Sandi & David's Team in Training Blog

Haven't Posted in a While

2011-01-31T22:56:00.001-08:00

With other volunteer activities and conflicts with the dates of the TNT events, I haven't been able to join Team in Training in a couple of seasons. But I might have something to talk about in a month or so.

Finished Century Ride #2

2009-11-17T20:59:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday I finished a century (100-mile) bike ride in Solvang with Team in Training. It's a tradition to carry the names of people we're riding in honor of, and I had several family and friend names with me.

The ride started out easy but in the end was pretty hard compared to my first century ride around Lake Tahoe in June. There were three big climbs with the latter two coming at 68 and 85 miles, when we were already tired. I was a Team in Training Mentor for this event, and one of the things we teach participants is that no matter how hard the endurance event can get, it's always going to be easier than fighting blood cancer. And that's what I kept reminding myself of as I crept up Drum Canyon at a snail's pace!

We made it, and here's a picture of me and a couple of my riding buddies at the finish line. You can't see in the picture how much my butt hurt. :-)

I'm ready for another TNT Century Ride

2009-11-11T11:15:00.000-08:00

While not blogging (it's been way too long since I posted last), I've been a non-fundraising mentor in Team In Training's fall season. This Saturday is our event, 100 miles of cycling at Solvang's Finest Century. We have fewer participants in the fall than we had for Tahoe in the spring, but their enthusiasm for the cause and for their first 100 mile bike ride is no less.

I'm a lot more comfortable with riding since Tahoe, thank goodness. I felt pretty good on our 80-mile training ride. I'll post an update after the event. And I will finally get my Thank You letters out to those who sponsored me for the Tahoe ride (two events for the price of one!).

50 miles? No problem!

2009-05-22T22:03:00.001-07:00

You know, with Facebook and Twitter, I forgot about my blog! I need to update this blog on my progress -- like the fact that I rode 126 miles last weekend (45 Saturday and 81 Sunday) and could still walk!

But for now, I need to get a letter out, and I need to rest up for the ride tomorrow. It's just 50 miles because we're tapering, which means we're resting up for the 100-miler on June 7.

72 miles!

2009-04-13T07:30:00.000-07:00

Our weekly rides are up to 72 miles, but I'm missing them! I'm in Virginia now, after spending a few days in Washington, D.C., just a few blocks from the White House. The kids loved the Smithsonian Natural History Museum. All the walking actually helped my knee pain go away, so maybe taking a rest from the bike was a good thing. But I miss the rides and my TNT teammates. I probably won't lose much fitness, but I do miss burning 6,000 calories each weekend!

I did my best to simulate climbing on the upright bike in the gym yesterday (but it burned only 800 calories!). I won't get home until late Friday, so the next time I get to touch my bike is on the big ride Saturday morning. Wish me luck! And please consider donating!

-- David

Rides are getting longer

2009-03-22T15:25:00.001-07:00

The recommitment date is past, and the rides are now getting longer. Here I am 30 miles into a 50 mile ride.

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=2304026&l=a1f684efb5&id=768556053

Forty miles and a mule!

2009-03-08T09:40:00.000-07:00

Ok, it wasn't a mule, it was a really steep climb. 22% at one point, according to my Garmin 305. I felt pretty good on the climb. The legs are a little sore today, but I may ride some more to help get the lactic acid out. You can see the data below. The hills there are Mt. Eden and Pierce Drive.

Another season, another sport!

2009-02-22T11:57:00.001-08:00

It's great to be back on a Team in Training team, only this time it's the Cycle Team. There will be no running for me for a long time, but cycling is even more fun! I will be riding with TNT in the century ride around Lake Tahoe, which is called America's Most Beautiful Bike Ride.

My fund-raising page is up and working for this season, too. It'll be a tougher year to get donations given the economy. But I hope I'll be able to remind people that leukemia, lymphoma and other blood cancers strike whether or not the economy is growing. So we need to keep funding research and finding cures.

So please, if you can, donate at http://pages.teamintraining.org/sj/ambbr09/dgaertner and help find a cure!

Go Team!

Business Trip

2009-01-31T14:04:00.001-08:00

On to the next charitable activity: The Silicon Valley Duck Race

2008-11-21T17:14:00.001-08:00

I found a new way to give back to the community, one where I'm not required to run 13.1 miles, bike 40 km, and swim 1.5km. I'm helping on the 2009 Silicon Valley Duck Race, which raises money for several local charities.

I'm doing a couple of things. First, I'm updating their web page. That's kind of fun because it's reminiscent of my days as a software engineer creating one of IBM's first external web sites in 1994. (It's a lot easier with Dreamweaver than handcoding HTML using vi! But HTML is a lot more powerful and complex now.)

My other task is to find corporate sponsors for the duck race. I hope I can find a company or two willing to pay $5,000 or more for having their logo on our web site, in Camera Cinemas for 2-3 weeks before the race, on 20- or 30-thousand duck adoption forms, and so on.

By the way, I'm still recovering from the knee injury, but I'm hoping to go on a bike ride outside in the next few weeks.

My Helper

2008-04-19T23:59:00.000-07:00

We held our practice triathlon today. Because I'm a training captain, I helped with a water stop and with directions on the bike and run. But I couldn't have done it without my helper!

A Real Athlete in the Family

2008-04-06T20:28:00.000-07:00

I may have trouble getting to this triathlon due to my knee, but there is a real athlete in the family: http://usfdons.cstv.com/sports/c-track/recaps/040608aaa.html. Go Jennifer!

Don't Change A Thing...

2008-04-04T17:41:00.000-07:00

Some advice I just remembered: when you're getting close to the event you're training for, don't change anything! I'm reminded of that because I just had my bike fitted to me last Saturday. I went to Trek Bike Shop and learned a lot about how to pedal better and at a higher cadence. I bought a new saddle, and we moved it back maybe 2-3 inches from the old seating position.

The bike now feels great; I get a lot more power when I ride. But (here's where the advice kicks in) my back muscles are not used to my new riding position. So after my 30 mile ride on Sunday, and again on the trainer on Tuesday (70 minutes), my back was painfully stiff. I'm taking it easy a couple of days this week, including not running.

I'm saving my energy for the weekend workouts. Tomorrow we'll be swimming around the cement ship in Aptos then riding 40 miles. Sunday I hope to run 10 miles.

Wish me luck! And please support me! I still need more donations to reach my fund raising minimum!

The treatment is as bad as the cure

2008-03-30T07:41:00.001-07:00

Yesterday we had a fun event called the Ride & Tie. Teams of two share a mountain bike and switch off running and riding. It's a race to finish three loops around a 2 mile course -- except those of us taking on the Wildflower Long Course: we had to do four loops. Because it's a race, the running is fast. The bike riding is basically resting for more running. The teams who win tend to switch off frequently.

How did my partner and I do? Well, one of the keys to success in the Ride and Tie is actually riding the bike. And my partner ran past the bike on our first dropoff (I dropped it on the left side of the path, and he looked right!). I thought it was hilarious. So we didn't win, but we got more exercise!

After the race, one of our Honorees spoke about his ordeal with myeloma. When he was first diagnosed several years ago, he was in Stage 4 -- that's the most advanced stage which means you don't have much time to live. He's been fighting for years, with four rounds of chemo and three remissions. Some of the treatments sounded horrible. One is related to the mustard gas used as a chemical weapon in World War I. He's been cancer and tumor free for 22 months, thank goodness. But the effects of the treatments linger. Some of his lung sacs have crystallized. He had to have surgery on his colon and intestinal tract because, as he said his doctors put it, if you keep putting Drano into your pipes, the pipes will dissolve eventually. The treatments also affected his short term memory.

He lived alone and had some very rough times physically and emotionally during the treatments. What kept him going, he told us yesterday, was Team In Training -- looking at the pictures of us on the TNT web site where he could see us struggling to train for these endurance events -- this actually kept him going when even Vicodin couldn't stop the pain.

While I knew our fundraising was important to find better medicines and treatments, I had no idea our work could have such a direct effect.

Logs!

2008-03-21T10:54:00.000-07:00

We had our first "brick workout" yesterday, which was a 15 mile bike ride followed immediately by a two mile run. One reason for the workout is to get used to how it feels when starting the run after a long bike ride. How does it feel? Like your legs weigh a ton! Like someone replaced your legs with logs!

The feeling does go away after about ten minutes or a mile or so. It's important for new triatheletes to recognize the feeling so they don't worry when it happens.

In other news, you all have been great in helping support me! I'm about 1/3 of the way to my fundraising goal. Thanks! And if you haven't donated yet but intend to, please click on the Donate Here above!

A record!

2008-03-16T20:49:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy week, and I've focused more on getting donation letters out than on blogging. The deadline is coming quickly, and I'm getting nervous about making my goal before April 12.

That said, today was a remarkable day for me. I set out to run 6-8 miles. The longest I've run is around seven miles -- ever. But the training has been going well, I have orthotics which seem to help, and I've spent more time stretching than eating! So I went to a local hike & bike path where I could do either a short or long run depending on how I felt during the run. To measure my distance, I have a bulky Timex GPS device that's ancient: about four years old. During my run, I was feeling pretty good after 3.5 miles. A few minutes later I checked again and saw 3.5 miles again. The GPS unit, despite brand new batteries, had turned itself off.

