Casa de Pancakeo

It's that time of year again.

The CU Tri Team has been back at school and training hard for a few months now. We’ve spent hours in the pool, on the bike and on the trails, and our first time trial is behind us. Needless to say, all this training has us a little tired out. Thanksgiving break is just around the corner, but until then, we’ve been doing all we can to motivate each other to keep working hard.

That’s why this Sunday, four teammates decided to host a pancake party following our weekly long run. Our team has gotten pretty skilled at pancake-making over the the past year, thanks to the ingenuity of Rudy Kahsar and other like-minded cake connoisseurs. We know, for instance, that Oreos make the best mix-ins and that while maple syrup is a classic topping, vanilla yogurt and peanut butter can work wonders on a flapjack.


Before we could chow down on pancakes, though, we had to earn them with a good workout. With a big group — about 20 runners of varying speeds — and a workout that could range from 45 to 90 minutes, we knew we would spread out over time. Still, we left together from the “Casa de Pancakeo,” heading south towards Bobolink Trail and eventually to Marshall Mesa.

It was a warm but windy morning, and as we struggled up hills into oncoming gusts, the only thing that kept us going was the prospect of pancakes to come. Marshall Mesa is a set of rolling trails near Colorado Highway 93, and it is completely exposed. We had no shelter from the wind and were all trying to draft off each other to make the effort a little more bearable.

As the time on our watches slowly ticked by, we finally settled into a comfortable pace. Finishing a long run is always a mental battle, but with teammates to talk to and pace with, it tends to be over sooner than you think. We picked up speed for the final few miles, knowing that the faster we made it back to the house, the sooner delicious cakes would be filling our bellies. When we reached the driveway of the Casa de Pancakeo, someone’s GPS recorded 10.8 miles; naturally, we took one more lap around the block to get to a solid 11 (it’s a triathlete thing).

Rob Helvestine was the hero of the morning as he poured dollops of pancake batter onto the skillet and took mix-in requests nonstop. The rest of us, spent from our effort and in need of some serious fuel, huddled around the stovetop with our paper plates outstretched. Leave it to a team of college-aged triathletes to consume enough pancakes and coffee to feed a small country over the course
of an hour.

Without times like these, we wouldn’t really be a team — we would just be a big group of training partners. Triathlon in itself is an individual sport, but when we take the time to bond over new pancake-topping creations, we make it a team thing. It may sound silly, but the friendships we build outside of regular practice are the ones that will stick.

And when we race, those friendships will carry us to the finish line.

Give and take.
Caryn

Tucson Training Camp

After an incredible weekend racing regionals at Lake Havasu, about 20 members of our team headed to Tucson, AZ for four days of intense training. Coach Mike scared us with what was ahead: "the hardest training week of your life," "I'm not going to stop my 80-mile ride to fix your flat tire, so you better learn how," etc. I envisioned a week filled with throwing up, passing out, crying, the works. But I also hoped that it would be an amazing team bonding experience.

Well, it turns out I was wrong about the first part. I didn't realize how in shape we had gotten, so that five-hour training days and 80 mile rides were actually bearable. I was definitely working hard, and it was the biggest training week I've ever had, but I never felt like crying or giving up. I can thank Mike and his smart coaching for that. Realizing what we were capable of as a team gave me a big confidence boost going into Nationals.

The team bonding part, though, was right on. Coming home from Tucson, I felt like I knew several of my teammates much better than before. By road tripping hours in a car with them, I got to know Laura, Sean, Leigh, and Rob especially well. I also loved riding with Bryn, Maggie, and Molly, pushing through some quality sufferfests with my fellow Nats team members.

