Day 6
Tuesday, July 20th:
Before we made the trek to Lake Tahoe (one of our favorite destinations), we had to stop by the Kaiser facility in San Francisco proper to pick up Anthony’s meds. Well, I was already a bit worried about driving the streets of San Francisco in the motorhome, especially loaded down with water, full tank of gas, my motorcycle on the front, and everything else. Wow, this was going to be interesting. Luckily, Geary was not one of those crazy steep streets you see in Frisco, but man was it crowded. I mean we were right in the middle of the city.
I dropped Heidi off in front and decided to take a chance and park in the loading zone out front. There were a million signs telling you that you cannot park there. I figured “It will only take a few minutes, if someone pulls up, I can take off, right?” WRONG! It took her over an hour waiting inside to get the prescription that was called in the night before!!! Man, I do not want to get sick in San Francisco. This was one of the most stressful hours of my life, waiting, wondering if the parking Nazis were going to come around the corner any minute. People honking their horn and swearing at me as we sat and waited for Heidi to come out. Well, no ticket and she got the meds and we were on our way.
The drive up to Tahoe was OK. I don’t particularly care for the 50, it is a long, long climb, although it is scenic. Once we arrived at our campground, Campground by the Lake, we set up and took a walk down to the water. This campground was really nice, especially since it was so close to the lake. Dry camping only, as the hook up spots were taken. The campground was full, and there were some “interesting people” there to say the least.
We walked to the water and believe it or not it was warm enough to swim in. I don’t ever remember Lake Tahoe being warm enough to swim, but it was so nice. The kids loved it since they could actually walk out into the water a good ¼ mile before it started to get deep. Plus there were little “waves” that the boys could try to body surf. Lauren was sun bathing and decided she just did not want to get in the water. (Spoiled). :)
That evening we had Heidi’s famous Orange Chicken for dinner….OK its Trader Joes, but it is damn good and Heidi has to heat it up. :) Played some games and went to bed.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Monday - Day after the Race
Day 5
Monday July 19th:
Now that the race was over, it was time to get on with the rest of the vacation. We got started a little on the late side (I was a little tired) and we started off to San Francisco. First, we had to drop off the rental car, then get gas, ice, etc. By the time we were on the road, it was around 10 AM. We really needed to get to San Fran as soon as possible in order to make the most of it. We only had one day to see as much as we could. The drive (78 miles) was not too bad, other than some bad patches of traffic. We successfully negotiated the toll booths and bridges as we made our way to our next campground, Treasure Island RV in South San Francisco. The really nice thing about this campground is it’s close proximity to the BART station. That was how we were planning on seeing the wharf and Pier 39.
The RV place was nice, nothing fancy, level spots in a parking lot style set up. We hooked up, gave the dog some food, and headed over to the BART station. This is where things start to get interesting. I have never traveled the BART before and had no idea how it worked, but it is a fairly simple process. You walk up to a machine, put your card in, tell it where you want to go, and it prints out tickets. The tickets to Embarcadero were $7.10 each (round trip) per person. Luckily, the boys were free….finally some advantage to having little ones. :) So we got the tickets, walked through the turnstiles and got onto the right train. Everything was going smoothly at this point.
Once we got to our destination, we exited the train and we needed to put the same card into the turnstiles to exit the facility. Well, Heidi had a little trouble with this one and went into the wrong turnstile, while putting her card in. Chaz was able to get through, since he picked the right lane, but Heidi was now trapped! Her card would not work a second time and the machine kept telling her to see the agent. Well, there was no agent in the booth. This was a nightmare…we were isolated from Heidi and she had no way of getting out. She was like stuck in the Matrix or something. Finally, I caved in and bought a new card (minimum $16) Grrrrrrr and handed it to her to get her out of there. We had to use it on the exit since we bought it outside the gate so Heidi had to walk quickly through the exit as it started to close on her.
Now that we were all back together again, it was time to make the trek to Pier 39. We were slightly dismayed as we got to the street level only to find that we were at Pier 1. That’s right….we had to walk 38 piers down to our final destination…..and these are not small piers. Do I have to remind you that Heidi is 4 months pregnant as well? Made for an interesting walk.
Along the way, the boys, in their typical fashion, had to pee. Fortunately, the City of San Francisco was thoughtful enough to install these fancy restroom structures along the pier walk. These high tech buildings featured a sliding door that opened and closed with a button on the outside and the inside of the building. Push the button and the door opens, Star Trek style. You get the picture. Well, Heidi went in with the boys since we certainly cannot leave them alone. As she exited the structure, she wanted to take a picture of them in the bathroom since it was really cool but the door shut so quick and they were locked inside behind the Star Trek door. Now our two sons were trapped in a public restroom and we were yelling through the door to explain to them how to get out!
