We have arrived in Tempe! It's great to be here, and we're really excited to be back in the warmth!

After quite a positive response to Amanda's online poll on her blog, I am posting a quick look at a possible race outfit of mine. Courtesy of Splish, here is my back and my front.

Amanda and I are off to Arizona tomorrow evening. I know I'm really looking forward to racing, and I am pretty sure Amanda's just as excited. We've packed just about everything but the bikes, and we'll take care of that tomorrow! And by "we" I mean "I" will pack the bikes. Ha!

I'll try to touch base later this week with some photos from Tempe... and, in the very least, with some updates.

California 70.3!

The 2007 season is officially underway! Amanda and I traveled out to Oceanside, CA last week for the sixth running of the half ironman in the San Diego area. Having done the Ironman back in 2001, and having raced all but the 2002 version of the half, I have become very familiar with this race course. I really like the event, and appreciate the course for all it has to offer. In past years we have had sunshine, wind, rain, clouds, heat, and cold. Somtimes we have had combinations of the above weather phenomenons in the same year!

This year the forecast was for sunny skies and warm temps. Well, let's just say that it takes a while for it to warm up out in Southern California! It may have hit the predicted 70degrees that day, but not until well after the race was over.

The day began with a pretty uneventful swim. I got a quick start, which gave me ample opportunity to draft the faster feet. With the exception of when Mr. Bryan Rhodes took us all a bit off course, the swim ended with few snags or issues. I was very pleased to find that my brand new Blue Seventy Helix wetsuit was extremely comfortable, and very flexible.

I finished the swim thinking I had not worked very hard to maintain contact. However, as soon as my feet hit the boat ramp, I realized I was a bit worked over! I seem to be getting worse and worse at my transitions, and I believe I lost six or seven places before I ever found my bike! Once on the bike course, I realized just how cold it was that morning. It sure would have been a good idea to bundle up with some arm warmers and gloves. I guess that sunshine gave us a false sense of security! Like many of my fellow racers, I'm sure, my legs and hands and toes and feet were freezing for the better part of the ride.

My ride went about as it has the past few years: it was very unexceptional. I thought going into the race that I was going to have a good deal of power, but what resulted was a very average performance. I started conservatively and planned to build a late charge. I pretty much stayed at that pace for the bulk of the ride. Toward the end, closing back in on T2, I found my rhythm, and pressed the final eight to ten miles with good intensity.

Were this not the pre-Ironman tune-up event, I might have lamented the days when I felt I owned the Cali bike course! This day it seemed to have owned me. :0

With the transition to the run, I felt a great relief that my flatness or staleness or whatever was behind me. The mile one marker came past me at 5:23, and the pace felt effortless. I figured I'd go with that effortlessness as long as I could. There were plenty of folks to catch, so the motivation was there to continue my pace. By mile three I had slowed a bit, as the split was 16:26. I liked that it still felt very easy, so I kept it up.

A funny thing happened at mile five. I came by in about 27:42, which meant I had gradually slowed, but this coincided with the easy feeling leaving me. It was suddenly going to be a bit harder to maintain 5:30s and 5:35s. I kept the effort the same, and allowed the pace to drop a bit. I figured I'd have time to bring the pace back down there after a bit of slower running. By the time I realized it was time to "gut check", in order to get into that final money spot, I had only five kilometers to go.

I knew it was not going to be the best thing for recovery sake to "gut check" my way up to eighth, but I couldn't justify letting it slip away. Just as I was turning back up the pressure, I noticed I was overtaking a fading Luke Bell. Lucky for me he had blown a bit after lap one (courtesy of IM New Zealand), and I was then in eighth with no need to kill myself.

Content with my effort, I stayed on top of the pace just enough to notch the fastest run on the day. Andy Potts may have put nine minutes on me overall, but he didn't outrun me! (It's the little victories we savor the most.)

With my eyes firmly on the prize of IM Arizona, I am very happy with my early-season showing. I have learned from '05 and '06 that an average race in California bodes well for a strong race in Tempe! I'm now on the couch and counting down the days! Once again, thanks for tuning in.

