Chasing My Joy

My journey to becoming an Ultra Runner and Ironman

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Archives for July 2013

July 22, 2013

Ironman Lake Tahoe Training – 10 weeks to go

WOW, just 2 months from today is race day, time is FLYING! This week went ok for my knee it’s just been a challenge to fit everything in! Last week was bigger than the week before and this coming week will be 20+ hours (wish me luck) then a mini taper before Boulder 70.3. Here is how last week shaped up:

Monday: Early morning swim 2,500m

Hip strengthening exercises in the evening, I am supposed to do these every day and that has been a GIANT fail, I must get better at this for my physical health!
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Tuesday: 70 minute spin class
PM: Standard track session


Wednesday: 24 mile ride with hill climbs

PM: Strength Training

Thursday: Open Water Swim Clinic and strength training

Friday : Planned Rest day

Saturday: Unplanned rest day (was supposed to swim but our dog Bailey was sick and needed to go to the vet). After Bailey felt better we ran some errands, and went to a first birthday party.
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Sunday: 100 mile ride with hills and 20 minute t-run. This was my longest ride since Ironman CdA last year and only my third time riding over 100 miles. It went much smoother than last year. On the other hand last year I rode the century the day after a 25k trail race so maybe it’s not a great comparison.

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This week added up to just 16 hrs and 15 minutes, a little less then I was hoping given the unplanned rest day. Also running was dismal last week with less than 10 miles. This week will have a lot more running and a lot more hills!

How did your week look?

Posted by bethcurtis Leave a Comment
Filed Under: Ironman Lake Tahoe, Ironman Training

July 16, 2013

Sign Up For Ironman Boulder Series TODAY!

Hi Friends! I am sure you have heard that Ironman is FINALLY bringing a full to Colorado. I am excited to finally have one in my backyard.

Sign ups for the Series starts today, sign up HERE. The series includes a half ironman in June, an olympic in July and the full on August 3rd. It’s actually a pretty good deal for ironman and a great way to plan your build to the full. 
If you aren’t interested in the series but just want to do the full registration opens tomorrow. Sooooo, who’s in???

Posted by bethcurtis 2 Comments
Filed Under: Uncategorized

July 15, 2013

Badwater Ultra Marathon

This morning the Badwater Ultra Marathon, arguably one of the worlds hardest ultra marathons.

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Source
The Badwater Ultramarathon describes itself as “the world’s toughest foot race”. It is a 135-mile course starting at 282 feet below sea level in the Badwater Basin, in California‘s Death Valley, and ending at an elevation of 8360 feet (2548 m) at Whitney Portal, the trailhead to Mount Whitney. It takes place annually in mid-July, when the weather conditions are most extreme and temperatures over 120 °F, even in the shade, are not uncommon. Consequently, very few people—even among ultramarathoners—are capable of finishing this grueling race. Source

While I dream of one day running an ultra marathon (anything longer than 26.2 miles) I don’t aspire to run this one. It’s an incredible race, I would love to crew someone some day. It would be so amazing to help someone reach that goal. I have no idea how you get involved but one day I will.

People competing in this race will be running over night tonight so send them good thoughts when you tuck yourself in.

Would you do it???

Posted by bethcurtis 1 Comment
Filed Under: Running, ultra

July 14, 2013

Ironman Lake Tahoe – 11 Weeks To Go

On my training schedule coach started listing weeks left to go, made my heart skip a beat or two! This week was hopefully the last lightish week modified for my knee injury, hoping to be back at it strong next week! So here is the quick and dirty of how last week went down:

Monday: 30 mile ride after workIMG_0120.JPG
Tuesday: Speed work at the track

Wednesday: 90 minute spin classIMG_0114.JPG
pm: Strength

Thursday: am- run
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pm- Strength

Friday: Open water swim IMG_0175.JPG

Saturday: “longish” run at 9,000+ elevationIMG_0163.JPG

Sunday: Longest swim since IMCDA 2.4 miles open water, felt pretty good, then hill repeats on the bike (didn’t feel so good)

Closed the week with 13.5 hours training. I expect that to increase a lot next week hoping for the best! How was your week?

