The Misadventures of Mrs. Magoo

Oceanside 70.3 was this weekend.  My race was a comedy of errors, but despite my excuses (blah, blah, blah) I was excited and ready to rock the day.  

The morning was perfect to run bike and swim and break all kinds of records -- a typical amazing Southern California day.  As the air gun signaled the swim start for participants in Wave 14, I dove my head into the Pacific.  It was cold, but...

 I felt strong. I was going to conquer this 1.2 miles.

Until that last half mile....

Out of the water in a decent time, I jumped on my bike and took off toward the cycling portion of the race.  Immediately, I could tell something was wrong with my bike.   I literally sat still as the next 300 or so cyclists passed me by. 

Wah.

I felt just like Mr. Magoo.  I couldn't see what was wrong.  I was clogging up traffic.  Why was I barely moving?

It was at this moment I had to make a decision.  I was WAY behind my competitors.  Should I stop, DNF, call the SAG wagon and jump in?  Or do what my daughter and every gymnast does every time they fall -- get up and finish what they started.

I decided to be like Rach. 

 I got off my bike, saw the problem (a rubbing front brake), adjusted it and took off.  

Suddenly things changed....

And I made the most of the next 40 miles.  

T2 went fine except, you know...

But I was expecting that.  

I tried my regain some ground on the run.  Oceanside is deceptively hilly.  

It also meanders up and down the boardwalk of the beautiful beaches.  Just over 13 miles later, I crossed the finish line.  Whew. 

It was the racers, the spectators and those determined gymnasts that buoyed me up and helped me cross the finish line smiling and happy. 

After it was all over, I knew exactly what I wanted to do. 

Retiring seemed like an excellent option.

However, I have some

I'll see you again, Oceanside.  Ready to rumble and prepared with a tuned up bike and no lame excuses.  So glad I get to do this.

But first, I need a massage.  I feel a bit like

Three Good Finds

Race season is right around the corner, and with that comes the return to race food, aka, Gus, packaged drink mixes, nutrition bars and all that good stuff.

In recent weeks I have found a few things that are working for me.  Here are a few of my favorites:

1.   Salted Caramel Gu

Yum is all I have to say about this GU.  And when has anyone ever said that about GU?  This energy gel is sweet with a hint of salt, one of my favorite combinations.  I took this gel on mile six of my long run this weekend and I was happy to take another one at mile 11.  The flavor tastes too good to be true.  I am sold. Easy energy in a convenient 100 calorie package.  Time to start buying these in bulk.







2.  Skratch Labs Apple Cinnamon Energy Hydration Drink Mix

 Another great find is this drink mix by Skratch Labs!  I initially started using the apple-cinnamon mix this winter, when I wanted a warm drink to fuel with, instead of a cold.  The boys at Bicycle Haus recommended this drink, and I have been a fan ever since.  Now that it's hit 80 when I ride, I can still use this drink for my extended Saturday rides.  And a secret trick but sort of a no-no, is I gulped a swig of my apple-cinnamon drink and then downed a salted caramel GU and the result: carmeled apple taste sensation in my mouth!  Lucky me!

3.  The Feed Zone

This cookbook has recipes for both "portable food" (bite sized portions you can package and take with you on a ride) or table dining.  What do I mean?  The author, Allen Lim, spent a few years as chef for a Tour de France cycling team.  He began experimenting with using REAL food for his cyclists while they were riding-- think rice cakes and homemade energy bars.

An exert from his book:  When Dr. Allen Lim left the lab to work with professional cyclists, he found a peloton weary of eating. For years the sport's elite athletes had been underperforming on bland fare and processed bars and gels. Science held few easy answers for nutrition in the real world, where hungry athletes must buy ingredients; make meals; and enjoy eating before, during, and after each workout, day after day.

So Lim set out to make eating delicious and practical. His journey began with his mom, took him inside the kitchens of the Tour de France, and delivered him to a dinner party where he met celebrated chef Biju Thomas.

