Probably the most exciting thing that has happened, is that we adopted another English Setter! Her name is June (we nicknamed her June bug) and we adopted her from the Southwest English Setter Rescue. She has been so much fun and is such a sweet little pup. Gunther is a little disappointed that he has to share the cuddles and pets but he loves having a live in play buddy. They both love to run with me but we are working on running nicely instead of pulling me over whenever they see a squirrel. They will both be starting with Offleash K9 Training soon and we are excited to work with them.
June
Gunther and June playing in the backyard
One of the athletes I coach and that Brian trains with quite a bit is a pretty avid rock climber. He took Brian out on a trip to do some climbing and Brian came back hooked. Since then, he has gotten me into it as a fun, cross training type thing to do in the off season. We have been going to the rock gym in Virginia Beach and have both been learning how to be better technically. It's really fun and a great strength workout, plus we've gotten to meet athletes from a different group.
See Zoot tights don't have to be just for running and cycling!
We spent Thanksgiving in Virginia but I headed up to RI with the dogs for Christmas. Brian had to work an overtime job so he stayed in Virginia until New Years. It was weird spending the holiday without him but then he flew up to RI for New Years and we had a really fun few days with family and friends. The dogs got very spoiled with always having someone around to play with. I think they only had to stay in their crate twice, and we went for several long walks along the ocean to get coffee downtown. It was pretty chilly while I was home so I was thankful for my Zoot megaheat layers. On Christmas morning it was 19deg (without the wind chill) and I headed out to do a set of hard hill repeats. I was thankful that I didn't have to find a bridge to run over like we do in Chesapeake to do hills. I was also able to do my favorite running route by a couple of the beaches on the island and then up and around the lighthouse (where our wedding ceremony took place). Jamestown is so beautiful and I'm thankful to have grown up there and be able to go back and visit.
Beavertail lighthouse
I stayed on the trainer for my cycling workouts and was able to get some really quality interval training in, including a hard VO2 max set. When I was almost through the workout I received this in a text from our friend Kristen. Besides making me laugh when I was feeling pretty tired it also motivated me to get through the last few.
I did all my swim workouts across the bridge in the YMCA pool where I first started my triathlon training. It was neat to get back there as a much stronger athlete than when I started. Coach Tara Norton, ever the creative workout extraordinaire gave me a cool 12 Days of Christmas set to do on Christmas Eve. I may have been thinking a few choice words at her during the 12x50 butterfly though :P
We also did some climbing in RI in the Rock Spot gym up there. It was a good opportunity to spend some time with my brother Nate and his girlfriend Gillian before he heads off to Coast Guard boot camp (so proud of him for making the commitment to serve). My sister, her boyfriend Joe and my best friend Kendalyn and her boyfriend Adam also joined us one of the days which made for a really fun evening of climbing and catching up over dinner after.
A snow storm blew in after New Years, so of course Brian wanted to go for an "adventure run" in it. When we started out it seemed like a really bad idea to me...but it ended up being really fun even if I couldn't feel my toes or fingers after. We ran through the golf course (including Brian diving head first into a snow drift) and then made our way to my favorite coffee shop downtown for a little break before running home along the water.
The day before we had to drive back home, my cousin (his parents are my dad's cousins) Mikey was putting on a trail 5K race. I did my long ride workout on the trainer and then Brian and I headed over to the race. It was pretty cold out and the trail was covered in snow. I borrowed a set of Yak Traks from Mikey and paired up with his 9yo daughter Ellen to run with. Mikey and Becky have the coolest little girls, and they are into all sorts of outdoor activities. I'm pretty sure both of them can outclimb Brian and I pretty easily. This was a really tough 5K and Ellen was a trooper. She rolled her ankle a little bit but refused to quit and it was awesome to be able to share that experience with her. Fortunately there was hot chocolate and cup o noodles to warm up with after.
Ellen and I running in the snow scottmasonphoto.com
Although we both had an excellent time in RI, I'm happy to be back into a routine home in VA. Training for the 2014 season is ramping up and races are getting closer and closer. We will be looking to start up some breakfast rides in the coming weeks so look out for those. As many of you know Brian is a team captain for the Zoot team this year. I will also be staying with Zoot as an individual athlete. Check back in my next blog for some other exciting sponsor announcements for the 2014 season. Stay warm everyone and enjoy the base training, it sets you up for an excellent season.
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