Yes, I Must Be Cray-Cray or the Trip to IM Lou

Michele "1L" Keane Mon Mar 25, 2019 2:58 pm

As some of you might know or realize by following my training on Garmin or Strava, that yes, I have indeed been training. After Augusta and my 15K in late October, I actually took a couple of easy months before I began training in earnest for Boston and then ultimately Ironman Louisville in mid-October. I have actually done the following since January 1st:

Bike: 613 miles
Swim: 39.38 miles
Run: 521 miles

It's been a busy couple of months. I ran a 5K masters PR, an 8.2 miles Race (a first as it was one loop of the Olympic Marathon Trials course), and a course PR for the Publix Half Marathon on 3/17. So you don't always get slower when you get older. We will see how it all translates to Boston, but since the weather has to be better than last year, it will just have to be a good run. I don't anticipate breaking any world records and if I decide to run with the same goal as Joanie (Joan Benoit) in mind, then I have to run under 40 min slower than my first ever official Boston time which would be under 3:56. I think I can do that. A stretch would be to run under 40 min from my best Boston time, which would be 3:43. While 3:43 is doable on a lot of courses, I'm not sure it is doable on the Boston course. Primarily cause I know it too well.

After Boston, I get a little bit of downtime and then I am doing my first triathlon of the season with HIM Chattanooga. With all the rain and flooding we have had here, I am worried that we won't be swimming in the Tennessee River. In fact, the National Weather guys have forecasted it to be a continued wet Spring with sporadic flooding in the Ohio and Tennessee River valleys. Hmmmmmm - the Tennessee River is what we swim in at Chattanooga. It is a ways off as the race is May 19th, but you never know.

ounce Wed Mar 27, 2019 2:14 pm

That's good, too. Does Dodger get to go on some of the short runs or is he busy watching Sesame Street?

I'll be in Chattanooga at the end of April for about 24 hours. If you have the time, you should go up to Lookout Mountain on the Incline Railway ($15) and go to Point Park where you'll see a view of the Tennessee River like this link.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Point+Park/@35.0108105,-85.3438358,3a,75y,90t/data=!3m8!1e2!3m6!1sAF1QipMKW6mYFm2r_Xf6dkxSyx6Q1jjBVp_7ZupFCISH!2e10!3e12!6shttps:%2F%2Flh5.googleusercontent.com%2Fp%2FAF1QipMKW6mYFm2r_Xf6dkxSyx6Q1jjBVp_7ZupFCISH%3Dw251-h120-k-no!7i4656!8i2218!4m13!1m7!3m6!1s0x88605c7f3c96749d:0x323769a94b1a2b4f!2sLookout+Mountain,+TN+37350!3b1!8m2!3d34.9942422!4d-85.3494027!3m4!1s0x88605c6de457dd83:0xf4f0600f269541a2!8m2!3d35.0108421!4d-85.3438139#

Michele "1L" Keane Wed Mar 27, 2019 3:02 pm

I have been up the Incline Railway at Lookout Mountain. It sure is a spectacular view. Lookout Mtn is also in GA, by the way which is a pretty fun fact.

ounce Wed Mar 27, 2019 5:15 pm

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:I have been up the Incline Railway at Lookout Mountain. It sure is a spectacular view. Lookout Mtn is also in GA, by the way which is a pretty fun fact.

Sure is. As a 7 year old, I remember being up on Lookout Mountain, Chattanooga, and then visiting the Chickamauga Battlegrounds. I have kin folk there.

nkrichards Thu Mar 28, 2019 12:04 pm

Not surprised at all to see you turning in fast times and PRs! By the time you finish Chattanooga you'll have in more miles than I get in a full year. Shocked

Looking forward to following your results both at Boston and Chattanooga...and your training as you prepare for your IM. This is going to be a busy and challenging year for you. I hope you enjoy the step up to the IM.

Keep us posted. And enjoy Boston...

