ONE MORE SLEEP!!!!

JUST ONE MORE SLEEP>>> YAY! YAY! YAY! I'm sooo excited! I cannot wait to celebrate Christmas with you... my favorite person in the universe... so here you have it..I saved the best for last... A PARTRIDGE IN A PEAR TREE!!!!!!!! (and she claps her hands wildly bursting into fits of giggles!)

2 more sleeps....

Your family is off to Illinois, and I wish them safe travels, and that they all enjoy their visit w/ the relatives. Sorry yet again, we couldn't make it back for Christmas. I know that 5 years is a long time not to go back. I thought that by now, we'd be able to... but hopefully I'm making it a bit of fun to make up for it. Just think... tomorrow you'll get to open your Christmas Eve gift!!! You excited yet... I know I am!

3 more sleeps....

I love you Derek. Just 3 more sleeps until Christmas! I think it will be a pretty awesome Christmas this year, too! Have fun running tonight. I may even join you - and rest tomorrow. I do like running with you a lot - and actually feel SAFER running with you.

4 more sleeps....

So only four more sleeps until Christmas. I've already picked out your Christmas Eve gift for you to open, and I'm really excited about it too! I cannot believe you only have to go into the office 2 days this week - lucky duck!
Oh and only 4 more weeks until the marathon. So it is time to get mega excited. If you were holding any enthusiasm back - you'd better muster it back up! Oh yeah, I'm excited!!!

7 more sleeps!

It is finally Friday! I'm excited and actually looking forward to our 3 hour run tomorrow. It should be a lot of fun, and the best part is knowing, that in only one week, we'll be waking up and exchanging Christmas presents!!!

Upcoming races - depending on our zip code...

(Finisher photo from the RNR LV!)
I think my happy spot is a race every 4-6 weeks. Any more than that and I can get a bit cranky! Well on my site I've listed a bunch of races that might be fun... as long as they aren't cost prohibitive.
Here are my top races that I'd Like to do...
1/17/2010 RNRAZ Marathon
2/14 The lost dutchman 1/2 marathon Apache Junction
2/20 or 3/13 10k couple's relay (5K a piece)
4/10 Havasu Half
4/17 Pats 4.2 mile run
BUT, you're training for the Ford IRONMAN Series on 8/29/2010.
So I also looked up a bunch of tris you might be interested that are in AZ.
1/9 10:30 am Prescott Valey Polar Bear Sprint Triathlon
http://www.getsetaz.com/event-detail.php?item=403054
2/7 8am Tricat's Polar Splash and Dash Tuscon Arizona
2/28 8am Trisports.com Desert Classic Duathlon - a ride and run McDowell Mtn Park. (3.5mi run and a 21 mile bike ride)
http://www.getsetaz.com/event-info.php?item=403062
3/7 8:30am The Firebird Triathlon - Firebird Lake, Chandler AZ.
http://www.active.com/triathlon/chandler-az/firebird-triathlon-and-duathlon-2010
3/21 The 5th Annual Bartlett Lake Olympic Triathlon 7:30 am Scottsdale AZ
http://www.active.com/triathlon/scottsdale-az/the-5th-annual-bartlett-lake-olympic-and-sprint-triathlonduathlon-2010
5/16 Tempe International Triathlon 6:30 am Tempe Town Lake
6/13 YMCA get out of the heat backwards triathlon 8am
7/17 12 hours at night mountain bike trail ride 8pm Prescott, AZ

12k Results!

Derek Harper BIB # 181

Distance - 12K
Clock Time - 1:16:15
Chip Time - 1:15:56
Overall Place - 362 out of 673
Gender Place - 151 out of 215
Division Place - 14 out of 22 Men 25-29
Pace - 10:11
4K time - 25:03
8K time -50:21

http://results.active.com/pages/oneResult.jsp?pID=71533973&rsID=87599&pubID=3

Way to go Derek, and thank you for sharing this experience with me! I had a great time, and also quite enjoyed sharing lunch at Macs with you!!!