Posted by bethcurtis 1 Comment
Filed Under: Ironman Lake Tahoe, training

July 14, 2013

Oregon Vacation

We will get to the full race recap soon (I hope). Things are moving fast around here with just 11 weeks to go until Ironman Lake Tahoe, work and life. Before I forget all the fun that happened last week in Oregon I thought I would take a minute to recap how fun our stay in Sunriver was. We have been there many times before, in fact my parents used to own a home there when they lived in Oregon. It was extra exciting to be there because we were celebrating Mom and Dad’s 40th anniversary and they went to Sunriver on their honeymoon =)
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We arrived in Sunriver on Thursday afternoon after 22 hours of driving straight, this is for convenience, but not my favorite way to start a vacation. Feeling a little stiff we decided that a nice easy bike tour of the half marathon course was in order. I really loved riding with my family! We stopped to take pictures at the finish line:
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Cory and I looking dorky in our matching jerseys.
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Mom at the half marathon start line. Cory and I were excited to race our first triathlon of the year but really bummed that mom’s big race was at the same time so we didn’t get to cheer for her. She did have by brother and dad chasing her all over the course so that did make me feel better.

Most of the day Friday was spent getting ready for the race and Saturday was spent getting a bad sunburn out on the course. She ended up beating her time goal and taking 2nd in her age group!

Sunday it was my mom, Cory and my turn to cheer from my bother and dad who raced in the 5k
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They both did a great job, Erik took first in his group!!!

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After their race we celebrated by eating at the lodge and getting a family photo.

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The rest of the day was spent doing some work (for me) and packing up, Daisy spent her time well too
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Next up….off to the beach and a training update!


Sunriver on Dwellable

 

Posted by bethcurtis 3 Comments
Filed Under: family, Travel

July 5, 2013

July Goals

I am late on a race report AND a vacation update. But we just rolled in last night and I haven’t even located my camera cord to download photos. I LOVE traveling but I am back at work today with loads of laundry to do, bags to unpack and less than 12 weeks until Ironman (YIKES)!
But I wanted to jump in with July goals before July is half over. Time really does fly so I want to get these goals down before I forget.

1.  No eating out in July – This will be easy to start with since on our road trip we had to eat out more than usual and we are looking forward to our usual home cooked meals. The hardest part of this goal is following it on weekends after a long hot training session. The last thing I usually want to do is wait until I get home to make food. So often times the weekend includes grabbing something on the way home (hello Café Rio) before passing out on the couch for a while. To combat this I am going to try to pack healthy food in a cooler to have immediately after working out. This means more time preparing but I am looking forward to seeing how it goes.


2.   No soda. I don’t drink a lot of soda but I LOVE a coke after a long ride or run (I am seeing a theme here). With going into peak training soon I should be filling my body with healthy things not junk.
 


3.  Roll and core work at least 5 times a week. I need to get my in good working order to tackle the next couple months of training.

That’s it for me, do you have any goals for July?

Posted by bethcurtis 4 Comments
Filed Under: goals

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We are having so much fun learning to ski as a fam We are having so much fun learning to ski as a family! Ski traffic I could do without 🫠
✨2022✨ I can honestly say this was the best ✨2022✨ 

I can honestly say this was the best year of my life. So many adventures. I am loving the ages of these kiddos and cherish our time together. 

Very unsure if we can top this in 2023 but we are sure going to try!
We hope you had a merry little Christmas 🎄 We hope you had a merry little Christmas 🎄
Winter hiking is just so magical. Definitely not h Winter hiking is just so magical. Definitely not hating winter this year! ❄️
We kicked off the holiday season by visiting the N We kicked off the holiday season by visiting the North Pole and seeing Santa! 

The kids had so much fun and it was way cuter than I was expecting. They said it was better than Disneyland 😂 @northpolecolorado
Happy Halloween!!! Cannon really wanted to be To Happy Halloween!!! 

Cannon really wanted to be Toad from Super Mario this year so we tagged along. 

Scroll to see 2021-> 2020 -> 2019 -> 2018 -> 2017 -> 2016 🎃
We finished up our tour of France with a couple da We finished up our tour of France with a couple days in Disneyland Paris. I love Disney Parks and visiting Disneyland Paris was a dream come true. We had such an amazing time on our entire trip. 