Chef Biju and Dr. Lim vetted countless meals with the world's best endurance athletes in the most demanding test kitchens. In The Feed Zone Cookbook: Fast and Flavorful Food for Athletes, Thomas and Lim share their energy-packed, wholesome recipes to make meals easy to prepare, delicious to eat, and better for performance.

The Feed Zone Cookbook provides 150 delicious recipes that even the busiest athletes can prepare in less time than it takes to warm up for a workout. With simple recipes requiring just a handful of ingredients, Biju and Lim show how easy it is for athletes to prepare their own food, whether at home or on the go.

I bought this book and have been trying the recipes daily.  I like that there are no exotic ingredients needed.  The recipes are easy and basic and, delicious.  Packaged foods are easy, but these recipes are more delicious than the alternative and keep me topped off when I am hungry or fatigued.  Way to go, Skratch Labs!

Abs Are Not Made In The Kitchen, Not The Gym

The Final Rose Recap by Gary

I’ve been trying to think of a good way to recap the ending to this strange and bizarre and awkward journey we all went on with Juan Pablo. Part of me thinks we should just entertain theories to  what exactly he said to Clare in the helicopter. Obviously, we know that there are certain things he “LIKES ALOT!” (wink) but not sure we can go there. I have a sneaky feeling we will hear more from Clare, Nikki, AND Baby Mamma in the coming weeks.  Is Nikki still sitting there cause she wanted to beat Clare so bad?

Let’s focus on what we learned this season:

1.      If a contestant does not make it to at least the hometown dates, let’s not cheer and whoo whoo for the guy until we know him (or her) a little better. Final 3 at least.  

2.      Difficulties with the language and culture differences can hide some major flaws for quite a while. Having a cute daughter running around can also hide flaws.

3.      Pay attention to what the family says…especially if the father, mother, brother, sister, primo, tio, and nanna all warn you he’s not such a great guy after all.

4.      If 2 girls quit for no reason, consider that a red flag as well.

5.      If Chris Harrison and the production crew turns on you, get surly with them. After all, they did pick YOU, this is about YOUR life, it is YOUR choice who you pick in the end

6.      Men…we are powerless against late night warm ocean sex. Just look at that what YOU made ME do! How dare you?! (wink).

7.      Be sure to bring back castoffs 5-9 from the show so they can be placed in the audience to gasp, roll their eyes, and look disgusted. Always a strong move.

8.      Be sure to keep a few of the more successful couples around so they can talk about the “right way” to go through this process…you know, since Bachelor has about a 3% success rate.

9.      It’s on TV…why not wardrobe experiment? It’s a grand idea.

Gary's Take On The Women Tell All

The “Women Tell All” turned into more of a “Women Don’t Tell All” as Juan Pabs pretty much got let off the hook last night. There were two obvious camps of women last night…the ones who made out with Juan (and were reluctant to bash him) and the ones who did not make out with Juan (and were obviously scorned). Juan says his strategy wasn’t to make out with 27 women but we can all agree that was a flawed strategy. 

The over/under on make out sessions should be 15 women. Andi really didn’t come through with any additional nuggets inside the fantasy suite and very nearly made herself  look bad. And the way Chris was pumping up Sharleen? I would say who they eventually cast as Bachelorette is more wide open than originally thought…let’s say its 50% Andi, 45% Sharleen, 4% Renee, 1% Cassandra…negative -5% Lauren. Cassandra a little too scorned when she tried to attack Juan meeting Renee’s kid which backfired on her. Overall let’s just say Juan came out looking better than when he was going in. Bachelor fame + massive dating opportunity in tack. 

Here’s what else we learned:

Seemed like a little tension there in the Sean-Catherine love nest due to Sean’s “quick fireworks”. Sounds like Renee and the Coach met and are getting along. Andi keeping her deck clear to be the next Bachelorette. The dog lady was offended about Juan’s gay comments but no one was upset about her dog pooping in the pool. Juan offering to explain after the show a good strategy cause no way would he make sense and she’d finally give up and accept his “apology” (see Clare, Andi). 

Panning the Bachelor studio audience I saw at least 6 dudes there so that made me feel better.

Teamwork

My friend, John Giles, is running for Mayor of Mesa...