It was really amazing we were able to stay together as a family at all this day. Once we made it to the Pier 39 area, we had a good time. It was so cold out so Coffee, Hot Chocolates were perfect to warm us up, Live juggling shows, the works. Unfortunately, I was on the cell phone most of the time dealing with Kaiser. We were running out of Anthony’s asthma medicine and did not want to go without for the rest of the trip. That could be disastrous. No emergency room visits for this trip please. I was able to get them to refill his prescription and we were set to pick it up the next morning at the Geary facility in San Francisco. (More on this later)
We did some shopping, saw the sea lions of course. Anthony wanted a sea lion stuffed animal that he calles sealy and wont put down, and then went over to the famous Boudin’s Bistro for dinner. I was not leaving Frisco until I had a bowl of their famous clam chowder. The restaurant was a bit pricey and there was quite a wait, but the food was worth it. Heidi’s order got screwed up, but they were nice enough to take hers off the bill. Love that customer service. They also gave us a free Boudin bread round for our wait.
Now it was time to make the long long walk back to the BART station it was so cold and windy. None of us was looking forward to it, especially the boys. They were beat and already whining about going back home. That was when we noticed the Pedi Cab driver. Normally, these pedicabs can hold two, maybe three adults. We approached the young proprietor and said “Can you take all of us? He paused briefly and said “What the heck, we can make it work” So all 6 of us piled onto this poor pedi cab,and he biked his ass off trying to get us the mile and a half back to the BART. It was slow, but hey we did not have to walk. $30 later and we were entering the train station. Made it back to the motorhome around 11 PM and hit the sack.
Monday July 19th:
Now that the race was over, it was time to get on with the rest of the vacation. We got started a little on the late side (I was a little tired) and we started off to San Francisco. First, we had to drop off the rental car, then get gas, ice, etc. By the time we were on the road, it was around 10 AM. We really needed to get to San Fran as soon as possible in order to make the most of it. We only had one day to see as much as we could. The drive (78 miles) was not too bad, other than some bad patches of traffic. We successfully negotiated the toll booths and bridges as we made our way to our next campground, Treasure Island RV in South San Francisco. The really nice thing about this campground is it’s close proximity to the BART station. That was how we were planning on seeing the wharf and Pier 39.
The RV place was nice, nothing fancy, level spots in a parking lot style set up. We hooked up, gave the dog some food, and headed over to the BART station. This is where things start to get interesting. I have never traveled the BART before and had no idea how it worked, but it is a fairly simple process. You walk up to a machine, put your card in, tell it where you want to go, and it prints out tickets. The tickets to Embarcadero were $7.10 each (round trip) per person. Luckily, the boys were free….finally some advantage to having little ones. :) So we got the tickets, walked through the turnstiles and got onto the right train. Everything was going smoothly at this point.
Once we got to our destination, we exited the train and we needed to put the same card into the turnstiles to exit the facility. Well, Heidi had a little trouble with this one and went into the wrong turnstile, while putting her card in. Chaz was able to get through, since he picked the right lane, but Heidi was now trapped! Her card would not work a second time and the machine kept telling her to see the agent. Well, there was no agent in the booth. This was a nightmare…we were isolated from Heidi and she had no way of getting out. She was like stuck in the Matrix or something. Finally, I caved in and bought a new card (minimum $16) Grrrrrrr and handed it to her to get her out of there. We had to use it on the exit since we bought it outside the gate so Heidi had to walk quickly through the exit as it started to close on her.
Now that we were all back together again, it was time to make the trek to Pier 39. We were slightly dismayed as we got to the street level only to find that we were at Pier 1. That’s right….we had to walk 38 piers down to our final destination…..and these are not small piers. Do I have to remind you that Heidi is 4 months pregnant as well? Made for an interesting walk.
Along the way, the boys, in their typical fashion, had to pee. Fortunately, the City of San Francisco was thoughtful enough to install these fancy restroom structures along the pier walk. These high tech buildings featured a sliding door that opened and closed with a button on the outside and the inside of the building. Push the button and the door opens, Star Trek style. You get the picture. Well, Heidi went in with the boys since we certainly cannot leave them alone. As she exited the structure, she wanted to take a picture of them in the bathroom since it was really cool but the door shut so quick and they were locked inside behind the Star Trek door. Now our two sons were trapped in a public restroom and we were yelling through the door to explain to them how to get out!