Tri Scottsdale, a non-profit organization dedidated to promoting health and wellness through the growth of the sport of Triathlon in Scottsdale and the surrounding communities, has generously sponsored Amanda and me for the upcoming races at Oceanside and Tempe.

Please see their newly launched website:http://www.triscottsdale.org

This is an incredible group of people who, in addition to sponsoring athletes, and promoting the sport of triathlon, are involved in the production of The Tri for the Cure: http://www.triscottsdale.org/movies/cure_movie.php.

In addition to this great event in May, Tri Scottsdale is promoting another event Thursday prior to next month's 2007 Ford Ironman Arizona. If you find yourself in the Scottsdale area on April 12th, please stop by our seminar:

Tri-Scottsdale , the RedRock Co., and Max Muscle McCormick Ranch invite you to join us for a Free clinic and question and answer session with Defending Ironman Arizona Champion Michael Lovato and his Wife, Professional Triathlete and former Soma Triathlon Champion, Amanda Lovato.

Topics will include but not be limited to:
· Nutrition - day to day and pre and post race day secrets
· How to do well on the IMAZ course
· Thriving not just Survivng the1/2 Ironman and Full Ironman Distance.

The Lovatos will also entertain questions and answers on any triathlon related racing topic.

Date: Thursday April 12, 2007
Time: 6:30 - 7:30pm
Location: Max Muscle McCormick Ranch 7353 North Via Paseo Del Sure, Suite 430 Scottsdale, AZ 85258

Please R.S.V.P. to Marc@Triscottsdale.org

The LONG RUN!

I love long runs. When the fitness begins to come around, and the tolerance for the longer miles starts to add up, I love running long. I have a few great loops here in Boulder, and I'll generally alternate them in an Ironman build. This year I did a long run down in Austin, and one in Tempe. So this really only left me with three up here on my home courses. Well, the first one sure was a memorable one...

Two weeks ago, late in the afternoon, I was finally getting myself together for a 20+ mile run. My sister-in-law, Diana, was in town for the weekend. And Jarrod, my brother-in-law had also come up with his girl, Carrie. We were enjoying family time all weekend, so the normal start times were pushed back a tad. (This is my excuse for starting a long run at about 1:00pm on a Saturday afternoon!)

Well, the run I had chosen was a loop from the house. It involves a few challenging, but short, climbs, a lot of rollers, and plenty of false flats (and some flats). It's pretty much got it all: dirt, trails, concrete, ashpalt. The nice thing is that it starts and finishes at my house.

The nice thing about this run, my first one back at altitude, was that I had some company. Diana decided she would accompany me on Amanda's cross bike. She's a great athelte, but it's been a few days (weeks, months) since her days of regular bike riding. I assured her we'd only be gonig about nine to ten miles per hour, and the terrain was moderate.

This assurance was only partly true.

About five miles into the ride, we took a turn to the north on Lefthand Trail. This one winds up north from the Rez area and connects with some great dirt roads. On a normal day, the path is a fairly mild one, and a cross bike is well suited for the trip. That particular day was, evidently, a bit too soon after Boulder's last snow fall.

For about three miles, we were faced with a nasty combination of soft dirt, sticky-thick clay-mud, snow, deep snow, crusty snow, and other various debris and obstacles. Let me just say that Diana is one hell of a good sport; and one heck of a tough gal!

Considering this was her first ride in several months, and she was only up from sea level for about 2.3 days, she hung in there very well. A highlight (in between segments of serious huffing and puffing) was when she took a break from following the actual trail to forge her own route. Rather than follow the more dangerous switchbacks (covered with snow drifts), she bravely cut her own trail straight down the slope, over cactus and weed, to reach the bottom ahead of me. I looked over, and truly wished I had a camera to capture her masterfully throwing her weight about ten inches behind the saddle to keep from nose-diving into a yucca plant. Ah, that photo would have been priceless.

After an eternal three miles, we finally made it back to the more manageable terrain I had promised her. We both picked it back up, while easing up the effort!

The remainder of the long run was quite enjoyable. Diana managed to drop her heart rate back into the safe zone, while I pushed it a bit harder (in great part due to Diana's spirited cheers and coaxing).

