Mary Mary Why Ya' Buggin'

Some mothers for Mother's Day might want a spa day, flowers or jewelry. Not me. I wanted to do Oregon Dunes Olympic Triathlon Mother's Day weekend. Mr. W is always game to use the RV and get out of town.  We loaded up the Wonder Wagon for a weekend of camping at Honeyman State Park.  Honeyman State Park has been on our camping wish list for awhile. This fit perfect into my training as Oregon Dunes was six weeks before my first half Ironman race in Victoria B.C., my A race of the season.  I was most nervous about the bike course. In my training I had already completed a 56 mile bike ride but I had not trained a lot on hills. My friend Anne gave me good advice which ended up being my mantra on the bike course. "Spin those f**kers up (gears)!" and "Hills always appear bigger than what they really are."  PRE RACE There are so many pros when I travel by RV and race. I love having all the comforts of home and can pack my own food.  I h...

The countdown is on for my first half Ironman in June. My husband surprised me, signing me up  for Victoria for my 40th birthday back in September. Now the race is less than three months away. Sadly my girlfriend who I was originally going to do Victoria with is not going to be able race as she is suffering from a lingering injury that is preventing her from running.  I found a triathlon plan and have stuck to it religiously except for two weeks when we went on a Wonder Wagon Adventure through the Canadian Rockies and I got hit with the flu. Thankfully I carried enough of my base from last year into training for Victoria. My half marathon training for my March marathon has helped with my endurance. I  am excited to have two girlfriends, Miranda and Alycia who are training for Ironman Chattanooga, their first full Ironman in September. Compared to their training my half Ironman seems totally doable. Last weekend we swam our first open water swim at a nearby lake together. ...

Leia and I ran our first half marathon together on March 6th, the Lincoln City Elk Stampede, also known as the Lincoln City Half Marathon & 10k. I've done the 10k the past two years. I wanted to do one half marathon before my half Iron Man in June, since Leia is my running partner she got to cross off completing her first half marathon off her bucket list.  In the parking lot waiting in our car. Leia wasn't too sure what to think with all the people milling about. This was Leia's very first race. She could sense the energy and knew that she was going for a run, with me in my running gear, her blue leash in sight, and her bright green pack in the backseat. She had only ran once with a group. Usually we run solo along busy Highway 101.  The first six miles of the race Leia was super excited and had lots of energy, pulling me at times. I didn't want to start off too fast so I had to reign her in. Usually she is right beside me or slightly be...

Wow, what a season! I accomplished so much and crushed some serious doubts and fears this past year. This crazy season started all because of a few glasses of wine and an application to be a Nuun Ambassador late one night. Becoming a Nuun Ambassador shoved me out of my comfort zone. When I turned thirty-nine last year I deemed year thirty-nine to be a year of awesome. I wanted the year it to be amazing, I wanted to go out of my thirties with a bang. I think I accomplished that and more.  I pretty much had a race every month beginning in March, ending my season in September, a total of eight races. I completed in three triathlons, two sprints and my very first Olympic triathlon with my first open water swim. I completed five running races: three 10k's, my first relay race and my first half marathon. Three of those eight races we took the Wonder Wagon. It was great to have our rolling home on wheels on race day. Mr. W is all about using our RV and not having it sit in storag...

I couldn't think of a better way to end my season than a week long Caribbean cruise to celebrate my 16th wedding anniversary and my husband and I turning 40.  I was so focused on getting to the starting line of my olympic triathlon and half marathon that I kind of forgot about our Caribbean cruise that we booked a year ago. As the trip loomed closer I started getting more and more excited.  I am a native Oregonian. I am not going to lie, the older I get the more and more I dread Pacific Northwest winters. I hate them. When I close my eyes and visualize myself on a beach, in my mind I see the below picture. That is why I absolutely loved the Caribbean and Florida. It was glorious.  Mr. W and I love cruises. It's the best of both worlds for us. Mr. W likes to gamble and loves the late night entertainment. I love to people watch, eat and lay out and read. We took a Mexican cruise for our honeymoon. Celebrated our 10th anniversary with the same cruise...

My final race of the season was the end of September.  Originally I wanted to run my first half marathon before I turned 40 on the 17th of September but with our crazy busy summer I was limited on time and availability of races. I settled on the Champoeg Half, September 27th at Champoeg State Park outside of Salem by St. Paul, Oregon by the Willamette River.  I had ran there earlier in the season for the Fallen Oregon State Police Memorial 10k Run in May. I loved it so much. It was like V.I.P trail running with wide paved paths. When I saw there was going to be a half marathon race in September I knew that it would be the perfect half marathon.  Another reason I selected this race is that we could make a fun weekend of camping in the Wonder Wagon. Mr. W was able to get to us a campsite. This was the third race of my season that we were able to use our RV. I loved being able to sleep in my cozy bed and have all the comforts of home.  After my Olympic t...

My birthday was fabulous! I am embracing turning 40. Age is just a number, a mark of time of how many times I've been around the sun. Age does not defy me. Yes, I have wrinkles around my eyes, stretch marks and a grey hair or two. I am also am the healthiest I've ever been in my entire life. I know that I can get faster and stronger. This is just the begining!  Mr. W can't keep a secret to save his life. He orchestrated a small gathering of my nearby friends and their families. It was informal and fun. Mr. W went above and beyond my wildest dreams in gifting me a new Garmin watch that does pretty much everything but talk to me and make dinner. The girls together made my favorite cake, red velvet. Olivia did the baking and Vivian did a beautiful job decorating my cake in true Vivian flair and style. It was delicious.  I am excited to try out my new Lifeproof arm and bike mounts for my iPhone. I train mostly solo so even with my new Garmin watch I still want to have my phone ...