Freaky Fast Friday

Thursday night sunset was spectacular. All of us saw the green flash!

We enjoyed the view from La Playa. 

Practice with coach Mike was a nice recovery from Wednesday's monster IM set. There was a small crowd, and I was the last one in the pool, because I wanted to finish the entire set. 

Thursday 4/7/15

Warm

800 swim

2 xs

8 x 25 single arm (4 breathing to recovery arm side, 4 breathing to opposite side)

4 x 50 swim

14 x 25 @ :30

1 fast + 1 EZ

2 fast + 1 EZ

3 fast + 1 EZ

4 fast + 1 EZ

4 xs

150 fast @ 2:15

100 ez

2 x 50 scull/swim

4 xs

100 fast @ 1:30

75 EZ

3 x 25 scull swim

4 xs

50 fast @ :45

25 ez

200 cool

Practice with coach Kevin. I really enjoy Kevin's practice sets. I almost thought about taking a rest day, however I am glad I did not, since we used parachutes today!  This was my first experience with parachutes. He had his age group team do this same practice but swimming breaststroke.

Friday 4/8/15

Warm

4 x 300 @ :45 rest

#1 50 free/25 stroke drill

#2 kick

#3 50 free/25 breakout

#4 free pull/25 back w/ paddles

16 x 25 drill @ :30

4 x 2 count recovery pause with hand hovering above water

4 x on your own

4 x pausing arm up in the air, and looking at hand, thumb to sky. (new drill)

4 x same as above, but other arm.

200 EZ free

3 xs (originally written as 4, but did 3 due to time constraints)

1 x 150 pull strong @ 2:15

3 x 50 - breakout (fast 6 strokes) @ 1'

6 x 25 - chutes @ :45  + :30 before next

2 x 75 @ 1:15 - go for it!

200 ez

Felt pretty good after practice. 

Happy Laps!!

Congo River Golf Competition

It's been a very pleasant and exciting week so far.  Mom and dad have had 4 people interested in purchasing their home in Villanova, and one family put an offer on the table. The family is from FL and they are very excited about the home. The inspection is this Saturday, and my parents are a little nervous about it, since it foiled the last potential sale. I think this time will be different though. The Villanova  home has been on the market for a year, and they are so ready to sell it!   I was told that if I sent a prayer to Grandma Ham (God rest her soul), and ask her to say a prayer for the house to sell, it will help. Obviously all my prayers to her are getting through!   Thank you Grandma Ham!

Monday's swim practice was very similar to Tuesday's swim practice. The meters are a little less, however, we did about 10 or so minutes of vertical kicking at the end.

Coach Kevin's practice - LCM
Warm
200 SKPDS

Main Set - twice
2 x 200 pull
4x 100 descend pull - no paddles
8 x 50 pull 
Not sure what the intervals where. We had 7 in a lane, and I was in the middle, just trying to hang in there. 

Vertical kicking: 45 sec. flutter (every 15, raise arms up higher), 45 sec. butterfly - repeat. 
EZ 150

On Monday evening we ventured over to the miniature golfing course for a head to head competition between mom/dad and Russ and I.  All of us are super competitive, so it was important that we warmed up our putting skills. In so doing, Russ gave me a few pointers before the big match. The course was in great condition and offered a nice variety of holes to challenge any seasoned golfer.  It was especially amusing to see Ed put his ball in the water on the first hole!

Mom looks so pretty!

We enjoyed many laughs and I am proud to report that I made a hole in one!  

Team results - Youth rivaled experience. :-)

Cinco De Mayo's swim practice with Jenna (LCM)
Warm: SKIPS (100 of each)

Pre-Set: drills
4 x 50 fist
4 x 50 catch up (3/4)
4 x 50 glide (3,2,1,swim)

Main Set:  3xs!!
6 x 50 (@ 200 pace @ 1')
100 EZ
4 x 150 @ 200 pace w/ 20-30 sec. rest)
100 EZ

Cool 100

Hump day practice with coach witty Tim. He is full of jokes and silly comments. Wednesday is always an a stroke (IM) day. The main set was challenging and rewarding. During the 400 FRIM, I thought about how much I'd like to get a massage!

1000 SKPS (200 of each)

8 x 50 drill/swim by 25 (200IM)

1 x 200 FRIM (suppose to be active recovery)
4 x 25 fast fly (fins) on :40  

1 x 300 FRIM
4 x 50 backstroke @ 1' - get after it!

1 x 400 FRIM
4 x 75 fast breast/free/breast @ 1:30

1 x 300 FRIM
4 x 50 fast back @ 1'

1 x 200 FRIM
4 x 25 fast fly @ :40

500 pull w/paddles & snorkel

100 EZ
(4300 SCY)

Happy Laps!

