Fun Friday Giveaway - Happy Hippos!

It is Friday and I think it's time for a fun giveaway. The end of the season is coming and I'm sensing a lot of fatigue and burnout in the blogosphere. So, I think it is time for a Fun Friday Giveaway. I can't stop thinking about those delicious Happy Hippos and I want to give a box to everyone I know. So, I think the best place to start is with my blog friends!

I am giving away one box of Happy Hippos to one lucky winner. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment on this post telling me something that makes you happy.

This giveaway ends Monday, August 28th at 11:59PM Eastern Time.

Have a great weekend!

My Aching Foot

Even after an excellent race on Saturday, my training did not slow down. On Sunday I did 2500 meters in the pool and then headed to Central Park for a long run - 12 miles.

 

After a long run on Sunday I decided it was time to upgrade my running shoes. I stopped at my favorite store, Jack Rabbit, and purchased a pair of New Balance 1226's. This is the newest model of my current shoe (my last two pairs were NB 1224). I also took this opportunity to switch out my laces for a pair of Yankz (speed laces).

 

On Monday afternoon I headed down to the track in my new shoes for a speed workout. Three, one mile repeats at a 8:15 min/mile with 90 second rests. When I was walking home I noticed that the front portion of the bottom of my foot was hurting. I figured this was just a result of running 3 days in a row for a total of 18 miles (usually this volume is spread over a week instead of 3 days), plus walking another miles on top of that.

My pain is the yellow spots

 

The pain was relatively minor, enough to notice but nothing too bothersome. On Tuesday I just rode my bike but my feet were still hurting a bit. I skipped high heals and stuck with regular sneakers for the day but the pain was still there.

 

I had a 7 mile run on the schedule for today (2 easy, 3 tempo, 2 easy). I decided I would try running on the treadmill instead of outside for a softer surface. However, I was only five minutes into the run and my feet were still hurting so I reluctantly hit the stop button and got off the treadmill. I would rate it as a 3 out of 10 (1 is nothing, 10 is hospitalized). It is a low enough pain that I could live with it forever, but my fear is that it will get worse.

I've never had this pain before so I've been doing some Googling research to try to figure out the problem. It turns out this area is called the "ball of the foot" and pain there is often referred to as "Metatarsalgia" and it can be related to a Morton’s neuroma, a stress fracture or inflammation of the metatarsal toe joints. This article from Running Times was a good resource as the Foot.com website.

 

The possible causes for this pain are any or all of the following:
- Running too much in a short period of time
- Running too fast in a short period of time (race Saturday, track Monday)
- New shoes
- New speed laces (Yankz)

 

A lot of the research talks about shoes that are too tight, so I'm leaning towards the speed laces being the culprit. Have any of you experienced pain here before? Do you know what caused it or what you did to make it go away?

 

P.S. A couple great giveaways this week! 

• Caratunk Girl is doing a major Gu giveaway. There are a million 10 ways to enter to stop on over to her blog and check it out! You have until Friday, August 27th to enter.
• Tricia at Endurance Isn't Only Physical is doing a Sugoi Giveaway for a bra (for the ladies) or a shirt (for the men). Stop by her blog to find out how you can enter. This giveaway ends Friday, August 27th.

Happy Hippos!

We recently visited our local Greek grocery store for some olives (we live in Greek-town USA) and while we were there we picked up a little treat for dessert. Happy Hippos!

Happy Hippos are truly the most amazing thing ever! They are a wafer shell filled with a milk and hazelnut cream that are shaped like little hippos! OMG. And, they are only 117 calories each!! Apparently they come in a chocolate flavor too. Yum!

I want to share the Happy Hippo love with everyone! Maybe I'll give everyone on my Christmas list a box of Happy Hippos this year...

Race Report: Crystal Lake Sprint Traithlon 2010

The Crystal Lake Triathlon is a sprint distance triathlon near Albany, New York. It is put on by the Capital District Triathlon Club.

