Thursday, April 10, 2008

YndeCamp Day One

Alright, technically, today is Day Two, but we had so much fun yesterday I had no time for a Day One update (or maybe its simply because I fell asleep at 8pm!).

YndeCamp was born simply with the need to get out of MN for quality training time. Julie and Erik shared out desire to breakaway, so immediately the Inaugural YndeCamp was formed. Although I’ve been fortunate to take several trips to AZ this spring, I still juggle the day job with training while I’m here. This trip however, I decided to take 3 days off work and focus on my training- My True Happy Place!!

Day one started at 5:15am when our alarm clock rank simultaneously with our doorbell-Yup Julie and Erik came to our house a few minutes early, but before long, we all took off to the airport together. Flights were on time, and we landed at PHX shortly after 8 am local time. We picked up the rental car and had our first challenge of the day…Getting all our gear into the Nissan Xterra! Luckily we scored high in artistry as we creatively jammed all the gear in the car.

Workout # 1: The Track- The first track workout of the year for all of us. We knew it would be tough, but we were all anxious to see how those treadmill speed sessions translated to the track-The track does not lie, and there is never that element of doubt about calibration. 6x 800 was the main set. We did a few 200 builds to get in the groove, and then it was Party time. Initially we’re thinking we would do two at 10K pace, 2 at 5K pace, then the last two “Whatever you’ve got”. Of course, we took the first one out fast, and never looked back. We all hit 800pr’s…and they kept getting faster. It was awesome!

Next stop: FOOD of course. We headed to the local market and picked up major fuel for the week. Additionally, I took some of my favorites from home, but we picked up fruits and veggies in mass quantities. I am the fruit monster

Workout #2: Scenic Hilly bike ride. We left the condo and headed into the Tonto National forest for a spectacular 2.5 hour ride. It was so beautiful and we all felt great. We rode about 20 miles to Butchers Cove and of course we had to take a break and check out the water temp for potential open water swimming. Water felt great, and then we rode our way out of there. There was plenty of climbing on the way home, but we had so much fun. Multiple times during the ride (despite the difficulty) and was able to look around me in awe at the natural beautify and fully appreciated the luxury we all enjoyed.
Next: FOOD! We picked our favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner. As chatty as we are, I don’t think there was much said once our dinner arrived…Refueling at its finest. Certainly no shortage of food, and as soon as I got back in the car, the fatigue set in. I was SO tired!! We got back to the condo around 7:45pm, and I'm pretty sure I was asleep by 8:00pm. Contacts still in, Teeth unbrushed; Yup-quite the beauty, by I was out and quickly dreaming about day Two!