My Side of the Story

Posted on October 6, 2012 by Tori @ In Love and Peanut Butter

Hi everyone! Patrick here with a guest post today. Since the whole blog community has read Tori’s race recap of the ESI Ironman 70.3 Augusta event and the surprise that awaited her at the finish line, I thought I might offer my insight as to how I pulled of this epic engagement and all of the planning that went into it.

Tori and I had been talking about our future together, an engagement, wedding and all of the other things that come with being a happy couple. I will have it admit, it’s tough to talk about an engagement and secretly plan one at the same time. Going to 3 weddings in a row didn’t really help either. But what Tori didn’t know is that I have been thinking about this for a long time.

She and I have always said that “When you know, you know”. And I have always known. I just needed the right special moment to do it. Many different thoughts went through my head as to when I could pop the question and the best way how. Some ideas involved peanut butter, first date memories, and Timex watch boxes. But when Tori mentioned that she wanted to complete an Ironman 70.3 this year, I know that was my opportunity. Unfortunately, we decided this in February/March and the race wasn’t until September, so we still had some time to go.

Working in the “business” really helped with the planning and coordination. I knew what I wanted to do but it took a few weeks to iron out all of the details. I was able to get the medal a few weeks ahead of time from Ashworth Awards. I have worked with them over the past few years and they have always been fantastic to work with. Plus, they were very excited to help me out with my big day.

The next task at hand was getting the special ring.

Ever since I was born, my grandmother declared that she would like for me to inherit her engagement ring. I never really thought much of it until I met that special someone and the time came near. Tori and I went to Richmond this summer on vacation and I was going to try and ask my grandmother at that time.

Unfortunately, the right opportunity never arose so I had to make other arrangements. I had been traveling and working for the past few weeks so I figured I could “extend my trip” by a few days and make a special trip to Richmond to talk with my grandparents. So after working for a week in the awful sun in Las Vegas for the Championship race, I flew to Virginia for 14 hours with one purpose, to get the ring.

My grandmother and grandfather were ecstatic to hear the news and my grandmother was glad to pass along her ring to me. As she said “it isn’t the biggest diamond but it helps it sparkle”. I thought it was beautiful and I knew Tori would love it. Plus it was a family heirloom and has a huge sentimental value to it.

Once I had the two vital pieces to the puzzle, I employed the help of my mother to assist with a little arts and crafts project. I needed her assistance with getting the ring on the ribbon and medal. Since the ribbons are all one piece, we needed to cut it to get the ring on. She was able to slip the ring on the end of the ribbon so it would hang just above the front of the medal. She was then able to sew two pieces of Velcro on the ribbon so we could take the ring off once she crossed the finish line.

The next step was a little more nerve racking. I had to ask her parents.

While Tori was visiting the Greenbrier, I was able to speak with her mother one day after work. I told her my plan to propose at the finish line and she was more than happy to give me her blessing. However, moms are always easier to talk too. I was still pretty nervous about speaking with her Dad. Unfortunately, I was never able to catch up with him during the week prior to the event so it would have to be during race weekend. Thankfully I was able to speak with him the day before the race and he gave me his blessing to marry his daughter.

“Whew” that was over. The only thing left to do was finish the race.

As race day approached and arrived, I was never really nervous. My lack of training was a bit unnerving but I knew that as long as I finished the bike, I would be OK. I had a goal of going under 6 hours and to beat another one of my co-workers but this was all secondary to my main purpose. I am sorry to all my staff members who bet on me to finish first. I owe them all a beer at some point. I had a great race on Sunday morning. The event organizers, race director and staff members did a fantastic job with the 70.3 and I was thankful to have them all there for support. It was a bit different being on the other side of things.

I went into the water about 15 minutes ahead of Tori so I knew I would cross the finish line before her. She was a bit nervous about making the bike cutoff but I knew she would be just fine. I had my own race to focus on, but in the back of my mind, I was thinking about Tori and the Augusta hills. During the first loop of my run, I tried to think positive about everything but when my parents mentioned that they hadn’t seen Tori get off the bike I started to worry a bit. Thankfully, on my second loop, my dad told me that he had seen Tori on her first lap of the run course and she was doing well. At this point, I knew everything was a go!