Let me tell you, this club knows how to put on a race. I am still thinking about how great this race was! If you live in the area I can't recommend it enough. Why? Well, the better question would probably be why not? Since the race is put on by a tri club they know exactly how to run an event. The volunteers were excellent - they were mostly club members and they did a great job from start to finish. The course could not have been better! The swim was a single loop in Crystal Cove and was very well marked. The bike course was an out and back, 18 mile ride, with rolling hills. The roads were in great condition and one volunteer mentioned that people were out sweeping the bike course before the race! The run was a well marked and filled with volunteers and spectators.

But, the one thing that really makes this race stand out? A women's specific race shirt. This is my ninth triathlon (+ countless running races) and the first women's specific shirt I've ever received. Finally a shirt I can wear out of the house with pride. I love it!

My feelings for this race might be slightly influenced by the fact that I had an excellent race day. I felt like all my training came together: first out of the water, a strong bike and and 8:43/mile pace on the run got me 2nd in my age group!

Swim Start at Crystal Cove

Race Morning

We drove up to Albany on Friday night after work and stayed at a Holiday Inn Express about 10 miles from the race. Our room was more than adequate and we were sound asleep by 9:30. We were up and at'em by 5:30. After a quick stop at Dunkin Donuts for some coffee and a bagel we arrived at the race site at about 6:30. We missed the packet pickup the night before so we headed parked the car and went to check-in. There was no wait and we quickly picked up our packets, chips and t-shirts. Registration set the precedent for the day - women's specific t-shirts!!

We headed down to transition and set up our gear. The morning was quite chilly, only about 50 degrees, so everyone was bundled up and trying to stay warm. At 7:40 I finally stripped off my layers, pulled on my wetsuit and headed into the water for warm up.
The Swim - 800 Meters (1/2 Mile)
13:54
1 of 12 Age Group (F25-29) / 3 of 111 Females / 14 of 236 Overall

The swim was great. I was in the second wave with women under 40. It was a counter-clockwise, square swim. I positioned myself in the front, and slightly to the right. It was an in-water start and I immediately ducked down and started swimming. I breath to my left and I could see the other lead swimmers to my left. I watched them as I breathed and sighted and I could tell I was pulling away. About a 1/4 way into the swim I started running into the men in the wave in front of ours. I swam around them and continued to sight on the giant buoys and the buildings on the opposite shore. I rounded the corner of the first buoy, dodged a few more men, and rounded the second buoy. I was keeping tight corners and pretty sure I was leading the swim. I set my line on the large buoys at the exit and just kept swimming, focusing on a long stroke, steady kick and a strong pull. I swam as far up to the shore as I could then jumped up and ran for the exit. There was a little concrete step out of the water and there was a volunteer there to pull me up. He confirmed my suspicion - I was first female out of the water.

Transition 1
1:40
4 of 12 Age Group / 31 of 111 Females

I pulled off my suit and kept an eye on the swim exit to check for new woman. I was just clipping my helmet when I saw the next woman come out of the water. I ran my bike out of transition and jumped on.

The Bike - 18 Miles
1:04:34 / 16.7 mph average
2 of 12 Age Group / 15 of 111 Females / 92 of 236 Overall

This is the second time this year that I have been the first out of the water for my wave. The best way to describe this feeling is like you are being hunted. I knew the next woman was not far behind so I was pushing hard on the bike, although I was also trying to be smart and not blow up. The first woman passed me about 2 miles in, but then I did not get passed again until mile five. As usual a lot of men passed me and I passed a few men myself this time.

This was an out and back course so it was nice to be able to see the racers going in the other direction. I saw Sam heading back when I was about a mile from the turn around point. The turn around is at the end of a decent so I had to slow down quite a bit to make the 180 turn. I turned a bit wide and I had a moment where I was off-roading into the broken edge of pavement. For a moment I thought I was going to crash after I regained control I thought I would flat, but luckily nothing happened and I was able to finish the ride without any issues.

