Valdese Sprint: Race Report - Part 2

After a wonderful, celebratory evening with our family in Asheville, NC, we've awoken on Sunday morning still aglow with our first race of the season. We're only getting faster from here!

THE SWIM - 250 yd, pool

Our sister Holly was competing in her very first triathlon! She was the first the first swimmer in the water -- but was quickly passed by super swimmer Ray. Robyn started 26 minutes later. Ray pushed the swim. Holly got a little frustrated -- as we all have in our first race. Robyn conserved a bit for the bike course that lay ahead. All of us felt solid about our swim times:

Ray, 3:58
Holly, 4:57

Robyn, 5:30

THE BIKE - 9 mi, HILLY!

Lots and lots of ups and downs. At various points on the course, our speeds ranged between 7 miles per hour and 30 miles per hour. Holly truly gutted it out on a heavy mountain bike!

Ray, 36:31

Robyn, 38:31

Holly, 1:04:17

THE RUN - 3.1 mi, rolling

The course turnaround at the half-way point felt like it a while to reach, but once we did, Ray and Robyn tried to put the past month's speed work to the test! We both felt like the first half of the run was a little slow, but felt good about the push we made for the last 1.5 miles.

Ray, 27:00

Robyn, 27:33

Holly, 37:04

THE BOTTOM LINE

Overall, it was a fun, fun race. We're so proud of our little sis for taking on the challenge. We're thankful for our parents' cheerleading and our husbands' support. Now, we're ready to go faster!

Valdese Sprint: Race Report - Part 1

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant,gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear,our presence automatically liberates others."- Marianne Williamson, A Return to Love

WE DID IT! Full race report to follow. A few brief notes on a great day in Valdese, NC:

First Place, 25-29: Rachel (1:08)

Third Place, 25-29: Robyn (1:13)

Third Place, 16-19: Holly (1:48)

First Place, Overall Women: Coach Sage

Pictures (from top): Holly, Rachel, and Robyn post-finish!; Robyn, Sage, and Rachel in our winners trophy t-shirts; The Gang from the Triangle and Asheville, NC -- all placed in age group or overall standings!

Goal #1 Achieved!

"When you let go of trying to get more of what you don't really need, it frees up oceans of energy to make a difference with what you have. When you make a difference with what you have, it expands." - Lynne Twist, The Soul of Money: Reclaiming our Inner Resources

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! When we launched our season back in February, we set what felt like two ambitious goals: (1) to raise $2500 for Genesis Home by the date of our first triathlon of the season and (2) to successfully race our first international distance tri. Thanks to the generosity of our friends, family, community, and strangers, we have achieved our first goal! Thanks also to Wal-Mart for their recent contribution.

Our first race is this Saturday, and to date, we have raised over $4,500 to support the housing and supportive services Genesis Home provides to homeless families in our hometown of Durham, NC. Thanks to the support of a local foundation, these funds have been matched -- effectively doubling the impact they will have in helping to end homelessness one family at a time. Like all good competitors, we would love to blow our original goal out of the water, so your donations are still welcome and encouraged!

Tri season, here we come!

Our Kind of Reality TV

Rage

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

According to a story in today's local paper: A 2006 report by the National Coalition for the Homeless found 142 attacks last year against homeless people, 20 of which resulted in death -- a 65 percent increase from 2005, when 86 were violently assaulted, including 13 homicides. A majority of the attackers were young and male.

As those not living in poverty, we have a choice: We can look away. We can say they deserved it. We can say that would never be me, not in my community, doesn't relate to my life no, never.

Or, we can do something.

First they came for the Jews
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for the Communists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists
and I did not speak outbecause I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for me
and there was no one leftto speak out for me.
- Pastor Martin Niemöller

Another Way for You to Tri: Part 2

Need a great new messenger bag for commuting to work? Need a place to store you work/life/ tri gear? Haven't yet tri-ed to end homelessness by making your donation to Genesis Home?

Follow this link to purchase The North Face messenger bags donated by Great Outdoor Provision Company:

http://raleigh.craigslist.org/bik/309057914.html

ALL proceeds benefit Genesis Home - where homelessness is ending, one family at a time.