It was really amazing we were able to stay together as a family at all this day. Once we made it to the Pier 39 area, we had a good time. It was so cold out so Coffee, Hot Chocolates were perfect to warm us up, Live juggling shows, the works. Unfortunately, I was on the cell phone most of the time dealing with Kaiser. We were running out of Anthony’s asthma medicine and did not want to go without for the rest of the trip. That could be disastrous. No emergency room visits for this trip please. I was able to get them to refill his prescription and we were set to pick it up the next morning at the Geary facility in San Francisco. (More on this later)
We did some shopping, saw the sea lions of course. Anthony wanted a sea lion stuffed animal that he calles sealy and wont put down, and then went over to the famous Boudin’s Bistro for dinner. I was not leaving Frisco until I had a bowl of their famous clam chowder. The restaurant was a bit pricey and there was quite a wait, but the food was worth it. Heidi’s order got screwed up, but they were nice enough to take hers off the bill. Love that customer service. They also gave us a free Boudin bread round for our wait.
Now it was time to make the long long walk back to the BART station it was so cold and windy. None of us was looking forward to it, especially the boys. They were beat and already whining about going back home. That was when we noticed the Pedi Cab driver. Normally, these pedicabs can hold two, maybe three adults. We approached the young proprietor and said “Can you take all of us? He paused briefly and said “What the heck, we can make it work” So all 6 of us piled onto this poor pedi cab,and he biked his ass off trying to get us the mile and a half back to the BART. It was slow, but hey we did not have to walk. $30 later and we were entering the train station. Made it back to the motorhome around 11 PM and hit the sack.
Up to Speed...sort of
Ok, I know its been a while, but we are now back in the land of Internet. :) Here is my race report from the Half Ironman and the rest of our travels will follow;
Day 4
Sunday, July 18th: RACE DAY!!!! The following will be my race report for Beginnertriathlete.com, so forgive the Tri-speak.
The alarm was set for 5AM, but as usual I woke up around 3:30 or so and could not get back to sleep. Visions of crossing the finish line were dancing in my head, along with the occasional vision of me being transported to the hospital for heat exhaustion. Choked down a couple of “Uncrustables” and a banana. I really did not feel like eating but I knew I had to, especially given the day ahead. Went outside to pump up the bike tires and was pleasantly surprised by the chill. It was actually pretty cool out. Maybe this weather would hold out for the rest of the day…
As I left the family, they were mixing up some hot chocolate to wake up and getting ready for the day. I rode off with my backpack for the 4 mile jaunt to the swim start. Nothing like adding another 4 miles to an already long day. :) I got there around 6:30 and happened to catch up with Elie and Jon as they were parking their car. I didn’t think Jon could get up this early two days in a row, I was impressed. Got to transition, got body-marked, and set up on the 2nd rack in row 10. Not a bad spot really. The family arrived, parked a mile away and made the trek to the swim start.
Swim: (1.2 miles: 39:23) It was an out and back swim up the Russian River. Keep the bouys on your left shoulder as you swim upstream to the turn around point. There are several points during the swim where it is so shallow, you can literally sweep the bottom with your hands as you swim.
The swim felt great to me. The water temp was perfect, 71 degrees, in fact there was a light smoke coming off the water which looked really cool. This was probably the best swim I have ever had in a race. The water was fresh and clean and the current was not much of a factor. Even though my wave was one of the largest, there was not too much bumping and fighting, like in other races. It was also nice to have a bunch of spectators on their porches cheering us on along the way. I am proud to say I did not stand up and walk once during the swim. I saw several people doing just that especially close to the turn around. I’m not saying it’s cheating…but it is a “swim” right? I guess for some people, they had no choice but to walk so I should not be too hard on them.
T-1: (5:01) It was not a bad run up to the transition, since they lined it with carpet. (That was a nice touch). I anticipated taking my time in transitions and that’s exactly what I did. Right around 5 minutes each was my goal for T-1 and T-2. Unlike my usual T-1 routine, this time I packed my back pockets of my Tri-shirt with performance food, some Clif Shot Blocks, Sharkies chews, and gels. I knew nutrition was going to be critical in this race. I had to feed myself no matter what. I had my two bottles of Cytomax as well and I was ready to go.
Bike: (56 miles: 3:14:30 (avg 17.3mph) The bike course was one of the most scenic and challenging courses I have been on. The point to point course traversed through scenic grape vineyards and picturesque farmlands. One thing the course was not was flat. It consisted of rollers throughout the 56 miles, none of which were too terribly difficult. Chalk Hill, which was the big fear of the course according to some people, really was not bad at all. It was a little more than a ¼ mile long and not all that steep. The fact that it came at 47 miles made it a little more interesting, but still it was nothing compared to the hills I train on in Anaheim Hills and Orange.
