Time for an update, right?
Last night was a little strange. Chris got a call from the Red Bear. He flew into Chicago en route to Burlington and got delayed until 10 am. So Chris made a lair on the living room couch for Bear. When I woke up in the morning to find no trace of bear other than a few tufts of fur and a bunch of blankets on the couch, I tried to convince the girls that the Bear was here but they didn’t believe it. How can you miss a bear?
On the menu this morning: oatmeal. It’s safe to say at camp you will be more regular than ever. I pride myself in that every day. Coffee. Boss looks trashed. He’s going to need a recovery week after this one. Too much stimulation, too much petting, way too many crazy laps. I think he bonked at the dog park yesterday. Tongue hanging out, eyes droopy. It’s been rough especially since Ness keeps taking him out.
This morning was a run. Beth had a long easy run, Ness had an easy run and I had hill repeats. I know, I pulled the lucky card. Thank you Coach Paul. Because track wasn’t hard enough I’ll send you up a hill 10 times. We went to Blackwell the only place around here that has a hill. The girls went off their long easy way, I went up. Many times.
We actually parked at the archery range so Ness would be able to have fun with the bow and arrow while Beth and I ran longer. Not such a good idea leaving the little woodland girl in the forest by herself but she did have a weapon as her defense. Sure enough as we finish our run we see Robin Hood shooting arrows. I believe her words were “Now this is a good time.” Agreed. I took a few shots and realized when you are away from the bow for a few days you lose your aim. I’ll get it back. Give me time.
We had another deliciously healthy lunch. And then the frozen peas were passed around. One thing I keep learning from other athletes is how much time the care of the body takes. Sometimes I think I’m the only one that spends half her day with a ball crammed into her calf or sitting with ice bags. But then I met Beth. I have never seen someone stretch so much! All day long! I know many athletes struggle with injury and think they are the only one to have aches and pains. But we all feel pain at times and battle the lingering aches. Smart athletes are making the time to care for their body like it’s all they have. Because it is! Icing, stretching, resting. I know it’s hard in life when you have so many responsibilities but when someone takes on an athletic goal – especially like Ironman – keep in mind you cannot train like an elite athlete and not make the time to care for yourself. You can’t skip stretching, icing, massage or recovery and expect your body to be maintained.
We watched Boss entertain himself with a pea that escaped. We’re not sure which but one bag is leaking. And now we rest until tonight’s group ride. There has been talk of a nap or another round of coffee. Either way Bob has already told us he’s doing extra espresso this afternoon so we better do what it takes to keep up.
Jennifer has been sorely missed. She started early with an e-mail that said “do you miss me?” We do, Jen. We have been trying to get a hold of her during lunch but we are convinced she is on M&M break. Ness is looking through my kitchen and adding items to her registry. And they are still talking about the Red Bear – they cannot believe they have missed a rare sighting of the endangered species, the elusive Red Bear. He does exist, ladies. He is real. Just like Sherpa Thomas. But like Thomas is not true sherpa, the Bear is not really a bear at all. Just some guy that lives in Fort Collins with really red hair.
More later….