Delnore Wiggins State Park Ride

Saturday morning practice with coach Jenna in LCM

Warm up (this is one of Sarge's staple w/u for the Sherburne swimming team!)
500 SKIPS 
Kick
2 x 50
2 x 100
2 x 150
Main - three times thru
6 x 40 descend stroke count
4 x 100 build
2 x 200 Fast

200 warm down

Since Russ is not golfing on Sundays, we scheduled a leisurely bike ride together.  I've been kind of tired after the 5:30am swimming during the week, so this is the first time I have been on the bike since we moved to FL and it felt great!~ Again, a big thanks to Jonathan for building up my bike after the crashing in October.  She's so Pretty!!

I was all decked out in a normal cycling kit, bike shoes etc, and Russ rode the hybrid in half a kit and sneakers! You can see that his is sitting upright, and is happy as we cruise out of the 'compound' on a gorgeous sunny Sunday morning excursion. 

We crossed Tamiami trail into the neighborhood that would take us toward the beach and Delnore Wiggins State Park.  I suggested to venture into the State Park since I have never been there, and it's where Russ's mom use to take him.  We paid the $4 entry fee for the both of us, and rode to the end of the road where there was a wooden path leading us to an 'observation tower.'   We walked up to the top of the observation tower, thinking we would see an expansive view of the ocean and beach but all we saw was a little speck of the ocean, because the trees were so tall.  We figured they must have built the tower 30 years ago!  

As we continued to explore the area, we saw the actual pass where the currents are strong and no swimming is permitted. There were lots of people fishing and it was beautiful!

We left the park and rode down Vanderbilt Beach road to head home.  As we arrived to the last stoplight at the corner of Vanderbilt Beach and Goodlett Frank, just before the light was about to turn, Russ and I saw two cyclists coming up from behind, and Russ said to me,  "Don't look now, but there are two bikers behind us, so get going and bring us home." I responded to him, "I don't want to drop you." "You won't drop me," he replied. 

We were riding into a medium headwind, and our left turn was only 1/2 or so down the road. I road steady in my little ring, and Russ was behind me sucking wheel, pedaling as fast as he can in his sneakers.  When I looked back to check for cars before making the turn, I could see the guys, but really didn't make them out until I made the turn and noticed that they were in their aero bars!!   After we made the turn Russ says to me, "Did you see those guys?"  "Yeah, they had aero bars," I said.  Then he says, "You were doing 20mph,  I bet they were wondering who I was in my tennis shoes, with hairy legs, and a t-shirt!" LOL! 

Anyway - it was funny and we had a good laugh.  It's really no big deal to go 20mph on these flat roads, however, when you have a headwind, it takes some work to push the pace over 20.  

There are daily group rides that happen in Naples, but you have to be careful who you ride with, so to be safe, I'll be riding solo for a while. 

Safe riding and happy laps!

Floating on the Boat

We had a delightful afternoon cruising down one of the canals in Cape Coral. Thank goodness we did not require fins to get back to shore in case the boat broke down.  The temperature was perfect, not to hot, not too cold. It was very relaxing. 

Along the way we searched for iguana's that might be sunning themselves on the docks, but we didn't see any until we returned to the dock, and spotted a family of 4!

Ed was a good captain, and did not run into anything. LOL! Thanks Ed. 

After a nice ride, Russ and I tried out a Mexican restaurant where they had great chips and salsa! 

This morning's practice was with coach Kevin. 

Warm

600 choice

15 x 100

5 x 100 @ 1:30

5 x 100 @ 1:25

5 x 100 @ 1:20 (needed to pull this one today)

4 x (pace work)

25 x :30

50 x :50

75 x 1:10

100 @ 2' EZ free 

1-300 ez

2 x 

12 x 25 @ :30 (drill as assigned - set #1 - slow archer drill by pausing the arm over the head then catch up swim.  set  #2 - scull on stomach for 6 sec. then slow 3 strokes.)  I notice that the guys in the lanes next to me kick A LOT when they are sculling. That annoys me. :)

4 x 50 @ 1:00 desc 1-4 (focus on drill implementation)

200 EZ

Happy Laps!

I discovered a fundraiser swim in Tampa called "Swim Across America"  It's to be held on May 30th. and will require raising $500 and swimming only 1 mile.   The money raised is to help cancer research through the Mofitt Cancer Research Foundation. 

Details coming soon!!!!

Another day in Paradise

Yigo and Murphy have been having a ball and getting along great. Yigo spends most of the day obsessed with the geckos that scurry around the lanai and up the palms. 