The toughest part of the bike course was the overall condition of the roads; they were terrible, especially on Westside Road. There was literally carnage everywhere. About 4 or 5 miles into the ride, I saw a guy lying on the side of the road being helped by some people and it looked like he broke his collarbone by the way he was holding his arm…very sad. Later on, I saw another nasty crash on Westside road where the guy had some pretty bad road rash. And about 30 miles or so, there was a bad vehicle vs. bike accident at one of the intersections. The CHP were already on scene and they were treating multiple victims. The rough roads made for a veritable obstacle course as I rode, having to dodge various water bottles, Gatorades, and performance food items.
All in all, I enjoyed the bike course. I really held back as I had planned and averaged just over 17 mph. I was hoping to leave as much as I could in my legs for the half marathon. As I rode into T-2 at Windsor High School, I was happy to see my friends and family near my rack. They were constantly cheering me on as I racked my bike, changed my shirt and shoes, put on my hat and headed out on the run. I felt good…at that point at least.
Run: (13.1 miles; 2:42) Well, this is where things started to get interesting. As I coursed through the cones heading out of the High School parking lot, I was thinking to myself “So I actually have 13 more miles to run? Am I crazy?” What made matters worse was the fact that I was looking at the multitude of fast runners who were on their way in to the FINISH! Wow, I had a big mental challenge ahead of me, that was for sure.
It was at about mile 1 when I noticed the heat….it was starting to sizzle. I could feel the bottoms of my feet start to heat up and of course a blister was forming on the inside of my right foot. OH NO, I remembered to put the Body Glide on my chest to avoid the chafing, but I completely forgot to put it on the bottom of my feet. I knew then the pain was coming. At mile 4, I took some time to use the facilities (Porta potty). Man that felt good…I am glad I stopped (unlike my experience at the Desert Tri). I pretty much ran the first half of the run (6.5 miles) while briefly walking through the aid stations. I was constantly chugging Gatorade and pouring cups of ice water over my head.
Now, what upset me the most about the run was the Godforsaken hills!!! Why did Elie not tell me about the hills? As much as I admire that man, I was cursing him throughout this run. Upon reflection, I know why he didn’t, because I would have freaked out. The was literally no flat areas of the run, it was either up or down. Now I trained for long runs, I trained for long runs after long bike rides, I did NOT however train for long hot runs through hills after long bike rides….shame on me. :)
I struggled through the first half at about an 11:30 pace….slower than my training pace for sure. During my last long training run a couple of weeks ago, I averaged 9:55s for 10 miles after a 50 mile ride. But the heat was oppressive. It completely sapped my energy. At about mile 10, I decided I had to run/walk if I wanted to finish this thing. I got a bit of inspiration when I happened upon a Triathlon celebrity (Harriet Anderson). Harriet is a 75 year old age grouper who consistently wins her age group and who has competed and won her age group in Kona (The World Ironman Championships). She was featured on the NBC highlight show of the Kona race in 2008, where she finished with only 7 minutes to spare. She was relegated to walking the entire marathon that day, because she was still recovering from a nasty bike accident only days before the big race. It was really a treat for me to be able to walk/run and talk with Harriet for those last few miles. It made it that much easier for me to finish.
As I made the final few turns onto the grounds of the High School and I could see that finishing banner, a surge of adrenaline went through my veins. I was actually going to finish this thing. The pain was going to end. I was going to get out of this heat. My feet felt like they were on fire and my hips were throbbing in pain. But it all didn’t matter because finishing that race was extremely meaningful for me. It was all the more meaningful having my family there, having Jon and Elie there to support me. It was incredibly nice of them to make the trip up to watch me race. I will never forget that.
After the race, we decided to pack up the bike and my gear, and head down to downtown Santa Rosa to get some food. As soon as we parked and I got out of the car, I immediately got light-headed and felt like I was going to pass out. I started sweating profusely and had no idea what was happening. I found out later that I was seriously salt-depleted, which was leading to dehydration. Even though I drank tons and tons of Gatorade and water during the race, it was simply sloshing around in my stomach and my body was unable to absorb the fluids because of my low salt levels. A few dozen tortilla chips and salsa did the trick though. After we ate, I felt fine.
Day 4
Sunday, July 18th: RACE DAY!!!! The following will be my race report for Beginnertriathlete.com, so forgive the Tri-speak.