As I crossed the finish line, I didn’t even really get a chance to enjoy the accomplishment. The great volunteers put a ribbon around my neck, handed me a finisher hat and the race director gave me a nice cold beer. But I had other things on my mind.

My mom had held the ring and medal for me throughout the weekend and during the race. Our parents were able to hang out in the VIP tent during the race and they were able to watch me as I crossed the finish line. It was great to have them there and be a part of such a fantastic day. Now, all I had to do was wait.

I want to say a special thank you to MP (Marie-Piere) and the team at SportStats for their awesome work with timing and splits (I think she was almost as excited about the proposal as I was). They put extra mats out on the courses to record the splits of all the athletes and this helped me see where Tori was on the course and what pace she was running.

As Tori hit the mile 12 timing mat, I got everything ready at the finish line. Our families, the announcer, the staff and I were eagerly awaiting her arrival.

As she came down the Finish chute, it put a huge smile on my face. Not because I knew what was about to happen, but because I was watching her finish such a great race that she had worked so hard for over the past 18 weeks. I was proud of her for so many things.

When she crossed the finish line, I put the medal around her neck and wrapped her in my arms. I was amazed with everything she had done and I was so proud of her. She/we were so caught up in the moment that she didn’t even know what was hanging around her neck. As we kissed and hugged and shared our great accomplishments, I whispered to her “Nice medal”. At that point, the rest is history. I choked up, she cried, our friends, family and staff cheered, she said yes and all was right with the world.

It had been a long, difficult, emotional and happy journey. But everything was worth it. I am very thankful for everyone who helped make this event possible. Dan Ashworth and Ashworth Awards, my grandparents, my parents and her parents, AJ Sills (the Race Director), the wonderful staff members who I have shared so many weeks and months with over the season and who put on a fantastic event for us, the Augusta Chronicle, Boulder County Communications (especially John and Rowen), and MP and SportStats Timing. Thank you all for your support and sharing such an incredible day with us. It will definitely be a race that we will never forget.

Race Recap: Ironman 70.3 Augusta

Posted on October 3, 2012 by Tori @ In Love and Peanut Butter

Oh man, where to even begin with this one? First and foremost, I cannot say enough good things about this race. The staff, volunteers, and entire city were incredibly accommodating. The course was absolutely perfect. Everything was easy to navigate and the race was super spectator friendly. I would absolutely recommend this for anyone interested in doing a 70.3.

This race will go down as the most special race I’ve ever done. I knew my life would change after I crossed the finish line, I just never knew quite how much it.

Pre-race:

Patrick and I’s waves didn’t start until 8:45 and 9:04. Even with the later start time we still had to be at transition before it closed at 7:15am. Our bikes were checked the day before so all we had to bring was our helmets, shoes, sunglasses, etc.

We stayed at the host hotel that was right on the river and took advantage of the race day transportation to take us from the hotel to transition. Once there I pumped some air in my tires, filled my water bottles and set up my gear under my bike. With that, I was done and ready to race.

Since we were left with a few hours until our start time Patrick and I made the 1.5 mile walk from transition to the swim start. Before I really had time to think about what I was about to do it was time to pull on my wetsuit and make my way over to the corrals.

We ran into our friends and family waiting over by the start. Patrick’s wave was about 20 minutes before mine. With a few big hugs and a few good lucks he was off. I still had some time to wait, I was second to last wave of the day.

I was emotional and excited but not nearly as nervous as I thought I would be. I was ready. All I could do was trust in my training at that point.

Swim:

Before I knew it it was my turn to make my way down the dock and get into the water.

For the race to be considered “wetsuit legal” the water temperature on race morning needed to be below 76.1 degrees. Official race morning water temperature was 76 degrees flat. We just made it.

This race has a floating start so you begin treading water.

The water was cold but not bad at all. A couple of minutes after treading water I heard the signal to go and I was off.