On the way back I played leap frog with another guy and a girl. One girl passed me on a climb and I was able to pass her back on the following decent. This was a big triumph for me since sometimes I get a bit freaked out on descents. My fastest speed was 32.9 mph and my average cadence was 84.2. Heading into transition I was passed back by one of the women. She was 23 and I was not sure if age groups were 5 or 10 so I decided my goal was to try to catch her on the run. She was wearing a bright pink top so I figured she would be easy to spot.

I am really proud of my ride. I pushed myself hard and my times are comparable to the other women. 

Transition 2
1:29

9 of 12 Age Group / 42 of 111 Females

I got my bike on the rack, switched shoes, grabbed my hat/beans/Garmin and headed out of transition. The T2 course was long because you had to run to the opposite side and then run along the outside of the transition area back to the front of transition.

The Run - 3 Miles
Race Data: 3 miles, 25:28, 8:30/mile average
Garmin Data: 2.92 miles, 25:29, 8:43/mile average
Garmin Run Splits: 8:58 / 8:36 / 7:53 (.92)

3 of 12 Age Group / 28 of 111 Females / 98 of 236 Overall

As I took off on the run and started looking for the girl in pink. I didn't see any girls in pink but I did pass a few men. About a 1/2 mile in the first woman passed me on the run. As she pulled ahead I saw the big 28 on her leg. I decided I would not let her drop me. I picked up the pace and hung on. She knew I was right behind her (she looked back a few times) and I followed about 20 yards back for the rest of the run. It was a great motivation and resulted in a fantastic run for me. In the end I couldn't catch her and she beat me across the line by about 15 seconds.

Final
1:47:02
2 of 12 Age Group (F25-29)
10 of 111 Females
62 of 236 Overall

The post race food was delicous. They had oranges, Luna Bars, Chobani Greek Yogurt, and Mu Mu Muesli. I LOVE greek yogurt so this made me very, very happy!

As we waited for the awards ceremony to start we took a few pictures... some silly...

The race officials waited until the last people had finished the race and then they got started with the awards. The top 3 overall winners won baked goodies from a local bakery and the top 3 of each age group won a coffee mug.

Me & My "2nd Place Mug"

Sam also had a great race and took 3rd in his age group!

Again, I cannot tell you how great this race was. They really covered everything from the big stuff to the smallest details. If you are looking for a small sprint race for next year I cannot recommend it enough. It was worth the 3 hour drive and the hotel stay!

Race Report: Point to La Pointe 2 Mile Swim 2010

Well, you all know what happened after the race. Thank you everyone for your kind words. It was very scary and I will always think of races in a new way.

Race Review / A-
Now, I have to tell you all about the actual race, the Point to La Pointe 2 Mile Swim! This is a 2.1 mile, point-to-point, swim that starts in Bayfield, WI and ends on the shores of Madeline Island.  This is the 5th year of the event and it continues to grow every year. The inaugural swim in 2006 included 24 participants. This year the race was capped at 300 and a total of 287 swimmers participated. It is a great event that has been done as a fundraiser for the local rec center and pool. Last year they made $15K and I'm sure they made even more this year! Participants come from as far away as New York, Florida and California. The race fee, $79, includes a hooded sweatshirt, a coupon for breakfast on Madeline Island and a ferry ticket for the ride back to Bayfield.

Sam and I flew into Duluth, Minnesota on Friday afternoon. My parents had left a car for us at the airport so we were able to get on the road quickly. Friday night turned into a family affair as both of my brothers and their families came to Bayfield for the evening! Sam, me and my dad went and picked up our race bags and then met everyone for dinner at the pasta benefit. After we filled up on spaghetti we headed down to the lake to check out the swim start.

It was a beautiful evening.

The water in Lake Superior is so clear! I much prefer swimming here than in the Hudson River :)

We headed back to our condo and enjoyed some birthday cake (my dad turned 61 the day before). Then it was time for bed - we were all tucked in by 10pm.

I got a good night of sleep and we woke up at about 5:30am. Our condo was just 2 blocks from the race start so we were able to easy into the morning and then walk right to the start :)

We arrived at about 6:45 and the beach was already very busy with racers and spectators.