Was a bit late to practice this morning, because I fell asleep after I turned off the alarm. I only missed the 400 warm. Practice was fun and I really like how coach Mike keeps us on our toes and is constantly talking to us throughout the workout. 

Warm
400
Set #1
3 x 200 @ 3:30 north breathing only
3 x 100 @ 1:30 reverse circle swimming
3 x 150 @ 2:30 kick (fins)
3 x 50 @ :50 desc 1-3 choice stroke

Set #2
5 x
3 x 100 @ 1:35/1:30/1:25/1:20/1:20 (by set)
4 x 50 @ :55 (4 right paddle/left fin - breath to opposite side of paddle, or fin side, then switch on next set 4 left paddle/right fin)

cool 200
scy

Happy Laps!

This afternoon Russ and I are going on a boat ride with his friend Ed, who lives in Cape Coral. This will be interesting, since he told Russ that his boat usually dies, and he needs to get a tow back to shore. He said that he had his boat repaired, but I am not confident, so I think I will bring my fins just in case!  LOL!

Spring storms

Storms rolled in around 3am this morning, however, the entire household, (dogs and people) except my mom, slept through all the crashing and loud rumbles.  How did that happen?    Despite the rain, I scooted over to the pool for practice. There were only a handful of people ready to swim outside in the chilly rain.  Coach Mike sent us off for an easy 300 warm followed by 6 x 100 @ 2'(50 drill/50 swim). As soon as we pushed off the wall for the the second 50 of the very first 100, the lights shut down, and the pool was black! Wow, that was a weird sensation to swim in complete darkness. I made a little screech noise. 

We spent the next 10 or so minutes kicking and sculling until Mike could figure out a way to get the lights to come back on.  As we continued to go up and down the lanes, the rain continued to fall, and there were a few girls sitting on the benches waiting to swim, and I kept thinking that they probably thought we were nuts to be swimming in the dark.  Mike hit the breaker a bunch of times, and lights were finally restored.  We carried on with the rest of the workout.  This was a perfect practice to improve stroke work. Too bad we were not able to finish it due to the lightening. 

continuing the Pre Set:
6 x 75 @ 1:30 (kick/drill/swim by 25)  fly,  back,  breast by 75
6 x 50 @ :50 pull (desc 1-4, 5-8)
6 x 25 @ :30 drill/fast IM order 2 of each stroke

Main - 3 times*
200 FRIM @ 3:00
100 IM @ 1:30
6 x 50 @ :50 (drill/swim by 25)
6 x 25 @ :30 odds cruise/even strong
* on the third set - as soon as we finished the 200FRIM, I heard Paul from across the pool, where he was coaching the age groupers yell to us, "That's it - everybody out! " I saw a bright flash directly overhead and did not going hesitate jumping out. 

The remaining workout was suppose to be:
12 x 25 @ ;30 odds drill/evens underwater to 15
6 x 50 @ :50 pull
4 x 100 @ 1:35 kick

200 EZ (SCY)
Happy Laps!

Last night I decided to experiment in the kitchen and cook amaranth for dinner.   Amaranth is a mexican grain, and it kind of looks like grits.   I looked up a recipe for Amaranth on the app, BigOven, and it called for dried Porcini mushrooms.  Trader Joe's did not have it because it was a seasonal item, so I found the last jar of it at Whole Foods for $10.00!!! Geez this stuff better be good.  The recipe instructs you to soak the dried mushrooms in boiling water for 15 min.  and use the reserve water for some of the liquid to cook the amaranth. When it was done cooking, I added the cooked porcini and button mushrooms on top of the prepared grain, it looked good, however, it had a very pungent smokey smell and flavor.  Needless to say, none of us really enjoyed it very much. However, the main dish, a beef and green curry with peas and red peppers was delicious! 

Making waves at USMS Nationals

The venue for the 2015 USMS Nationals was the North Side Aquatic Center in San Antonio, TX.

This venue offered two warm up and warm down pools. One inside and one in the diving well. The competition pool ran two heats at a time with 10 lanes in each heat. It was amazing, and there was plenty of deck space and seating.

I flew to TX on Wednesday and arrived about 11:30pm.  Given that my hosts, Rodney and Carolyn,
get up very early, they left a key under the mat for me.   Thursday was the first day of competition with two events, the 1650 and the 1000.  I was entered in the 1000, and my heat was scheduled to start at 11:30am, so I had plenty of time to sleep in and warm up.  The last time I swam at SCY Nationals was in 2003, and I swam the 1650 and placed 10th in my age.  I was not sure if I had a qualifying time for the 1650, since I had not raced it since 2003.  The 1000 it is! Before heading to the pool, I spent the morning visiting with Rodney over coffee and fruit.

