Blood. Sweat. Tears. Heart.

As many may know my sister, Carrie, and I are incredibly lucky to be part of ATHLETE the Movie. Director and Producer, David Lam, is one of the most talented people I have ever met and there is no question his success with this movie is inevitable. Take a look at his blog, it is fantastic!

CROSSING THE FINISH: ATHLETE DIRECTOR DAVE’S BLOG

It showcases his talent, passion and dedication to producing a movie that your “everyday athlete” will be inspired by.

Also, thanks for the shout out in your blog, Dave: Be Inspired

ATHLETE Kellie, Jenny & Carrie with Dave Lam at Ironman Lake Placid 2007

One more shout out to the twin sis, Carrie, who will be on the IM Louisville course with me August 31st to take on the coveted title of “Ironman”. I can’t wait, can you say emotional!

Carrie in the 2008 Green Lake Triathlon

I Want a Be Like Dad

My Dad is a cool dude and he is so incredibly talented with his camera. He’s got an eye on him that I hope rubs off on me one day. I love his passion for detail and the way he puts mystery in many of his photos. He sent a few pictures he took today on a trip to Platte Clove, NY and they are amazing. You make your daughter proud, Dad. Now come visit and show me how to use my camera.

Platte Clove, NY

Platte Clove, NY

Recovery + Xterra = Perfect Weekend

This week was a recovery week so only 3 hours on the bike Saturday and 14 mile run + 2000 yds in the pool Sunday (and 2 one hour walks on the beach, it was a beautiful weekend!). Now it is time to buckle down and focus on the next two weeks of build that are critical for my overall performance in IML. Oddly, I am looking forward to it. Ask me in 3 days and it may be a different story.

After the Sunday run I hit the Xterra race out in Atlantic Beach. The Xterra First Coast Off-Road Triathlon consists of a .5 mile swim, 13 mile mountain bike and a 5K trail run. This is NOT your typical triathlon and these people are TOUGH! It was exciting to watch and great to see one of the guys, that trains under the same coach as I, do really well. Sean Crichton finished 3rd overall male and the competition was unreal. He was 1st out of T2 and the two guys behind him were out for blood.

Sean Crichton Finish

Sean Crichton on the Bike

This Sport is NUTZ!

Back to housework and preparing for the week ahead. Until next time…

Hangin’ with the Homegirls

It often feels like life passes you by so fast. Between work, training and everything else life throws your way I find myself saying, “I can’t believe it is already Thursday!” or “I can’t believe it is already 2008!” It was really nice to slow down and have a bite to eat with some great friends and catch up on life. Thanks, Donna and Tara, for an evening full of laughs and smiles. This morning I found myself saying, “Is it Friday yet?”

IM Louisville Camp

I am luck to have had the chance to go to Louisville for a few days to check out the swim, bike and run course. Friday evening started the camp with a lecture by Troy Jacobson (Coach Troy). If you have heard of Spinervals you will know Coach Troy, very passionate about the sport of Triathlon and very focused on mental toughness. Lucky us that meant starting the lecture off by doing a 5 min squat with your back straight and hands behind your head, NOT fun!

Saturday morning we had the treat of having to jump into the Ohio River at 6AM. The bad part was that it was dark but that was also a good thing. Have you ever seen the Ohio River? NASTY! I swear a tetanus shot is needed to get in that water. I swam 16 min upstream and it took me 1 min to get back. You got it, we were swimming in place!

After the swim we did the 112 mile bike course. Okay, this was an eye opener for me. I had no idea Louisville was this hilly! Coach Troy went along for 80 miles of the ride and all I kept hearing was, “Jacksonville, you should not be standing on these climbs! Push yourself back in the saddle and use your hip flexors and use the ankling technique!” Huh? Well, I started to do that and he was right. I still got dropped on every hill but I will keep working on it. The only thing that got me through was the SAG vehicle with water and REALLY good cookies

Sunday started with a lecture and off onto the run course. One bridge at the beginning and the rest is flat with no shade. We did 15.5 miles which allowed us to run the entire course as it is a 2 loop. The only issue will be the heat, no hills…finally!

I met a fantastic chica who is an INCREDIBLE athlete and I was able to hang with her Sunday afternoon and we headed to the airport together. Cherri did 3 IM’s in 4 months last year (IMLP, IML, Kona), absolutely incredible. I had no idea a human could do that! She also took all the pictures attached!

Great camp, great people and great learning experience. We shall see how it goes on August 31st!