One of the huge selling points of this race is the down river, current assisted 1.2 mile swim. Everything I have ever heard about it was absolutely true. The water moves fast and is totally in your favor. Its straight down stream so there is hardly any siting needed. When I was finally able to see the final buoy I was actually a bit sad that it was over. The swim was incredible and I knew the rest of the day was going to be hard.

Official 1.2 Mile Swim Time: 31:42

T1:

Its a pretty short run from the swim exit to transition which was nice. After a quick stop at the wetsuit strippers station (yes, thats a thing) I quickly found my spot in transition. I threw on my socks, cycling shoes, helmet, and race number, grabbed my bike and started to run toward bike out.

It was sprinkling when I got my bike and the sky was grey without a trace of sunshine. I was grateful to not have the sun beating down on us.

Official T1 Time: 4:51

Bike:

I got on my bike with no issues and was on my way. The first four miles of this race are in Georgia. During the 4th mile you cross the South Carolina state line and spend the rest of 56 miles there.

I knew the bike was going to be the toughest leg for me. Even though I’d trained for the distance I was not as prepared as I would have liked to be for the hills.

The first 10 or 15 miles are relatively flat. Some little hills but nothing major. The first aid station was at mile 20. I got off my bike there, used a port-a-potty and had a Bonk Breaker. I was so glad I made that stop, I felt like a new person after that.

Miles 30-40 of the course were rough for this Florida girl. Thats where all the hills I kept hearing about were hiding. The uphills made my quads scream in protest. The downhills were nice but a little scary if you’re not used to them. I don’t think I’ve ever taken my bike much above 20mph on our Florida roads. I was doing 30mph downhill without even pedaling. The roads were paved but a little uneven in spots. I had a few wobbly moments but overall adjusted quickly.

The weather stayed consistent for the entire 56 miles. The sun never came out and it sprinkled the whole time.

After mile 40 the hills seemed to be easier and more rolling. That was until mile 46. There was a huge downhill with a left hand turn at the bottom. After the turn was, for me, the worst climb of the entire course. My quads were just about shot at the time. I was riding a whopping 8mph uphill. When I reached the top there was an aid station. I looked at the volunteers and through my gasping for air managed to say “holy hill”. The assured me that was the last of the climbs and it was downhill from there. I put my feet on the ground for a minute or two and refilled my aero drink with the ice cold water they had at the aid station.

The volunteers were right. It was pretty much all downhill from there. I was so incredibly relieved to see transition.

Official 56 mile Bike Time: 3:44:17

T2:

My legs were shaking and I was nervous about unclipping and trying to walk but I got off the bike with no problems and ran my bike back to its rack in transition. There I dropped my helmet and put on my running shoes. My hair was in the most incredible knot. I tried to loop in inside my hair tie but it was too much of mess to deal with.

Official T2 Time: 2:56

Run:

I was so relieved to be on the run. This was my comfort zone. This part was predictable for me.

The run course was 13.1 miles in 2 loops through the downtown. I’d heard how spectator friendly this course was but never really realized how important it was until I was out there. Both Patrick’s and my parents were sitting at the around the 3 mile mark downtown which was also mile 5-ish and mile 12-ish. It was nice to be able to see them 3 times and know where to look each time.

I didn’t wear a GPS but by the mile markers I could tell I was keeping an 11 to 11:30 mile pace. It felt good and I didn’t need to stop and walk at all.

Around mile 8 it started to pour. My shoes quickly turned into sponges and I was getting water up my nose. That gave me some incentive to pick it up and get to the finish.

The rain finally let up around mile 12 and was back to a sprinkle. Mile 12 wraps around the finish line and brings you through the finish chute.

Official 13.1 Mile Run Time: 2:36:10

Finish:

When I turned the corner and saw the finish line I got really emotional. I had done it. I had finished my very first Ironman 70.3.

Official Finish Time: 6:59:56

I heard them call my name as I crossed through the finish line. In front of me I saw Patrick waiting there with a medal. A row of volunteers was behind him. I remember wrapping my arms around him in excitement. We’d done it. We’d finished the race.