The alarm was set for 5AM, but as usual I woke up around 3:30 or so and could not get back to sleep. Visions of crossing the finish line were dancing in my head, along with the occasional vision of me being transported to the hospital for heat exhaustion. Choked down a couple of “Uncrustables” and a banana. I really did not feel like eating but I knew I had to, especially given the day ahead. Went outside to pump up the bike tires and was pleasantly surprised by the chill. It was actually pretty cool out. Maybe this weather would hold out for the rest of the day…
As I left the family, they were mixing up some hot chocolate to wake up and getting ready for the day. I rode off with my backpack for the 4 mile jaunt to the swim start. Nothing like adding another 4 miles to an already long day. :) I got there around 6:30 and happened to catch up with Elie and Jon as they were parking their car. I didn’t think Jon could get up this early two days in a row, I was impressed. Got to transition, got body-marked, and set up on the 2nd rack in row 10. Not a bad spot really. The family arrived, parked a mile away and made the trek to the swim start.
Swim: (1.2 miles: 39:23) It was an out and back swim up the Russian River. Keep the bouys on your left shoulder as you swim upstream to the turn around point. There are several points during the swim where it is so shallow, you can literally sweep the bottom with your hands as you swim.
The swim felt great to me. The water temp was perfect, 71 degrees, in fact there was a light smoke coming off the water which looked really cool. This was probably the best swim I have ever had in a race. The water was fresh and clean and the current was not much of a factor. Even though my wave was one of the largest, there was not too much bumping and fighting, like in other races. It was also nice to have a bunch of spectators on their porches cheering us on along the way. I am proud to say I did not stand up and walk once during the swim. I saw several people doing just that especially close to the turn around. I’m not saying it’s cheating…but it is a “swim” right? I guess for some people, they had no choice but to walk so I should not be too hard on them.
T-1: (5:01) It was not a bad run up to the transition, since they lined it with carpet. (That was a nice touch). I anticipated taking my time in transitions and that’s exactly what I did. Right around 5 minutes each was my goal for T-1 and T-2. Unlike my usual T-1 routine, this time I packed my back pockets of my Tri-shirt with performance food, some Clif Shot Blocks, Sharkies chews, and gels. I knew nutrition was going to be critical in this race. I had to feed myself no matter what. I had my two bottles of Cytomax as well and I was ready to go.
Bike: (56 miles: 3:14:30 (avg 17.3mph) The bike course was one of the most scenic and challenging courses I have been on. The point to point course traversed through scenic grape vineyards and picturesque farmlands. One thing the course was not was flat. It consisted of rollers throughout the 56 miles, none of which were too terribly difficult. Chalk Hill, which was the big fear of the course according to some people, really was not bad at all. It was a little more than a ¼ mile long and not all that steep. The fact that it came at 47 miles made it a little more interesting, but still it was nothing compared to the hills I train on in Anaheim Hills and Orange.
The toughest part of the bike course was the overall condition of the roads; they were terrible, especially on Westside Road. There was literally carnage everywhere. About 4 or 5 miles into the ride, I saw a guy lying on the side of the road being helped by some people and it looked like he broke his collarbone by the way he was holding his arm…very sad. Later on, I saw another nasty crash on Westside road where the guy had some pretty bad road rash. And about 30 miles or so, there was a bad vehicle vs. bike accident at one of the intersections. The CHP were already on scene and they were treating multiple victims. The rough roads made for a veritable obstacle course as I rode, having to dodge various water bottles, Gatorades, and performance food items.
All in all, I enjoyed the bike course. I really held back as I had planned and averaged just over 17 mph. I was hoping to leave as much as I could in my legs for the half marathon. As I rode into T-2 at Windsor High School, I was happy to see my friends and family near my rack. They were constantly cheering me on as I racked my bike, changed my shirt and shoes, put on my hat and headed out on the run. I felt good…at that point at least.
Run: (13.1 miles; 2:42) Well, this is where things started to get interesting. As I coursed through the cones heading out of the High School parking lot, I was thinking to myself “So I actually have 13 more miles to run? Am I crazy?” What made matters worse was the fact that I was looking at the multitude of fast runners who were on their way in to the FINISH! Wow, I had a big mental challenge ahead of me, that was for sure.
It was at about mile 1 when I noticed the heat….it was starting to sizzle. I could feel the bottoms of my feet start to heat up and of course a blister was forming on the inside of my right foot. OH NO, I remembered to put the Body Glide on my chest to avoid the chafing, but I completely forgot to put it on the bottom of my feet. I knew then the pain was coming. At mile 4, I took some time to use the facilities (Porta potty). Man that felt good…I am glad I stopped (unlike my experience at the Desert Tri). I pretty much ran the first half of the run (6.5 miles) while briefly walking through the aid stations. I was constantly chugging Gatorade and pouring cups of ice water over my head.