Day 1&2: Tempe. My car left a day early from Havasu so Laura could get to an interview in Tempe. We took a much-needed day off and enjoyed an amazing dinner at Sean's grandma's house-- steak, green beans, potatoes, and warm brownies. Lucky us. :) The next morning, we woke up at 6 am to run so Laura could get a workout in before her 8 am interview. Even though it was dark when we started, it was comfortably warm. We ran easy, taking in the beautiful sunrise and the ASU campus. When we got back to our hotel, we had run 5 miles, but felt like we had barely worked. Since when did a 5 mile run feel so easy? Laura left for her interview, and Sean, Rob, and I headed to Tucson.

When we met back up with the team, we went straight to the University of Arizona pool and swam over 5000 yards. Again, while it was definitely a long workout, it didn't feel that hard. The sea level oxygen was nice on our lungs, and the outdoor pool was definitely more enjoyable than Clare Small. A short run from the hotel afterwards, dinner, and a good night's sleep got us ready for the craziness that was Tuesday.

Day 3: Run, swim, bike. We started the morning off with an insanely long race-pace track workout. That's all the detail I'm allowed to give (coach's orders-- we want to keep the competition guessing!) I can say, though, that my race-pace on the track felt much faster than it did at Havasu. I guess adrenaline really does work wonders! After the track, we had a big breakfast and headed to the pool for an easy swim in sunny weather: relays for our Tri Team "Olympics" and a short set.

We had lunch, relaxed for awhile, and then did our first Tucson ride: about 30 miles up and over Gates Pass. I did most of the ride with Bryn, Maggie, and Molly-- we were all exhausted, but we got a paceline going and worked our way through. We met up with Tess, Nate, Will, and Rob on the way home and headed back to the hotel together after a very long day. Bianchi's pizza and Ben and Jerry's pints were just what we needed to refuel. At Bianchi's, I witnessed a miracle when Ryan Bice ate more pasta, pizza, and garlic bread than could possibly fit in his stomach. We may be mediocre at three sports, but we are pros at eating.

Day 4: MOUNT LEMMON! This was the epic day we had all been anticipating / dreading / havingnightmaresabout. 80-miles round trip, including 23 miles of climbing. I think the only thing that stopped us from running away as fast as possible was Mike's promise of famous cookies at the summit. It took us about an hour to get to the base of the mountain from our hotel. At that point the fast group took off, and Bryn, Maggie and I set up our paceline again. It was the longest ride any of us had ever done (my longest by 25 miles), so we decided to start off easy and not kill ourselves. 2 and a half hours of painful pedaling later, we reached mile 23, only to find no sign of cookies anywhere. We got a little discouraged, a little frustrated, and a little confused-- where was our team? Turns out we had a mile or so left to go-- but hey, we'd already made it this far, and we weren't about to give up now.

When we asked someone in a car for directions and finally made it to Cookie Land, we were not disappointed. After waiting in a forever-long line, we received cookies the size of dinner plates. I ate as much as I could, but Bryn outdid me by finishing the whole thing (hardcore.) We hung out at the top for a little while, then started making our way back down. The descent was the most fun part of the whole day. Bryn, Maggie, Ryan, Bobka, Alex Kehr and I took the descent easy-- no need for broken bones. We stopped pretty often to check out the incredible views and take pictures. I would've wanted it to go on forever, but my butt was starting to hurt... and when we made it down to the base, the fun was over. The ride back to the hotel was excruciatingly hot and filled with rush hour traffic. I lost a cleat, and my legs felt like Jell-O. When we finally made it home, I gave it one final push for a 20 minute brick run, and then it was hot tub time. We chilled for awhile at the hotel, ate a big team dinner of burritos (what else?), and slept like rocks. One more day to go.

Day 5: Easy trail run at the bottom of Gates Pass. All our legs were pretty much fried, so we took it slow and enjoyed the scenery. Just a nice recovery run to get moving before another all-day car ride. The rest of the day was spent traveling back to Boulder, where real life would resume again.

What we accomplished at Tucson made me so proud of our team. There were definitely hard moments-- frustration, pain, fear, and even a few tears. But we were more prepared for those workouts than we ever thought we would be, and we had each other to lean on. Every single one of us made it to the top of Mount Lemmon-- that's impressive. Suffering together definitely makes you stronger as a team, and our team did that really well over spring break. I think that's made obvious by the fact that after not seeing each other all day on Friday, we were ready for another team dance party on Saturday night.