It was a cool day, as you can see by the cloud cover in the photo above.  I was excited to finally race for the first time in a LZR Pro suit that I purchased on sale from SwimOutlet. I think that by the end of the 4 days of competition it was a bit stretched out, but is still better than wearing a 'regular' training suit. Everyone was racing in a 'fast suit' so I was really glad that I got one!

Since I traveled to the meet solo, I needed to find a counter for the 1000.  It was not too difficult to find a nice girl named Wendy that said she would count for me.  She was counting for others in need as well.   I wanted to pay it forward, so I counted for an 82 year old gentleman name, Jack.  Wendy asked me what pace I wanted to hold, so I said that since I didn't want to blow up, let's shoot for :40 per 50, or 1:20 / 100, since that was the qualifying time pace. She said that she would place the counter towards my right arm if I was going faster than pace, and on the left side if I was swimming slower than goal pace.  Cool, at least I had some sort of idea of how to stay on pace.  The first 50  I was swimming ahead of pace, so I tried to cool it a bit, and was feeling very comfortable the 1st. 300. As the race continued I was feeling stronger, and the counter stayed on my right side.  I felt like the energizer rabbit, and continued to click off the laps.  I had a breathing plan, and that was to bilateral breath every 3 for the first 500, then try to pick it up and breath 3, then single. That seemed to work out pretty well for me, and for the last 75,  I decided to breath every stroke because I was trying to work harder.   Since the heats are mixed male and female, there was a male a few lanes over that finished ahead of me, so he got the bell lap.   I was very pleased with my finish time which was well below the qualification times. (all times are at the bottom)  This was the first time I have swum the 1000, and I like it! I want to work on getting under 6 minutes in the years to come.

That was good to get out of the way - Phew!  Before returning to the homestead in Helotes, I treated myself to a yummy taco or two at Taco Cabana, plus I visited a local chiropractic office to purchase a cervical pillow.  When I arrived home to two happy doggies, I took them for a walk. Man, it was humid!  Carolyn was surprised to arrive home and no one was to be found!  It was great to see Carolyn again, and enjoyed a nice mellow evening with pizza and vino.

Day two, Friday, up next were the 200 Free and 100 Back. Not my absolute best events, but would love to get better at them with more racing experience.  Something really strange happened when I was sitting on deck drinking water which was a very sharp and painful sensation in my throat upon swallowing. It felt like I was swallowing a rock!  Ouch! Did not feel normal, so I was kind of freaking out a bit, because it also hurt to touch my neck.  My plan was to have it checked out after my events, and in order to do that I needed to call my family practice Dr. in NY, so that she can write a referral to the urgent care in TX in order for the visit to be covered by Tri-Care. Geez!  Did all that and then had to concentrate on swimming the events.

I changed into my suit, and as I was heading over to warm up in the indoor pool, I was SO delighted to see Fred, my old swimming pal from when I lived in TX. He now lives in TN, and he came to race as well. He always places in the top 5 or 10 of his AG.  I really needed some good advice on how to strategically attack the 200, because the last time I swam it in March, I over kicked the first 50 and my legs turned into bricks. Luckily I asked Fred what advice he can give me for pacing the 200, and he said to make sure the 1st hundred feels like easy speed, then pick it up the rest of the way and go for it!   That was good advice.  It's been so long since I have raced anything, that it's still taking me a while to learn how to dig deep. Again, fairly happy with my finish time.

My dear friend, Zetta, was going to try and see me swim an event, but what was more important to me was the fact that I got to see her!  She took time out of her work day, to come to the pool and we had a wonderful visit between my two events. I didn't want her to see my 100 Back anyway!!

Another cool thing that happened that morning was seeing and talking to Josh Davis!  I wanted to tell him all about the kids that went to his swim clinic in NY, and how I really talked up his clinic to them, so that they would go, which they did! (see previous post)  I also mentioned to him that in 2008 I took a team to his clinic in HI and the girl on my team, Catherine,  that he presented his swim cap to for having the best stream line in the group was accepted to the Air Force Academy!  I also had to tell him that Fernando says "Hello," All good stuff.  So of course I had to get a picture of him and Ron, who I knew from N.Y. & now resides in TX. Ron is the safety coordinator at Northside. 

Except for the fact that my throat doesn't feel to great, It's been a lovely two days!  Oh - the 100Back, nothing exciting to mention about that, I need to work on everything!  