A second highlight was when we were making our way back to the 'hood, on Jay Road. In the midst of Diana's hooting and hollering, we heard a car horn honking. To our surprise, Amanda was making her way back to the office, after showing several houses to some clients. As all occupants of the vehicle craned to necks to get a look, Amanda grinned ear-to-ear as she realized they were overtaking her sister and husband!

To make up for my lack of photographic evidence of the SERIOUS mud and grime, I will include a pre-ride/run photo; one which clearly shows off our knack for workout style.

I'm trying to go in order, that way I feel like I did this the proper way. I realize this was over three weeks ago, but I wanted to share these fun photos I took while I was down in Austin. One day, while doing one of my favorite rides, I spotted a Texas flag blowing in the breeze. I thought it would make a good photo, so I jumped off my bike, and snapped a shot or two. This shows you two things: 1) It was moderately windy that day, so the trip from Austin down to Wimberley was a bit slower than normal and 2) I continue to take photos that I think would impress my High School Photography teacher, Mr. Pinto; even if the shots really aren't that impressive whatsoever. (I didn't impress him then; I don't impress him now!)

I wish I had the company of my riding bud and good friend, Todd; however, he wouldn't skip work with me that day, so I did the ride solo. The ride leaves Austin to the west, takes up Hamilton Pool road to Ranch Road 12. It heads south from there to Dripping Springs, and continues on to Wimberley. From there 12 takes a bend to the East, and you arrive in San Marcos. At that point, the 100-mile loop goes left, and back to Austin. Since this was my last ride in my 500-mile week, I opted to add on by doing an out-and-back toward New Braunfels. The fond memories of days gone by started to flood me at every turn (boiling water bottles; 110 degrees; my first taste of Coke and Snickers, to prevent a bonk). I love the riding in Boulder, but the early years in Texas sure were the formative ones!

Overall the training camp was a success. I enjoyed some lovely sunshine days; some great rides; some awesome food, and some awesome company; and I gave myself a nice mental boost for Ironman next month!

Ok, I'm realizing that I so far behind that I might not catch up. I'm a bit bummed I didn't make time to post this stuff sooner, but I'm living by the better-late-than-never motto!

I mentioned that I went to Austin for a bit of training. During my preparation for Arizona last year, I had a key block down there, and I wanted to duplicate it somewhat. I have learned over the years that my body never really requires the same training for each Ironman, nor does it respond the same to each bit of training in the same way. This being said, I thought the timing was just right, and the block was fun last year, so it would be fun again.

I showed up on a Thursday night, and the first thing I did was grab a delicious meal over at Magnolia Cafe. Those in the know understand why I so sorely I miss this restaurant.

The very next morning (Feb 16th) I went down to Jack and Adam's for a bike fit with my good friend and fit wizzard, Zane Castro. I've known Zane for a long time, and I continue to be impressed by how much triathlon and bike fit knowledge he crams into his Little Mexican Brain! (We always called him the Little Mexican!)

I'm posting a few photos from the fit I did with Zane. All in all, it was a great experience for me. I had not been on the Barolo yet this year; in fact, I had not ridden the race steed since Hawaii. I was anxious to check out my position, and dial myself in at a bit steeper, more forward set-up. My focus is IM Arizona, and this is a pretty darn flat race. I really want to maximize my power out there, so the goal that Zane and I set was to raise my saddle up, while brining be a bit more forward over the bottom brackete.

We did just that, and along the way we did some tweaking to the position of my cleats. I was able to find a bit more power with these adjustments to the cleat, and in doing so also made more efficient use of my pedal stroke.

If you're ever in the Austin area, I urge you all to check out Jack and Adam's incredible tri shop: www.jackandadams.com. They have EVERYTHING you need for our fun sport. And I mean everything! I also encourage you to enlist the help of the guy I sometimes call Dr Castro. Chances are good he'll get your bike fit where it needs to be.

Oh boy, it's been nearly three weeks since the last update. I'm slacking. However, this means that I'm not slacking in other areas of my life, therefore, I'm busy. That means I've got lots to say. Please tune in soon for updates on... my bike fit at Jack and Adam's; my training trip in Austin; my fun time at the Multisports camp in Tempe; and my super-duper training partner here in Boulder, Diana Gillam. Oh, and there will definitely be photos.

