing still-which I practically was at 6.5 mph (but was asked “Good morning, are you doing ok?” by the passer

C-c-c-c-cold.

Wishing I had my leg warmers, wondering how I can wrap myself around my knees to keep them warm and still ride.

Glad I had my windbreaker

Cheered on to the top of hilltop by those before me and waited and cheered for those behind me

Gathered together and headed down the other side to the end of the pavement before Arrow Rock dam

Frozen by the time we hit the bottom-I’m sure my teeth were chattering

Warmed up as we got into the more sheltered area on the way to the end of the pavement

Hit the end of the pavement and turn around.

Get out of the sheltered area of the pavement and notice that it’s a little cool, but not too bad

Start climbing the mammoth backside of hilltop

4.5mph (uugh)

Tried to get my cadence up

Burning legs

Slowed down

Cheered up to the top without sucking wind

Clapped and whooped it up for those behind coming to the top

Allison met us at the top

Downhill and flat the rest of the way back to the car

Urban assault (Group sticking together to get through stoplights downtown)

Negotiation of traffic

Crossing the street and I almost fell over while traffic was waiting

Lots of Laughing, talking, enjoying the day

Feel great

51.3 miles

4 hours 6 minutes.

12.4 Average Speed.

32 Max Speed.

Total Miles on my bike: 1317.2

1 flat tire

Blue skies smiling at me

We had a much needed and long overdue break in the weather yesterday. For the first time since we started doing our long rides in February, I started out a ride with two layers and finished with one-and bare arms. I thought about removing my leg warmers, but I had not thought about sunscreen (besides the fact, I would have blinded my entire team, AND the drivers coming up and down Hwy 16). I was SO thankful to have warmth and sun rather than rain and wind.

We started in Eagle and rode to Middleton, where we all gathered up and had a water and bathroom break. As we took off again, one of our team had an issue with his tire. He pulled over and started to fix it. The guys stayed behind and helped, and the gals decided that the guys would catch up quickly, so we kept moving. We got to Purple Sage and Blessinger where the “Shoot Me Now” hill (written about in my blog on 6/27/10) is. I stopped and looked down the hill, thinking “If Brad were with us, he’d probably make us all go down it and back up.” Jen said that she would come if I went, while Brandee and Macey said they would wait for us. Down the hill I went (I have a hard time resisting the down-it’s the up that gets me) Jen following close behind. When we turned around, I was thinking, “Why oh WHY did I decide to do this?!?!?! I hope I don’t regret it later in the ride.” (I didn’t.) Jen powered on up past me, and I settled back for the ride. Getting to the top, I pulled over for a rest, seeing that a couple of others in our group had caught up with us. It didn’t take long before we were back on track and headed on to finish our ride.

Back at the car, I felt better than I have after any long ride. A lot of it had to do with what I’m eating and drinking. I’ve discovered that I’m not doing enough of that. Asst. Coach Daniel sent out an email earlier this week, telling what he was going to eat and drink before, during and after the ride, so I tried something similar. I know I didn’t eat as many calories, still, as I should have, or drink as much as I should have, but I did eat and drink more than I ever had, and felt really good-and recovery time after the ride was much faster. I didn’t feel like I had to lie around on the couch all day. In fact, I took my pooch for close to a 3-mile walk yesterday evening. Aaaah, what a difference.

43.6 miles

2 hours 47 minutes.

15.5 Average Speed. (my fastest average speed for a ride so far)

35.4 Max Speed. (only because of the “shoot me now hill”

Total Miles on my bike: 1265.9

Catching up

Two weeks ago, we cancelled our ride on Saturday, due to a wind advisory of 35-45mph gusts. Having experienced cross and tail winds going up and down Hilltop, I was glad that we postponed until the following day.

Sunday, four of us started out from the North end of Boise, and headed toward Hwy 21 and the 4-mile climb. This ride was to be 34 miles, with the climb early on. When we got to the bottom of the hill, our assistant coach gave each of us a timed challenge to get to the top. For me, my challenge was to make it to the top in 35 minutes. Having never timed myself, but having watched my speed going up this hill, I was trying to calculate how fast I’d have to go all the way up in order to make the time. For some reason, I couldn’t make that calculation, but it kept me mentally busy while climbing. I made it to the top in 35 minutes 20 seconds. So, now I’m curious if I can beat that time. (I also beat coach up the hill. This has never happened, and I’m not so sure it will happen again. But I enjoyed the experience while I was going through it.)