My favorite B-school professor had a number of great sayings including "Technology will fail." This was a good example. After muttering some expletives that I'm sure wouldn't have been foreign to Dr. Huber, I did some quick estimating and turned the GPS unit on again, and resumed running. Dr. Huber was correct again because the GPS didn't register for another five minutes. After working for a few minutes, it shut off again. This repeated several times. So much for technology and knowing what distance I would be running. I wanted to run at least seven miles; that's all I wanted to know from that heavy GPS piece of junk strapped to my upper arm.

To make a long story (and run) short, I turned around in Vasona Park and noted the distance on my watch/monitor. The GPS was mostly reliable on the return trip (it died only once). I did some mental algebra and determined I ran not six, not seven, not eight, not nine but 9.8 miles. And I wasn't limping or in any kind of pain! So this is a remarkable day for me: my longest run. Now I really do feel I'll be ready for the difficult half-marathon run in the Wildflower Long Course!

Next step: I'm going to buy a Garmin 305!

Blood cancers can affect anyone

2008-03-09T10:23:00.000-07:00

I was touched by an e-mail from my uncle, who lives in Czech Republic and is a Holocaust survivor of the Auswitz and Terezin concentration camps. Here's what he wrote:

"Dear David thank you for your mail. Its very nice from you to do such humanistic activities. [...] I know that blood-cancer is an ugly disease, also a friend of me from the concentration -camp time died some days ago from blood-cancer."

Even a survivor of those horrible camps couldn't overcome the disease that I'm helping to fight. My uncle is sending a donation. I hope you will, too.

Austin

2008-03-05T20:07:00.000-08:00

I just returned from a business trip to Austin, my other home town. Despite the trip being for work, I had a great time, and I even got a workout in. I swam at my former gym's pool on Tuesday morning. I'll tell you: I don't miss Austin weather. When I arrived Sunday night, it was 72 and humid. Monday: thunderstorms. Tuesday morning, it was a bright, clear 38-degrees outside. My old pool isn't as heated as I'm used to in San Jose, so there I was in my bathing suit standing in the cold (did I mention that it was six degrees above freezing?) trying to get my wimpy butt into the cold 76-degree pool. But I did it! I swam 1,800 yards (didn't have time for 2,400 because I had to get to a meeting).

Coach Caroline from my TNT team also hooked me up with the Austin TNT team. But after being out on Sixth Street with old friends, I didn't have the energy to join the TNT hill repeat running workout this morning. Off I go to ride the bike trainer and watch the Sharks game...

First, let me plug one of the reasons I am doing this:
Did you know that The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society sponsors lots of local support groups? Whether you or your loved one have been recently diagnosed or have been out of treatment for a while, you are welcome to attend a meeting. Support groups provide an opportunity to share information, feelings and experiences with others who have a unique understanding of what you are going through. One patient stated that attending a support group has helped her "sort everything out and put things back into some kind of perspective. It helps me feel less like a victim, more in control...and not so alone."

What if your child were struck with leukemia?

2008-02-28T21:43:00.000-08:00

We had a great track workout tonight. My legs are holding up, and as soon as I finish this posting, I'm off to stretch some more.

After the workout, our Honoree Captain read a letter from the mother of a three-year old diagnosed with leukemia. I thought about what I'd do in that position. She described the stages of dealing with this crisis: the disbelief, anger, guilt, confusion... then wanting to find the best medical care possible (which the LLS helps with), dealing with many new doctors and new medical terms...and finally getting a sense of hope and resolution to fight the disease.

The little girl was cured. Through the research funded in part by donations to LLS, a child's likelihood of survival has increased greatly in the past few years.

Hope. I'm fundraising for hope.

Long Course

2008-02-28T16:48:00.000-08:00

I've had a good week of workouts. swimming 2,100 yards Monday and 2,200 yards last night, and 60 minutes on the bike trainer Tuesday. I think I can do the Wildflower Long Course: 1.2 mile swim, 56 miles cycling, and then a half-marathon. The 13.1 miles of running is my biggest concern, but walking is allowed, too!

A Solid Weekend

2008-02-25T10:48:00.000-08:00

Despite a forecast of 60-mph winds and rain, we had a nice 70 minute ride on Saturday. We felt a few (hundred) raindrops towards the end of the ride, but visibility was still good and the roads didn't get slippery. It wasn't dangerous, Mom, so relax. :-) Then my group jumped into the pool (thank goodness for triathlon shorts so I could make a quick change) for a great swim workout that I'm still feeling this Monday morning.

Yesterday that rain made it impossible to consider riding or running, so I went to the spin class. While stumbling out of bed and looking for some clothes, I ended up wearing my Team In Training shirt from my first season. Spinning was a great opportunity to use the mirror to see my cycling form. I'm not great on climbing, and I think my form is a reason for that. If only I could bend forward like those pros in the Tour of California! It was a tough workout -- well, I guess I made it tough on myself. I really felt it in my upper quads.

At the end of the workout, the spin instructor asked me about my TNT shirt and spontaneously offered to donate to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society! She had a niece who had a blood cancer, so she was glad to help. She will announce my cause to the whole class next week, so you can bet, rain or shine, I'll be in spin class again next Sunday!

Family Fun at the Pool

2008-02-20T21:26:00.000-08:00

Monday's swim workout was one of the most fun so far. Sandi, the kids, and I went together to enjoy the sun even though it was a cool 60 degrees at the pool. Sandi swam a few hundred yards while I played with the kids -- that was my warm-up.

Kaela remembered her swimming well. She's great at the backstroke. Her crawl improved when I taught her the "thumb to thigh" drill that we covered in the Team In Training workout last Saturday. Then I went to swim my 1,800 yards.

During one of my laps, Kaela was waiting for me. She wanted to try passing the swim test (50 yards with three or fewer rests) which earns her a green wrist-band and the right to swim in the deep part of the pool. She did it! Most of it via backstroke! (I wish I could do that...) She earned her green band and dinner at her choice of restaurants. Her favorite Vietnamese place was closed, but her second choice (sushi) suited us just fine.

A good weekend of workouts

2008-02-17T17:20:00.001-08:00

It's late Sunday afternoon, and my legs are at that level of soreness that shows I used them but didn't kill them. Saturday morning was cool, and I really looked forward to getting in the pool. We did a few drills and then our "marker set," which we'll compare against later in the season to measure our progress. I swam about 18 laps (450 yards) in 10 minutes with not trying excessively hard.

The clouds cleared and the day turned beautiful by the time we hit the road on our bikes. My job was to "sweep" the "pro" group. The sweeper makes sure everyone returns, helps people with flat tires, and stays back as the very last rider in the group. In the pro group of experienced riders, I didn't have to hold back very much. In fact, I was very content to ride and chat with a couple of nice folks who fell back from the main pack. We were impressed by seeing several professional cycling teams getting ready for the Tour of California race.

After the ride and lunch with my TNT teammates at "Hang with the Gang," it was naptime again! Then I rushed to get new shoes because this morning, I would lead the Captain's Run at 9. Three others joined me for an easy 40 minute run at Campbell Park. It's a nice little park that accesses the much longer Los Gatos Creek Trail.

I learned that one of the runners with me was an Honoree. He battled non-Hodgkins Lymphoma last year. (The treatments for that seem to be getting better, and that's due in no small part to funds raised for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society!) This year, he's taking time away from his three kids to train and fund-raise with us.

He also runs to work at a local internet-based auctions company I've visited for work, so I'll probably catch up with him for lunch -- and find out more about that cool GPS running watch he had that lets you see your run (or ride) afterwards. It's only February, but I've just started my Christmast list!

There's only one thing I really have left to do, and my stepsister reminded me of that: get my fundraising letter going!

Stomach virus not in the schedule

2008-02-14T14:15:00.000-08:00

Where in the Team In Training training schedule is the stomach virus that I'm fighting off today? I know it will help me lose weight, but is it a real substitute for swimming 1500 yards?

While recovering, I heard Martha Weinman Lear on NPR's Fresh Air today say that aerobic exercise and diet are the two most important factors in having a good memory! Triathlon -- swimming, cycling, and running (in that order, for all of you tri tyros) -- are excellent aerobic exercises. So there's another reason to come out and join the team!

Training begins

2008-02-10T20:57:00.000-08:00

You notice a theme over the last couple of posts about how easy I have it. It became just a little less easy during this first week of real training. I actually stuck to the training schedule, which included 30 minute swims on both Monday and Wednesday. Monday I swam after work but in daylight. The wind taught me the value of a swim cap. Wednesday was calm but 46 degrees outside. That kind of chill makes it really easy to jump into the 80-degree pool and stay there for a while.

The first track workout was Thursday at Foothill College. I've run three miles on the treadmill in the past couple of weeks, so I didn't think I'd get much out of the first workout. Well, I didn't anticipate the squats, squat jumps, leg lifts, planks, and more squats that our coaches took us through. Great early season training! But I was surprised that I was as sore Friday as after a day of skiing! Ibuprofen is a good thing....

The bike and swim workout on Saturday was also fun. I met a few fun new people, and I swam with the "Pro" group. So while Wednesday I swam maybe 700 yards in 30 minutes, Saturday I swam 1500 yards in about 40 minutes. I took a LOOOONG nap that afternoon!