Patrick hung a medal around my neck and told me congratulations. We hugged a few more times. Then he whispered “nice medal”.

When I looked down I saw it, a beautiful diamond ring was hanging on my medal.

To put the next few moments into words would be impossible. I was so overwhelmed with emotions all I could do was bury my face in Patrick’s shoulder and cry in joy.

Patrick put the ring on my finger and the crowd around us yelled “so is it a yes?”. Of course it was!

Luckily, the whole thing was caught on video:

Our parents emerged from the VIP area behind the finish line and there were many hugs and tears. A reporter from the Augusta Chronicle came over and interviewed us (you can read the article here).

Patrick planned an engagement I could have only dreamed of. It was perfectly “us”.

My life changed in so many ways at that finish line. It was an end of one journey and the beginning of another. I feel so blessed to continue it with my soul mate.

Also, check out Patrick’s engagement post: My Side of the Story

Ready to Race

Posted on September 29, 2012 by Tori @ In Love and Peanut Butter

Tomorrow is the big day. It’s race day of the Ironman 70.3 Augusta.

My gear is all laid out

My bike has been checked at transition

All that is left to do is get a good nights rest.

Kara Goucher once said that “racing is the fun part; it’s the reward of all the hard work”. That’s my motto going into this race.

I’ve put in the hard work, a lot of it. I’ve pushed myself a lot harder and farther these last 18-weeks than I ever have before and I’ve come out a stronger person. The race is the grand finale of this challenge and I’m determined to have fun.

At this moment, I’m just grateful that I had the courage to start.

How I Avoided the “Burnout”

Posted on September 26, 2012 by Tori @ In Love and Peanut Butter

Burnout. Whether physical or mental, most of us reach it at some point during a training cycle. That morning when you just don’t want to wake up and you can’t fathom running the same stretch of land again. I’m definitely no stranger to it. It was a huge goal of mine to really enjoy every aspect of this training cycle and do my best to avoid the dreaded crash and burn. For me, that all boiled down to including one element, variety.

While training for my last marathon and my ultra, I became such a creature of habit. I woke up nearly every morning and ran the same three-mile loop from my front porch. On the weekends, I added distance. It was like Groundhog Day. Every day was the same.

Conveniently, triathlon has variety built right in. Training in three different sports definitely spices it up. I love that no day was the same and I had options. If I didn’t feel like running on a morning I had a run scheduled, I’d bike, or swim, or sleep.

Swim: I consistently swam at 4 different pools and 3 different beaches. I also swam in pools during each vacation we took. Every pool was different, some indoors some outdoors. Each beach had a different current. I feel that it made me more resilient to the ever-changing open water.

Bike: I added spin class to part of my training for the first few months. I hadn’t done a spin class in close to a year before starting this training program. I had no idea just how much it would help me build my base. I also got more familiar with my bike trainer. Really what could be better than watching 3 hours of Law & Order SVU while cycling?

Run: This was the area that needed the most variety for me. I became too familiar with my route that I ran nearly every single day. I was really needing a change.

Over the last few months, I tried new roads and trails. I grew to love trail running and how it adds such a different element to a run. I ran in the mountains and on the beach and tried to squeeze a run in everytime I was out-of-town.

I got out of the rut of knowing every single mile marker and relied on my Garmin to create my route. I’ve really loved the change of scenery.

Group Training: I started training with a few different groups. I’m not what I would consider to be a fast runner and I always thought to run with a group you HAD to be fast. It was quite the opposite. I made some incredible friends through my run group and never felt out of place for a moment.

Once I’d worked up my confidence with swimming I also started going Mad Dogs and Team Psych‘s open water swims. I even ended up joining Team Psych this year! I’ve really enjoyed the social aspect of training with a group.

Racing: I packed my training plan with 5 triathlons during this training cycle. Several shorter sprints (here, here and here) in the beginning and an olympic distance a few weeks out. Racing shorter distances always helps me shake out my nerves and practice transitions. It also helped me gauge what my race pace could and should be.