Now onto this past weekend....
The father-son duo Mike & Calvin (read about them here) drove down from NorCal and successfully completed the Mission Bay Triathlon Sunday morning. Calvin was one of two 10-year-olds who did the race, the youngest participants, and had a speedy time of 1:26! His dad was racing by his side the entire time. So glad I got to watch. I'll let some photos do the talking:
My dad was also set to race in MB, but an unfortunate bike accident kept him from being able to do so. He's ok but pretty banged up and sore; we're just thankful nothing worse happened. I unfortunately can't discuss the details, but I will say: Wear a helmet because it's the other guy out there who you can't trust.
My dad was also set to race in MB, but an unfortunate bike accident kept him from being able to do so. He's ok but pretty banged up and sore; we're just thankful nothing worse happened. I unfortunately can't discuss the details, but I will say: Wear a helmet because it's the other guy out there who you can't trust.
Larry, my dad's best friend from college/training buddy, was still able to race but it was clearly very bittersweet without my dad. Still, for Larry it was quite a day... Last year, Larry was diagnosed with an aggressive form of throat cancer last year, and things were not looking good for him. But he held on strong, endured chemo, fought the cancer and WON. Training and racing in the Mission Bay Triathlon was not only a huge personal accomplishment, but a huge moment for Larry's family and friends. There was not a dry eye among us when he crossed that finish line. Both his 20-something sons also raced in MB, so needless to say it was a special day.
My dad & Larry...
Larry crossing the finish line at 1:26, wow!...
Larry crossing the finish line at 1:26, wow!... Then there's my mom, aka the speed demon, who also raced. Back-to-back weekends of racing for her! "Never again," she says, haha. Whatever, mom... She pulled off yet another podium finish at 1:10, despite some hiccups: Her chain fell of during the bike costing her precious time, she got lost in T2 sorta, some sort of water issue. But in the end she experienced her first-ever sprint-to-the-finish battle with a woman in her AG and won that, which secured her 3rd place spot, as well as 3rd place in 50-54 women for the entire Koz Enterprises Triathlon Series!!!!
Look at those buff arms!
With all these participants I had to keep track of, I was one busy girl! Thankfully I found an open Starbucks at 5 a.m. and got my Venti Americano caffeine fix. 
The race was a blast, and I'm so happy I made the decision to give up my spot and be a spectathlete & sherpa. Just as fun as race-day was the day before the race. Good times, especially with my sister, who was cool enough to come down from Cal Poly SLO and hang out with us. The fact that her new Scott road bike was waiting for her at our house probably helped in that decision to drive down. Whatever got her down, I was stoked, she's good company to have around. As we get older we keep getting closer, and (gasp!) we don't even fight anymore!
On Saturday, we got dropped off by the 'rents in North County SD and rode our bikes to Mission Bay. Karlee killed it, particularly on her first attempt up Torrey Pines.
A million stop signals later (grrr) we arrived at the hotel where we hit the in-house restaurant & spa for a bit before hitting the town for the night. (Traveling with parents = good... dad posts us up in nice hotels, like the Paradise Resort on Mission Bay. Traveling with me alone = you're brave... get ready for the cheap motels that smell like old socks.)
The view from our suite....
After quality pool time with the whole crew we all gathered at Wahoo's for a solid pre-race meal. I picked Calvin's brain about all his training, asked if he was ready for the race, etc. One of his comments: "Is this going to be on your blog?" How cute. I have to say, the kid is very confident, in a healthy way, and is bound to do some great things if he keeps it up, which I'm sure he will, especially with the cool parents he has! Dinner:
Calvin's giant pre-race burrito....
After Wahoo's Karlee and I had to ditch the crew who needed their sleep, and we headed to Pacific Beach to, ya know....
....get some of this amazingness:
Yea, not quite the beers you were expecting, right? We were the anomalies to the drunken Saturday-night crowd on Garnet. Sitting on the curb, eating fro yo and watching the mayhem was pretty fun. Hands down better than being one of the drunks. We also stumbled upon a random pumpkin patch where the owner was blasting some classic rock that had those 10-min solos. I'm pretty sure he's been living in PB since the '60s, yea one of those guys who never made it out. Super nice guy. We bought a pumpkin. He asked if we wanted our picture taken...
After all the fun of pre-race, races, post-race meals, etc., it was time for me to torture myself. The weekend wouldn't be complete without that, right? Innocently enough, I got dropped off in Oceanside to make the long trek home on my bike. Little did I know the headwind of death would haunt me the entire ride home. I swear, it was by far one of the hardest rides I've ever been on (entirely northbound = headwind never ended). I kept thinking of all the excuses I could make to have my parents come pick me up. But I didn't call. Just kept thinking about them, and before I knew it, I was home! And exhausted.
Only one more bike ride left until a week sans Felt. But that means a week of paradise. I can cope.
Aloha!
Wow, so much going on in this post. Very cool about the father-son duo. They looked very cute in their matching outfits! Congrats to your mom, she is awesome and to your dads friend too for beating cancer.
ReplyDeleteHave lots of fun this weekend!! I look forward to reading your reports.
I'm also glad your dad is ok.