Going into Nationals, I couldn't have asked for a better experience. I love each and every one of my teammates, and I know they all helped me through Havasu and training camp in one way or another. Now it's time to take all that training and channel it into race day. We race for each other. B3.

Give and take,
Caryn

Spring Season

The spring tri season is officially here-- less than a month until Havasu! Now is the time for race-pace workouts and weekend practices that last well into the afternoon. I love it. Last year around this time, I started to realize how in shape I was and how much the year's training had paid off. It was the first time I felt really ready to take on an Olympic race, and I was pushing myself harder than I could've imagined at the beginning of the year. The spring days started to get warmer, and all I wanted to do was ride bikes and run in the beautiful weather. After those exhausting workouts, we would lie around in the grass at the Boulder High track for awhile, wander over to the creek and try to soak our legs in the freezing water for as long as possible, and then go home to eat our body weights in food and take much-needed naps. I bonded with the team more than ever, and the excitement of Regionals and Nationals slowly started to grow. This week, I've started to feel that anticipation again. With weekend track workouts starting next Sunday, I know the most rewarding part of the season is just around the corner.

After our second full time trial last weekend, coach Mike told us training was about to get intense-- and he wasn't lying. On Thursday, he had us run 2x5k at 10k race pace. We were all dreading it. It was definitely tough, but it felt amazing at the same time. On the first one, I ran a personal best 5k time, which only showed how much my run has improved since high school. It was one of those days I felt "good pain." I was giving it all I had, but I was feeling strong instead of like I wanted to die. It was "fun" in the way that only triathletes and other like-minded people can understand.

This weekend's bike ride was definitely more fun in the conventional sense. About ten of us met up an hour before regular practice and did St. Vrain loop at a pretty easy pace. It was a gorgeous morning, and we were all happy to be awake. We rode together, no one getting dropped or feeling like they were being held back. We sang Journey, took pictures, and talked about how excited we are for Havasu. I was reminded once again how worth it it is to wake up early on a weekend and get outside, especially with teammates by your side. :)

The other thing I love about training in the spring is that it keeps me sane. Second semester is always stressful, and this year is no exception. My weekdays tend to be nonstop, morning 'till night. Whether I'm going to class, studying, writing articles, helping at the Family Learning Center, filling out scholarship applications, or going to practice, I never seem to have a spare moment. I know I have the option to miss practice and catch up on homework or sleep, but the truth is, I always feel less stressed after a workout. Even if I have to sprint to the Rec to spin for 45 minutes, shower, and barely make it to my next class, it's better than nothing. If I didn't have tri team in the spring, I would lose my mind.

And so begins the countdown: 28 days until Spring Break and Havasu Regionals. Time to bust my butt at practice, keep my Nats team goals in mind, and enjoy the combo of endorphins and fabulous teammates that I can rely on every day. Love you, CU Tri Team!

Give and take.
Caryn

Time Trial

Today my team did a time trial. A short one, just a 500 yard swim and 2 mile run, but challenging nonetheless. Time trials are one of the most valuable things we do because they are a test of our commitment, improvement, and guts. They're also a great place to see teamwork in action: team members cheering each other on and being competitive in a positive way. To boot, our coach wasn't even there this morning, so the effort was all on us - and I didn't notice a single slacker. ;)

I knew it would be a good morning before I even left the apartment because my roommate Hilary was coming with me to do the TT. It's SO much easier to wake up at 7 am on a Sunday when someone else is groggily getting ready with you. Hilary's had a stress fracture and been unable to run since the summer, so this morning's 2 mile was her first run in months. I was proud of her for getting through it and never complaining, especially on 3 hours of sleep!

