First week in Maui (my Hawaiian Holiday Adventure)

My first week in Maui has been quite the adventure. It took one day longer (than expected) to get here. My flight was delayed due to the fog at Santa Barbara airport. What an ordeal that turned out to be. I was booked on the same flight the next day. Luckily, it wasn't foggy that morning and the flight was on!
I arrived in Maui around 12:30pm on Dec 15th. It was soooo nice and tropical. I love the humidity and warmth. I felt immediately at ease and my skin is so moist, I love it. I grabbed the rental car and headed to Kihei, where I had rented a room. The lady I met there is really nice. The room was exactly like the picture. I got groceries and settled in for the following work day.
Working remotely actually isn't that bad, in fact, I kind of like it. I find that I get a lot more work done. However, being the only one on conference calls who is dialed in is a challenge. It's really hard to hear everyone talking when you are speaker phone.
So, far I've spent quite a bit of time at the beach and have checked out the Swap Meet, stopped in Pa'ia (see pic below), watched the surfers down the road at Ho'okipa Beach and laid on the sand at Makena Beach (Big Beach).

I've also competed in the "Aluminum Man" series with my friend Heather, who is visiting her parents for the holidays. After the race we went to breakfast at a popular spot called the Kihei Cafe. They have the BEST Banana Macadamia Nut Pancakes! Yummy! We ate breakfast with the two race directors and two other folks, one of whom I found out was going surfing and tagged along. In fact, we plan on surfing tomorrow and everyday, as long as there are waves.
All in all, it's been great so far...and I haven't even been here one week!

Trip planning to Hawaii

In October of this year (2010) I went to the Ironman World Championship, held in Kona, for the first time. It was "hands down" the best vacation I have ever had. I think it's due to 3 things: friends that I was there with, I was in Hawaii, and it was the "Ironman" world championships.

After going to Ironman, for the first time, I've decided to take a break from SB and try out Kona for a little while. So, I've decided to take the latter half of December to spend in Maui, then head over to Hawaii to spend the month of January in Kona.

And I can't wait.

Aloha!

4th of July in Park City

I spent the fourth of July in Park City hiking, trail running, mountain bike riding (a 6 hr ride), zip-lining, sitting by the pool and just plain relaxing. The weather was amazing. It was sunny, clear and absolutely beautiful. Utah has the most amazing trails and Park City is a quaint little mountain town. I had a GREAT 4th of July :)

My trip to Costa Rica!

Click here to view this photo book larger

Finished IM CdA in 12:00:09. I missed going sub12 by mere seconds - ugh!

Oh, well I'll just have to do another one :)

Check out the pic of the swim start - and to think I'm one of those people!

12 more days and counting....

In light of my IM race in CdA (12 days), I found the following article related to exercising in hot temps/climates.

For those of you racing in warm/hot climates, the following article might be of interest.

http://www.active.com/triathlon/Articles/How-to-Prepare-for-Racing-in-Hot-Weather.htm?act=EMC-Active&Vehicle=Triathlon&Date=06_07_09&Edition=1&Sections=Articles&Creative=How-to-Prepare-for-Racing-in-Hot-Weather&TextName=More&ArtText=txt&Placement=2&Dy=Sun&lyrisid=19976511

Nutrition tips for IM training on those LONG bike rides

In general all athletes will need:

16 to 32 oz. of fluid per hour
Plus, 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrate per hour

Here are a few nutrition tips for racing and long training rides:

1. Pack more gels and/or energy bars than you think you'll need. You may drop some or may have a craving for one over the other.
2. Try/test different fuel/hydration systems during training. If a system is hard to use or unreliable, you won't use it as frequently as you should.
3. Determine how much to carry and how much to get from aid stations. Depending upon what's being served on course, you will want to carry more or less food with you; however, note that most races feature well-stocked aid stations, so don't load yourself down unnecessarily.
4. Know what is at the aid stations and where they are located.
5. Base nutrition intake on time not on mile markers; set your watch to remind you to drink on schedule. Try to take in eight ounces every 15 minutes and close to one gel or half a bar per hour. 6. Mark your bottles accordingly so you know how much you're drinking. For example, measure out eight ounces and then mark 8 oz. increments on your bottles to help keep your nutrition plan on track.
7. Drink intermittently when your pace is steady.
8. Practice all nutrition and hydration strategies and techniques during training.