Las Vegas Half Marathon

Over the weekend Tristin and I drove to Las Vegas for the Rock n' Roll Las Vegas half marathon. This was a great event that had us run the entire strip and back. It was really fun to get to see all the different hotels and sites, it made the race go by very quickly. We had a great time and had a really good race too. After the race we got to hang out and have some fun in Vegas, and even ran into Eric. It was a great weekend.

Turkey Weekend

This past week was a lot of fun. For Thanksgiving, Tristin and I went out to Mesa for the 40th Annual Mesa Turkey Trot. We did this last year and the event was very cool. The weather was perfect and the race went great. After the race we went home and prepared our turkey and all the fixins. We spent the rest of the day just eating and lounging around – it was a good day. The rest of the weekend was pretty low key. Friday I had the day off, so I did a short ride on the trainer and spent the rest of the day being lazy. Saturday we went out for our long run. We were still a little sore from Thursday, so were a little slower than usual, but overall had a good 13.5 mile run. The running mileage is getting up there and should keep me busy the next few weeks.

5 more days until VEGAS VACA!

I'm pretty excited about Vegas!!! I cannot believe we leave in only 5 more days! The expo will be a lot of fun if it is anything like the Chang's! We can get our IDS checked at the expo, so that we get these wristbands for the finish line, and we can quickly get our free MGD 64s! Exciting stuff, huh? Yeah, I think so too! Also, we'll have a lot of fun, in that it is low pressure, nothing that we feel we "have to do" for anyone.
I'm really glad we had our talk yesterday. I like thinking about things aloud with you and hearing your oppinions on things. We've got a lot to figure out in the next few months, but we also can have a bit of fun in the meantime. 7 more weeks until the marathon... time sure flies!

11/24/2009 -- Turkey Trot 2 days away!

I am super excited about our trot! I hope your knee is holding up well. I'm really looking forward to running in this event with you... the last event we did together was on our one year anniversary! (We had a 9:53 pace for that one!) I'm hoping we can keep the pace up for the 10k and beat last year's time. I know you can... but if I can't... I can't. I won't beat myself up about it... since last year's Turkey Trot was the first race I ran under the last name HARPER! Which will always make it a memorable race in my book.

11/22: Back in the water

So this week I took a break from cycling in order to help my knee heal, but I did get back in the pool. For the next few months I am going to focus on my form and technique and hopefully become a more efficient swimmer. My running stayed on track this week and I did not have to take any time off, which made me feel pretty good. I was even able to go 14 miles on Saturday and a total of 28 miles for the week with only minor pain. Today the knee is a little sore, but nothing like it was two weeks ago after the hike. I will probably stay off the bike for another week just to be safe and get to the pool at least once next week and continue with the running. We have a Thanksgiving Turkey Trot 10k on Thursday to help build an appetite for a day of endless eating, I'm excited!

8 weeks 4 more days!

This is a list of our miles broken down... the following weeks will go by very quickly... and with your knee if you have any issues - please speak up. I don't want you getting hurt. I'm watching my body closely, and responding, so if I have any troubles or issues... I will be sticking with the TIMES, not the mileage. You let me know what you need, but I wonder if I'll actually train to be faster if I run my long runs solo... but I do like you being with me. So we'll just have to see how they go! I'm looking forward to it though! (Plus it is nice to have someone wear the water!) :-D

11/21 12 -14mi {60}

11/26 10k turkey trot {60}

11/28 14-16 {2:45}

12/6 13.1 Race + (2 to and from hotel) + (any other walking around while in Vegas that day.) {3}

12/12 12k's of Xmas {60}

12/19 16-18 {3:15}

12/26 18-gasp... 20! {3:30}

1/2 10 {90}

1/9 6 {45-60}

1/17 MARATHON!

11/16/2009

I'm glad that you were able to get up and go for a run this morning. I really was glad I got the extra dose of sleep. I'm excited about our races that are coming up, and sharing them with you.