And They're Off!

2008-02-02T20:47:00.000-08:00

My first kickoff as a Captain was fun. I ushered; specifically, I greeted and told people coming in the side door where to go check in or register. It was the same spiel over and over again. I'm now well qualified to don a blue vest and be a greeter at Walmart. What made it fun (besides seeing couple of former TNT teammates) was talking with Ed, my co-greeter. Ed is a coach on the Cycle team, a medical researcher with three drugs in the approval pipeline, an Honoree (blood cancer survivor), and an amputee missing his lower left leg. Did I mention he's a coach on the Cycle team, as in bicycling 100 miles around Lake Tahoe in June? So talking with Ed was quite interesting, of course. But it was also a reminder that while I'm sacrificing some time with my family to fundraise, help others train, and train myself, I have it pretty easy.

Training Season Approaches

2008-01-26T15:50:00.000-08:00

I just finished helping out at a second TNT information session. The first one, at the Santa Clara Hyatt, was the same place where Sandi and I signed up for our first triathlon with TNT. I went there straight from the airport after returning from a business trip. There were quite a few prospective participants there, and I think most who came to the tri session signed up. Ditto for the session today at the Willows Senior Center. We're going to have a great group in the tri team!

Some were showing the same trepidation about triathlon that I remember feeling. I told them one thought that kept me going: however difficult the challenges they'll face training for their first triathlon, it's nothing compared to the struggles and challenges faced by the people the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society aims to help.

We have it easy! And the group of coaches, captains (me included!), and mentors will make it even easier and a helluva lot more fun!

Stay Tuned!

2008-01-07T17:50:00.000-08:00

David has just been accepted as a Training Captain for the upcoming Team in Training Spring Season preparing for the Wildflower and King's Trail Triathlons.

It's time for David to get some new shoes and get ready to crush his old time at Wildflower 2006!

Tri-als and Tri-bulations

2006-09-03T20:37:00.000-07:00

Well, there are good reasons and bad reasons we haven't posted in a while. I finished the Wildflower Olympic distance triathlon in May, and it was rather eventful.

How so? The first event was the swim; that went, well, swimmingly. It was the best part of my race. But then there was the bike. It started with a steep climb...followed by a nice long downhill. I was really enjoying the speed when WHAM! A waterbottle rolled in front of me and was smashed to bits by my front tire. Shrapnel hit my legs (no cuts, though), my bike, and, I presume, my back wheel, because five minutes later, I noticed the flat tire! I had to get off the bike twice to finally get that bleeping tire fixed, and yes, it was the back tire, the one that's slightly smaller than it should be and is IMPOSSIBLE to get back onto the rim. The silver lining is that I was well rested when I finally resumed my ride. Despite all the steep hills, it was actually a fun ride. The only problem is that I didn't drink enough while I was on the bike.

In fact, I drank so little that when I started the run, my hamstring cramped up. When I stopped to stretch it, the rest of my leg froze up. This was pretty awful. Now what I should have done is walked to an aid station, had Gatorade, and waited for my muscles to get some electrolytes back into them. Instead I basically ran-walked the entire 10K. I saw a lot of people passing me and talked with a lot more people who were taking walking breaks than I normally would in a race (that normal number being approximately zero!). In triathlons, they usually write your age on your left thigh and your race number on your arms. Under USA Triathlon rules, you have to put down your age according to what it will be on Dec. 31 of that year. So I cracked up when a woman passed me with the following on her leg: "40 NOT REALLY." Finally, I did really finish the race but took far longer than anyone expected me to.

And since then I haven't been able to run. I have this pain in my upper right leg, probably where the sciatic nerve is. But medical science being what it is today, the conclusive diagnosis from my doctor, physical therapist, chiropractor, and orthopedist is...well, see if you can guess:
A) piriformis
B) sciatica
C) osteoperosis of the back
D) All, some, or none of the above

And the answer from the esteemed, modern, educated, highly sophisticated medical establishment is D. I'm convinced that eventually science will develop the ability for people to live cancer free and for over a hundred years, but we'll all be limping because they can't figure out what's causing our aching backs!

To wrap this up, since Wildflower, and since Sandi's asthma got worse, we've only dreamed of being able to do triathlon training. But we will find some way to continue. Stay tuned!

Crasharita

2006-02-12T10:10:00.000-08:00

Saturday's workout was my second time trying out my new clipless pedals. It was also the cause of my first clipless bike crash...ugh. There went my ego!! I was going up a hill and tried to move into an easier gear. Now I know I should have changed gears before approaching the hill but for some reason I misjudged how much effort the hill would take. I am sure you can envisioin what happened next. I pretty much stopped cold in my tracks and fell over sideways (in slow motion, of course!) and crashed into the road. My hand is pretty black and blue from bending my thumb backwards but otherwise, I survived the crash. My mentees must wonder about me.... I have done this before.

On a more fun note our fall triathlon team from Treasure Island had a reunion get together at Ken's house last night. It was so wonderful to see our friends and hear how they were doing. We found out Chris, our coach, will be coaching again next fall. David and I decided we will definitely do another stint with Team In Training (and yes, fundraising). We enjoyed our experience so much with Chris and TNT...how could we pass up another opportunity to learn from him?

Wildflower

2006-01-30T16:38:00.000-08:00

Here is the link to the Wildflower triathlon....

Wildflower Triathlon

It is considered the Woodstock of triathlons. Imagine camping with 6,000 of your closest athletes...it should be a lot of fun!

And...here we go again!

2006-01-30T16:18:00.000-08:00

Today is the offical start to the new training season! I have six mentees to help gain confidence and strength as they train and fundraise towards all of their goals. They are all so excited, just like how I was when I started the Team In Training experience. Mentoring is going to be such a rewarding experience.

Today was a swim day. Training this season seems like it may be more intense. This may be because Wildflower is a very difficult race course. We have 3 swim days on our schedule and we have drills to do each time. Swim drills are sets we need to swim. For example, warm-up could be swimming 3 sets of 50 (each length of the pool is 25) and the workout portion could be sets of 100s, 200s even 300s with a set rest time between sets. Then of course, if you are not toast after that there is the cool down. I am sure as the season progresses these sets will become longer and harder.

On a side note, I am not fundraising for TNT this season. I have two very brave friends from our fall team who have signed on to the Iron Man Triathlon team. For those of you who are not familiar with an Iron Man it is a lot longer than the olympic distance triathlon David and I completed. The Iron Man is a 2.4 mile swim, 115 mile bike ride, and then a full 26.2 mile marathon. All in one day. Yikes!! They will be competing in the 2006 Iron Man Canada race. And they are doing it all for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. They have very hefty fundraising goals....if you would like to make a donation to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society for one (or both) of them, it is fully tax deductible for 2006. They are really good people trying to help find a cure for blood cancers.

Eric:
http://www.active.com/donations/fundraise_public.cfm?key=scironman

Meggen:
http://www.active.com/donate/tntsvmb/meggenmitchell

Thank you!
Sandi

Mentoring

2006-01-04T14:26:00.000-08:00

It has been a long time since I have posted as well. Becky, our triathlon coach, called me yesterday to tell me I have been accepted to be a mentor for the spring 06 triathlong team!! I am really excited for this opportunity to help others get involved with Team In Training. They are hoping to recruit 150 people for the triathlon team this season...much more than our small group last fall. I am attending some info sessions in the next couple of weeks and I know I can be an asset to bringing in more recruits. We will be training for the Wildflower Triathlon in early May. Wildflower has a half ironman distance and an olympic distance. (I have no doubt I will be going for the olympic distance.....unless I can get my asthma under control).

Looks like it is time for me to get back in the pool. I was doing really well keeping up with my swimming, mostly in fear that I would lose the endurance I worked so hard to achieve last season. Since our return from Tahoe my asthma has taken a big turn for the worse. I am actually getting a pulmonary test this Friday to see if I have more than just exercise induced asthma.

Okay, enough of that, enough procrastinating getting in the pool. I really need to just jump into a pool. Did any of you think I would really say that willingly :-)

I will post more as the season progresses....

Sandi

Long time, no blog!

2005-12-28T17:24:00.000-08:00

Well, we haven't forgotten about the blog, but we have little triathlon news to talk about. We've just been trying to stay in decent shape, and so far not too bad....

We had our first holidays without Carolyn, and we definitely miss her.

Sandi did some work for Team in Training/LLS, a great organization working for a great cause, and may become a mentor for their next big triathlon event, the Wildflower Triathlon in May. That tri is out in the wildflower country and requires overmight camping. Should be fun! I'm also looking at other triathlons in case we can't do Wildflower.

Life After The Triathlon

2005-11-17T07:38:00.000-08:00

Our first triathlon is now under our belts and I can't help wonder what is next for us?

David is still in China and leaves for Taiwan tomorrow....he is tired and can't seem to get much sleep. It is such a weird thing to get up knowing he is going to sleep. I don't know how a body can adjust to day being flipped with night.

I am going to be doing some part time work for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society getting the word out about Team In Training programs this December. I also volunteered to be a mentor for the next group of "recruits". I know they have a lot of people who want to mentor so if I don't get the position this time, maybe I will the next event. I think it would be a lot of fun to be able to help encourage people to exceed their expectations and accomplish so much. After my swim experience, I think I can persuade anyone who hates swiming to give it a try....or should I say tri?

