Volcano!

Greg has been stuck in Manchester, England for 6 days now. Each day, they push his return back another day.

At first it was a bit exciting. Greg was in the middle of history. He was part of the huge news story around the world. Plus, he was part of a natural disaster that I find very cool.

After 2 days, it wasn't so fun any more. It's bringing me down. We were supposed to go on our first overseas vacation this week. We were going to visit our good friend, Brian, in Germany. I'd never been to Germany (outside of Ramstein AFB). We were also supposed to visit our good friends Tina and Randy in Atlanta on our way back from Germany. Both trips have now been cancelled.

Those are not what is getting me down. I really miss Greg. It's the not knowing when I'll see him again that is the hardest. If the volcano shoots off again, or if the bigger one next to it blows, it could be weeks before he's back. I don't think that could happen, but with each day that goes by, the possibility of Greg being gone for weeks becomes a bit more real.

It's been hard to find motivation to work out. I needed to get it together though. I have a triathlon and 1/2 marathon to train for! Today, I got in a workout I'm pretty proud of.

I hopped on my bike for a 45 minutes ride. It's my ride to Dundas and back. It's so pretty and the weather was perfect. Then, I put on my running shoes and hit the road for a 2 mile run. It was tough, but not as hard as I remembered it being after a bike. It gave me hope that I haven't screwed myself too much for this tri.

We'll see how the rest of the week goes. I hope to get into the pool tomorrow with a run through the arb right after. I need to workout for training, but also to make the pain of missing Greg lessen just a bit.

Running after a cold

You'd think I'd get a cold in Minnesota as the weather changes. Nope, I got a cold in hot and humid Mississippi! UGH!

This cold lingered and took my energy from me. I was exhausted and stuffy. This always seems to happen in mid training. I should prepare for being sick each time I get train for a race now.

Today was the first time in 5 days I was able to run. I couldn't wait to try out my lungs, and clear them out a bit. There was a lot going on at home though, so I needed to be prepared for a later day run.

We had day long work going on at our well. I was without water for 7+ hours. The guys needed access to my house, so I didn't fell like I could run off for 20-30 minutes. Then, the water was turned on. A quick call to Greg, and I was going to be off. I tried the water again, but no luck. I had to call the well guy back. After 45 more minutes the water was back on.

The sun was fading, and I didn't think I could go out there. Then, I heard a MOUSE running around in my basement ceiling. UGH!!! I was getting spun up. I needed a release. So, off on a run I went.

I decided to do just a 2 mile run. I tried to keep my pace up, which was a challenge in 15-20 kt winds. I ran it out, I was tired, but I felt so much better for having run.

Tomorrow was supposed to be a 3 mile run, but I'm taking back my swim/run day that I missed. We'll see how that all works tomorrow.

30 minute Swim and 30 minute Run

I finally got back in the pool after almost 2 weeks. It's been far too long since I'd been to a pool. I was looking forward to it, but a bit nervous. How bad was this going to go? How many college kids would be at the pool?

It was a great swim. I completed 1500 meters. So much better than the 1400 2 weeks ago. I swam all but 50 meters as the crawl stroke. I gained a bit of my swimming confidence back. It felt good.

After the swim, it was off for a 30 minute run. I slipped my running shorts, a t-shirt and shoes on then hit the trail. The Carelton College Arboretum was calling my name. It's such a beautiful trail, with some pretty big hills to challenge me.

I forgot how much easier it was to run after a good swim. The 1/4 to 1/2 mile period it usually takes to get into my running grove just wasn't there. The run felt really, really good and almost easy. I was so excited! The hills were tough, but felt good.

The run was slow, but consistent. It just felt good. Have I already said that?

Blue Lightning!

Today was another beautiful day! I'm so glad I saw this coming and planned to ride my bike today. A 50 minute ride was in order for today, and I was so excited to hop back on my bike.

2 weeks ago, Greg hooked my bike up to the stationary trainer in the spare room. It was good to be on it then, but something was missing. I figured out what that was today... wind!

I freed my bike, filled my best water bottle up with cold water, put on my sunglasses, gloves and helmet, then I brought the bike down to the driveway. I reset the bike computer and set out for my first ride on the open road this year.

It felt so good. I actually missed my bike. I couldn't believe it! I missed this thing that I really wasn't excited about last year. I thought after the first mile or 2 that my love affair would fade and the pain would set in.

I was wrong! I hit a hill, and leaned on my handle bars to get up that hill. It was just like RAGBRAI and felt so right. It was like my bike and I had a connection, that didn't fade during the winter months.

The love continued to grow with each mile. I road through town, and along the Cannon River to the next town. I saw the trees beginning to bud. I saw the full river moving swiftly along. I saw local cows next to the town compost site. I saw Dundas, MN. I had a smile that just kept growing.

I love my bike now. I loved it so much, that I decided to name it. People name cars all the time. You name the things you love. Since I now love my bike, I named it Blue Lightning! Ah, the love of a bike.

Tomorrow, it's off to the pool.