"Success is not built on success. It's built on failure. It's built on frustration. Sometimes its built on catastrophe"
Sumner Redstone
Great quote from Sedi's blog!
Today marks one month since Ironman Arizona, time flies. It's been a tough few weeks for me mentaly. I didn't really know how much it had affected me until last week when I was finally able to think everything over and move past it... the hardest part was investing some much time, effort, winter nasty days, etc in one race and only coming out of it with a tiny fraction of what was expected. I was certainly at a very low moment on that Sunday/Monday in April and a few events that succeeded it took me even lower. It's kind of hard to suffer some blows when you are at a low place and least expect it. But hey, what doesn't kill you make you stronger right?
Training is moving along and I'm starting to feel good again. I was dreading going back at it as intensely again since I didn't know how my beaten heart would take it. Andrea was very impatient about me not training as much right after the race, but that was my well deserved rest, especially mentaly! She is in full RAAM mode and looking very strong. Last weekend she went with Katie and Matias and a good group from the Tri-Rats to Shenandoah and did the Tour de Skyline (a brutal 220mile back to back ride of pure hills). The weather turned up horrible and it rained on them all throughout the first day (it's been raining a TON here lately). Here's a few shots:
This is my third week back and things are rolling pretty good. Hopefuly this week I will start swimming at Flanagan's again... after a good 4-5 weeks hiatus. It's been very hard to motivate myself to go hard at swimming after all the work I did this past winter with no result to show for it, but I'm starting to miss it again. Those crazy early morning of 90 minutes of very intense swimming!
Other than training and being fully submerged on RAAM prep (logistics, logistics, logistics!), I've been cooking quite a bit, reading (I got introduced to "His Dark Materials Trilogy" by Philip Pullman and really enjoyed reading about Lyra's journey) and figuring out what's next for me.
Coming up this weekend we have our last 24hr simulation before RAAM. We are heading out again on the last 400 miles of the course to master those W Virginia hills and find the good transitions spots, so come June we will be prepared! Should be FUN!
More later,
Mariana
PS: If you would like to help us with our Race Across America please check out our registry! We are still short of $$ and any cent helps!! :) 29 days to race day!
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
on healing...
Friday, May 9, 2008
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
recipe of the week...
For the past couple of weeks I've been experimenting with few new recipes, here's one for the grilling season ;-) We tried this one today (well Andrea!). Enjoy!
+++
Herb-Marinated Grilled Turkey Breasts
Ingredients
2 1/2 pound turkey breast, bone removed
1 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup light soy sauce or tamari
Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
Grated zest and juice of 1 orange
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh thyme leaves (leaves from about 15 springs)
8-10 fresh sage leaves
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbs grated fresh ginger
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Prep
Stir the wine, soy sauce, leamon zest and juice, orange zest and juice, olive oil, thyme, sage, garlic, and ginger together in a large bowl. Place turkey in the bowl and turn several times to coat all sides. Cover and marinate in the refrigator overnight or for at least several hours. Bring turkey to room temperature before placing it on the grill.
If grilling outdoors, prepare a fire in a charcoal or gas grill and let the fire die to medium coals.
Lift the turkey out of the marinade, reserving the marinade for basting. Season, with the salt and pepper and place the turkey over the direct heat for 7-8 mins per side, basting frequently. Move the turkey to the indirect heat, cover the grill, and cook for 15-20mins longer.
Transfer the turkey to a platter or cutting board and let it rest, loosely covered in foil, for 10mins before slicing.
If you aren't able to grill outdoors, turkey can be cooked in a hot lightly oiled well-seasoned large (2-burner) ridged grill pan over moderately high heat, turning over once, until just cooked through, about 6 minutes total.
PS: Fresh thyme and sage may be substituted with Italian seasoning, same goes for fresh ginger, you can use powdered version. This dish goes great with a fresh salad!
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Monday, April 28, 2008
24hr simulation...
24hrs of riding through RAAM's last 315 miles through West Virginia steep hills and beautiful farmland in Pennsylvania (actually crewing for A + P), 50mins of sleep, lots of sitting around, navigating, witnessing breathtaking sunrise in Cumberland MD covered in fog and mist, a wild turkey, a turtle crossing the road somewhere in PA, first time through Gettysburg battlefield, getting lost, lots of redbull, smelly feet, Phil singing, several calculations & forecasting, good laughs, TON of pollen, hot hot weather, meeting strangers along the way that speak Portuguese and give us free food... A good preview of what's to come in RAAM! Here's Phil cruising the roads of PA... HERE I GO AGAIN
