Monday, May 04, 2009

Donkey Punch

Hi again! Thanks for going with the flow on my Saturday post. I was having a fantastic day but probably should have held off on posting until Sunday.

VIRGIN VOYAGE:

I took out my bike with the pedals for the first time on Saturday. My hard core biking friends were kind enough to show me the ropes and I had a fantastic time. We rode straight from my apartment up into the West hills, near the zoo, Washington Park, etc. We made our way up to Council Crest before descending back down into the flatlands. Here is a shot of us on top of the city:


We ended up riding about 2.5 hours and I'm guessing that we covered approx 25 miles. I forgot to use my Garmin properly so really have no idea on the metrics. Oh well, leisurely ride, right? I loved the uphills and being off of the spin bike. It felt great to have pedals that I could clip into. The downhills I'm not so thrilled about. I hate the traffic element and am not yet comfortable with cars zooming by me as I plummet out of control. Even though the ride itself wasn't that tough, 2.5 hours on the bike gave my body time to settle into the posture and position and test the limits of comfortability. By the end my hands and shoulders were definitely getting tired (mostly because I clench up really tight on the downhills). I am proud to report I wasn't really sore the next day. Yay!

After the ride I suggested the Goose Hollow Inn for celebratory beers and lunch. It was about 2:00 p.m. and we were lucky to get off the road since a light drizzle had begun. GHI was the perfect place to find refuge from the elements - we sat on a worn picnic table on the porch under an awning and heat lamp.




We started with some drinks:







Then suddenly the skies turned an eerie color and the rain started coming down, then harder, then really hard, then crazy hard with wind, then HAIL! There was thunder and lightening and craziness and it all happened within a few seconds. We were going crazy out there - so fired up, as you can see below:


Me, taking the bikes out of the hail:


Check it out - hail!


We were seriously so excited about the weather - we're all from Chicago and Michigan and we missed the midwest thunderstorms. Portland typically weakly drizzles so this was exciting for us. (Coupled with the post-ride beers, I'm sure...)



We ended up staying at GHI for about 5 more hours! This is a picture taken from my 7th floor balcony. Anne and I had to walk our bikes back because we were so tipsy. I called Josh and demanded that he take photos of us on the sidewalk. I was totally in that "I love you man!" mood and wanted everything documented appropriately.


SUNDAY LONG RUN:

Sunday I had to do 13 miles since I'd bailed on the Eugene half. I so did not want to have anything to do with this run and after a semi-tantrum I just went out and did it. Last weekend I procrastinated my Sunday run so bad I had to do it on Monday and felt super guilty about it. I didn't want that to happen this week. There was not a set pace for this run but I wanted to at least do 8:30 miles or better. Although, given my less than 100% body feeling (see: yesterday) I knew I could bail early if I had to.

I downed 2 english muffins with butter and jam about an hour before going out and chugged mass amounts of gatorade. The run actually ended up being okay. It was actually hot and sunny out so I ended up stripping down the top a bit and ran in my sports bra. I'm not typically that type of runner, but I was HOT and I didn't feel self-conscious which was nice. I listened to two Ira Glasses during the run. I did Springwater. I thought a lot about the upcoming triathlon training and the marathon training after that. I vowed to find alternative places to do my long runs instead of Springwater.

7:59/131 bpm
8:23/149 bpm
8:46/183 bpm
8:49/156 bpm
8:40/157 bpm
8:34/161 bpm
8:26/162 bpm
8:35/163 bpm
8:37/164 bpm
8:29/168 bpm
8:00/168 bpm
8:36/163 bpm
7:26/164 bpm

TOTAL: 13.19 miles/8:23 pace/160 bpm

My Garmin reported some really high BPMs around mile 3 which in no way were correct. It might be time to get a new Garmin battery, who knows? I stopped whenever I felt like it to drink from the fountains. I stopped for about 10 minutes to stretch and lay on the grass during the last mile. It was a nice run that only got better as I continued on. My timing was perfect as the weather turned a bit after I was done. All in all a good run. I was pretty exhausted afterward, but today I am not feeling to bad, not sore at all.

THIS WEEK'S TRAINING:

M = 6 miles easy
T = tempo bike (1:15 - will do on the Springwater)
W = swim workout (2,900 yds)
Th = track workout (mile repeats - sweet)
F = OFF!
Sa = swim/ride (going to find someplace new for the bike)
Su = 10 mile easy run

IN OTHER GOSSIP:

I found out that they're filming a movie in Portland from April-June with Keri Russell, Harrison Ford and Branden Fraser - keep your eyes peeled!

6 comments:

Amy - the gazelle said...

looks like a good week for training. I, too, am going to need new & exciting locales for long runs as the marathon approaches. Sauvie Islands seems like one good option. I did a 12 mile loop a month or so ago, and I know there is a 17 mile loop there, too!

Way to go with the bike! My tri- training starts this week, so I'm back in the pool & the saddle starting Wednesday!

Sarah said...

What a fun weekend! love the pictures :) I put off my run on Sunday. . . ala your last weekend. But hey, I was slutty spice all weekend and just didn't have the energy reserves!

Amy said...

I HATE going downhill on a bike. I find it so hard and tighten up my arms/shoulders/hands too. If you ever get over this, let me know how b/c I've been riding for years and still can't. 2.5 hours is major. Love the bar pics!

Denise said...

That's too cute that you were too tipsy to ride home. Glad to see you're drinking and riding smartly.

J said...

Great job on getting out there for the 13 mile run! Love the pictures!

Susan said...

That's crazy that you could pick up the hail! I guess I've never really tried. I love that you were too tipsy to ride back...that's the sign of a good balance of training and fun!