Now, what upset me the most about the run was the Godforsaken hills!!! Why did Elie not tell me about the hills? As much as I admire that man, I was cursing him throughout this run. Upon reflection, I know why he didn’t, because I would have freaked out. The was literally no flat areas of the run, it was either up or down. Now I trained for long runs, I trained for long runs after long bike rides, I did NOT however train for long hot runs through hills after long bike rides….shame on me. :)
I struggled through the first half at about an 11:30 pace….slower than my training pace for sure. During my last long training run a couple of weeks ago, I averaged 9:55s for 10 miles after a 50 mile ride. But the heat was oppressive. It completely sapped my energy. At about mile 10, I decided I had to run/walk if I wanted to finish this thing. I got a bit of inspiration when I happened upon a Triathlon celebrity (Harriet Anderson). Harriet is a 75 year old age grouper who consistently wins her age group and who has competed and won her age group in Kona (The World Ironman Championships). She was featured on the NBC highlight show of the Kona race in 2008, where she finished with only 7 minutes to spare. She was relegated to walking the entire marathon that day, because she was still recovering from a nasty bike accident only days before the big race. It was really a treat for me to be able to walk/run and talk with Harriet for those last few miles. It made it that much easier for me to finish.
As I made the final few turns onto the grounds of the High School and I could see that finishing banner, a surge of adrenaline went through my veins. I was actually going to finish this thing. The pain was going to end. I was going to get out of this heat. My feet felt like they were on fire and my hips were throbbing in pain. But it all didn’t matter because finishing that race was extremely meaningful for me. It was all the more meaningful having my family there, having Jon and Elie there to support me. It was incredibly nice of them to make the trip up to watch me race. I will never forget that.
After the race, we decided to pack up the bike and my gear, and head down to downtown Santa Rosa to get some food. As soon as we parked and I got out of the car, I immediately got light-headed and felt like I was going to pass out. I started sweating profusely and had no idea what was happening. I found out later that I was seriously salt-depleted, which was leading to dehydration. Even though I drank tons and tons of Gatorade and water during the race, it was simply sloshing around in my stomach and my body was unable to absorb the fluids because of my low salt levels. A few dozen tortilla chips and salsa did the trick though. After we ate, I felt fine.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Vineman 2010
Vineman Trip 2010
Day 1
Thursday, July 15th:
As usual, we decided to leave in the evening hours to get some of the long miles out of the way. Loaded up the rig, including the dog this time, and headed out on the road. I only wanted to get some of the miles out of the way to keep Friday from being a super long day. Ended up ticking off 150 or so before stopping at the Walmart in Bakersfield to get some rest. You gotta love Walmarts! Nice big open space in the back of the parking lot, could run the generator all night for the AC (it was a bit hot), and you cannot beat the price. J
Day 2
Friday, July 16th:
We actually got some pretty good sleep considering. As the family slept in, Daddy got up at 0530, took the dog out for a bit, and started the long day of driving. Pulled into an Arco a few miles down the road and topped off the tank, along with a big cup of coffee for Dad. Mileage so far is not too hot….6 mpg at best. We felt really heavy going up the Grapevine, not sure why but I know we have had the motorcycle on the front before…Hmmmm, could it be the addition to the family in Mommy’s belly? Not sure yet.
Well for some reason, we hit quite a few patches of nasty traffic along the way, which made the 348 miles seem a bit longer than they needed to. The family leisurely woke up around 0900 and everyone was hungry. So another gas station stop, this time at the Travel Center (Truck Stop), and paid $2.99 a gallon. Right next door was the Carl’s Jr, so we had a not so healthy breakfast/lunch. Eventually we landed at the Enterprise Rent a Car in Santa Rosa to pick up our reserved full size car. We need the transportation while we are at the RiverBend campground so I can get back and forth to pick up race packets, check out the course, and give Mommy and the kids a way to come watch the race.
By 2:00PM, we arrived at our campground for the next three days (Riverbend RV Resort) in Forestville, CA. We are only 4 miles from Johnsons Beach, which is the start of the race. Oh, by the way, the race I keep referring to is the 70.3 Vineman, half Iromman race, consisting of a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, and 13.1 mile run. OUCH, this is going to be painful. I am hoping the last 5 months of training for this race will pay off. The 90+ degree heat will certainly not help matters. Well, I am hoping for the best.