My dad and I before the start of the race.

Sam, me and Dad before the race.

They had a telescope set up on shore with a sign "See the Finish Line"

Then it was time to race. We dropped our stuff off in garbage bags to be transported to the finish line on Madeline Island. My mom, brother, sister-in-law and nieces said goodbye and boarded the ferry to meet us on the other side.

The swim was spilt into 3 waves. Men, women and community swimmers (they have their own escorts and can swim with flippers). I said goodbye to Sam and my dad and then jumped into the lake to get in a short warm up before the start.

As we were waiting for the men to go I started chatting with a few other woman. It turns out that one of them is actually married to the the guy who runs GU Energy! She told us that when her father-in-law was starting GU he bought chocolate from all over the world to try to formulate the best chocolate flavor. After he decided on the recipe, he showed up at her house with grocery bags full of high end baking chocolate! She has since used it up but now she is hooked on the top of the line chocolates! Also, her children are addicted to GU and whenever they get home from school or finish dinner they are always asking for GU snacks :)

Men's Start at Bayfield

Women waiting to start

The Start

I positioned myself on the far left of the start. We had to swing a bit wide to get around a buoy that leaves room for the ferry and I knew it was going to get crowded there. Even when I positioned myself wide I still had quite a bit of contact in the first 1/4 mile of the swim. It wasn't "angry" contact, just a lot of bodies trying to move forward. I was hoping the whole race wouldn't be so crowded.

Mile 1
After we rounded the first buoy we started to spread out further. Then, there were just a few swimmers around, and then I was alone. There were only five buoys for the entire 2 miles so it was recommended that we just sight on the opposite shore (this is the only reason I gave the race an A-. I think they need more than five buoys for a 2 mile swim). There was a natural "hump" in the skyline and we were ending just to the right of the hump. I felt good and strong. The water was cool, but not cold, and I just focused on trying to swim smooth and straight. I think I started passing some of the men's group after about 2/3 of a mile.

I stopped a few times to breast stroke and get my barrings. I looked to my right and saw that the buoys were VERY far to my right. Based on the the land and the "hump" I didn't think I was that far off course but I figured I better angle in that direction. This is where the green line below angles back towards the red.

Red Line: Straight Shot; Green Line: My Course; Yellow Dots: Buoys

Mile 2

At some point I could finally make out the house and the three giant yellow balloons on the dock. I was glad to know that I was getting closer. Unfortunately, the waves were also starting to pick up and the water was becoming more choppy. The conditions of Lake Superior can change in a moments notice. I tried to focus on keeping the course and steady breathing.

Finally the house came into clear view and I could clearly see the house and the balloons every time I sighted. I started to pick up the pace, thinking I was almost here, but every 20 strokes I would look up and realize I wasn't getting any closer...

In the pre-race meeting they mentioned a current and it was at this point that I could feel the current was pulling at me a bit. I tried to correct for the current and stay the path but I actually ended up on the other side of my original line and had to veer back a bit.

After I overshot the exit a bit I corrected again and made a bee line for the finish. I could hear the person announcing the finishers and I knew I was finally close.

I ran out of the water and across the timing mat. Total time was 1:08:17. I looked up and saw my mom, sister-in-law and nieces cheering for me. It was lots of fun to finish and have your family there to support you!

Official Time: 1:08:17
Pace: 32:59 min/mile
Age Group Place (F20-29): 5 of 14
Female Place: 32 of 119

Overall Place: 91 of 287

Coming in for the finish.

You might recall my goal was to go sub 1 hour. However, now that I've done the race I think that was probably a bit unrealistic. I did not take the current or the possible chop into consideration. Sighting was also a problem that I did not anticipate. I figured a point to point swim would be easier than doing circles, however the lack of buoys and the way the swimmers spread out made it more challenging.
Shortly after I finished Sam came in with a time of 1:23:25 and my dad was right behind at 1:26:19. My dad did great and took nearly 10 minutes off his time from last year!

