Cool & cloudy this morning... I even had to pull out a long sleeve jersey!
The clouds were moving fast as the wind was whipping about. There was a very small peek of color early on. Just a hot spot of red wedged in under the clouds.

As the sun worked its way up and behind the clouds, I assumed we were pretty much done for the morning.

Until it popped through again effectively “lighting up” the waves as they splashed up and over the walls.

Sure, the gray water splashes were pretty… but these waves were lit by the sun and took on an amazing orange. Wonderful contrast. Perfect timing.

Okay, let’s not even count all of the other photos I took that we’re just “after” the splash.
delete… delete… not so perfect timing!

The sun disappeared behind the clouds. And then the sunbeams came streaming through…

I’ve been pulling together some of my textured wall pillows for an upcoming show in the Gallery Annex at Lillstreet Art Center. Can’t wait to put it all together…

Today was pretty clear. Only a few thin clouds on the horizon and one large one floating around early on.

Luckily, the sun brought a vibrant shade of orange along with it.

And, oh but wait there’s more… I also found two quarters on the lakefront.
Whoo-hoo!!! I’m rich. Lucky me… add it to the retirement fund!!!

Another dark morning with one big dark cloud.

Through the dark clouds the sun kept trying… and trying… until it finally came through.

This morning was pretty dark. Darker than normal… and cloudy too! But it was still dry so I hopped on the bike to pedal downtown and to work out some of the kinks from this weekend’s Triathlon.

I made it down to Navy Pier for a very sunless morning. But then there was a shift in the wind. A quick change in the smell… rain? Looking north towards home it was pitch black. Uh oh.

So I pedaled as fast as I could… and made it inside my door literally 3 minutes before the big crashing storm hit and the rain came plummeting down. Whew. Safe.

Beautiful day today in Chicago.
And a wonderful bike ride to work out some of my Triathlon kinks from yesterday.
Love when you find random acts of creativity along the way.

MUNCIE 70.3 HALF IRONMAN : Saturday, July 11, 2015

A typical Triathlon day starts out VERY early in the morning. A 4:30am departure from the hotel with our gear to make it into the Transition Area to get set-up. We pulled in around 5;30 and the anticipation starts ramping up!

We had checked our bike in to Transition the day before, so all we had were our gear bags.
So, under cover of darkness, you need to find you assigned space by following the signage.

Here are my friends Chris & Nancy setting up their gear – preparing for the long day ahead. You need to have all of your shoes, clothing & gear ready for all three events. Trying to get everything in order, laid out and ready for the day ahead.

Soon enough the sun started to rise… which means that we were approaching our designated start times. Chris and I were in Wave #2 which was scheduled to start at 7:04am.

While you’re there you start checking out your route for later in the day. There’s a whole system of gates & arches to direct where you to go. Bike Out, Bike In, Run Out, etc.

Here’s the view of the Prairie Creek Reservoir from the hill above… and the ever-present lines of porto-potties! Just looking at the water makes me a little anxious. Basically the 1.2 mile course takes you about from the beach left of the brick house, practically all the way to the other side where the trees are, across and parallel to the opposite shore, and then back again. Look closely at the bottom right corner – that’s the SWIM OUT inflatable arch. And the point where I will be the most relieved!!!

So our wave actually started about five minutes later than planned. But soon enough we were off and in the water in our wetsuits. It was a tough swim for me… as it was MY FIRST SWIM OF THE SEASON!!! I know. Not good. No training for me in the water. I just haven’t had time. The water in Lake Michigan is still pretty cold. And I was in Dover, Delaware for the last three weeks! All adds up for no swim training for Gary!!! Add to that… the restriction that you finish the swim in 1 hour and 10 minutes or else you get disqualified. Not knowing how I would do in the water, that one-hour-ten was always in my head!!!

So I finally got out of the water, shuffled up the hill to the Transition Area, and soon enough I was on my bike and feeling comfortable. The weather was great and the course was fairly flat. Some gentle rolling hills but nothing too crazy. To get our 56 miles in, the route was straight out & back that we had to do twice. So you were riding one direction while watching the other athletes riding back already – not knowing who was on their first lap or second?! I think I did pretty well on the bike. It was fun!!!