The rest of that ride was pretty uneventful, other than when coming down hilltop, I put my bike in what I thought was my hardest gear and I just could not get my chain to engage as I was pedaling. I ended up coasting the majority of the way down the hill, and finally realized that I was in my middle ring. As soon as I got in my biggest ring, I was able to pick up speed and battle the crosswinds that hit me while coming down that hill.

4/9/11

Brrrr!

This past Saturday’s ride was tough for me. It was the coldest temperature that I’ve ridden in, and within just a matter of a few minutes, my face felt frozen. The first half was great (tail wind), but the second half was into the wind and I had a hard time keeping up. I think that was a combination of not eating or drinking enough throughout the ride (though I didn’t realize it until we were nearly back to our cars) and some mental warring with myself.

One thing I struggle with is losing momentum going up short hills. I was reading an article in a bicycle magazine that reminded me that there is a difference between going up short hills and long ones. Short hills, should be attacked, gaining speed before getting to the bottom of the hill, and powering up it. Long hills should be settled in to. Having just found out what this week’s route is, I have a couple of goals. Eat and drink a better amount. Power up short hills. Take control of my thoughts and start changing them.

39 miles

2 hours 50 minutes.

13.7 Average Speed.

36.8 Max Speed.

Total Miles on my bike: 1222.3

Hello, Muscle, Have We Met?

Our assistant coach arranged to do core/cross training as a team on Thursday evenings, which began tonight. There were two of us that showed up besides him, and there were a lot of laughs. Most of the giggles came from me. Some of the exercises that we did reminded me of PE in school, and some of them were completely new to me. He would tell us what we were going to do and then proceeded to show us. I’m sure that I had the deer in the headlights look every-so-often. Come to find out, some of the things we were doing were yoga exercises-which has been completely foreign to me…until tonight, that is. Macey was the other participant and she was such an encourager, and would give me helpful hints. I have never thought of myself as being overly coordinated, and I would get in a position, and then I’d crumple, fall, and laugh. I love that I can usually laugh at myself.

2 hours later, I still have legs that feel like jelly. I’m sure that I will be reintroduced to muscles that I had forgotten that I’ve met before tomorrow. This is a good thing. After all, “pain is weakness leaving the body,” right? I look forward to more Thursday evening training sessions.

Through Sun, Wind, Rain, Sleet and Hail. Ok, small exaggeration.

There were 6 of us riding on Saturday. For a crummy weather report, we all felt that the ride started out with really nice weather. Or maybe we spoke too soon.

We started in Meridian and headed out towards South Boise. Before we knew it, we were out beyond the airport., and we were still going. We were enjoying our ride, when we saw other cyclists coming towards us. As they would pass, they yelled, “GO TEAM!” I wasn’t sure what to think of that because the only article of clothing that would give it away that we were with Team In Training were a pair of bike shorts. Any other TNT clothing was hidden beneath layers. Come to find out, this was the TNT Triathlon team, doing their cycling. That was fun. It was also fun to run into another cycling teammate as he had decided to do his own ride that day. They all had just come down a hill that we were about to go up. I’ve been down this hill before, and it is a lot more fun going down, but had never gone up it, and I must say the going up wasn’t bad. Of course, it makes all the difference to have a cycling buddy riding right next to you, carrying on a conversation all the way up. (Thanks, Allison!)

When we got to Ten Mile Creek, the wind started coming up a little bit, and it started raining lightly. Because this road has very little traffic, we practiced a group pace line. We were in two rows of 3 riding side by side. The person in the front of the right lane would let off on the pace as the person in the front on the left lane would pass the right lane and then do a lane change, making them the front of the right lane. As the right lane made way for the ones in the left lane, the rider in the back of the right lane would then go over to be in the back in the left lane as soon as the third rider would pass them. The left lane would pedal a little harder than the right lane so that they could get past the riders on the right. Once a rider gets to the right lane, they get a chance to rest a bit. It was really fun, almost dance-like.

As we were doing this, the rain started coming down harder, The rain turned to snow, then…hail? If it wasn’t hail, whatever it was, it stung my cheek when as it hit me. Then, as suddenly as it started, it quit. This little cloud burst got us much more muddy than the first ride in the rain. Lot’s of mud up to the top of my helmet.

We all made it back to our cars safely, loaded up and headed our separate ways.