I have been keeping up with my workouts, yes.....even the swimming :-) There are several good spring triathlons in California to get ready for, Wildflower (which is rumored to be quite difficult), Windman Triathlon in Los Banos (wherever that is...it said warm water in the description which sounds so much better than the freezing Bay!), Nappa Valley Tri, there is even one here in Almaden Valley in July (if you can get past the idea of swimming in a lake filled with duck poop).

Plenty to keep David and I busy all season. For me the key is building on my endurace, working on speeding up my swim, (getting over the first 200 yards of swim anxiety), and strengthening.

Sandi

Davids First Triathlon

2005-11-13T15:20:00.000-08:00

David’s First Triathlon
We did it! I did it! I made it through the Treasure Island Olympic distance triathlon alive and feeling great! 1.5K swim, 40k bike, and 10k run! Even if I did get a few scratches, bumps and bruises along the way.

One thought crossed my mind before the tri day came was that I hope I get a good time, under three hours would be great. But I didn’t really worry about that much. I ended up doing it in 3 hours 11 minutes, including time spent recovering from my “tri tyro moment:” a crash off my bike.

The hardest point in the race for was getting started in the swim. I jumped into the 58.2 degree water ok and even felt pretty good doing a few strokes of warm up. Somewhere between the starting horn and the first buoy, though, I had my first low point. I couldn’t relax – I felt like I couldn’t get enough air. My lungs just wouldn’t do their job. I tried exhaling completely, I tried the sidestroke and even floating on my back, and I just could not get the motor started. About 200m down, I thought maybe I wasn’t going to make it through the race after all. I’d seen one guy from a previous wave turn around and quit. Maybe I’d be the next one. But I kept plowing forward. I don’t remember what I did – I think I tried counting strokes, I tried telling my self to get to the buoy. Eventually I just started breathing the way I wanted to –three strokes, breathe left, three strokes, breath right. I do remember thinking about that line from Finding Nemo – some little fish singing about just keeping on swimming. And eventually my breath caught up with me. I could swim again! And I could move on to other issues, like slowing down my pace, gliding more, and being more efficient. Sighting – popping my head up to look for the buoys – was still a challenge, but I’ll get that down on some future triathlon.

I was amazed to see later that I swam the 1500m in 37 minutes. I can only speculate what time I would have been able to achieve if I had not taken what seemed like hours for the first 300-400 meters. That’s something I’ll leave to be determined another day at another triathlon.

I’ll write more soon about the tri. I’m in Beijing right now, where I scaled the Great Wall of China. Those are some steep stairs that the Chinese soldiers used to patrol. I thought it was great training but the colleague I was with, who isn’t quite in triathlon shape, wasn’t as enthralled with the experience. Turns out someone started a Great Wall Marathon, too. Maybe I’ll do the half next May!

We did it---Sandi's report --LONG

2005-11-07T12:37:00.000-08:00

Whew!! I did it!!! David and I stayed in Montclaire the night before the race to take advantage of his parents close proximity to Treasure Island....oh, and the wonderful babysitting.

David and I went on Friday to pick up our race packets and scope out the Triathlete Expo. There was a lot of talk about how cold it was going to be on race day. The overnight temperatures were going to be around 35-40 degrees farenheight. David bought a hat and we both splurged on athletic gloves to keep our hands warm.

The Team In Training pasta party was held at the Crown Royal Hotel in San Francisco. We listened to a very motivational honoree tell us the story of his battle with Leukemia. Our coaches gave us some final words of wisdom...mostly, don't be late! The island was to be closed off starting at 7 am. As a team (all of California Team In Training) we raised over $500,000 for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society! Wow, all of that money for research...I was so proud.

We woke up on race day around 5:20 am. After packing up the van with all of our tri gear we had a very easy drive to Treasure Island. I was surprisingly calm as we unloaded our bikes and made our way to our transition set up area. Lots of team mates were there getting set up. The Team In Training (TNT) men's wave start time was 8:30 am and the women's TNT group went at 9:30 am.

We all cheered on the men as they had their start in the freezing water. The amazing thing about watching all of the waves that went off ahead of us is how many different abilities there were. Good swimmers, nervous ones and even those brave souls who did a lot of treading water. About 30 minutes to our wave we went to start getting on our wet suits. I was still pretty calm, I am sure because of how well my swim at Coyote Pointe went the previous Sunday.

Our swim was a deep water drop. There was no gradually getting into the water, all I could do was just jump in. Yikes! It was really cold. When our starting horn went off I decided to warm up with some side stroke to keep calm and try not to let anxiety take over my swim. About half way to the first buoy my goggles came undone. I could not believe it. My eyes were on fire from the salt water. I waved to a kayak to come over so I could hold on while I restrung my goggles. Just when I got them fixed (with a big knot) another kayak comes racing towards us yelling hold on. He wanted to take a picture of me with the guy on the kayak so everyone would believe he helped someone. Very strange. Anyway, as he fumbled around for his camera I started to panic because I needed to get swimming. Finally, photo complete I was off again. The water was really choppy and doing the side stroke was not working for me. I was taking in a LOT of water and the salt water was killing my stomach. I finally had to just start swimming in order to avoid this. I could feel the waves going over my head as I swam. I did get a pretty bad calf cramp in the water but I managed to ignore it for most of the swim. I finished the swim portion in 50 minutes....just 5 minutes longer than my pool time! As I got out the man helping me out of the water asked if I could walk. I was pretty disoriented and mentioned my calf cramp. He pushed my toes up towards my knees. Whatever he did, the cramp was gone and I ran up to my bike while stripping off my wetsuit.

I got my wetsuit off and put on my shoes and bike helmet and was off for a 25 mile bike ride. The course was very, very bumpy. I managed to have lost most of my food over some bumps (not realizing it at the time or I would have stopped to retrieve them). By lap 4 I was feeling really tired and hungry. One of my team mates, Terri, was close by and loaned me a GU gel. The bumps were really getting to me and I really had to go to the bathroom. Right near our coaches cheer section was a porta potty so I literally threw my bike down on the ground and ran in. Later on I found out coach Ken zoomed his video camera in on me as they all speculated if I was going number 1 or 2. Geesh! Anyway, I finished my 6th lap and raced in to drop off my bike, grab more gels to eat and raced off towards my run.

The first 1/2 mile of my run I actually walked. My shins were on fire and I could not seem to bend my toes upwards. They were stuck pointing down. I finally sat on the side of the road and stretched them out. I started to run pretty slowly. I had a bad side cramp but I was determined not to walk the whole 6 miles. I continued my run and about 1.4 miles before the end I had an asthma attack. I was very lucky to have remembered my inhaler. After a 5 minute walk my lungs freed up and I was able to run again. My mentor Meggen and David were close to the finish and ran with me a little bit giving me tons of encouragement. I was really hurting by this point and I wanted to be done so so badly.

I finished the race in 4 hours, 5 minutes. My goal was to finish in under 4 hours. If not for the goggle malfunction and shin problems I would have been under my goal!

David and I calculate that I probably burned almost 4,000 calories in this race. Guess I can eat desert tonight :-)

David's report will follow shortly.....I want to thank everyone again for all of their undying support for us and the cause. We will definitely do more triathlons. We are definitely hooked!!

Sandi

Countdown to Race Day

2005-10-31T14:16:00.000-08:00

We are now in our taper week. This means we get easier workouts this week as we let our bodies recover from the past 3 months of hard workouts. This will give us more energy on race day.

We went to the Captain's workout last Sunday morning. Our mentor, Meggen, watched the kids while David and I joined the group for an open water icy swim. Later, after warming up we put the kids in the double jogger and went on a 3 mile run with Mai around the bay. I must say, the kids were amazing and took it all in stride without a single whine. (Wahooo!!!)

Sandi

Off to our last Saturday training

2005-10-29T07:04:00.000-07:00

One more week until the race -- wow! Today will be our last Saturday training, with a short swim and a long bike ride. We're trying on the wet suits in the pool just to be sure they fit, too. Back later for more!

Pool Workout

2005-10-28T14:50:00.000-07:00

David and I went to the pool together today and got to share a lane. It was good to get used to swimming next to someone. I also had the opportunity to prove to him that I can swim 200 to 250s without taking a break. When he sees me in the open water swims it is barely 15 before I am out of breath. We both had a great workout.....tons of flow!!

I finally went back to the doctor to see what is going on with my lungs. He said my airways were very swollen and constricted. He thinks I had a full blown pretty bad asthma attack during our practice triathlon last weekend. This is probably why I couldn't breathe more than 8 strokes at a time during the swim....and the continued wheezing during the run. We are not sure if I am developing asthma or if it is just a lingering issue from my cold the week before. I am now using a steroid inhaler to get the inflammation out as well as an inhaler for exercise. Fun, fun.....At least I will be in tip top shape for our triathlon. I can't believe it is next week.

Sandi

Final full track workout

2005-10-26T14:07:00.000-07:00

The time for the triathlon is coming closer. We had our last real track workout last night, and I’m already missing them. Not that I will miss the mad scramble to leave work and the reckless speeding up highway 85 to get there on time, but I will miss the team and the camaraderie. I’ll even miss Liz’s “high skipping” and Ken’s seemingly interminable plank drills.