A big moment occurred when I took off the training wheels from Anthony’s bike and we had our first bike riding lesson. I remember from teaching the girls and Chaz to ride that it can sometimes take a few tries before they finally figure it out. Not with this kid….Anthony took to riding a bicycle like a fish takes to water. In fact, I could not even run fast enough to keep up with him on the bike. From the moment I let go of the seat that first time, he was off and running. He is fearless really. We are just now working on starting and stopping by himself. He talked about nothing else for the rest of the day. He kept saying he is faster than “Lance” and he is faster than “Daddy”. Only time will tell on that.
The RV park is ok, a bit crowded for my tastes, but I am not a big fan of other people really. J The sites are on the smaller size and close together, so it is a little crowded. The park is completely full, probably because of the race. I saw the guy next to me pull out his ZIPP 808 wheel set from his car….great! J We ended the evening with a great pasta dinner (Thanks Mom) and a walk around the park. Oh yeah, we stopped by the office/store for some ice cream as well.
Day 3
Saturday, July 17th:
I started the day off with a little bike ride from the campground down to Johnson’s Beach (4 miles) to check out the swim start/course. The beach was not much of a beach at all, since it was mostly dirt and rocks, that made your feet hurt when you walked on them (OUCH!). By the time I was back to the motorhome, it was time to get ready to head over to Windsor High School for race packet pickup. This was by far the biggest expo/pre-race event I have ever been to for sure. With over 2000 athletes set to complete the event, it made for some interesting parking situations. Once we found a spot, we made in just in time for me to attend the pre-race meeting, where the organizers discussed the rules, penalties, and some info about the course (which was actually helpful). While I was inside the gym for the talk, Mommy and the kids were outside walking around the expo until they met up with our good friends, Elie and Jon. Elie and Jon were nice enough to fly up to support me and watch the race. I was very humbled by this gesture…it meant a lot to me.
After the 45 minute meeting, we all met up again and decided to have lunch there. They had some good sandwiches, fruit, salads, etc. Once lunch was done, we stood in the long line to register and pick up the race materials. The line moved fairly quickly, but it was then that I realized what the heat was really like in these parts. It got hot and I knew that in less than 24 hours from that point, that I would be biking and running in that heat. I got my race packet (Navy Blue swim cap, wave 11, M 40-41, 7:45 start time. This was it, I was really doing this thing. Also got my timing chip and some swag and we headed out of there.
After we got back to the motorhome, we decided we all wanted to go swimming, So we put on our suits, got into the cars, and headed to Johnsons Beach. Elie wanted to scope out the swim start as well and get a little swim workout in. We found the traffic going into town to be ridiculously busy. At one point, we almost gave up and headed back to the RV park, but we stuck with it and finally made it there. The beach was absolutely packed. There were umbrellas scattered across the entire beach and people were almost on top of one another, but we made it work. Everyone got a swim in except for Jon. L Still not that comfortable in the water. Hopefully, he will get those swim lessons one of these days.
What was really cool about this beach was that they served ice cold beer at the snack shack only a few meters away from the water….that I have never seen before. (well except in Mexico) $3 for a pretty good sized Bud Light. Elie and Jon had a beer and I stuck with water….Bummer.
Once we were fully cooked from the sun, we packed up and headed back to camp. Elie and Jon and I decided to drive the whole bike course to get the full lay of the land. I was ultimately glad we did even though it took us a good two hours from start to finish. We got back around 7 or so and made dinner: Teriyaki chicken and four cheese rice, with salad. Excellent pre-race meal!
Then it was off to bed for an attempt at a good night’s sleep.
Day 1
Thursday, July 15th:
As usual, we decided to leave in the evening hours to get some of the long miles out of the way. Loaded up the rig, including the dog this time, and headed out on the road. I only wanted to get some of the miles out of the way to keep Friday from being a super long day. Ended up ticking off 150 or so before stopping at the Walmart in Bakersfield to get some rest. You gotta love Walmarts! Nice big open space in the back of the parking lot, could run the generator all night for the AC (it was a bit hot), and you cannot beat the price. J
Day 2
Friday, July 16th:
We actually got some pretty good sleep considering. As the family slept in, Daddy got up at 0530, took the dog out for a bit, and started the long day of driving. Pulled into an Arco a few miles down the road and topped off the tank, along with a big cup of coffee for Dad. Mileage so far is not too hot….6 mpg at best. We felt really heavy going up the Grapevine, not sure why but I know we have had the motorcycle on the front before…Hmmmm, could it be the addition to the family in Mommy’s belly? Not sure yet.
