Down(ward Dog)time

After a tough season of training, racing and travel, some athletes opt for a beach holiday to relax on the sand. Other athletes may jet off to Vegas for a few days of debauchery. I, on the other hand, embraced my inner granola-eating hippie and tried to be a Zen Master at the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health.

Following a few days of paperwork, hanging out with friends and family and one bike ride with Lance (Yes, that Lance. Good namedrop, right? Am I cooler now?), I headed down to Kripalu. Situated in Lenox, Massachusetts, the Kripalu property (summer estate turned Jesuit novitiate turned ashram) overlooks Laurel Lake and the Berkshire Mountains. My initial impression, shaped by the perfectly-coiffed New Jersey suburbanite stepping out of her Land Rover in front of reception, was that this would be more of a yoga-light, spa experience than a hard-core hippie retreat. While there were some yuppie elements, I was pleasantly pleased to find out that my initial impression was incomplete and that guests could tailor their experience in whatever fashion they wanted.

Personally, I wanted my experience to be an active, energizing one. That entailed 3 yoga sessions a day, multiple lectures, hikes and runs and meditation; all achieved on a caffeine-free, macrobiotic diet (No coffee= big deal for SG). I very possibly overextended myself. By the end of my stay, I felt sore in different places, but relaxed and really happy. After being put through the meat grinder a few times this season, I needed a clean start and Kripalu was exactly the place to seek it. I’m ready to move onto the 2011 season, armed with a few more tools to keep me healthy, grounded and feelin’ the prana, baby. That being said, delicious, wonderful coffee will definitely be reintegrated into my life at some point.

Deep-fried Dallas

For a couple of months, I have been eagerly anticipating my last race of the year, the U.S. Open Triathlon in Dallas, for one reason: the Texas State Fair. I have a borderline unhealthy obsession with the State Fair and its crazy assortment of fried foods (plus the added bonus of livestock!). For the most part, I view the fried food fiesta as entertainment (Who the heck would fry flavored butter? And, more puzzling, who would eat it?!). This year, however, I was looking forward to actually trying this year’s winner, fried beer. How can fried beer NOT be good? Unfortunately, fried beer, an insipid ravioli like pocket filled with lukewarm, beer-flavored liquid, is pretty awful. So awful, in fact, that the fried beer ended up in the garbage. Considering I was with my brother (in photo), who happened to be in town for business, and my Dallas-buddy, my dad, this is saying something; Groffs will pretty much eat anything.

So what does fried beer have to do with triathlon? I guess that I see the whole fried-beer experience as a reflection of my season this year. I went into the season with high hopes and expectations, hoping to find a new level of awesomeness. I took a calculated risk and while I was immersed in the right environment and surrounded by great people, things didn’t turn out as I had hoped. For the most part, my results, while not inedible, certainly weren’t the nuggets of deliciousness for which I had hoped. I’ve grown through the experience, however, and I’m now armed with knowledge and experience that I didn’t have in the past.

After the disappointment of the deep-fried beer, Adam and I waited in a 30-minute line in order to try the “Elvis”, a deep-fried peanut butter, jelly and banana sandwich. It required patience, but I was pleasantly surprised by the final outcome. In the past, I would have passed by the line and merely been entertained by the idea of this calorie-bomb treat. After trying and failing with the beer, however, I was more willing to take a risk and invest the time into a potentially positive outcome. The long wait and the nastiness of the fried beer only made the “Elvis” taste even better. At some point, I will be have the breakthrough that I desire as a triathlete and it will be even more rewarding after the frustrations of seasons like this past one.

[This was intended as a race report and ended up being something else entirely. As for the race itself, I ended up 5th- a good result that isn’t reflective of how mentally and physically difficult it was for me. It has been a long, draining season that has taken its toll on me and that was glaringly obvious on Sunday. Phew. Thank goodness the 2010 season is over!]

Sizzlin' in the South: U.S. Nationals wrap-up

Last weekend, I popped over to Tuscaloosa, AL for our Elite National Championships. Being a full-fledged Northerner who prefers arctic conditions over sauna-like ones, it was a pretty rough race in the 94℉ (34.4℃), mid-day sun. After a strong swim and and effective pack ride on the bike, the run was a survival death march. Fortunately, I kept the “Prancing Pony” in the stable and was able to cross the finish line in second (albeit a very distant second!) place to the always-impressive Laura Bennett. It is always an honor to finish on the podium, but to do so at a National Championships in anti-Groffy conditions is even more special.

So what nuggets of knowledge did I gleam from the race? What lessons were reinforced? Like with every race, I walked away with some good (but random) material:

1. My family is amazing. They covered race support from every angle: lead-up to the race where my Gainesville-based family (and my visiting mom) helped me recharge, care in Tuscaloosa by my dad, Aunt Denise and Uncle Howie (who took me to the airport at 3:45 AM!!), and my post-race support back at home in Hanover.
2. Getting administered 2 I.V.s makes you a source of envy. I’d rather not have needed them, but at least I made some of the other girls jealous. Mwaa haa haa.
3. Based on my limited experience, there are no giant, man-eating catfish in the Black Warrior River. I was a bit nervous about this, as the water was so turbid that one would have attacked me and I wouldn’t have known until its barbels were wrapped around my leg.
4. Even in the midst of strip-mall chain stores, you can still find little natural foods gems.
5. After a couple years of huge packs in the WCS races, I had forgotten how much I’ve missed having the small groups out front on the bike. At one point, I looked around to see Sara McLarty, Sarah Haskins, Annabel Luxford and Laura Bennett and felt the pangs of nostalgia. (Thank goodness we had an effective pack, by the way- I needed as big of a time buffer as possible!).
6. You know that it is going to be a rough day when you run out of water with 20 minutes left in the bike and you are already feeling the effects of the heat. At this point, your best tactic is to ignore the voice that tells you that you may spontaneously combust about 5k into the race and to think instead about management skills to get you across the finish line.
7. There are two Dreamland BBQs in the Tuscaloosa area. If Jarrod Shoemaker tries to steer you astray to the wrong one, don’t listen to him. He is probably still in the midst of the post-National Champ title elation.
8. Avoid the La Quinta Inn in Tuscaloosa at all costs. Unless you like midnight visits to scary 24 hr grocery stores for mold-battling antihistamines, that is... (8a. Avoid visiting sketchy 24 hr grocery stores in Tuscaloosa at midnight)
9. If you want to race well in the heat, I’d advise against the following: weighing more than 120 pounds, growing up in the Northeast and training all summer in Switzerland.
10. Laura Bennett is a total animal. Based on how she destroyed us on the run, I’m convinced that she doesn’t actually feel heat. A true champion in every sense, I couldn’t be more awed by her performance. For years, she has set the standard for U.S. women’s ITU racing and only continues to raise the bar for the rest of us. While I would have loved to finished closer to her, I was honored to stand next to Laura on the podium!