This morning I had to wear a suit for work (not a wetsuit, but a business suit, tie and all). The suit was tailor-made for me during my visit to Hong Kong about three months ago. Thanks to all this training, the pants are now significantly more roomy. So perhaps I discovered another hidden cost of triathlon training: the need to pay a tailor to take in my clothes!

One last thing: our Team in Training triathlon fundraising team total is quite short of our goal. If you can, please click on the left and contribute something to help both those who are fighting blood cancers and those who are researching cures. Thank you!

Practice Triathlon

2005-10-24T13:40:00.000-07:00

David and I survived our first sprint distance practice triathlon at Steven's Creek Reservoire. It was a lot of fun, once I got out of the water.

I am still struggling with not being able to breathe in the open water swims. It is like a big vise is squeezing the air out of my lungs and I just can't breathe in enough air. I know it is all mental, I can swim in a swimming pool--even swim well now. Thank goodness our coach, Chris, was there to help me through the anxiety!! I know I can't drown in the Bay so I am not sure what the cause of my panic is exactly. Maybe my sensitivity to cold water? Poor Chris had to swim on his surf board with me 10 paces up. I would swim to him, realize I was okay, then he would go ahead and have me swim up to him again. And again, and again. He is trying to get me to break down my swim 10 strokes at a time. Breaking it down into manageable increments to keep my mind off panicking.

I was the second to last out of the water and quickly transitioned to the bike. I felt good on my bike except for a side cramp I developed in the swim. I think I ate and hydrated well on the bike. It was a 12 mile bike ride, the first 6 of it being mostly uphill. Did I say how great I felt on the bike :-)

As I finished my bike ride my chest started to feel tight. When I have a chest cold I tend to get a little asthmatic. I did not bring my inhaler (I really did not feel very sick, mostly just coughing at night--so I did not even think about it). Early in my run I started having more difficulty breathing. At the end of the race (3mi) I was wheezing pretty hard. I am going to have to really try to stay healthy before the big race! My inhaler is ok but it can make me jittery and elevate my heart rate which is not the best thing when working out at this level.

I will post some pictures when we get them!
Sandi

Tribute To Our Coaches

2005-10-19T11:05:00.000-07:00

David and I have come a long, long way in our journey of triathlon training. I can not believe there are only 2 1/2 weeks left!!! We could never have done it without the positive and caring attitude of our coaches. When the going has been rough, and I mean really rough, they have always been there with the most encouraging and positive support.

When I was at my worst in the cold bay, our coaches Chris, Liz, and Ken put up with my whining and crying. I don't think we give people enough credit in this world so I wanted to take some time to thank them for all of their support and hard work throughout this whole experience.

Sandi

I think I hit that iceberg!!

2005-10-17T11:17:00.000-07:00

Seriously....it did feel that cold. When I got into the 50 degree water my body froze up and went into a sort of panicked shock. It was like someone was squeezing my lungs so hard I couldn't breath at all. I was so freaked out I really did the doggie paddle and backstroke (very crookedly) all the way to the other side to our kayaker/marker "Coach Ken." I think I muttered every swear word I could think of to keep my mind off quitting this triathlon. I think we calculated that each time across was 1/4 of a mile.

I felt a tiny bit warmed up after that length and again I tried swimming freestyle with my face in the water back across to our side. The wind picked up making it very choppy and hard to get a breath. I must say by my second time across, I was finally warmed up (and relaxed) and could swim with my face in the fridgid water. I was one of the last ones out but I did it.

I do not know what I am going to do to quell that frozen panic when I have to get back into that water on race day. I would hate to be the one the spectators all look at and say who is the fool doing the doggie paddle in this big race?!

Shortly after our practice swim we all watched in horror as someone actually went into the bay to swim with "no" wetsuit on. He must have been legally insane.

Sandi

Open water swim

2005-10-17T08:22:00.000-07:00

Wow! What an experience the open water swim at Treasure Island was! Above is a picture of the water where we were. Yes, that water was COLD! And we learned one's body does all sorts of interesting things when it gets hit with cold water, most of which conspire to make swimming a challenge. Gotta get to work, so more later....

Moving Along

2005-10-14T11:00:00.000-07:00

Well, we are 3 weeks away from our race!! My swimming seems to be getting better on an inconsistant basis. I have good days and bad days. On a good day I can swim the whole 1500 yards in 47 minutes! That is a great improvement over my once great 1 hour and 5 minutes!

It seems we are constantly fighting some type of kid germs and it really affects the quality of our workouts. I am fighting my 5th cold since training has begun. I guess our bodies were acclimated to the Texas germs but not the California ones. I feel bad for Kaela and Jadon who have been sick with all of these colds now for 3 months straight! We should buy stock in Robitussin and Children's Benadryl.

All of that aside, last week we rode our bikes up Mt. Eden and then down the other side. I learned the powerful lesson of "don't forget to eat on the bike". When we got off our bikes I really had a hard time running 4 miles. I totally ran out of fuel. Next time I am bringing bannanas, oranges etc..to really prepare.

Tomorrow we are off to Treasure Island for a practice swim on the actual race course. I will post pictures when we get them.

Sandi

Some pictures from today

2005-10-08T20:55:00.000-07:00

We're really getting close to the actual triathlon: November 5 is less than a month away! Coach Chris (the one facing us in the picture... and apparently wearing something red!) told us we have two more weeks of building strength and endurance, and then two weeks of "taper" where we let our bodies rest up for the big day. I've noticed the swims are decreasing. My last three swims were 2700, 2200, and 2000 yards respectively.

There was no let up in today's bike-run brick workout. I rode 20 miles (was supposed to be 15 but we got a bit off course) and ran 5 miles. What's really wild is that I ran the first two miles faster than I've ever run. I don't even think I've run a 5K as fast as I did today. So I guess this getting in shape thing is working for Sandi and me. Thanks, Chris!

I swam well today!?

2005-10-06T09:23:00.000-07:00

I am sorry we have been a little slow at posting lately. Training is getting more intense and we are just less than 1 month away from our big race. Yesterday was yet another swim day. I am not sure what kind of fluke yesterday was. I swam in the late afternoon, which is usually not a very good time for me energywise...I ate chicken and apple sausage right before my workout (late, late lunch)....all of which should lead up to a poor swim.

But, oddly enough my swim was the best ever! I swam and swam and swam. I did not get really tired and out of breath every length or two. I did 100s, up and back 4 lengths of the pool. The last time I kept accurate track of the amount of laps I did and time it took me a little over an 1 hour to swim 1500 yards (9/10 of a mile). Yesterday it took me almost 48 minutes. This flow never happens to me. I am the ultimate slow swimmer. I am always last in our training group. I can not understand what happened to me yesterday. The swim gods must have taken pity on me LOL.

I can only hope this fluke will continue.
Sandi

Last Saturday's Workout

2005-09-28T15:15:00.000-07:00

Our workouts are getting harder each week. I know it is important to build up endurance since we will be doing our triathlon for about 4 to 4 1/2 hours on race day. I have been fighting some virus and it really showed in how badly this workout went for me.

In our swim today we got some practice swimming in turbulent waters. We lined up along the lane dividers and splashed as hard as we could while people swam through. The first two times I had to swim through it I almost turned blue holding my breath. My goal was to just hold my breath through the whole splash zone and avoid swallowing water. Our coaches got wise to this pretty quickly. We also practiced "sighting" in this turbulence. Sighting will be important so that we do not swim off course. We have been told stories about people who follow the group only to find out the whole group went the wrong way!

After our swim we had a contest to see who could transition from swim to bike the fastest. David came in first and I came in second! David swam in his tri shorts and had one up on everyone. I just pulled my tri shorts on over my wet swimsuit. I figured I would dry off pretty quickly on our hilly bike ride.

Sunday is rest day...thank goodness!!
Sandi

Open Water Swim

2005-09-25T14:26:00.000-07:00

We had our first open water swim last week in Redwood City. Our coach, Chris, taught us how to put on our wetsuits with and without cooking spray (see above...and please, don't ask). After a brief introduction we jumped right into the cold water....Brrrr. I must say it was a little scary not being able to touch bottom. I did learn that no matter what, I can not sink. The wetsuit is like a giant "floatie" and really kept me up on top of the water. This gave me the confidence to swim around and even swim a practice course around some kayaks.

I think my lasting impression of the workout is how bad the bay tastes. I swallowed more water than I expected! Next time I am going to try harder to keep my mouth closed under the water.

Sandi

The quest continues

2005-09-22T22:19:00.000-07:00

We know that Carolyn wanted us to continue our quest to complete a triathlon as well as the Nike half-marathon that my stepsister, Robin, is doing for Team in Training. So the blog will go on as well!

Our training is getting more intense with the purpose of building endurance. Tuesday's track workout was rigorous but fun. It was nice to focus on something positive like building my running strength and endurance. Sandi tried out and loved her new running shoes that the folks at Running Revolution helped her select and optimize for her feet and running style. Tonight, I worked on my swimming endurance by completing 2,700 yards in the pool. That's 108 lengths! I can barely type, my arms are so tired!