Mark B Fri Mar 29, 2019 9:28 am

Yay, a new blog! And a new goal. But that old speed is still with you. Very Happy

Michele "1L" Keane Mon Apr 01, 2019 12:17 pm

Thanks all. Finished my last "hard" week before Boston - but in using the Hanson's training program for running and working with a tri coach to balance in the swimming and cycling is a full time job. I'm probably the first runner to ever say that I'm hoping for a few warm days here in April before Boston - but we aren't getting them to speak of, at least not yet. It was 38F this morning and will only be 50 for the high. At least it is sunny! We have had a ton of rain and it looks like we will be getting some at week's end - just in time for my last long run, of course. It is all a balancing act for sure.

No biking last week after my metric Century of the Sunday before as the weather didn't cooperate for the Tuesday or Thursday scheduled rides. I dial back cycling first in run taper as swimming is easy on the whole body and cycling of course works the legs like running does. I thought I'd get out today , but it is cold - so probably not and I hate the trainer. Hopefully it will be better weather for tomorrow night's ride.

2 wks from Today to Boston - and no that is not April Fools.

ounce Mon Apr 01, 2019 7:54 pm

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:Thanks all. Finished my last "hard" week before Boston - but in using the Hanson's training program for running and working with a tri coach to balance in the swimming and cycling is a full time job. I'm probably the first runner to eve say that I'm hoping for a few warm days here in April before Boston - but we aren't getting them to speak of, at least not yet. It was 38F this morning and will only be 50 for the high. At least it is sunny! We have had a ton of rain and it looks like we will be getting some at week's end - just in time for my last long run, of course. It is all a balancing act for sure.

No biking last week after my metric Century of the Sunday before as the weather didn't cooperate for the Tuesday or Thursday scheduled rides. I dial back cycling first in run taper as swimming is easy on the whole body and cycling of course works the legs like running does. I thought I'd get out today , but it is cold - so probably not and I hate the trainer. Hopefully it will be better weather for tomorrow night's ride.

2 wks from Today to Boston - and no that is not April Fools.

You get up to 80 on Sunday.

With your luck, you'll get 80 in two weeks. Any forecast for the 15th is worthless, right now. You'll run it regardless. Good luck

Michele "1L" Keane Fri Apr 05, 2019 4:07 pm

ounce wrote:
Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:Thanks all. Finished my last "hard" week before Boston - but in using the Hanson's training program for running and working with a tri coach to balance in the swimming and cycling is a full time job. I'm probably the first runner to eve say that I'm hoping for a few warm days here in April before Boston - but we aren't getting them to speak of, at least not yet. It was 38F this morning and will only be 50 for the high. At least it is sunny! We have had a ton of rain and it looks like we will be getting some at week's end - just in time for my last long run, of course. It is all a balancing act for sure.

No biking last week after my metric Century of the Sunday before as the weather didn't cooperate for the Tuesday or Thursday scheduled rides. I dial back cycling first in run taper as swimming is easy on the whole body and cycling of course works the legs like running does. I thought I'd get out today , but it is cold - so probably not and I hate the trainer. Hopefully it will be better weather for tomorrow night's ride.

2 wks from Today to Boston - and no that is not April Fools.
You get up to 80 on Sunday.

With your luck, you'll get 80 in two weeks. Any forecast for the 15th is worthless, right now. You'll run it regardless. Good luck

Gee, thanks, Doug - thanks encouraging - lol.

nkrichards Tue Apr 16, 2019 12:53 pm

Nice job in Boston Michele! Glad the weather cleared up a bit before the start.

Hope you are taking it easy for a couple days...I know you've got a tri coming up. I haven't been watching the weather in that area but we're still getting rain here. Would sure be nice if the river went down enough so that you could safely do the swim.

Congrats on a great Boston run. Enjoy tri training...

ounce Tue Apr 16, 2019 8:53 pm

nkrichards wrote:Nice job in Boston Michele! Glad the weather cleared up a bit before the start.

Hope you are taking it easy for a couple days...I know you've got a tri coming up. I haven't been watching the weather in that area but we're still getting rain here. Would sure be nice if the river went down enough so that you could safely do the swim.

Congrats on a great Boston run. Enjoy tri training...

Ditto. Really nice job!