POM Wonderful Giveaway Winner

Sorry this is up a bit late. I have been busy enjoying this gorgeous day. The weather is finally cooperating and the mid 70's temps with low humidity are such a relief! I had a great 11 mile run this morning. It is so different to run when you can actually breath :)

There were 23 entries for the POM wonderful giveaway. I listed them in order in excel and then used Random.org to pick the winner. The lucky winner of the POM Wonderful 100% Pure Pomegranate Juice is #12.... Holly! Congrats Holly! Shoot me an email at kristagager (at) gmail (dot) com and I will get it shipped out to you!

Giveaway Reminder & A Solid Training Week

Today is the last day to enter to with a free case of POM Wonderful 100% Pure Pomegranate Juice. Just leave a comment on this post with the flavor you would want to try. Pure Pomegranate? Kiwi? Mango? Nectarine? Blueberry? Cherry?

Thank you all for your well wishes for my dad. It was a very scary day and I'm just thankful that he should have full recovery!   

I'm very pleased to have a solid week of training under my belt. It looked something like this:

Monday: Speed workout: 8 x 400 meter repeats at a 8 min/mile pace with 90 second recovery.
Tuesday: 23 mile steady state bike ride.
Wednesday: 6 mile run (1 easy, 4 tempo @ 9:15-9:30 min/mile, 1 easy) and a 3500 meter Masters Swim Workout.
Thursday: Bike workout with hill repeats on Harlem Hill. Left leg only, right leg only, race pace, power up on hardest gear, attack. Repeat. 11x up Harlem Hill and my legs were dead.
Friday: Recovery!

Yesterday my legs were quite sore from the tempo run on Wednesday and the hill repeats on Thursday. We indulged in Chinese takeout and a little time catching up on the DVR. Then at 9:30 I pulled on my new compression tights* and crawled into bed. 10 hours later I woke up, still a bit tired, but feeling so. much. better.

The agenda for the weekend includes a 10-11 mile run on Saturday, working at the Harriman Sprint Triathlon on Sunday morning and then a long ride at Harriman State Park.

*Thanks for all your suggestions about compression tights. I seem to be the last one on the compression bandwagon. Thanks to Caratunk Girl for suggesting the 2XU tights. I was borderline between sizes so I went with the smaller size and they are perfect!

Giveaway: POM Wonderful 100% Pure Pomegranate Juice

After I had a chance to taste the delicious POM Wonderful juice, I asked the great people at POM if they would be willing to let my readers taste it too. Lucky for you, they agreed! POM is giving away a sample case of POM Wonderful 100% Pure Pomegranate Juice to one lucky reader.

POM juices:

- contain no added sugars, preservatives or colors
- are a good source of potassium
- are gluten-free
- are flash pasteurized to retain both flavor and nutrients
- are certified kosher

You have the opportunity to earn two entries for this giveaway:
1. Visit the POM Wonderful website and leave a comment below with the flavor of POM Juice you would want to try most.
2. Post about this giveaway on your blog and let me know you did that in the comments.


Pseudo-legal stuff:

- Contest only open to US residents.
- You may comment now (on THIS post) until Friday, August 13th. The winner will be selected and contacted on Saturday, August 14th.
- The winner will be chosen at random by a random number generator or by drawing numbers out of a hat. If you’ve earned multiple entries, you will get multiple numbers, thus bettering your chances at winning.
- Check back next weekend to see if you won! (Especially if you don’t have a blog because I have no way of contacting you.)

Thank Your Emergency Responders

(source)

Well, I'm home now from the swim and I'm more thankful now than I have been in a long, long time.

As you might remember, me, my husband and my dad had all signed up to do the 2 Mile Point to La Pointe Swim in Bayfield, WI on Saturday. My dad did this race last year and we decided to join him this year. It was a great event and my dad had a good swim, cutting about 10 minutes off his time from last year!