Carolyn's obituary

2005-09-21T14:13:00.000-07:00

Carolyn's obituary is at http://www.legacy.com/Link.asp?Id=LS15159867X.

Services for Carolyn

2005-09-21T07:32:00.000-07:00

Carolyn will be missed by many, many friends, family members, and former students and colleagues from the Berkeley Public School District where she was a teacher, principal, and assistant superindendent.

Below is information on the funeral service that is planned for this Friday afternoon. We plan to be there and welcome any of you that feel you would like to join us.

Services will be at

First Church of Religious Science
(510) 547-1979
5000 Clarewood Dr
Oakland, CA 94618

Friday 12 noon. It is near the Montclair District in Oakland.

In Memory of Carolyn Hall-Gaertner

2005-09-17T12:23:00.000-07:00

We just learned that Carolyn passed peacefully at 2:08 a.m. early this morning. She was a wonderful, strong and loving person. We will miss her tremendously. There are more things to say, but I don't feel like saying them now.

We're grateful for everyone's support, and we now must go support my father as he transitions to a new stage in life.

PS: I wrote the following the day before Carolyn passed away but didn’t get a chance to put it on the blog.

Sandi and I, and much of our family, are gathered at my father’s & stepmother’s house, where Carolyn is at home while we all help to make her as comfortable as possible. We’ve all had a chance to tell her how much we love her, and yesterday she was able to respond, but today it’s getting more difficult for her to talk or even stay awake.

This morning, she opened her eyes and laughed when I thanked her for putting up with my dad for all these years. I didn’t know then that it would be her last time to laugh in life. She replied that she loves him more than anything in the world.

They were together for nearly 30 years. Not bad for a subsequent marriage for each of them; clearly they figured out how to get it right. And now leukemia is robbing them of their hard earned enjoyment of life together.

Sad News

2005-09-14T13:49:00.000-07:00

I just got off the phone with Stephan. Carolyn's last round of chemo did not work. There are no other drugs they can try. Carolyn will go home tomorrow and she will be placed under hospice care.

Please keep her in your prayers.
Sandi

We won!

2005-09-13T23:05:00.000-07:00

Philippe and I won the Bike & Tie race. I'm too tired to write more right now (just flew back from Seattle, and I'm off to Austin in the morning) but I have to put this picture up. I had no idea t-shirts were so useful for carrying toys, stuffed animals, a soccer ball, etc....

Garage sale tomorrow!

2005-09-10T15:53:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow's the big day: our charity garage sale! We had so many friends and Mom's Club members donate things that we have a garage full with overflow in the dining room. I'm making the signs now, while Sandi's making cookies to sell. I'm crossing my fingers that we get a big turnout because the donations have slowed down to a trickle (perhaps due to Katrina), and we still have almost $1000 to go to reach our fundraising minimum.

We had a fun workout this morning -- a "bike-run tie" complete with costumes and a scavenger hunt. Ever want to know what it feels like to carry a bunch of stuffed animals, small toys, a soccer ball, and a snow sled/saucer while running and riding your bike for 8 miles? Just ask me, because I can tell you now. You haven't lived until you've run two miles with furry stuffed animals stuffed into the front and back of your t-shirt! Maybe you had to be there....just wait, pictures will be posted soon.

On Tuesday, we will get our wetsuits. Next week we will have our first open water swim in the Bay at Redwood Shores. Come out and watch the fun! :-)

Good reason to miss a workout

2005-09-09T08:32:00.000-07:00

I skipped my workout yesterday because we took our daughter, Kaela, to dinner for her fifth birthday. So, you're thinking, "Dinner for a five year old...I hope you had fun at Chuck E. Cheese!" No, not my daughter. She wanted pho, a Vietnamese noodle bowl. Being new to the area, we got a little lost and discovered a nice Chinese “pulled noodle” restaurant instead. But to our kids, noodles are noodles, and they both said it was the best noodle bowl ever! For dessert, instead of a cupcake, Kaela had fried bananas and ice cream. With the big fish tank on top of it all, she had a great time!

Today, I get to make up for the skipped workout by doing my own "brick:" swimming 1600 yards and then biking for an hour. Forget about a babysitter, we need a massage therapist!

PS: we’re Blog of the Week in the San Jose Mercury News this week! It’s our 15 minutes of fame!

Swim Lesson Day

2005-09-07T20:45:00.000-07:00

I had a great swim lesson with our swimming coach today. She owns a swim school in Fremont called the Happy Fish Swim School.

My lesson started off a little shaky...thanks to a cold I caught from my son, Jadon. Once I got the hang of breathing underwater with a stuffy nose I started doing a little better. One of my biggest challenges in the pool is consistency. I can do a perfect (or as perfect as possible given my small skill set) length of the pool, only to be followed by a mad scramble across the pool trying not to take in water the next length. I am concentrating on a drill called "painting the bottom." In this stroke I pull my arms down along my midline while pretending to paint the bottom with my middle finger. After zig zagging around the pool today, I learned how important this will be in order to swim in a straight line. The last thing I want to do in an open water swim is to veer off course and swim more than I have to!!

I also need to give Liz an unsolicited plug. She is an amazing teacher and confidence booster. Her swim school is sponsoring a 5k/10k fun run called the The Happy Fish Run For Education It will be held on October 16, 2005, and $10 of every entry fee is donated to the school of your choice. There will also be 1/4- and 1/2-mile fun kids runs.

Sandi

Early rest day [updated]

2005-09-04T10:57:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was fun but tough both physically and emotionally. After yesterday's bike ride, we celebrated the first birthday of a 1-year old honoree who has AML, the same form of leukemia that Carolyn has. The baby beamed an incredible baby smile when the team sang Happy Birthday to her. Then her parents told us the story of her diagnosis, treatment and recovery. Like Carolyn, her immune system is sensitive, so we all kept our distance. But that smile was big enough to be seen for miles!

[Update: I just learned that Carolyn returned to the hospital last night with a high fever. She's better now but will have to remain there through her second treatment and until her immunity returns. It could be a couple of weeks.]

During the workout, we had our last team pool workout before the open water swim coming up September 17 at Redwood Shores. (Yes, Mom, that's in the Bay, and no, Mom, we won't be eaten by sharks.) Ken gave me the final tip to help improve my stroke & rotation; I must be getting it right because now I'm sore in new places! And Liz suggested a breathing drill to help me figure out how many strokes to take in between breaths. I look forward to trying that.

I had fun on the bike ride, too, riding with and getting to know a new teammate and honoree, Jens. He was very patient in waiting for me at the tops of the hills that I struggled to climb.

Sandi and I decided unanimously early this morning to take our rest day early. We'll do our 1.5 hour bike ride tomorrow; thank goodness for Labor Day. Instead we'll work on pricing the garage sale stuff for next weekend's big sale. I also put a couple of things for sale on eBay, where 100% of the sale price will go to the LLS via MissionFish.

[I'll update this post with pictures when they're posted to the TNT site.]

Be careful what you ask

2005-09-03T07:03:00.000-07:00

Jadon wore a red t-shirt with cows and the word "Switzerland" on it (a gift from my cousin Erika in Zurich). A neighbor here noticed the shirt and asked, "Jadon, what does your shirt say?"

Jadon answered, "Shirts really don't talk."

Ok...the babysitter is here, and off to our Saturday workout we go...

Bricks

2005-09-02T13:31:00.000-07:00

Ever wonder what a brick is? I didn't either -- until I saw "brick" on our triathlon workout sheet. So a brick, in addition to being something heavy, is something you stack to build things. In tri-ese, it means a workout where you stack different activities on top of each other.

For example, my workout yesterday was 45 minutes on the stationary bike (with nine 2-minute periods of high resistance), followed by 15 minutes of running. Moving from the bike to the run was an experience. My legs felt like they were full of bricks after the bike, so starting on the treadmill wasn't easy. I usually run a pace of about 8'-8:30/mile. I couldn't sustain that and insteady felt nicely challenged at a 10'/mile pace. It took about a mile before my legs started feeling normal again.

If you're working with real bricks (the red, heavy kind), you'll get worn out and tired pretty quickly. Guess what? Triathlon bricks are just the same!! I was ready for bed at about 5 p.m. yesterday!

So many needs...

2005-08-31T22:17:00.000-07:00

David and I have been watching the news and seeing the devastation from hurricane Katrina. It is so hard to fathom the horror these people are going through. David and I have been in the middle of two hurricanes but none as destructive as what we see now on TV. Sitting here typing on the computer, we feel very fortunate.

We know there are only so many dollars to go around, and we want to say again how much we appreciate that people are digging deeper into their pockets not only to help battle leukemia but also to help those affected by hurricane Katrina, too.

There are so many worthy causes, so many good charities that need help. We hope that everyone who is lucky enough to be in their home tonight gives some of their time or money to help others who aren't so lucky -- whether those others are in a hospital, a shelter, or out on the streets.

S & D

Two pictures, few words

2005-08-30T23:13:00.000-07:00

Some of us had a great time at track training tonight...