I really like doing one or two races a month (I think one is my preference) to keep an active social calendar... and our sanity. I love you, and you are an incredible cheerleader. It meant a lot to me to have you yelling "Go Tristin!" You rock!

11/15/2009

I finally feel like I have recovered from last weekend, it only took close to a week. This past week I tried to get back into a routine, but was having some trouble staying motivated. I have been having pain in my left knee similar to the pain I felt in May. I need to be taking it easy so I can heal so I have decided to focus on getting ready for the marathon and letting my body heal - so that means no biking until its better. So with no biking, I think I'll get back into the pool. I need to focus on my form this winter and now seems like a good time to start.

So this weekend was nice and quiet. Saturday I ran 10 miles, I planned to go 14 but decided to stop before the pain in my knee got any worse. After the run we ran some errands then watched 7 hours of the HBO series True Blood. It was an exciting day. On Sunday we drove to Tempe for the Aflac Iron Girl 10 mile run that Tristin was racing in. She ran very strong and I was very proud of her, it was a fun day. When we got home we finished the final 3 episodes of True Blood - 10 hours of TV in two days and it wasn't because I was so hungover I couldn't leave the couch - a very nice, relaxing weekend.

11/13/2009

I'm really sorry that you are having knee aches. I hope you get better soon. Don't push yourself too hard or too soon for my sake.

I can tell that I'm a bit sore in my calves shins/ since the hike. I'm better now, but it was certainly a bit more strenuous than I would have imagined!

The primary reason to have a coach is to have somebody who can look at you and say, Man you're looking good today. -Jack Daniels

You're my coach... and I'm your sideline cheerleader! Derek you are totally awesome! I'm so excited about training with you....... :-D

Just 9 1/2 more weeks until The PF Chang's Rock and Roll Marathon! I did a map my ride of the event-- and just mapping it took forever... that is going to be a long run - but a lot of fun!

11/09

The guys came in this past weekend and we had a great time. It is always great to see them and kinda sad to see them go. I had a nice weekend that consisted of zero training. It was a good mental break to not have to do any structured training. On Saturday we went to Squaw Peak and did some hiking. It was really nice and a lot of fun. My knees are a little sore still and I am hoping its nothing and doesn't bother me for several weeks like they did after the marathon in April. After dropping the guys off at the airport I set the bike up on the trainer for a short workout and now plan to go to bed very early - I missed out on quality sleep for the past several days.

11/9/09

So your friends are now heading out of town. What a nice visit overall! But now we're back to training! You've got your new wheel so you can train on your bike indoors this winter, and run w/ me for the marathon training. I'm pretty excited, and look forward to possibly running with you tonight after work... if you're up for it!

The Ironman KY is 42 weeks and 3 days away!!! Exciting stuff! The Changs is 10 weeks 3 days away! I've been thinking about the training, and most importantly I want to remain healthy - I also want to try to run for time.. and TRY to hit certain miles w/ certain time markers... If I can maintain a 5mph avg pace I'll be pretty happy... so I think training will look something like this...

This week is sort of screwy because of the guests... but this weekend 10-12 miles.. maybe more.. unsure BECAUSE.. 11/15 is the irongirl. I'm supposed to run for 2 1/2 hours, but I should be done w/ the 10 miler in around TWO hours... so I'm off track a bit... which is why I wouldn't mind doing the A&L which would make me perfectly on pace.....hmmm After that we are KINDA on track...

SOOO...
11/6 10-14mi (depending)... {2:15}
11/14 12-14mi (depending) race on Sunday 10 mi... so hmmmm {2:30}
11/21 1 hour or 10mi -- OR, because of race 12-14mi {60}
11/26 10k trot {60}
11/28 14-16 {2:45}
12/5 14-16 (Sunday is the 13.1 race) {3}
12/12 12k of Xmas {60}
12/19 16-18 {3:15}
12/26 18-gasp... 20! {3:30}
1/2 10 {90}
1/9 6 {45-60}
1/17 MARATHON!