Race Sim Saturday

Done! Talk about “Finding Your Limits”, I found it on the run portion of my training today. On the bike at 5:40AM and did 2 hours of the IML course (not sure if it scared me more or helped, but I did it). The worst part was getting off the bike and looking at a puddle of sweat that I would have to eventually clean up.

Off the bike and onto the road for another 3½ hours with Joy, who is doing IM Florida in October, you rock girl! Let me tell you, Joy is as tiny as me but the girls got power on the bike. She rides harder gears and pulls off the same cadence as me. Can you say drafting

Joy in the '07 Winter Beaches Run

Off the bike I HAD a 45 min run but the temp was 89 degrees with a heat index of 99. I made it 38 min. before the black spots invaded my vision. If it is that hot in IML there will be a lot of DNFs and IVs (sorry Carrie)!

On a different note, I wrote to a friend the other day and “talked” about living every day like it was your last day on Earth. He wrote back something that I read over and over and wanted to share.

“I do feel I have a unique ability to adapt to situations which is a blessing but although I might be able to tell the the entire fictional history of a comic book character or make a catchy riff, I have no idea who the Prime Minister of Spain is, or if they even have PM’s for that matter. I fear sometimes that I live too much in the clouds and not enough here on earth. But for all my silent doubts I do have a strange confidence despite myself, when I was younger I think it bordered on cocky but as I’ve matured, no matter what, I share your attitude that everyday must be like it’s our last and that no matter what, this is the body and mind I was given, so I better make the most of it. Perhaps acceptance of our place in life brings a calm confidence? I like to think so, but I never stop wanting to know more and be more.”

Thanks AA, very cool. Live life, set goals, push yourself to find your limits and smile. Oh, one more thing, live life in the clouds when you can…it really is a cool place to be

CT and Me

After the IM Louisville Camp I attended I realized how hard the course was for a ‘little bit’ from FLAT Florida. I rode with the “A” group but got dropped on every hill. Thank goodness I had a map of the course with me! I tell my coach that after the ride I curled up like a little baby and was crying for my Daddy. No sympathy, just a new addition to the condo! Yes, the very cool CompuTrainer now adorns my soon to be home office. My bike looks like it is attached to a hospital machine with a ton of wires taking its vitals. The course on the computer screen, you guessed it, the IML course with all its hills (about 7,400 feet of climbing)! Thanks, Shawn, for letting me borrow it for a few. Yes, I know your reputation is on the line so you had no choice

Tomorrow morning is a 5½ hour ride (2-2½ on the CT doing hills) then finish outside with a 45 min T-run off the bike. Should be fun! So my exciting Friday evening consists of preparing for my ride and getting some pasta and bread in me with lots of water. Could you think of a better way to spend your Friday evening?

What does a human and a dead armadillo have in common?

They both almost made me kiss the pavement this morning! Okay, lesson in bike safety, always be alert and never trust another cyclist (or a dead armadillo as I found out).

I enjoy going out for morning rides even though it means having to attach a few lights to your bike and wonder what those noises are in the bushes. I head out at 5AM on the dot and it is perfect riding weather. A little wind to get the heart rate up and no cars on the road. I am focused on the 4 feet of road that I can see from my light and all is going well. All of a sudden I look up and some guy is on my side of the road and I almost nailed him! Dude, learn to stay on your side of the road to avoid a nasty wreck! He said sorry after I tossed a few choice words his way. I survived kissing the pavement…nice!

Now I am hitting where it is pitch dark so I get up on my hoods for better control but still hitting 19 MPH and BAM! I totally went air born (I got like three feet of air that time…dig Napoleon Dynamite). I realized it was a dead armadillo from the crunching noise. This was a big guy and yes, another round of specifically selected words came from my mouth. Somehow I clipped out in mid-air and when I landed my foot kept me up and I just kept turning into the skid (thanks Dad for teaching me how to drive on ice…worked well on the bike too) until I stopped.

Lesson for the day: BE SAFE out there and make sure you have a light on your bike that has more than 4 foot of visibility. Oh yea, watch out for cyclists that don’t know their right from their left and for armadillo’s that are not smart enough to avoid cars

My first blog entry

How exciting! I finally decided to join the world of blogging. I figured it is a great way to keep my family and friends updated on what I am up to and how I am doing. Lately life has been a vicious cycle of training, working, eating and sleeping. No complaints, I am enjoying it! I have the condo almost looking like a home and it is really cool. The view is incredible and so calming.

I just got back from Louisville where I was checking out the swim, bike and run course and it is going to be great. More on that in the next blog entry. Until then…