June 2006 Newsletter |
| Welcome back! |
| I have finally gotten settled in my new home, I got my brand new website up and running, and I have a plan for this season. And now I have time to send you an update and tell you all about it. I had a long winter of training and finishing up my senior year at Virginia Tech, but I still had time to enjoy my final year as an undergrad, going to themed potlucks every week and hanging out with friends on the weekends. I had a couple good races in the spring, including a few collegiate cycling races. In late spring, I injured my foot and I had to take a month off of running and two weeks off of cycling. I was pretty disappointed because I had to withdraw from the ITU Madrid World Cup, but in the end it was better because now I will be healthier for my races later in the season. I graduated from Virginia Tech and moved to Texas to be near my coach where he can better monitor my training. I am very excited for the rest of my season! |
| Spring races |
| My first triathlon of the season was TriAmerica Clermont on April 2. About 8 other Virginia Tech teammates and I drove down to Clermont, Florida the 2 days before the race and camped out at a nearby state park. We had beautiful weather – a nice break from early spring Blacksburg weather – and everyone raced really well. Although it was an amateur race, I felt really good about my fitness at that point in my training. I won the race by 4 minutes but I was especially excited about my run time – I ran nearly 2 minutes faster than I was running last year, and I wasn’t pushed too hard in the race. Very encouraging! Read the race report here and see the results here. |
| My next triathlon was Collegiate Nationals in Reno, Nevada on April 22. I was very disappointed to find out that the “unsafe” weather conditions (too cold at 7am) made it so they had to cancel the swim portion of the race. I was disappointed because I had been working very hard on my swim and knew that in a collegiate race, the swim would be my strength. We did a duathlon instead – it began with a 3km run, then the 40km bike, then the 10km run. It was pretty exciting because a collegiate sports TV channel, CSTV, was covering the event and since I was one of the top competitors, they interviewed me before the race and followed me and the other leader of the race, Justine Whipple, during the race on a motorcycle. It was a lot of pressure having a camera in my face the whole time though. I had failed to preview the entire bike course the day prior to the race, so I didn’t know what to expect on the bike course. Justine and I ran together for the first run, I led out of transition and led the bike for the first 5 miles. Justine passed me on a hill that I wasn’t aware of and at that point I knew I wouldn’t catch her again because she has a very strong run – unless I started the run with her, there would be no chance of winning. I still ran well, 2 1/2 minutes faster than last year. Second place is alright, especially with no swim. I was happy to get a slot on the World University Games team to compete in Lausanne, Switzerland in August. That will be a fun race – my very last time racing for Virginia Tech! |
| My first ITU race this season was the ITU Mazatlan World Cup in Mazatlan, Mexico on May 7. I had to reschedule a couple final exams to make it to this race, but my professors were very accommodating. This was my second World Cup, and since I didn’t get to finish the one last year, I wanted to redeem myself. The swim course was moved from the open ocean to a sheltered marina because of the major waves, and the bike course was all cobblestones. I swam decently enough to get me in a group that caught the chase pack on the 2nd lap of the 7-lap bike course. I worked hard with a few other athletes unsuccessfully trying to close the gap on the front pack, but we only managed to hold a 90 second gap. I knew it would be tough to catch people in the front pack, but it was hot out and anyone can blow up in the heat. The girls in my group went out very fast on the run, and I wasn’t ready for that. I ran well on my first and fourth laps of the 4-lap run, but my 2nd and 3rd lap I kind of zoned out and lost my edge. I’m sure if I didn’t lose focus on those laps I’d have placed top 20 – earning World Cup points. I am still happy with my result – 22nd in my first finish in a World Cup. It was a fun trip, too! Read my complete race report and see the results here. |
| Graduation |
| Fall semester went very well – I earned straight A’s for the first time in college! Spring semester was a bit tougher with a busier schedule, but I pulled off all A’s with only ONE A- . I graduated Magna Cum Laude from the College of Agriculture and Life Science with a degree in Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise on May 13. A bunch of my friends stuck around for graduation and my parents and grandparents came for the ceremony. My parents also helped me pack up, clean, and move out of my apartment – which was very nice of them. Thank you all for your encouraging graduation cards and gifts. I appreciate it very much! |
| Move to Texas |
| After graduation, I went home to Northern Virginia for a couple weeks then I packed up and drove to San Antonio, Texas where I am living with my coach and his family. I’ve been here for 2 weeks and I’m getting into a good training routine. I am swimming with the San Antonio Wave swim team and I should get faster after swimming with them. |
| Plan for the season |
| After a disappointing MRI in mid-May, I found out I had an injured sesamoid bone in my foot. So, for the past month I’ve been wearing a boot and using crutches and obviously have not been running. I started biking again last week and I plan to start running this week. I am ready to get back into my training so I can do well at my races for the rest of the season. I will be racing with my professional team near Toronto in Canada at the ITU Brampton Continental Cup, which is the Canadian National Championship, on July 2. I then hope to race on July 23 at the ITU Cornerbrook World Cup in Newfoundland, Canada and then I will fly to Europe for some races in England, Hungary, and Switzerland. I can’t wait to race again! |
| Call for sponsors |
| First of all, thank you to all of you who continue to encourage and support me in all the helpful ways that you do. Without the help I’ve gotten, I wouldn’t have things like a website, a team to swim with, awesome massages, or the financial capability to train, travel, race, and live as a professional athlete. However, as you can see, I will be traveling all over the world this season and I still am looking for financial sponsors to help me get to my races. I have space on my website and on my uniform for your company’s logo or your family’s name so please contact me if you’d like to help me out! |