My heat jumped into the cold, uninviting Comp Pool at about 8:15. Way too early. The swim is always the most difficult for me, so I definitely wasn't looking forward to it. The 500 yd TT is the shortest one we do, so it's not as intimidating as an 800 or 1600 - but because it's short, it's also fast. Today, I worked hard and finished in 8:01. Not amazing, but satisfying enough. My biggest accomplishment was doing flipturns for the whole distance - lame, I know, but it's the first time flipturns haven't seemed too scary in a time trial, and I'm proud of that. :)

Since my swim is always weak in comparison to the rest of the team, I always feel pressure to make up for lost time during the run. Luckily, I have two teammates who are my perfect pace-setters: Tess and Courtney. We started together this morning, and they pushed me through the whole thing. I led for the first mile, then Courtney pulled ahead. I chased her to the finish, ending just a step or two behind her, and Tess came in a few seconds later. The best thing about "races" like this is that no matter the results, we're never negative - we're just thankful for the healthy competition. Honestly, without people to push me, I would be so much slower than I am now. It's the same for Courtney and Tess in the water - for the past two swim TTs, they have been neck-and-neck for the whole thing and finished in a tie, depending on each other to swim their absolute fastest.

Team breakfast at the Walnut Cafe was the perfect end to a rewarding morning. High on endorphins, we ate at a big outside table in our coats, not caring about the cold. The food was delicious, and Julianna entertained us all by adding massive amounts of caffeine to her already crazy self. Our annual retreat at Winter Park is coming up next weekend, and I can't wait for the dance parties, snowshoe adventures, and crucial team bonding that will ensue. We have another TT a couple weeks later, and then it's the countdown to Havasu. I'm loving it.

I'll end with an email that Tess sent out to everyone after this morning's effort. I think it embodies our team's attitude pretty well:

"I just wanted to say good job to everyone who came out to the time trial. I know it is not always easy to get up early on a Sunday morning to go swim/run as hard as you can, but everyone that came did a great job. It is so inspiring to see everyone out there giving it all they have and so good job today everyone!"
Yayyy team :)
- Tess

Give and take.

Caryn

Team

I've been home in Maryland for almost three weeks now. I think I can actually hear Boulder calling my name. I fly back out west tomorrow, and I couldn't be more ready. After finals week, all I wanted to do was come home, relax in my own bed, and work out on my own time. Now, though, I miss having a schedule, being busy, and most of all, training with my team. I have some of the best teammates in the world. They keep me motivated and accountable, and they give me a positive boost when I'm having an off-day. It's much easier to get through the last yards of a swim workout while listening to Rihanna's pep talks than it is to do it alone. It's a lot more fun to run 12 hilly miles while Bobka is by your side saying ridiculous things like, "I just love working hard on a beautiful day!" And it's 10 times more enjoyable to ride bikes outside with Morgan and talk about boys than it is to suffer through a spin class that starts before the sun is up.

Triathlon is not usually a team sport, but those of us on the CU Tri Team know how great it is to have a group of people to practice with and someone to race for other than yourself. Even if we only saw each other at practice, we would be spending an average of 1-4 hours together every day. But that's usually not enough for us. We have team potlucks every week, we hang out together on the weekends, some of us even live together. We see each other at our absolute best and absolute worst, when we feel triumphant after doing well in a race or when we want to die in the middle of a hard workout. My teammate Morgan, who's also part of a sorority, told me her brother bet her once that she was closer with her teammates than with her sorority sisters. When she asked why, he said that the kind of person who can be this dedicated to a sport must be a dedicated friend. I think that's true, and it describes people on our team really well. It takes a certain kind of commitment (and, okay, insanity) to be a triathlete, and that quality also makes us close with each other as friends. That helps explain why I train and race so much better when I'm with my team than when I'm alone.

So, bottom line, I've had enough of this training alone thing. I miss my motivators and friends. And after a well-deserved and fully enjoyed rest, I'm ready to get back to the grind with my team as we start the countdown to Havasu. See ya later, Annapolis!

Give and take.
Caryn