Before too much time passes, and I slip into my former slacker status, I want to send out a short update. This time I really will try to snap some photos for proof, as I'm on another training trip. I made a last-minute decision to get down to Austin for a week of warm weather training. I arrived late on Thursday night, and will be here until Friday morning, at which point I'll head off to Tempe to help out with the Multisport.com IM Arizona training camp. More news later... gotta get some sleep tonight!

Thanks for checking in.

Now that I have a week back in Boulder, I have realized that as much fun as it is to be away, there really is no place like home. I sure missed having Amanda around for the past week, but the dogs, Frisco, and I made the most of our time.

I had a nice bonus last weekend, as my good friends Jack and Stacy were up in Keystone for a ski trip. I scrapped plans to do any triathlon training on Sunday, and zipped up the mountains for a visit... and the SuperBowl. Before my rendezvous with Jack and Stacy, I stopped over at the Frisco Nordic Center for a final Cross Country Ski for the season. I suppose I could make it back out a few more times, but I'm not sure I want to risk it. I did manage one little tumble during my 90-minute workout, and I've got the resulting sore chest to prove it. While it didn't slow down my training last week, the discomfort is starting to get to me, so I'm going to have to lay off the skis!

Boulder weather got back to normal last week, and the temperatures got up to the mid-sixties. I was happy to be out running in shorts, and even started a ride without arm warmers! I found that it was a bit colder out on the plains, so I quickly pulled them on, but it was a far cry from the single digits we'd been experiencing! I managed a nice, solid week of biking and running, but must admit that my swimming is still taking a back seat. I'll get to it soon enough!

The highlight of the week came on Friday when Amanda returned to Boulder. The dogs and I piled into the car for a late-night trip to the airport. We were all very happy to have her home, and even Frisco waited up for her arrival!

Yesterday morning we made our way over to the Cross Counrty National Championships. It came to Boulder for the first time in its history, and it was quite the show. While the women's race was a bit of a blowout (Deena Kastor set a punishing pace at the outset and never looked back!), the men's was very close. Alan Culpepper managed a come-from-behind victory over a gritty-tough Adam Goucher and early frontrunner Dathan Ritzenhein. Jorge Torres rounded out the top-four finishers, making it a 1-2-3-4 for former CU Buff runners. It's an incredible thing to watch these guys saunter around a muddy golf course at a sub-five-minute pace--at altitude--while looking very controlled. It definitely got me in the mood to race!

Back to the COLD!

I returned to Boulder on Thursday night, and is it ever cold here! I knew I was going to get soft while training out in that mild California weather. Oh well, it was well worth it.

As I mentioned before, I'll sum up the training totals for the two weeks I was in California, just for kicks.

I should start by saying that our primary goal was to log some big hours in the saddle, as we figured the swimming and running could progress along just fine back in Boulder. I say this because the swim time was pretty low, although Amanda and I did some great workouts together, and we did make it to two masters practices. My running hours were about average. I had a lot of nice runs, but nothing too fancy, just cruising along, enjoying all that extra oxygen in the air.

From January 18 to February 1, here are the numbas:
Swim: 7 hours 25 min
Bike: 46 hours
Run: 11 hours 25 min
Total: 64 hours 50 min.

Obviously, the biggest boost to my fitness was on the bike. I really enjoyed all that riding, and all those hills. It's fun to get out to a new area, and to explore new routes. We were lucky enough to have some locals, or others familiar with the area, to show us where we were going.

I sure wish I had remembered to bring my camera along, but I guess that means I'll just have to go back!

Ok, so this is just a short update on the training we've done here in San Diego. It's been so nice out, we just haven't wanted to stop riding and running and swimming. Consequently, we've been too tired to write much on the blogs, as we might have thought we would do. Ok, I should speak for myself, as I'm not sure if Amanda has been better about updating.

Some quick thoughts:

The riding here is really much better than I had imagined it would be. I now know why all those folks come here to train for Hawaii. In addition to having incredible weather, the riding is tough, with a lot of climbing: everywhere you go!