Then you get off the bike, switch shoes and head off for the run. Knowing that you now have a 13.1 half marathon ahead of you. And the fact that all of the Ironman Information kept referring to the run as “challenging” was a little concerning. Turns out the “challenging” part was that the course was hilly. Living in Chicago… we don’t have hills!!! So I have no experience running on hills except for the incline on the treadmill.

The run was tough. Another 6.5 miles out & back. So your running out while other runners are running in. Thankfully there were water rest stops every mile on the route. I was thankful for the water, ice & Gatorade… but also for an easy thing to focus on, appreciate and use as a countdown to get to the end. As the miles continued, the hills seemed to get worse. Which I know can’t be the case… as we’re on the same road and the same hills as the first half of the run. But it felt worse!!! And I’m not sure which I hate more?… running UP the hill or running DOWN the hill? Both are no fun!!!

Finally, about a mile and a half out, you can start to hear the Finish Line. People cheering and the announcer welcoming the runners. Puts a little pep in your step. A little. But somehow you muster up one last bit of energy, pick up your feet and push on for a strong finish. One last hill, a small left turn and then a smooth grassy downhill run through the Finish Line!!! Whoo-hoo!!!

The professional race photographer hopefully got photos of us running through…
luckily we got a few shots after we ran through the Finish Line.

Here we are : HALF IRONMAN FINISHERS!!!
We all came with a mission and we all accomplished it. And had a fun time doing it.

And the three of us with our official medals and finisher hats!!!

So excited to be done. So excited to have finished the race.
So great to have shared this adventure with my friends Chris & Nancy.
Of course they had both trained the right way for this.. but not me… maybe next time?

At Ironman Village, after the race, we were surprised and excited to find that we got a free meal. What?! Let me just say that that was the BEST GRILLED CHICKEN EVER!!! Sure, we were a little hungry too, but everything tasted amazing!!!

And, oh but wait there’s more… FREE ICE CREAM TOO!!!

We hung out at Ironman Village for awhile. Taking pictures. Eating our free food. And then saw the Massage Tent. We decided to check it out and see if they had any openings. They did… and we each got a wonderful 20 minute massage to work out the kinks. It felt amazing. Sure, it hurt, I flinched and tried not to cry a couple times. But when my masseuse was done, I felt SO much better. Like I may actually be able to drive home without cramping up too badly.

So we hopped in our cars for the four-hour drive home. We stopped once along the way for food & restrooms, but ultimately made it home with ease. I was pretty stiff getting out of the car. And carrying all of my gear & bike up three flights of stairs was so easy. Once I made it, there was a big sigh of relief!!!

So here are my official times… with transition times added in there somewhere?!
Maybe not the best ever, but my goal was just to finish in one piece!!! And I did.

Swim : 57:52 … look I had more than twelve minutes to spare!!!
Bike : 2:48:21 … which I believe also includes both Transition Times.
Run : 2:53:04 … nearly three hours on  my feet & hills.

Race Total : 6:55:19… practically seven hours of fun!!!

It was an early morning drive to Muncie, Indiana today.
We decided to get an early start for the four-hour drive to check-in for this weekend’s big Triathlon. Too early for me to squeeze in one last morning sunrise training ride. Sure, I might be in my car instead of on my bike. But that doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate another sunrise… this time from the Chicago Skyway!

Another wonderful video of Korean master potters at work. It shows the entire process from decorating, carving, glazing, loading the kiln, unloading and admiring. The only part it doesn’t show is the initial throwing of the vessel… or any sort of mirth, merriment or Oreo’s?!!! That must be what I’m doing wrong?!…

Click here for the “Icheon Masters” video on Vimeo.

Pretty little flowers in my backyard. Such wonderful medley of colors.
Love the gradation within each flower cluster. They smell great… very citrusy.
And look even better in a miniature stamped vase… if I do say so myself!