28.33 miles, 1 hour 58 minutes. 14.5 Average Speed. 28 Max Speed. Total Miles on my bike: 1104.53

Beautiful Spring Day

Today was an absolutely gorgeous day to ride 25 miles! Before we started out, we were told that we would break up into two groups: The Less Experienced and the More Experienced. After hearing what the More Experienced group was going to do, I wanted to jump in with them-and said so, but put in a disclaimer stating that looking at the rest of them, I’d be the slowest one. Our assistant coach (Daniel) said, “Come on with us!” So-I did. We headed towards Lucky Peak and I was able to keep up for a little while, and took a turn at leading the pace line. Then all of a sudden, I lost steam. As we kept going, I kept getting further behind. Daniel stayed with me, saw what my speed was and then he and I created a pace line at my pace.

The two groups met up and I told my group, “You’re too fast for me! I’m going over with the other group.” The More Experienced group encouraged me to stay with them, but I told them that I was going at about 14 mph and didn’t want to hold them up (they go a solid 18-22mph, and faster when they can). As I ducked under a chain to get with the other group, everyone started taking off. When we got to the Lucky Peak recreation area, we stopped, took a bit of a break, then headed up the hill towards hill top. The majority of the group that I was with hadn’t been up hills yet, so I tried to give tips about going up this hill…EAT before you start. Start the hill in your climbing gear, things like that. Our group was stopping just above the dam to regroup, and meet the More Experienced group who were going up to the top of hilltop.

Side note: I’ve been curious about how, if any, the spin classes that I’ve been taking all winter will help me with hills. This particular hill, I always end up in my granniest granniest gear and go 4-6mph. Today, I stayed on my middle ring, and found out later that I didn’t even go to the easiest gear on that middle gear! There was one point where I thought I wanted to go easier, but decided to push myself. My speed also didn’t dip below 6mph. It was typically 6.5 or 7 (still not stellar, but I felt so encouraged)!

When I got to the top of the dam, I thought about going further up towards hilltop, but decided to stick it out with my group. We waited for a little while, then decided to head back down and finish the ride. The rest of the ride was fabulous. It got to the point that I nearly stopped to take off one of three layers. But then the wind would come up and I was glad I had that extra layer on. We got back to the cars and hung out for a little while, talking about mid-week rides and scheduling those. I am looking forward to getting to know my teammates better.

If you have considered donating to this cause but haven't done it yet, it's not too late. Please go to the link at the upper left hand portion of my blog. This will take you to my fundraising page to securely make your tax free deduction. We are saving lives one mile at a time.

25.14 miles, 1 hour 50 minutes. 13.8 Average Speed. 31.5 Max Speed. Total Miles on my bike: 1076.2

Soaked but Exhilarated

3/5/11 Last Saturday’s ride was AMAZING! We started out by attending a potluck, listening to several testimonies of how TNT and the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society have helped people personally. I was honored to listen to people who wouldn’t be here, talking to me if it wasn’t for the funds that have gone into research for a cure for these blood cancers. Some of these people have just completed a round of treatments; some of them have been in remission for years. That Saturday was one person’s anniversary of when they found out that they had this disease, and the next day was another’s anniversary of the same. These testimonies bring home the reason that I am riding with Team in Training.

Once all of the testimonies had been given, the cyclists were told to mount up. So we all put on our layers of clothing (it was about 46°F, cloudy skies with a chance of rain) and headed out. While I was waiting for everyone, I was trying to decide if I needed to grab my sunglasses. With how cloudy it was, I didn’t think I would need them-but Allison reminded me that if it does start to rain, it would be nice to have the glasses to shield my eyes from raindrops. Good point. I went to get them (and am SO glad that I did!).

This ride was a different experience than the rides that we had done in the past. This time, instead of 2-5 of us, there were 9 of us (there are more, but a few couldn’t make it this day). I am so excited to get to know my teammates and continue riding with them.