I drive over to the Complete Urgent Care about 10 minutes away from the pool.  I nice young female doctor sees me and decides that it would be best if I get an Ultrasound of my thyroid.   She thinks they might be able to take tonight, and arranges for me to have an appointment at 7:30pm at the imaging place. Did I mention that it's Fiesta weekend in San Antonio, which is a week long party!   Who wants to be working late during Fiesta?   

I drive back to Helotes and have about 90 minutes to spend before I need to report to the imaging place in the medical center. After the ultrasound is all said and done, I return home at about 9pm. I watch some TV with Rod and Carolyn and call it a day.   Will get the results of the diagnostic tomorrow. 

Day 3, Saturday, up next, the 100 IM. Now this event is fun!  I like individual medley, but I just wish I was a faster stroke swimmers. So needless to say, a 25 of each is doable.  I guess I swam the event okay. It was not my best time from 20 years ago, but I was pleased non the less.  Had another opportunity to spend a leisurely morning with Rod and Carolyn, so we walked the dogs together. 

I was fortunate to have most of the afternoon free after my event,  so I arranged to have lunch plans with Chick and Jenna. It's been 12 years since I have returned to San Antonio, so to see these two was really special. 'Chicka' and I have many memories of training together on the track, running the trails, and many a marathons!  He and Jenna are a beautiful and happy couple - very happy for them!  We had a lovely time catching up on old times, and making future plans to see each other again, while eating at EZ's, a classic San Antonio staple.  

After lunch, I returned to the ranch chill out before going to Leon Springs for the BBQ!  The BBQ was a planned social as part of Nationals. They had a live band, and good food. Rodney and Carolyn enjoyed it, however they did not dance with me!  We met two very nice couples, one was from San Diego California.  'Zeek' and Sharon. Zeek swam for Brown, and is just getting back into the sport again.  I wanted to call it an early night, so we were home by 9pm. 

Results of the ultrasound indicated acute thyroiditis, associated with a 4 mm nodule in the right lobe of my thyroid.  (sarcasm - Great!)  Still hurts to swallow, and will get blood work done in FL.....waiting on those results. 

Thunder, Lighting, Thunder, Rain!!  We had 3 nights of storms out of the 5 I was there.

Day 4, Sunday, the final day of competition, and on deck was the 500 F and the 100 F. After the 1000, I was ready to rock the 500.  I needed some mental sharpening for the 100!  I needed to be up early and to the pool since the 500 started at 8am.  I didn't have to worry about the competition pool being crowded for warm up, since it was not a mixed event. I took advantage of seeing one of the 'on deck' coaches by the blocks and asked him to set me up on properly using the fin. He did, and we adjusted the setting of the fin back a notch. Much better!

I needed to seek out a counter, so I located one of the "on deck coaches" in a bright yellow T-shirt, and asked her to count for me. Her name was Erin, and she was from Baltimore. She was very helpful. I told her what pace I wanted to hold, and she said that if I go slower than that, she would move the counter. She only had to move it on lap 13.  I held mid 37s. I believe I had a personal best for that event, and the next goal will be to knock off 11 seconds.  My 100 was a disaster.  I probably didn't get a good warm up, and needed more confidence in the head. I was late off the block, and totally missed my last turn. Oy Vey!  Ah Caramba!  Live and learn. 

Basically finished about the middle of the pack in all my free events.  I'm in a fairly competitive age group, considering the top 16 times in the 100 F are under 1:00 and only the top 8 in the younger age group are under a minutes. My 100 PR is 1:01, so I have a long way to go. 

 It felt good to be racing, and seeing friends. I look forward to more racing, and even some open water events in FL, as long as there are no alligators!!  Sharks I can handle. LOL!

Times:

1000 F -  12:33.98

200 F   -  2:21.05

100 Ba -  1:22.76

100 IM -  1:18.00

500 F   -  6:11.17

100 F  -   1:04.14

Monday was a good rest/travel day.  Tuesday T2 workout with coach Jenna is the following:

Warm

300 swim/200 pull/ 100 kick

Preset - Drills

8 x 25 (scull on stomach/swim/doggie paddle/swim) 25 of each and repeat

4 x 75 (25 LA/25 RA/ 25 swim)

Main (ladder)

100 Pull strong

4 x 50 -   5 breaths or 200 pace

200 pull strong

4 x 50 -   5 breaths or 200 pace

300 pull strong

4 x 50 -   5 breaths or 200 pace

400 pull strong

4 x 50 -   5 breaths or 200 pace

300 pull strong

4 x 50 -   5 breaths or 200 pace

200 pull strong

4 x 50 -   5 breaths or 200 pace

100 pull strong

4 x 50 -   5 breaths or 200 pace

200 cool

(4300M)

Happy Laps!