Training Camp

I've been in Florida for the past week and a half doing a training camp with my friends Tara Norton, Lisa and Kayla (both of whom I just met this weekend) and Matt Long. It was a last-minute decision to go down and train and I'm REALLY glad I did! We had 80 degree weather everyday and I put in over 42 hours of training in 8 days. Training with Tara is excellent as she is a PHENOMENAL cyclist! I knew she was great, but training with her this past week really showed me just how great she is. Throughout the week we swam double sessions every morning with the Masters swim team (coached by Marty) at the Hall of Fame Pool (except for Saturday in which we did the 5K "Rough Water Ocean Swim"), put in a LOT of miles on the bike and had some great run sessions as well. All as I watched the weather back home plummet into sub 20 degree temperatures!

Matt Long came here to log big miles on the bike and jump start his training for IM Lake Placid. I think he is going to see a tremendous boost in power and bike fitness after this training block. It was great to be able to do some training with him and I look forward to watching him race Ironman in July. Lisa is an open water swimmer and completed the "Around Manhattan Island" open water swim this past July! That's 28 miles of swimming (no wetsuit) around NYC. Wow...I can't even imagine (especially after my never-ending 5K swim the other day)! She did all of the swim sessions and some of the run sessions as well. Unlike Tara and I, she had time to do some beach time and sight-seeing, which was nice. Kayla came down to get a jump on her training as she is trying to switch from triathlete to cyclist. All three girls are from Canada (Toronto and Montreal) and it's safe to say that we are all dreading the cold weather that we are returning to!
I plan on writing more about some of the training from this past week, but for now I am getting ready to head to the airport. As for me, I plan on doing much of my winter training in Tucson (hopefully with super triathlete and runners Kim Loeffler and her twin sister Kelly Liljeblad) and in between I will brave the cold. Tara is heading to "Epic Camp" at the end of the month and when the time comes I'll post a list with her blog. It's incredible to read what they do at Epic Camp. Tara is one of only a handful of women to even complete it! I look forward to training with her again in Tucson!

Pics: Top Left: Lisa, Marty (swim coach), Tara, myself and Matt Long at the start of the Rough Water Swim. Middle: Hall of Fame Pool, Bottom: Tara and I after a morning swim session.