Michele "1L" Keane Fri Apr 19, 2019 3:18 pm

Back from Boston - spent a few days up there - but not yet back to running. I had hoped to take a little short run today and a swim, but our weather here in Atlanta is just awful with torrential rain and thunder storms early, now sun, but rain arriving again soon. I know I have a half IM on May 19th, but it is a "C" race, so no issue as I've got plenty of fitness and training already done this year and the rest will only do me well.

Very pleased with Monday's run given the crazy weather circumstances. I know that I have run in warmer temperatures at Boston, and I think that 2017 was as warm and I ran 2 min faster, but we were not really prepared for the drastic change we experienced on Monday. When I left to catch my bus at 7:30 am, it was in the midst of a series of thunderstorms and the walk to the bus was interesting. They even held up the buses and had runners wait as the weather was pretty severe. I was lucky enough to be on the Marathon Maniacs bus, so while I was soaked when I arrived at the bus, I was able to stay on the bus in Hopkinton and stay dry-ish. When we were called to our start wave, it was still overcast and temps were in the high 50s, but it was quite humid. No real worries as we started. Met up with my friend, Claire from Chautauqua and we were pretty behaved in the beginning miles. Both of us trained to run 3:45 and I figured if the weather held, we would be between 3:45-3:50 with my ultimate goal being to re-qualify. I trained hard in 2014, 2015, 2016 and couldn't break 3:50, so that was also a sub-goal if I couldn't get to the 3:45.

Once the sun came out in full force, we decided to try to stay on pace through the hills and let it play out. The humidity was tougher than I expected it to be, I'm usually ok, but it has not yet been warm here in Atlanta. Claire is from DC, so usually ok in the heat too, but she fell off in the hills (she finished at 3:51 and was happy too). I felt that I ran well over the hills but began to feel like I was falling off pace and wasn't feeling great right around mile 23. I actually was a bit light headed and stopped to walk a few steps at mile 24 ish and those last two months were tough. I thought I may have not gotten in enough or maybe too much Gatorade as I thought for a minute that I might hurl at the finish. All was good though.

Finished in 3:49:56 so met my goal of sub 3:50 and a BQ (by 16 min). I was 109 in my AG and the first finisher in my AG who was not 55 - so not Michael, but quite happy with that. I also beat my bib number by 8780 places which is pretty cool.

Now back to training for my next race which is a Half IM in Chattanooga.

nkrichards Tue Apr 23, 2019 10:37 am

It was a well run race especially under the circumstances! You've got the experience and drive to handle pretty much any condition and it shows in your consistent results.

I didn't realize how humid and uncomfortable the conditions were until I visited with some runners at our monthly group run. Paramedics pulled one at mile 18. He hydrated and recovered in the medical tent and was fine.

Heather Jackson (Central Oregon triathlete) has been in the news locally lately. After a disappointing result at Kona she's coming back strong. She plans to race Chattanooga and several other half IMs this year in preparation for another shot at a Kona win. There's your competition in May!

Any news on the status of the swim at Chattanooga? Sounds like your weather still isn't very nice!

Enjoy your break and your training as you get back into it.

Michele "1L" Keane Tue Apr 23, 2019 2:59 pm

Well, she's not really my competition, but cool that she'll be there as I didn't know there were pros at Chattanooga. Last year Mirinda Carfrae and Tim O'Donnell were at Augusta and used it as a warm up for Kona.

I look for her as I'm waiting to swim and the pros go off. Now it will be interesting if we don't get to swim as there has been talk since the river is so high. The swim was cancelled in September at the full and conditions/flooding are worse now than they were then. It is still a couple of weeks away and things can change fast especially if we don't get anymore rain.

First run today since Boston and the legs were super heavy. I also had a little left quad/ITB issue that resulted from a fall that I took back on March 21st. I was reluctant to really get it treated for fear of knocking things a bit crazy before Boston. I had it taped and it was fine - I felt it but it did not contribute to race results good or bad as it was my stomach/heat that caused me to fall off at the end. I've been treating it and I didn't notice it at all during my run today. Legs were heavy though as expected. I have ridden and swum already but this morning was the first run. We will see how things hold up.

ounce Mon May 13, 2019 3:12 pm

Well, I thought I'd catch Michele up on a few workouts, plus commentary on how it looked to me. After all, she's forgotten all about us Sad

, except for those times when she's concerned if I'm catching up to her. Razz

Which ain't gonna happen in her lifetime.