... and some of us worked hard! :-)

Yard Sale Stuff Is Taking Over Our Garage

2005-08-29T13:16:00.000-07:00

I want to make a big thank you to the many people who are donating things for our Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) benefit yard sale. People are reaching deep and donating really nice things. Our garage is really getting filled up with great stuff!!! We also plan to sell cookies, bagels and cream cheese, coffee and lemonade. Kaela and Jadon are very excited to make cookies and lemonade for this event!

For those of you who live in San Jose...it will be on Sunday, September 11th from 8-1 (or later if there is anything left).

Sandi

Map of the course

2005-08-28T23:22:00.000-07:00

Lots have asked us about the course for the triathlon. Usually people give us that kind of look that you give when you're talking to someone you know is certifiably insane. Well, crazy or not, I offer you
a link to the course map so you can see for yourself. Notice how the swim is in a protected lagoon and the run is totally flat (thank goodness!). The bike portion looks like it will have a few grades since it covers both Treasure Island and the rocky Yerba Buena Island.

PS: Let's all hope for the best for the people of New Orleans as they deal with the coming hurricane. Having been through two hurricanes myself, I know how frightening and damaging they can be.

Random musings

2005-08-28T14:34:00.000-07:00

Today I biked for 1 1/2 hours at a medium intensity. I found the roads a little bumpy so I hit the Los Alamitos trail. I really like this trail, it is paved and shady. I saw a TON of cute little bunnies this morning making me "almost" wish I brought the kids along.

I am struggling with trail ediquette. Some people (usually two or more) think they can spread out and take up the whole trail while walking and talking. I use my good bike manners and tell people "on your left" as loudly and nicely as possible. Many get this deer in headlights pose and just stop in the middle of this narrow trail. I have to then slow down and try not to hit them. If anyone can think of how to tackle this problem I would love to hear what you think.

I had a nice long talk with Carolyn this morning. She is keeping her positive attitude about her new treatment. Her next treatment is on September 2nd.

David bought a bike...finally

2005-08-26T21:17:00.000-07:00

Finally! I got one! Tomorrow I get to enjoy my new bike on the TNT training ride! It's blue, made by Klein, and it will go fast. I can't wait! Thanks to Tonya for the tip about the bike store. The bike was a bit more expensive than I'd planned (but not by much), but it rode like a dream and, well, how many more hours do I want to spend shopping for a bike? Off I go to bed to dream I'm Lance flying down the Champs de Elysees...except it's me...there I go, crashing to the pavement!

Medical science is slow

2005-08-26T14:50:00.000-07:00

My father sent me an e-mail that has me frustrated with the process of medical research and the government approvals required.

"Repeated blood transfusions lead to kidney failure and other serious problems, so are limited to 4 or 5. Biopure in Massachusetts has developed a blood substitute containing hemoglobin to transport oxygen to organs. But only South Africa is using it; US approval is a long way away. Meantime, the company is running out of cash by October and will shut down."

Another article said, "Hemopure is approved in South Africa for treating surgery patients who are acutely anemic and the animal version of the product, Oxyglobin, is approved in the United States and Europe to treat anemia in dogs."

Irrespective of Biopure's cash situation, it seems like drugs like this should be approved more quickly. What does South Africa do differently? What are your thoughts? Click on the comment link to send us your comments.

Added rest day!

2005-08-25T22:09:00.000-07:00

Sandi and I both took Coach Chris' advice and took an extra rest day today. So my back and legs will feel better tomorrow, I hope. That's because I need to be able to bend over to keep looking around for the sunglasses I lost! From this picture, I was definitely wearing them at the track Tuesday evening.

That's me looking at "Silly Sandi" (in the purple in the other picture) and the other Team members standing in a circle doing the world's longest ice breaker name game. I saved myself from having to recite over 30 nicknames besides Silly Sandal, no, wait, Silly Sandi, by saying I was "Dumb David...next!"

Am I swimming? Or is it a fallacy?

2005-08-24T13:04:00.000-07:00

Okay... I swam today. I have to tell you all I sat at the edge of the pool for about 5 minutes trying to talk myself into getting in. I did about 10 laps (20 lengths--with lots of rests). I am scared to jinx things but I actually felt a little better in the water today. I must have looked pretty pathetic because two very nice women in the lane next to me took me under their wings. I got some great advice on how to build up my endurance. Little do they know how far I have come in the past three weeks. I went from a fear of drowning to swimming 20 lengths. Two of my laps were even without rests (not back to back but this is a MAJOR improvement).

The second thing I need to mention to all of you who want to contribute but have not gotten around to it yet.....September 7th is our recommitment date. This date is important because we pretty much make an agreement with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society that we will commit to raising our fundraising minimum ($4800 for both of us) or pay out of pocket the difference between what was raised and what is required. To date we have only raised about $1800 (which is great for only 3 weeks!!!) We do have both a benefit yard sale and a big wine tasting fundraiser planned (stay tuned!!) Please take a few minutes to show your support. 100% of your donation is tax deductible!

Sandi

Whew! Rest day!

2005-08-22T08:51:00.000-07:00

After the swim and bike training, and nine hours of soccer coach instruction (six of those outside learning soccer drills/activities by actually doing them), I'm thrilled to be in the office today where I can sit all day and rest my tired legs.

Of course, I know how to swim better, I learned I can ride eight miles in 31:42 on a mountain bike and enjoy it, and I am officially licensed at the "F" level for coaching soccer (which I will apply to the fearsome Almaden United Under-5 girls soccer team on which Kaela will play this fall).

If I can do that, then you can donate to the Leukemia Society! Please click on the logo on the left to contribute and support Sandi and me. We have a long ways to go both physically and financially to achieve our goals, and every little bit will help!

Flailing around in the water (David, not Sandi)

2005-08-21T08:47:00.000-07:00

Yep, that's me there looking like I'm enjoying myself and like I know how to swim. Esther got a nice shot showing that I'm totally ready for that 1.5 kilometer swim! Not! Photos capture but a brief split second of reality. The rest of my time in the pool yesterday was wonderfully refreshing (to say the best about it) and a bit frustrating.

If you could watch a video, you'd see my uncoordinated struggle to master the art of the crawl. In my mind, I know what I need to do, but my arms, neck, etc. aren't quite grasping the concept. I'm so busy trying to get my arms to stroke only when they're supposed to (and thus decrease the "dog paddle" effect) that I sort of forget to breathe enough. And that ticks off my lungs. And it all goes downhill from there. Thankfully, I know I'll get it down pat (well, close to that) eventually and with practice. And my struggle is nothing compared to what people with blood cancers go through. I can do it. And our coaches have their work cut out for them!

Trying to learn to swim..........

2005-08-19T14:43:00.000-07:00

David is right...training is tough. Especially when you hate a sport like I hate swimming. It is not a fair sport. Why can I go out and run 10 miles but only be able to swim 1 lap without a rest? Swimming uses a totally different set of muscles.

Swimming is one of those sports where you actually have to think about a dozen different things while trying not to drown. Head/midline straight, face down, glide, kick with your thighs not your knees, go slowly, paint the bottom with your arm, push after your arm is pointing down, don't breathe in water, tilt your body...not just raise your head to take a breath, make sure your forehead is in the water too, etc....oh yeah, and breathe.

I just can't seem to get into a "flow". You need to be highly efficient when you are swimming so you do not burn up all of your energy. I am really good at flailing around trying to go in a straight line :-) I plan to take swim lessons in Sept when the kids go back to school. I hope this helps improve my attitude towards swimming.

Sandi

Training is tough

2005-08-18T19:58:00.000-07:00

Don’t let the fact that Sandi and I are hoping to do a triathlon fool you into thinking that triathlons are easy!  They are not, and the training is definitely tough.  Each day’s training is a new challenge, especially with the perpetual soreness that comes from not being in shape when we started.

Today, I rode the exercise bike at work for 71 minutes (55’ kind of easy plus 4 x 4’ hard).  I whiled away the time reading (and trying not to sweat on) The World Is Flat, a book highly recommended by friends and mentioned on Irving Wladawsky-Berger’s blog.  The book covers the ramifications of the fact that technology has made the world flat with respect to where companies can have work done for them.  It’s just as easy to have agents take customers calls from their homes in Utah (a la Jet Blue) as it is in Bangalore or anywhere else.

I suppose the road bike that I haven’t purchased yet will be a product of that globalization that technology has enabled…designed in the US and built in Tawain and elsewhere.  But the technology still hasn’t enabled me to find someone to give me the right advice on what to buy!  So unless I can escape work early and figure out whether this bike or that bike is The Bike, I’m expecting another “extra-effort” ride this Saturday on the mountain bike.

Then there are the challenges of getting babysitters, stressing about finding ways to fundraise, spending quality time with the kids, and doing that job thing, too…which I’d better get back to now that the kids are in bed….

Next steps

2005-08-16T22:45:00.000-07:00

Carolyn and my father are enjoying a couple of days at a spa in Sonoma. Next week, her treatment begins using monoclonal antibodies to attack the blast cells. The treatment sounds pretty sophisticated, and I'm sure it will work for Carolyn. I learned a bit more about these diseases at the track workout tonight, where the Team in Training staff laid out pamphlets of patient information. I had no idea there were so many forms of blood cancers nor how widely the treatments and prognoses can vary (e.g., by age).