There is a lot more trail running than I knew about. I've done some nice road runs, but the trails are readily available as well.

Although I've definitely gotten stronger, and my cycling has taken a huge boost, I am worried I am becoming soft. How so? Well, when I get back to Boulder on Thursday, I'm going to have to get used to the cold weather all over again. Once you get accustomed to sixties, it's tough to face thirties and forties again. Ouch.

And finally, counting the one-hour yoga session last night, my seven-day training total was a healthy 39 hours. I'll summarize more of the specifics later, including a total for the two weeks we will have been in California.

Until then.

Ok, so I have slacked a bit. My slacking has not been training related, but rather photography related. I keep forgetting to bring the old camera along to document all this great training we've been doing. And all the fun we've been having. Now I hesitate to talk about how great the wether's been, as I know we might bring some instant weather karma. I don't want it to start raining, and I don't want to get more cold weather when we get back to Boulder. I don't want to jinx it.

Suffice it to say that it's been really nice, and we've had lots of sunshine.

The training has been great. Amanda and I have done a lot of riding together, we've done a couple swims, and we did a great run yesterday with Heather Fuhr. It's nice to have the locals show us around, so we can stray away from the PCH, and find all the new and interesting routes.

Today I started out with Amanda, Roch, and a couple of athletes he coaches, including our friend Rae. After about half an hour, I turned East and made my way toward the hills. My legs were beginning to feel the effects of the past few days of riding. Nothing quite like jumping right back into the cycling after two months of rest! I decided the best way to deal with the sore quads was to stop early for a nice coffee and a muffin.

After fueling up I made my way toward the famous Palomar Mountain. I had heard stories about this climb, and was anxious to see what it had in store for me. I went there expecting one heck of a climb, and I was not disappointed. I took the long way there, so by the time I arrived at the base of the climb, I had ridden about 57 miles. This was definitely going to be the longest ride of the year for me so far.

I really enjoyed the climb, and it was great getting a longer climb so early in the year. We can't make it too high up the canyons in Boulder, as you pretty much freeze your bones coming back down. This was different, as after climbing twelve miles, I was only at about 5300 feet. Not too shabby. The climb was tough though, as it was steep for the entire way. Instead of breaks with the gradual grade, like Left Hand Canyon, this had no breaks. My tired legs made it to the top eventually, and I was sure happy to be at the lower elevations, as I was able to summit without huffing and puffing!

After a brief chat with a cyclist at the top (with no photos, unfortunately!),I headed back down, and back toward the coast. In the end of the day I had ridden all up, down and around the place, and I had a great ride, and I'm officially back in the groove.

I hope to bring the camera next time... for proof!

The weather here in Southern California is spectacular. We are here and we are happy. And it is warm. And there is no snow on the ground. More on that later!

YakTrax are the greatest invention for those of you who live in Chilly Cold Climates. When the snow and ice are piled up, but you just can't take another run on the treadmill, this product is for you! Amanda, in her infinite brilliance, came home the other day with a couple sets: one pair for each of us.

We tried them out last Tuesday, as we were itching to do one of our favorite hill runs: up and over Linden--a snow-covered route--so we knew they were great. But today, we put them to the test on our long runs. Fortunately, our long runs aren't over the two-hour mark yet, so we were only facing about an hour forty-five. We had been warned by our friend Henry from Boulder Running Company that a long run in this type of cold would really wipe us out. It just takes so much energy to keep the body warm, the tendency is to tire out much sooner than would normally be the case. With this piece of advice in hand, and few more PowerGels than normal (Clif Bloks for the wife), we headed out to see what we could handle.

The YakTraks immediately proved to be a great addition to our winter running wardrobe. Leaving FAC, we ran into our friend Brad Seng. He was starting out on a run as well, but it was pretty obvious his traction was not quite up to par. We had only run a block, but were already pulling away. Brad is a quick runner, so this could only be attributed to our superior equipment!

