Who lee oh!

Who lee oh! That's how you pronounce Julio, spanish for July.

I kicked off the day (Saturday) with a group ride that began at Elite cycling. I rode with them to midway into Key Biscayne & Virginia key. When they decided to turn around at the foot of the east end of the Rick, I didn't & instead returned early because I had planned on racing in the evening & could not afford to burn myself out.

Saturday evening agenda-Hemingway days 5k

Put on by the southern most runners club down in key west, it was the only race Jon & I could find. Dejavu for us but a pleasant new addition was Linda. We all carpooled up there, survived the traffic & made it in time to sign up. I thought, at best, I may see one other person I may know; not! Running wild & GFLRRC came down, with Don W as their fastest rep (3rd overall). We met Chuck & his family, so Runners Depot was well represented. Jon was 2nd overall & yours truly, top in age group (lost a master title due to poor training as a result of the back injury). Andres, from Niketown, won the top title. Although the heat was held down by the clouds, the humidity and wind was strong & the course itself lousy (unpaved section & with various turns). The post race was great. Both Linda & Jon won something in the raffle; poor me. The post race refreshments was excellent, 5 star. The had pizza, beer & even chocolate covered key lime pie.

Sunday agenda

Rest. At least my version of that, since I only did a 1/2 mile on the treadmill as speed training due to the rain.

Du tri hard

1st was the du, then was the hard, followed by a tri. Doesn't make sense until you read on.
Saturday morning agenda-Publix series
ESM offers both a triathlon (feature event) and a duathlon; naturally, I chose the latter. Today would be the season opener for both George & I. We come in as defending champions in our respective categories. I started off a bit tired & slightly rusty due to the back injury but did train throughout to maintain some level of fitness. My first run was great, as I was 2nd overall. I did the best I could on the bike but dropped two positions. I hung on in the final run without further loss to win in my category. Although Linda forewent the event, her services as a volunteer were greatly appreciated by all.

Saturday evening agenda-5k

Dubbed the Dreher park dash, it was the only 5k I could find for this weekend, so I anticipated high participation & was not disappointed regarding that. However, due to lightning, the race was first delayed then cancelled (postponed to a later, unspecified date); hard for us avid runners! Although this happened, I agree with that decision because it is still to be held but on another date and for the safety of all participants, not to mention avoid possible legal ramifications.

Sunday agenda-trilogy

This is race #2 of the series. Like ESM, it held both a triathlon (part of the trilogy series) and a duathlon (not). I chose the former as a relay team & my job was on the bike. The team-Du tri harder-return as defending champions. The name is based on my work ethic. I had to secure another runner because last year's selection was not available to compete. Due to construction on the bridge (not the Rick) leading to Crandon, the course was altered. Jenny performed as expected, coming out as the fastest female swimmer (only a male could beat her & that was by mere seconds). The runner struggled with the MIT run course, which is much like narrow cross country paths with rolling hills and failed to break 21; remarkably, that was the 3rd fastest time of 16 co-ed teams. The biggest shocker was with me, especially since the course was different & I had never raced through Virginia key. For the first time I can remember, I had the fastest bike split of all teams and built up enough of a cushion to absorb the dismal run. This is proof positive that all team mates must work hard for the ultimate goal of the victory. Although pleased, I consider ourselves luck to have dodged a bullet considering the runner up team lost due to poor transitioning. Last year, I lost 2nd master because of that at Riviera beach. In any case, we now lead in the series & must maintain this to win.

Du (on Sat) Tri (on Sun) Hard (to take) (missed 5k), got it?

Honorable mention

* Linda completes yet another triathlon, all by herself
* Linda reaches 15 races, perhaps surpassing any previous year already
* George wins his category at both events

Thank heaven

Thank heaven for 7 eleven, remember that slogan? Well, I am not talking about the convenient store chain, but rather, that today is the 11th of July & it kinda applies.

Saturday agenda-5k

I Thank heaven that Jon W found a race (2 actually) somewhere in Florida. Like a blind date, I had no idea what I'd be getting into. Near the last moment, I was told it was in Ormond, a place I have never been. After the fact, I discovered the details, such as the name of the race (race for the loop, the feature cause), time, age groups, course, etc. I Thank heaven I was able to do it, considering I am still recovering from a back injury and due to that, the reduced training lead to a poor performance. I Thank heaven because despite that, I still won the master title!

Sunday agenda-ride

I originally planned on the Frank Stark ride, but due to the distance to go there (boca) and my back injury, I opted to train at home. Although a quarter of the metric century, I still got a good workout. I closed out the weekend with my brother at Zo's summer groove.

4

Have a happy one;it's Independence day! We are free from England's rule to subject ourselves to other crazy taxes & laws. Be sure to thank our troops, past & present, for our freedom. While we celebrate, their lives are under real fireworks.

Saturday agenda-j4 5k

Today, just about every city and/or county has some kinda race. Unfortunately, I had to chose one.

1. weston 5k (most attended race by me)
2. multirace du/tri (usually done as part of a series commitment)

I went by both proximity & the been there, done that rule. This was an inaugural by PR, held atTamiami park. first time doing a race there this millennium. I injured my back last Friday & it still bothered me enough to consider missing a race on independence for the 1st time ever! That thought hurt so bad (more than my back) that I rolled the dice, prayed & hoped for the best under possibly the worst. Although the heat & humidity was relentless, the Lord spared me with low wind. I was blessed, not only to be able to run with a terrible injury & make it in the low 19's but that the poor time was sufficient to win my age group;praise the Lord!

On advice of my dad & with the help of Linda, Sunday, I did something that occurs once in a blue moon-absolutely nothing! I did not race or train at all, in an effort to recover.

I had many blessings to count this independence weekend & I thank God & pretty 4 being a part of it. She is multi-talented & should open up a restaurant.

Honorable mention

* race #14 for Linda; an impressive feat as only a handful can claim a race a month for a year
* George wins age group in du (spared runners of defeat in the 5k's)