March Madness

What a trip.

That is all that I can think of to describe March!  The first weekend started in Clermont at Lake Louisa with my first draft legal race EVER!

^That is Lake Louisa...beautiful isn't it?! The water was so shallow (and tea colored..=P) it made for a very unique swim ;)

That weekend was a great learning experience.  In addition to learning many things I should NOT do in a future DL race, I also attended a camp headed up by Barb Lindquist.  I met other athletes in the program I am a part of and learned a TON about swimming, biking and running :)

For a full race report check out USAT; they picked me to guest blog on the College Recruitment Program page about my race experience

Race Report Here :)

Moving forward and into longer training I began the next couple of weeks switching from sprint to Half Ironman mode! The next major race on my list is the Wildflower Long Distance triathlon on May 5!

I'm so stoked!! I absolutely love this race.  Both experiences I've had the past two years have been wonderful and I can't wait to go out and feel some hurt on that course for a third time ;)

This past week has been a particular trip in itself.  Training was going so well--then of course Thursday morning I woke up with cold sweats and a fever =/  This would be fine any other weekend but one of my favorite local races took place today right on UA's campus!  Up until the wee hours of the morning today I had no idea whether or not I was going to actually race because my fever still persisted last night.  This morning when I woke up I didn't feel 100% but I certainly didn't feel like I did the rest of the week so I decided to give it a shot because at worst it would just be a good workout :) 
It was a beautiful 70 degrees and sunny when it was my turn to dive into the pool (yes! it was a pool swim!) I couldn't have asked for better conditions :)  My bike and both transitions both went pretty smooth everything was just a tiny bit slow.  I did not let this phase me, however, I had one goal this morning and it was to break 20 minutes on my run.  In previous years I had loomed around the 20 minute mark on this course and I decided sick or not today was the day.

^that's the second lap of the run! I knew I was going to be close to my goal so with the help of my wonderful boyfriend (and photographer =P) Lucas, and my roommate Maddie cheering me on I finished strong with a run split of 19:39! My overall time for the race was about 20 seconds faster than my best as well.  So, although racing sick is certainly not ideal, I proved to myself that my mind can stay strong to allow my body to perform its best :)  Now for some nutrition, hydration and recovery to get back on track for my favorite race coming up in a month and a few short days!!

**Non-triathlon side note**
I have my Senior Recital to complete my Music (French Horn) Minor next Sunday.  This has also contributed to the craziness of March!  I can't wait; it will be a both sad and exciting :)

And last but certainly not least....speaking of March Madness...check this song out :)  new release from Crimson prod. Valeas!
March Madness

Roots

Roots.  We all have them.  Whether they are in our food, growing out and showing our true hair color, or reminding us where we came from.  They are truly important to remember, no matter the interpretation you choose (what a crisis if everyone knew what your real hair color was ;) ).


As I enter this weekend, I want to keep one thing in my mind above anything else, my roots (where I came from of course, although remembering to eat them might help as well).  Remembering that I started triathlon only three years ago for the sole reason of keeping in shape and seeking to challenge my body in new ways is what I want dominating my thoughts this weekend.  I am competing in my first draft legal race tomorrow, so this follows the root goal: to give myself new challenges.  Although there are so many other things to think about this weekend besides the fact that this is a new challenge for me, I just want to focus on one thing. I couldn't be more excited to try this new format out this weekend and see where my body can take me!  The most important thing is not to clutter the roots because a crowded tree never grows to its full potential :)