I've heard it said that there is no such thing as bad weather, only bad equipment. Well, today we proved that yes, there is bad equipment; yes, there is good equipment; and yes, there really is such a thing as bad weather. Ten degrees with a slight snow shower qualifies as bad weather. I had bundled up very well, so well, in fact, that I was actually quite sweaty at the end of the run. And we had those incredible YakTrax on our side. However, by the end of the run, I was pretty worn out. I'd say the furnace was cranked up on high-burn out there, and although we didn't quite make 1:45, I am pretty sure we got the equivalent of 2+hours!

I messed up and didn't bring my camera along for proof. I'll have to do so next time, as I think the post with photo is more interesting than the post without. The photo would have been of me doing something I haven't done in exactly ten years.

A few days ago, I finally decided that I had talked enough about making an addition to my winter training regimen; it was time to do something. The snow shoeing is fun, and running with Yaktrax seems pretty efficient (more on that later), but there was one thing missing from the routine: skate skiing.

The other night I managed to get ahold of a set of used ski equipment. I had been searching for just boots, as I have a few friends who've been inviting me to borrow their back-up equipment. I stumbled upon this great deal for everything, and could not pass it up. I'm officially equipped.

Since outdoor riding was out of the question, due to the day's high temperature of NINE DEGREES!, I opted to start off with a ski. I didn't want to overdo it, as I suspected that my technique might need some fine tuning. I went over to local Valmont Park, rather than up to the hills.

Turns out that skiing is like riding a bike: you don't really forget how to do it. It all came back to me fairly quickly. I skated about for around forty minutes before I packed it in. I figured I didn't need to press my luck, because yes, skating did come back to me quickly, but no, I'm far from expert status. It's going to take a while to get the muscles back in the groove.

Next time I'll bring a camera, as to appease the rule of "pictures or it didn't happen."

Wednesday morning I woke up at 6:00am to head over for a 7:00am swim workout. I was up and ready to roll by 6:30.... there was only one problem: Amanda was still in bed, and wasn't budging. Normally the opposite scenario plays out: I am in bed, while Amanda is attempting to get me rolling. I realized I was not winning the battle, so rather than venture out on my own, I jumped back into bed, and cut a few more z's with the wife.

Why is this noteworthy? Well, on the one hand, it's proof that sometimes I am the first one up in our household; but more importantly, our sleepiness managed to keep me to the previously determined schedule I had sent to USADA. This is the US Anit-Doping Agency. I had sent them a schedule of my whereabouts for the entire quarter, because I'm now in their Out of Competition Testing pool. This means that I have to tell them where I'll be, on a quarterly basis, for the entire year. When I filled out the form, I planned on doing the 9:00am swim workout, not the 7:00am session, so it turns out... I needed to sleep in!

I arrived at the pool, and minutes after beginning the workout, I met with Travis, my USADA testing agent. I politely asked them to wait until I had finished, which the kindliy obliged me. As they waited up on deck, a bit chilly out there, I churned out my first decent swim workout in about three months.

After finishing Travis and I headed to the lockers where I changed, and he "accompanied" me. He has to go everywhere I go, after "serving notice", just to be certain that I do not do anything fishy. Not sure what that could be, but fishy is fishy. I showered, dried off, and headed to a more private bathroom upstairs. Being post-workout as I was, I did not know if I'd be able to provide a full sample. Dehydration can be tough on sample giving.

I was able to fill the sippy cup, and later filled my two test viles. The procedure is actually pretty air-tight, not unlike the test viles. As we sat on the bathroom floor of Flatiron Athletic Club, performing what looked like a boring chemistry experiment, I imagined how many of my competitors are going through these same procedures. My hope is that many are doing do, but the reality is that it's an expensive process, and I'm not sure how frequently this happens worldwide.

After Travis acknowldeged that I had sufficient quantity, and after checked my pH and specific gravity (that of my urine actually), we packed it up. I was done for now... besides the waiting six weeks for the results.

The sun came out yesterday. Turns out that the wind came out as well. Nobody told me that it was supposed to be howling out there, so I bundled up (see above photo), and headed out. I got a late start, as my 'cross bike didn't have wheels or tires. I found the necessary parts, installed, and brushed off last year's rust and dirt. By the time I hit the roads, it was nearly 4:00pm. That only left me time for an hour spin, but at least I was heading out.