Well for some reason, we hit quite a few patches of nasty traffic along the way, which made the 348 miles seem a bit longer than they needed to. The family leisurely woke up around 0900 and everyone was hungry. So another gas station stop, this time at the Travel Center (Truck Stop), and paid $2.99 a gallon. Right next door was the Carl’s Jr, so we had a not so healthy breakfast/lunch. Eventually we landed at the Enterprise Rent a Car in Santa Rosa to pick up our reserved full size car. We need the transportation while we are at the RiverBend campground so I can get back and forth to pick up race packets, check out the course, and give Mommy and the kids a way to come watch the race.
By 2:00PM, we arrived at our campground for the next three days (Riverbend RV Resort) in Forestville, CA. We are only 4 miles from Johnsons Beach, which is the start of the race. Oh, by the way, the race I keep referring to is the 70.3 Vineman, half Iromman race, consisting of a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, and 13.1 mile run. OUCH, this is going to be painful. I am hoping the last 5 months of training for this race will pay off. The 90+ degree heat will certainly not help matters. Well, I am hoping for the best.
A big moment occurred when I took off the training wheels from Anthony’s bike and we had our first bike riding lesson. I remember from teaching the girls and Chaz to ride that it can sometimes take a few tries before they finally figure it out. Not with this kid….Anthony took to riding a bicycle like a fish takes to water. In fact, I could not even run fast enough to keep up with him on the bike. From the moment I let go of the seat that first time, he was off and running. He is fearless really. We are just now working on starting and stopping by himself. He talked about nothing else for the rest of the day. He kept saying he is faster than “Lance” and he is faster than “Daddy”. Only time will tell on that.
The RV park is ok, a bit crowded for my tastes, but I am not a big fan of other people really. J The sites are on the smaller size and close together, so it is a little crowded. The park is completely full, probably because of the race. I saw the guy next to me pull out his ZIPP 808 wheel set from his car….great! J We ended the evening with a great pasta dinner (Thanks Mom) and a walk around the park. Oh yeah, we stopped by the office/store for some ice cream as well.
Day 3
Saturday, July 17th:
I started the day off with a little bike ride from the campground down to Johnson’s Beach (4 miles) to check out the swim start/course. The beach was not much of a beach at all, since it was mostly dirt and rocks, that made your feet hurt when you walked on them (OUCH!). By the time I was back to the motorhome, it was time to get ready to head over to Windsor High School for race packet pickup. This was by far the biggest expo/pre-race event I have ever been to for sure. With over 2000 athletes set to complete the event, it made for some interesting parking situations. Once we found a spot, we made in just in time for me to attend the pre-race meeting, where the organizers discussed the rules, penalties, and some info about the course (which was actually helpful). While I was inside the gym for the talk, Mommy and the kids were outside walking around the expo until they met up with our good friends, Elie and Jon. Elie and Jon were nice enough to fly up to support me and watch the race. I was very humbled by this gesture…it meant a lot to me.
After the 45 minute meeting, we all met up again and decided to have lunch there. They had some good sandwiches, fruit, salads, etc. Once lunch was done, we stood in the long line to register and pick up the race materials. The line moved fairly quickly, but it was then that I realized what the heat was really like in these parts. It got hot and I knew that in less than 24 hours from that point, that I would be biking and running in that heat. I got my race packet (Navy Blue swim cap, wave 11, M 40-41, 7:45 start time. This was it, I was really doing this thing. Also got my timing chip and some swag and we headed out of there.
After we got back to the motorhome, we decided we all wanted to go swimming, So we put on our suits, got into the cars, and headed to Johnsons Beach. Elie wanted to scope out the swim start as well and get a little swim workout in. We found the traffic going into town to be ridiculously busy. At one point, we almost gave up and headed back to the RV park, but we stuck with it and finally made it there. The beach was absolutely packed. There were umbrellas scattered across the entire beach and people were almost on top of one another, but we made it work. Everyone got a swim in except for Jon. L Still not that comfortable in the water. Hopefully, he will get those swim lessons one of these days.
What was really cool about this beach was that they served ice cold beer at the snack shack only a few meters away from the water….that I have never seen before. (well except in Mexico) $3 for a pretty good sized Bud Light. Elie and Jon had a beer and I stuck with water….Bummer.
Once we were fully cooked from the sun, we packed up and headed back to camp. Elie and Jon and I decided to drive the whole bike course to get the full lay of the land. I was ultimately glad we did even though it took us a good two hours from start to finish. We got back around 7 or so and made dinner: Teriyaki chicken and four cheese rice, with salad. Excellent pre-race meal!
Then it was off to bed for an attempt at a good night’s sleep.
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