We are trying to plan our next trip. Where is the best place you have ever been? Do you have a favorite trip? I would love to hear about it. My parents say that Ireland was their favorite so UK tops the list currently but Italy or Costa Rica are on the list too.
In our last couple of days in Paris we took a bus In our last couple of days in Paris we took a bus tour to see the major sights. Our favorites included walking the entire Champs-Élysées and climbing to the top of the Arc de Triomphe. We missed out on seeing the Catacombs because we didn’t get tickets early enough. c’est la vie, I guess we will have to go back 😉
A cousin reminded me that I never finished sharing A cousin reminded me that I never finished sharing our trip to France 🫠 better late than never! 

We spent our first day back in Paris with a trip to Versailles. We loved the gardens so much and particularly enjoyed Marie Antoinette’s little farm. The history here is incredible and the opulence overwhelming. We walked over 10 miles on our visit!
Before our long drive back to Paris we did the thr Before our long drive back to Paris we did the three castle hike in Ribeauvillé, France. We climbed up the side of a hill to three castle ruins from the 14th century. It was really fun to explore and a great way to burn some energy before a long drive.
While we were in the Alsace region of France we vi While we were in the Alsace region of France we visited the sweet little village of Riquewihr. Rumor says this was the inspiration for Belle’s village in Disney’s Beaty and the Beast. Can you see it? We could and kept singing Bonjour while walking through town.
After leaving Switzerland we made our way to Colma After leaving Switzerland we made our way to Colmar. This sweet little town in the Alsace region of France near the German border. We loved all the half timber buildings and winding streets. We had some great local food and wine. Colmar was a lovely place to get lost for an afternoon.
It was so exciting to see the Matterhorn in person It was so exciting to see the Matterhorn in person. The peak was never fully clear of clouds while we were there which was a little disappointing but it was still majestic . We took a cog train and gondola up then hiked about five miles down on the five lakes trail. It was a beautiful day and we got to enjoy lunch mid hike. We loved the little (car free) town of Zermatt. We enjoyed some fun Swiss playgrounds in town before dinner. I love Switzerland and it’s mountains!
With the last of our time in Chamonix we took a go With the last of our time in Chamonix we took a gondola and cable car up Le Brévent. We enjoyed hot chocolates and crepes at the top with views of Mont Blanc. 

Next it was time to drive on to Switzerland 🇨🇭
We took a cute cogwheel train up the valley in Cha We took a cute cogwheel train up the valley in Chamonix to Montenvers to visit the Mer de Glace  glacier. At the top you can take a gondola a little way down then MANY stairs to the glacier. It was sad to see the markers of where the glacier was in years past and how much it has shrunk. We did love exploring an ice cave that they dig out each year. We had to try twice to get into the ice caves as the first time it closed right as we arrived due to a storm. It was worth taking the train twice.
After riding to the top of Aiguille du Midi we sto After riding to the top of Aiguille du Midi we stopped half way down for a couple mile hike and a stop at a mountain hut for lunch. This might have been my favorite lunch ever. The views were amazing and the weather was nice. The mountains here are STUNNING!!! #aiguilledumidi #chamonix
We decided to spend a few day in Chamonix to explo We decided to spend a few day in Chamonix to explore the French Alps. The experience we were most excited about was taking the gondola up the 
Aiguille du Midi (highest cable car in France). You switch cable cars half way up so you can enjoy the views. The top outpost is incredible perching on top of the mountain. I’ve never seen anything like it! 

The day wasn’t completely clear but the views were still incredible. #aiguilledumidi #chamonix
After a long drive across the French countryside w After a long drive across the French countryside we landed in Annecy at the foot of the Alps. 

Annecy was such a pretty little town on the bank of a gorgeous turquoise lake.  We got to enjoy lunch at a canal side cafe, wander the streets, enjoy ice cream and playground hop our way through town. 

Very excited about our next few days in mountains of France + Switzerland.
We drove into the heart of France to visit the Go We drove into the heart of France to visit the  Gouffre de Padirac. A large cave system including an underground river. I don’t have many good pictures given the lighting and lack of patience. We loved climbing down into the cave and riding a boat along the river. Probably my favorite cave that I have visited. Kids loved all of it too and are so good about us dragging them along with us across France.
After leaving Mont Saint-Michele we drove to Loire After leaving Mont Saint-Michele we drove to Loire to visit Château de Chenonceau. It was stunning and the gardens were fun to explore. The history here is so rich!
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