My neighborhood proved to be the most challenging section of the whole ride. There was a ton of snow and slush and ice. I made it out to the main roads just fine. It appears that all this time on the rollers really does wonders for your snow-handling skills.

It really wasn't too cold, but that wind sure did throw a mean bite into the mix. I cruised around until it started to get dark, then headed home to continue the ride on the rollers. The workout soon ended, as dinner was calling... so was Amanda, for that matter.

I am happy to say that I'm making it through the first week of training! It's good to be back, and at the risk of jixing myself, I belive the blog is making a comeback as well...

Here we go, here we go, here we GO! I'm really doing it this time. I know these are my famously unbelievable words, but this time I'm really trying. I'm going to blog a couple times a week. Nothing too over-the-top, nothing to fancy; just a few updates.

Here we go.

It's the fifth day of the year, and our New Year's plan to train, train, train hit a solid roadblock today: 16 more inches of snow! What is going on here? I thought El Nino was warming us all up; why all this cold snow! Oh well, we did manage to get five strong days of training under our belts before the snow hit. Again.

The Drop-Dead Date was January 1, and with that date we got back to work. We're easing into things, with a plan to build into the latter part of the month. It's time to shed the winter build-up, to get back to a routine, and to start enjoying the outdoors again.

Today we did just that. After canceling plans to hit a swim workout early in the morning, Amanda and I opted to strap on the snow shoes for the first time this season. The last two blizzards hit during a time of slacking and laziness, so we just watched it pile up, with no intentions of working out in it. This time it is different.

We went out for about two hours total, with the total run time on my watch hitting 90 minutes. Not a bad workout considering we were both tired after about 27 minutes. Imagine running in beach sand, but really deep beach sand. Push too hard and you go nowhere; don't push hard enough and you go nowhere. It's quite the leg burning workout.

Our friend Graham joined us for the first thirty+ minutes, but had to bail out due to a hockey game commitment. Canadians.

However, just prior to his departure, we spotted a running icon of Boulder. Let me rephrase that: we saw an icon of the running world; one who lives in Boulder. He wasn't running at the time; he was shoveling snow and chipping ice. We stopped for a photo, and to say hello. It's always fun to meet the legends. It's always fun to see such phenomenal talent right there in your own neighborhood. It's especially fun when he's not got snow shoes on, and you know you could actually outrun the guy. Always a competition.

Our encounter was with, none other than, Frank Shorter. If you aren't familiar with Frank, you should be. He's mostly responsible for starting the running boom (jogging boom!?) in America back in the seventies. Check him out with Amanda, Graham, and me; and then check him out at http://www.runfrankshorter.com/olympic.shtml.

That's it for now. I'm off to ride the rollers for a spell, while I watch a movie.... or something.

It's that time of year again! The time of year where I sit around a lot, take care of things I have neglected for the last several months, and I... write on my blog! Ok, so I haven't been doing that, but this is the goal: to establish a posting routine, so that come spring I'll be all set to maintain regular postings. Let's see if I can do it!

As I near the end of my fourth week of relative inactivity, I am beginning to itch for a routine. This is really why I like to take some serious time off: so that I'm more than ready to fall back into a more strict, planned-out schedule. My body definitely needed the break, but more than anything, I think the off-season resting program can benefit the mind. In general I take the entire month of November as a 'exercise if I feel like it' month. I'll try to be more consistent in December, and come January 1st, I start back up.

I've really been enjoying the past couple weeks, an in particular the last ten days. Amanda and I have been spending a lot of time together, and with the dogs. We really have enjoyed sleeping in (til 10:00am some days!), and staying up late (I've seen midnight!!). It's been very relaxing, and the recharge should go a long way toward the preparation for another fun year of racing.

Last night we saw the movie Borat: very interesting. It certainly made us laugh, but the question "what the heck is wrong with these people" came up numerous times! Very funny. After that we spent an hour or so perusing the book store. We bought a couple books, and who knows, maybe we'll review them as a pastime.

Stay tuned, as I plan to update on all the fun happenings of a Lovato November Day.