When we started the ride, we knew that there were going to be two ride options. The first one was 13 miles and the second one was 23. After having been in spin classes all Winter, I wasn’t sure how I would be feeling on my bike and was a little doubtful that I would feel good for 13 miles let alone 23. When I started having doubts, I decided to take control of those thoughts and tell myself that I could do this. Truly, I knew that I could do it-but you know how sometimes you just need a reminder? It started to rain a little, and the roads were wet, so we all started getting that wonderful brown line up our bums and backs. At one point, I was in a position in the lineup where I was right in the middle. The people in front were way ahead and the people behind were not way behind, but there was a gap. I decided to try and catch the folks in the front. Pretty soon I hear the “whoosh whoosh” of bicycle tires being powerfully propelled behind me. Daniel, our assistant coach, looked over and said, “Jump on” as he flew past me like I was just sitting still. He was referring to drafting behind him. I tried to catch him, but the guy is F-A-S-T! That was at the bottom of a very gradual incline, and the hill caught me unaware, so I found myself gasping for breath. About half way up, I heard a spin instructors voice say, “Take deep breaths and breathe through your nose as much as possible.” As soon as I started to do that, I was able to regain breathing composure, get my heart rate back under control, and finish up the hill without any other problems.

We came to the point of the group separating, the 13-mile riders heading back to the cars and the 23-mile riders doing another loop. As the 13-mile riders departed, I was thinking with fond memories of my first ride. (See blog entry “Rubber, Meet Road. Road, Meet Knee, Elbow, and Bum”.)

We got about half way through the loop the second time and needed to add a little out and back section to get in the mileage. We rounded a corner and headed down a hill into what looked like a cul-de-sac. We circled around and headed back up the hill. It’s amazing the different perspectives of a hill. Coming down it, it didn’t seem too steep or large. Rounding that corner, the hill looked like a wall to me. I didn’t dwell on it, I just jumped out of my seat and started pedaling-“running” up the hill. For a few moments, I felt like I was doing great, keeping up speed, not gearing down, when all of a sudden, I hear, “Wanna race?” right beside me. I look over and AJ is sitting on his seat, pedaling, and passing me like I’m standing still. I had to laugh. Ah well. I have some strength to build, and some things to figure out bike-wise, still. I also have to remind myself that it’s been 4 months since I’ve been on my bike, but more importantly, I’ve only been riding since the end of last May (9 months). Towards the end of the ride, the rain started really to come down. It had been sprinkling here and there, but now, it was a proper rain. I started to wonder how I was going to get home in my car without getting the drivers seat all dirty and wet. Once I figured that out, I sat back and enjoyed the rest of the ride.

(At the end of the ride, I asked Allison to take a picture of my back, but I’ll spare your eyes.)

Coming away from last Saturday’s ride, I was pleased at how I physically felt because of the spinning that I had been doing those 4 months. I didn’t know how that would help, whether it would build strength, endurance, or what. I have yet to see if spin classes will help me climb hills, but I’m sure I’ll have that chance in the next week or two. This Saturday, I look forward to a longer ride.

Later, Saturday evening, I looked at my bike helmet and found mud splattered up to the top of it. COOOOOOL!

22.34 miles, 1 hour 31 minutes. 14.2 Average Speed. ??? Max Speed (My computer tells me 47.9 but there’s no way I made it that fast. More like 25.) Total Miles on my bike: 1051.1

Mission Moments:

Mission Moments:

At the beginning of most training sessions, we have what’s called a “Mission Moment”. This is where we hear stories of/or from people battling one form of blood cancer or another. This helps to remind us why we are pushing our bodies to do things that some of us thought we could never do. When I start thinking about giving up, it’s the mission moments and the personal moments that remind me that quitting is not an option.

This last Saturday’s mission moment reminded me why I’m out there riding the pavement (well, actually, so far, why I’m on the spin bike), not from a stranger’s perspective, but from someone I’ve known for several years.

Two years ago, my friend’s husband was diagnosed with stage 0 Leukemia. They were told that a person can stay at this stage for 15-20 years before it progresses, IF it progresses. Over the last three weeks, he went in for more testing. The results of the testing confirmed that the cancer has progressed and they are discussing treatments.

This Saturday will be our first ride outside for the season. The distance options are going to be 13 miles or 23 miles. I’m going for the 23 mile loop. I’ve been anxious about riding in the cold due to not liking to be cold-but eager to get on my bike. But when I ride this Saturday, when I want to quit and go warm up, I will be thinking of all of the people that I’m riding in memory and in honor of, realizing that they couldn’t and can’t quit. What gives me the right to consider the option to quit?

I am so close to my fundraising goal. Would you consider helping me get there? Please go tohttp://pages.teamintraining.org/oswim/ambbr11/jkdowner to securely make your tax deductable donation. If you don’t want to donate on line, you can write a check to LLS and give it to me-I’ll make sure it gets there.

Thank you so much for your consideration to donating.