So this first one is on May 6 and is classified as open water swimming and it's at the Gwinnett County swimmin' hole, which is NW of Atlanta and borders Fulton county (Atlanta).

Her fanny hit the water at 6:15 pm and there was no elevation change (thank goodness!). She swam 2,327 yards in a time of 51:21 or 2:12 min/100 yards (nice to know I can run 100 yards faster than she can swim it). But going by the path marked by her watch, her first length was straight as an arrow. She must've had a couple bottles of wine after that first length because the rest were all over the place.

She averaged 26 strokes/minute and had 1,374 total strokes. Moving time was 37:19, so she must've had an upset stomach and barfed for the other 14 minutes. Her average MOVING pace was 1:36 min/100 yards (I can still be that).

Now, Garmin's server is down. I guess I'll report the next one when their server is available.

nkrichards Mon May 13, 2019 7:59 pm

ounce wrote:Well, I thought I'd catch Michele up on a few workouts, plus commentary on how it looked to me. After all, she's forgotten all about us , except for those times when she's concerned if I'm catching up to her. Which ain't gonna happen in her lifetime.

So this first one is on May 6 and is classified as open water swimming and it's at the Gwinnett County swimmin' hole, which is NW of Atlanta and borders Fulton county (Atlanta).

Her fanny hit the water at 6:15 pm and there was no elevation change (thank goodness!). She swam 2,327 yards in a time of 51:21 or 2:12 min/100 yards (nice to know I can run 100 yards faster than she can swim it). But going by the path marked by her watch, her first length was straight as an arrow. She must've had a couple bottles of wine after that first length because the rest were all over the place.

She averaged 26 strokes/minute and had 1,374 total strokes. Moving time was 37:19, so she must've had an upset stomach and barfed for the other 14 minutes. Her average MOVING pace was 1:36 min/100 yards (I can still be that).

Now, Garmin's server is down. I guess I'll report the next one when their server is available.

ounce Tue May 14, 2019 9:46 am

Next on Michele's training agenda is 'Cycle Alpharetta Tuesday Night Ride' on May 7 at 6:29 p.m. Garmin said it was 79 degrees, but I've found it's overstated in Houston. Alpharetta is north of Atlanta, but probably considered a 'bedroom community' of Atlanta.

25.21 miles, 1:33:15, 16.2 avg mph, 1,467' gain, with an avg HR of 118. She had a max speed of 32.2 mph.

Her splits are recorded in 5 mile increments.
1. 18:33, 16.2 mph, 115 bpm
2. 18:08, 16.5 mph, 117 bpm
3. 18:48, 16.0 mph, 122 bpm
4. 18:43, 16.0 mph, 117 bpm
5. 17:50, 16.8 mph, 116 bpm
6. 1:13, 10.1 mph, 127 bpm

It was a squiggly out 'n back route. I hope she had a police escort with her and her buds.

Mark B Tue May 14, 2019 10:58 am

ounce wrote:Next on Michele's training agenda is 'Cycle Alpharetta Tuesday Night Ride' on May 7 at 6:29 p.m. Garmin said it was 79 degrees, but I've found it's overstated in Houston. Alpharetta is north of Atlanta, but probably considered a 'bedroom community' of Atlanta.

25.21 miles, 1:33:15, 16.2 avg mph, 1,467' gain, with an avg HR of 118. She had a max speed of 32.2 mph.

Her splits are recorded in 5 mile increments.
1. 18:33, 16.2 mph, 115 bpm
2. 18:08, 16.5 mph, 117 bpm
3. 18:48, 16.0 mph, 122 bpm
4. 18:43, 16.0 mph, 117 bpm
5. 17:50, 16.8 mph, 116 bpm
6. 1:13, 10.1 mph, 127 bpm

It was a squiggly out 'n back route. I hope she had a police escort with her and her buds.

Holy cow! With a max speed of 32.2 mph, that cop may have been pulling her over for speeding.