As for the workout, Sandi and I are improving our running and feeling a lot better on the track. We still haven't found a babysitter for Tuesdays, so the kids enjoyed another night out on the track with us. They were very well behaved again. Kaela practiced cartwheels, and I, running backwards, chased the kids. I could barely catch Kaela, and she loved it!

I should mention our Sunday workout, which was a 1.5 hour easy bike ride: Sandi zipped around on her new road bike, while I dragged both kids with my mountain bike in an old, high-drag-coefficient Little Tykes bike trailer. I am confident I got the harder workout!

Also, I want to mention that the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society received donations from some wonderful people, achieving 21% of our fundraising goal so far. Thank you!

Chemo did not work

2005-08-15T15:16:00.000-07:00

We are heartbroken to say Carolyn's chemotherapy did not work and she did not go back into remission. She is going to try another chemotherapy drug starting on Monday. Please keep her in your prayers.

Sandi

Why we are doing this

2005-08-14T07:41:00.000-07:00

David and I have sent out our pleas for sponsors. When that letter or email arrives, please don't file it away thinking you will get to it later. We need those sponsorships now! All of your donation, 100%, goes to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Not only are you helping to find a cure for blood cancer, but you also get a nice tax deduction. (And, you will have our gratitude in your supporting us through this difficult training). -- Sandi

At yesterday's coached training, the Team in Training honoree was a 38-year old man who just months ago learned he has leukemia. He described to us how he learned about the sickness, his current treatment at Stanford, and how it affected his life (e.g., he had to move here to be closer to his personal support network). You might wonder, what does this man do for a living? He has worked for a breast cancer charity for the past seven years. And now he has leukemia! The amazing thing is that he seems like he's in great shape. That's a testament to the research to help find cures for Leukemia. He is still in chemotherapy and has good days and really bad days.

So after that, it's somewhat difficult to gripe about how sore I am after yesterday's swim and bike ride (mostly uphill!) or to gripe about how hard it is to find a road bike that fits me -- and how many goofballs there are in bike shops around the south bay and Peninsula! (Sandi did find a good bike yesterday.) I did learn to swim better by pushing with my arms at the bottom of each stroke. Now that I know better how to propel myself in the water, I will never again just flail around in the water moving forward by mere chance like I used to. (That's kind of like life, isn't it?) -- David

Sore and tired

2005-08-13T06:47:00.000-07:00

I'm sore and tired...and our coached training session starts in just over an hour. Should be a fun day!

"Growing pains"

2005-08-11T08:08:00.000-07:00

Kaela, our daughter, is complaining about growing pains this morning. Sandi & I have only a little sympathy because those lunges at the Tuesday track workout are causing "growing pains" of our own. At least Sandi and I don't fall to the ground and claim to be unable to walk when we see Kaela! ... The three of us are surely contributing to an "upside earnings surprise" for the maker of Advil this quarter. Buy your shares now!

Bikes

2005-08-07T20:33:00.000-07:00

Sandi and I are wondering about using riding road bikes instead of our mountain bikes. We tried out a couple today, and they really are more efficient and fun. Even Sandi said she enjoyed the road bike because she could go fast. This is from Sandi, for whom an exciting ride at the amusement park is the merry-go-round on one of the horses that goes up and down instead of the stationary ones. :-)

The question is, should we invest in road bikes? Please pass along any hints or tips for us that you might have.

This morning Sandi and I did our "long runs" of 3 or 4 miles. I waited a bit too late and suffered in the heat (I'm amazed how quickly my body forgot how to tolerate heat like we had in Austin!).

Tomorrow is our first "rest" day: no exercising at all. Now that's a goal I can achieve!

Our First Swim and Bike Training

2005-08-07T07:30:00.000-07:00

Sandi here....Whew! We did it. The babysitter showed up on time, and we raced out early Saturday morning to Redwood City to our first swim and bike training. We started in the pool (ugh) to get some basic form training. They divided us up into Foxes (ultra beginner), Cheetas (the middle group), and Panthers (super athletes). Of course I was in the Foxes group. It surprised me David chose that group too....I am sure he will add in about this.

Our first drill was to hold our breath under water for 5 seconds. Now I know I am wimpy but this was really hard for me. Water went up my nose every time. The best thing I have learned from this is drill is that I will not drown. In a worst case race scenario, I will float in the bay until someone rescues me! I have this unusually strong bouyancy. Every time I go under I float up. The instructor, Liz, told me to squat and that should hold me down. Well, my feet flew up to my head and it almost threw me into a summersault. I had to hold the wall of the pool to keep me under for this drill. Next we worked on just a streamline position. To hold this position we put our arms up over our head, cross the wrists and let the hands overlap. We practiced pushing off from the wall and kicking (only) across the pool. I am definitely the worst swimmer in the group. Everyone has been incredibly encouraging. They all seem confident I can do this swim portion of the triathlon. I wish I could share their optimism.

The bike portion went a lot better for me. I went with the foxes even though I felt I could fit into the Cheetah group. I wanted to learn more about the basics of biking. Believe it or not I still can not change a tire! I am leaning towards buying a road bike a little more after this ride. Using a big steel mountain bike certainly makes me work harder than everyone else when it comes to peddling. I bought some sooth tires to put on my mountain bike to see if it makes a difference. (Yes, I am going to beg David to put them on for me). I finished our 30 min ride feeling like I could have kept going a lot longer.

David and I are a bit overwhelmed by this whole fundraising thing! We have decided to hold a massive fundraising yard sale. We plan to ask all of our friends and neighbors for unwanted stuff to sell. It is a win win for them. They get a tax write off, get rid of stuff and get to do some good for people with blood cancers. We stopped at Melanie's house yesterday and took home everything they did not sell at their yard sale. Wow, we got a mountain of stuff!! This will be some giant yard sale after we finish collecting from everyone.

Carolyn is out of the hospital!!

2005-08-06T12:06:00.000-07:00

Carolyn got out of the hospital yesterday.....2 weeks early! Her blood counts were so good they are letting her continue outpatient at home. I know we have said she is a strong woman and this just confirms that. Now we just have to await the blood tests to see if she has gone into remission. Please keep up your well wishes and prayers. I think they have really helped!

Swimming

2005-08-03T22:40:00.000-07:00

I swam 30 laps in 20 minutes today. For real swimmers, that's probably wimpy, but for me, well, I had no idea I could do that -- especially with a slight chest cold. Some of the things that our TNT swim coach told Sandi yesterday seemed to help me, too.

As for Sandi, she actually did try to swim. She did eight laps without getting out of the pool. It's a great start.

Let me gripe a little here: I was disappointed to learn that my employer doesn't match funds donated to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. On the other hand, they do donate a lot of money and provide tremendous support for educational causes, and they are a very ethical company. I guess they have to set limits somewhere.

Just a reminder: please click here and donate to a great cause! And please check if your company is friendlier to the LLS in terms of matching donations than my employer!

Our first training...and the kids loved it!

2005-08-02T22:41:00.000-07:00

Sandi and I had our first coaching session at the Mountain View High School track tonight. We met the coaches and our fellow triathletes-in-training. We started with stretching and some basic runing drills. The track was fast. I ran an 8:03 easy mile, and Sandi's easy mile took only 9:36. both are far faster than our typical 5K or 10K paces. And I'm so TOTALLY out of shape, too. It'll be interesting to see how we do in twelve weeks in the 10K run...that just happens to come after a 1.5K swim and 40K bike ride. (What were we thinking!?)

Sandi's definitely worried about the swim, but I think she'll do great. After the session, she chewed the ear off of the coach who is a professional swim teacher, and listening in, I realize I have a lot to learn about swimming, too.

We didn't find a babysitter, so we brought the kids with us. How did that go, you ask? It went really well, suprisingly with only minimal crying. Kaela did her first real cartwheel, and Jadon proved his mettle as an endurance runner accompanying me around the 1/4 mile track. The other trainees appreciated the kids' cheers of "Go Team!" And they capped their evening at the track with pizza, so what more could they want? The kids asked to come back tomorrow night, but Sandi and I have a swim planned instead.

Now, here's Sandi:

Wow...I did do a fast mile. That is not typical for me. I feel good for not running much in months :-) I won the Captain's Award necklace for my bravery in tackling a triathlon. I let the coach take the necklace home because I knew if Kaela saw the sparkly necklace it would be really tough to bring it back next week. The kids had a blast rooting for all of the runners. I think they ran as much as we did.

Tomorrow is our first swim. I am going to try not to drown swimming my 2 laps. I will definitely benefit from some swim lessons.

Team in Training

2005-07-30T16:30:00.000-07:00

Oh my...what did Sandi and I just do? We both signed up to do a triathlon in November as a Team in Training charity fundraiser for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. We're motivated for two obvious reasons. One is the relapse of Carolyn's leukemia. We all hope for her quick recovery. So we're trying to raise money because the better the research for curing leukemia, the better the chances of people like Carolyn getting cured.

The other the is that we're not in shape (ok, I'm not...I'll let Sandi speak for herself) and this would be a fun way to do something good for the community and for ourselves.

The trick now will be getting childcare while we're off training for the run, bike and swim twice each week.

Root for us! Here is the site to donate. We hope to raise $4,800 between the two of us ($2,400 each is the minimum), so that will be a challenge, too!

I'll use this blog to tell stories about our endeavor...stay tuned!