I've been inching my way back into triathlon shape. Last year, with my Dad's illness and time in Chicago, I didn't race and training was limited. I was already coming off my torn calf muscle, and struggled with my running. Then in early November, I had my skin cancer surgery, which required me to not stress/pump blood through the incision to help minimize scarring. Then the holidays came along.

I finally started back on a regular training regime immediately post-Christmas. This is one of the few times I "felt my age" (50). It's been a slow road back, focusing a lot on strength training and flexibility.

This stretching routine rocks!

So, now I am feeling like I've got at least some level of base fitness back. But I'm not feeling particularly driven to race for some reason. I've not registered for anything - yet. Maybe I'll gain some racing desire as the summer progresses.

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In other racing news...

Unbelievably, about 400 people (of about 4800 registered) missed the start of this weekend's Seafair Marathon because there weren't enough shuttle buses to get people to the start. Can you imagine the scene that must have been? 400 people missed their race! After all that training! Seattle Times story here.

Some of the 4200 that did make it to the start

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At the finish

Having experienced a chain of sidelining issues (hernia surgery, bronchitis, torn calf muscle) in quick secession, I'm gaining an appreciation for how easy it is to fall off-track of one's fitness routine. I am posting this picture to get myself re-inspired on training.

Here, I'm crossing the finish line, smile on my face, at the Subaru Women's Triathlon this past September. It is such a fun race and I was really pleased with my performance.

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Bikes at Kona

Today is the World Ironman Championships in Kona, Hawaii. For many serious triathletes, competing in Kona is the holy grail - to qualify as an age group athlete you have to place at the top of your AG in one of the qualifying Ironman races that are held during the year. The course is a very tough 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, and 26.2 run. My wonderful coach, Amy Kuitse, qualified on her first Ironman attempt (which is amazing, but she is an amazing athlete). So today is her big day. I'll be following her progress throughout the day.

I have zero interest personally in the Ironman distance - to train properly for it you basically do nothing else. I'm a "fun and fitness" sort of gal, happy to stay at short-course distances.

Still, I think it's hard not for any triathlete to get a bit wound up in the drama around Kona. So, I'll definitely be checking in on the race throughout the day.

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Next year, I move up an age group category for triathlon - to the 50-54 group - even though I won't be 50 until December of 2007. That's because of the "age up" rule - you race at the age you will be as of December 31 of that year. It's so that if you're trying to quality for Nationals (not in my wildest dreams) you stay in the same age group all season (rather than move up mid-season).

So, this year, when I've looked at race results, I've looked ahead to the 50-54 group results. And what it striking is the steep drop in race participation. For example, in this year's Subaru Triathlon, there were 36 competitors in the 45-49 age group and less than half that (17) in the 50-54 group. I was curious, so I plotted the age group distribution:

Age group participation

Clearly, there is a sharp peak at 35-39, declining rather rapidly after that.

The difference was even more striking in the running race I did on Sunday: 51 women in the 40-49 age group compared to only 10 in the 50-59 group.

Now, I expected some drop, but not this steep. I would love to know why. Most woman I know my age have more free time than when they were younger - kids are grown or close to it, they are established in their careers. There is well-documented evidence that for endurance sports individuals can continue to improve their performance, with proper training, well into their 50's.

I think it would make an interesting study: to understand why people appear to start dropping out of racing at age 40. It might say something about how we percieve aging.

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In transition

Thanks all for the good wishes on my race. What a great cap-off to my 2006 tri season! The conditions were perfect and this race is just so well-organized. I had an absolute blast. Got a bit choked up after going through the finish - I've worked hard this season and it felt great to be so comfortable and confident out on the course.

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I've got my race packet, I'm body-marked (lucky #21) and my equipment's laid out in the living room. I just got off the phone with my coach which gave me a nice little psychological lift. I did a short run this morning and now I'm getting ready for a short cycle and then easy swim. That helps get the muscles primed and the mind prepared. Tonight I'll be taking it easy, having a pasta dinner, and getting to bed very early (we'll be leaving at 4:30am tomorrow morning for the race site). I am feeling so good going into this race!

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Last year's start

This Sunday is my "A" race - the Suburu Women's Triathlon. This is the race that my training all season has been targeted at. And it will be my final tri of the 2006 season.

It's also the toughest course - hilly on both the bike and the run. The bike is shorter (only 12 miles) but the run is longer (4 miles) than a typical Sprint-distance race. The very end of the bike has a steep climb, then you go out of transition into the run up the "ZZ trail" -  a steep set of switchbacks. It's a two-loop run course, which means you need to run up the ZZ trail twice.

I don't have a time goal - I just want to feel like I did my best while being supportive of the other gals out on the course. There are a lot of first-timers and for many just being in the race is a huge accomplishment in moving from a sedentary life style. The run is my favorite part because you get to interact with others on the course. And you get to have both feet planted on the ground!

The race expo is tomorrow - I plan to go down first thing in the morning to catch the short 1-mile fun run  lead by Colleen Cannon, a former world-champion professional triathlete. I had such a great time at the race last year - I am really looking forward to it this year!

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Going into T1

When people find out I do triathlon, the next question is invariably "Oh, are you doing the Danskin ?" At least in Seattle, Danskin is almost synonymous with women's triathlon.

No, I don't do Danskin. I think it's a great event that has brought a lot of women to the sport in a safe, supportive environment. I am fully supportive of anything that inspires anyone (man, women, child) to a more healthful lifestyle. But the race the race is huge (5,000 women) and the style of the race, with lots of rah-rah at the start (Are you going to have fun?? Yes!!! Are you going to take care of the each other??? Yes!!!), just isn't my style.

I made an interesting connection yesterday, though. A couple of months ago I was in my local tri shop and there was a woman (probably in her mid-50s) who looked oddly familiar, but I just could not place her in my mind. She was buying her first wet suit. After I left the shop, I remembered who she was. She was a member of a church I attended for a while, but she had lost a lot of weight. And I thought wow, that is inspiring!

Today's paper had a story about the Danskin, and mentioned a group of 45(!) women from the church who were participating in the race. And so I put 2 and 2 together. I am sure that woman was on the church team.

I hope that she (and the other women) had a great race yesterday.

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I work right upstairs from a very nice locally-owned running store. Very dangerous, actually. On Friday, I finally bought the ultimate training-nerd tool: a Garmin Forerunner 305 heart rate monitor with GPS. What this means is that satellites will track my every movement, instantly calculating my pace, route, and mileage.

Garmin 305

The device straps on your wrist, but it is still huge - like a Dick Tracy watch. But I'll be able to download my training data directly into my online log and upload workouts to the device. OK - time for me to get out and give this baby a spin.

Update: I am going to love this! Data galore on each workout. But the pacing info while running is probably the most useful for me in the short-term. Both the device and the chest strap are very comfortable. So many features to explore...

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Light blue caps waiting for the start

Most triathlons break the start up into different "waves" based on your age group. Each wave is given a different swim cap color: yesterday I was in the "light blue" wave of male and females 45-49. It's interesting having large numbers of people visually sorted by age - something unlikely to occur in other circumstances.  I think in the older age groups especially, there is a feeling camaraderie as we wait on the beach for our start. Most races also body-mark your age on  one calf. With the staggered starts, this is so you can see who your competitors are once you get to the bike and run. But since I'm not competitive in my age group, for me it often serves as inspiration. I had quite a few folks 50 and beyond pass me on the course. It's great to see everyone out on the course, each with their own story for being there, but I particularly enjoying seeing the older competitors.

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