Michele "1L" Keane Wed May 15, 2019 3:24 pm

Thanks, Ounce for keeping up with me. Love your comment on the OWS. We did indeed swim straight across for the first length, but we then realized that if we hugged the shore we would get in more yardage and not have to do 6 out and backs. I also think my watch was seriously messed up for the first 500 yds but then it seemed to settle in right. I swam again this Monday and it seemed more realistic.

Getting ready for my "B" race at IM 70.3 Chattanooga this coming Sunday. I know that I have had plenty of training already and I have certainly ridden and swum more than I did last year before Nancy and I embarked on IM 70.3 Victoria with my friend Carol and Nancy's Katie as our chaperone. I will miss my salmon the night before; however, as I will be in a hotel in Chattanooga rather than a beautiful AirBnb. If I get through the 200m of upstream swimming it should all go great after that. However, it is expected to be a high of 90F on Sunday, so I have to carefully think about my fueling during the bike especially. At Augusta, I failed at that aspect and did not "drink" all of my fluids in similar weather conditions and I Sunday I need to really execute it carefully.

You can all actually track me at the Ironman app - my number is: 721.

Mark B Thu May 16, 2019 9:35 am

That's very exciting, Michele -- though the conditions sound challenging.

Good luck! Race well!

ounce Thu May 16, 2019 2:26 pm

When I was in Chattanooga, last month, I ate at Tupelo Honey and Stir. Both are downtown and both were good, but both were trying to upgrade the menu description for, say, a cheeseburger and fries to something more appealing than a cheeseburger and fries, when that's all it was.

I think John Kilpatrick is doing Chattanooga. I have a buddy from down here doing it, too. He's #585 John Laskowski. I'm no more reserved with him, than I am with y'all.

Chattanooga is a nice little town (with a VW plant), but I wouldn't want to run there.

Good luck,Miche1e!

nkrichards Mon May 20, 2019 9:02 pm

Wasn't able to see Michele's results until this morning...darn electronics!

Her splits looked great and I sent her a congratulatory text. Apparently they shortened the swim due to the current but she survived. Then completed her fastest ever bike split and followed it with an impressive run in 86 degree heat! Impressive results once again...

Hope she schedules a few easy days before resuming training for her full IM.

Congrats again Michele!!

ounce Thu May 23, 2019 5:52 pm

nkrichards wrote:Wasn't able to see Michele's results until this morning...darn electronics!

Her splits looked great and I sent her a congratulatory text. Apparently they shortened the swim due to the current but she survived. Then completed her fastest ever bike split and followed it with an impressive run in 86 degree heat! Impressive results once again...

Hope she schedules a few easy days before resuming training for her full IM.

Congrats again Michele!!

Yes, gratz, Miche1e!

Well, Tuesday she ran 3 recovery miles at a 9:29 pace. Yesterday, she swam 2,800 yards in 59:42. Nothing for today.

Michele "1L" Keane Sat Aug 03, 2019 8:36 pm

Thanks all for checking up on me. Yes I did indeed run Peachtree and I earned the coveted "Top 500 Female Finisher" beer mug. It used to be a coffee mug, but now it's just really a glass with a Peachtree 10K logo.

Training has been going well - constantly tired and between training, the 130th Anniversary Celebration on an organization that I belong to here in western NY, and family that insists on spending weeks here - I've been crazy busy. Lots of biking, swimming and some running. Ran my annual half marathon at Presque Isle in Erie, PA in 86F temps and high humidity in mid July and survived (won my AG by over 9 min) and today I ran the 2.7 mile race here at Chautauqua that I run every year. Placed 1st in my AG (and ran only 20 sec slower than last year which surprised me) and was 4th OA. Very shocked by the 4th OA as that was unusual. The race seemed to have far less runners (especially fast runners) than past years but still had a large number of walkers.

Last couple of weeks were a bit easier, but things will pick back up this week.

Until then - good to check in with you all.

ounce Mon Aug 05, 2019 12:04 pm

So I guess the issues from a couple of years ago with the organization resolved itself, since it's 130 years old, now?

Gratz on your races! Check in from time to time. On a hidden blog, we lament and bawl about you not being around but quarterly. However, it's not gotten so bad that I'm being flown to a race for the express purpose to push you off the road at the race. You're safe. So far....... Suspect

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