Another way for you to Tri

You make a living by what you get. You make a life by what you give.- Winston Churchill

Thanks to Great Outdoor Provision Company, folks interested in supporting the Tri to End Homelessness campaign will have another way to donate later this week! As the newest sponsor of our efforts, GOPC has donated several of The North Face's Messenger Bags. All proceeds from the sale of these bags will go directly to Genesis Home. More information about how you can purchase a great bag while tri-ing to end homelessness will be posted here soon. Stay tuned! Thanks GOPC!

Anticipation

"An intense anticipation itself transforms possibility into reality; our desires being often but precursors of the things which we are capable of performing." - Samuel Smiles

One week....one week, one week, one week! One week until our first race of the season. A small, fun, local-supported sprint triathlon in the foothills of the North Carolina mountains.

During Friday's swim and weights session, we talked about how exciting it will be to put this training to the test -- to see how our bodies respond after to the commitment we've made over the past couple of months. We definitely feel stronger mentally and physically, and the stopwatch has shown that we are taking seconds off (one by one by one....), but there are those small, nagging thoughts of self-doubt that have been creeping up during the occasional lap or mile of a long run.....

What if our race times don't change? What if the fear creeps in and we don't respond? What if we return to old, easy habits instead of putting the lessons of the past couple of months into action when we need them most? After this work, what if nothing happens?

Now, we realize that triathlon is triathlon -- and life is life -- and if all that happens next Saturday is we have a fun, beautiful day of swimming, biking, and running with our family watching, well, then we're luckier than 90% of the world on any given day. But when we've put in the effort, we really do hope to see results.

We wonder if the families living at Genesis Home have some of these same thoughts as they're preparing to transition into living in homes of their own:

What if my life doesn't change? What if the fear creeps in and I don't respond? What if I return to old easy habits instead of putting lessons learned into action? After all of this, what if nothing happens?

For the week ahead: We're visualizing success. We're trusting that we know what we know -- and that the 45 hours of biking, 23 hours of weight-lifting, 34 hours of running, and nearly 68,000 yards of swimming we've put in will make a difference. And, we're keeping it all in perspective.

Begin it.

"Whatever you can do or dream you can, BEGIN IT. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it."-Goethe

It's SPRING and, everywhere we look, beginnings are sprouting! The official start of our race season is only a few days away. Our little sister will be competing in her first tri. Ryan has pulled his bike out and has returned to pedaling to Genesis Home. Several of our friends and co-workers are starting training programs for the first time. Even more folks we know are training for a new, longer distance this year. Our folks are heading back to the gym.

These are folks with busy, demanding jobs and homes full of kids and spouses, who are active n their communities and generally just have A LOT on their plates. When we all have hundreds of reasons not to lead active lives, seeing all of these beginnings is inspiring. For hundreds of reasons to keep going, check out Runner's World's 101 Kicks in the Butt!

Speed

"Focus your efforts on seeing what it feels like to go FAST! Take your speed work right to the edge of really intense sensation (but keep your form together so you don't get injured)." - Coach Sage

"I'm o.k.....I'm o.k.....I'm o.k.......I'm just really, really, really uncomfortable!" -- Robyn's inner mantra during this week's speed workouts

One and half weeks until our first race of the season and we're in the middle of a two week anaerobic endurance / speed building workout block. Early on this year, we talked a lot about wanting to get faster, wanting to improve, wanting to see what our bodies could really do if we REALLY put in the time, effort, and smart training. Funny how speed works, though....we don't get faster just by wanting. We get faster by working.

And so working, we are. And work it is! As gals more accustomed and comfortable with long, slow, distances, speed does not come naturally. But while the physical output it's taking to go faster is really challenging, we're finding the the mental output is even more so. Going fast for us speed newbies requires complete mental concentration. There's no zoning out. There's no dialing in and letting gravity take over. There's no casual taking in of the scenery. We have to concentrate -- on cadence, on breath, on form, on cadence, on cadence, on cadence.....

It's tough.

But we are getting faster!