However, shortly after finishing the swim my father was having chest pains and was taken off of Madeline Island by ambulance and driven 80 miles to the closest major medical facility. The EMT's determined he was having a heart attack and with their excellent care and the quick work of the doctor placing two stents in his heart he is doing very well.

We are all very lucky that the first responders were so efficient. Right now it looks like his heart has minimal damage and after some R&R he should be able to return to regular activities. In fact, when the doctor came in to check on him Sunday morning he recommend that he swim even harder. It sounds like he will be released from the hospital today. Although first he plans to have a long chat with the cardiac dietitian after his breakfast in the cardiac intensive care unit arrived with white toast and jam made with high fructose corn syrup (a known factor to increase the risk of cardiovascular disease).

He will be taking it easy and recovering at home this week (right Dad?). I know he reads my blog so I'm sure he would appreciate all your well wishes ;)

To read more about about heart attacks such as the signs and symptoms, how to respond in the event of an emergency and what you and your loved ones can do to reduce your risk, visit the American Heart Association website.

Pointe to LaPointe 2 Mile swim

We are on our way to Wisconsin right now for a lovely weekend to combine two of my favorite things: my family and a race! We are going to Bayfield, WI for the Fifth Annual Pointe to La Pointe Swim. As the name implies, it is a point to point 2-mile swim across Lake Superior starting from the city of Bayfield and ending at Madeline Island. 

Water temperatures on Lake Superior can vary greatly with wind direction and prior day's weather. The water temperature range will likely be 55-65 degrees (68 and 66 degrees in the last 2 years in ideal conditions). I really, really hope the temp stays over 60 since anything less than that will be truly painful in my sleeveless wetsuit! 

{source}

My dad completed this swim last year, just one day after turning 60 (isn't that awesome?!). This year Sam and I are going to join in on the adventure and the three of us will compete. 


I'm not going to lie - I'm really hoping to place in my age group. The winner in my AG last year finished in 58:27. Based on my times for the Steelman 3-Mile Swim I am on pace to finish at about 1:01. Steelman was without a wetsuit though and the four loop course was disorienting. I hope this point to point swim will be easier since it won't require any turns! On the other hand, this water will be much cooler and there is a possibility for a lot more chop. My goal is sub 60 minutes.  


This is an awesome video filmed at the event last year (the first minute or so is intro credits): 



I hope everyone has an excellent weekend! Lots of luck to to Aimee (I Tri To Be Me) as she is doing the Boulder 70.3! 

Cycling in the Rain

{source}

This morning we were heading into Central Park for a group ride when we noticed lighting overhead. It was not raining though so we headed to the park any way. Once we got there the lightening was more frequent and seemed to be close but still no rain so our group decided to go out. Well, not two minutes into the ride and the sky opened up and the rain came down. 


It was only 5:30 so it was still pretty dark out, especially with the rain clouds. I'm not a fan of riding in the rain (or the dark) and I don't do it often. The workout today was timed ladder intervals, 1 minute/2 minute/3 minute/4/5/4/3/2/1/2/3/4/5, with a 1 minute recovery between each interval.We were still in the warm up when it started raining and I considered just bagging the ride. The group was quite small today because of the dodgy weather so I was lucky enough to get picked up again by Coach Ben, the King of Pain. No wimping out now! 


The next hour was spent cycling my heart out (quite literally). Ben is an excellent coach and he really does a great job of balancing his shouts to push harder with his praises of a job well done. Again we talked a lot about when and how to shift to maximize speed and efficiency. I finished the ride wet, dirty, and exhausted - but I couldn't help but smile. 


After our ride I met up with Sam at our group meeting place and we decided to bike down 5th Avenue to get back to our car instead of doing our usual cool down loop in the park. I am still nervous about riding in a lot of traffic but I  just sucked it up today and did it. It went great! 


Today what I love most about triathlon is that it forces me to get out of my comfort zone and really push myself, both physically and mentally. I feel that every week I do at least one thing that scares me. Sometimes it is hard, but I always feel exhilarated and alive when it's over. I am so grateful that I found this sport! 


What was the last thing you did that scared you?