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Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Runner's World Article

It's out! September's issue of Runner's World is out with a full page article about us (meaning me and you and Team Joe). It's a cute article! Unfortunately, it's not online as yet, but as soon as it's available, I'll post it. OR, you can run out and buy it! Either way...

Thanks for making Team Joe a wonderful reality guys and gals!

Love,

Gabby

Bummer!

So, I was feeling pretty sure of myself after spending 5 days biking and swimming in Sag Harbor. I felt that it was time for me to go out for a run since it's been a whole month since I found out about my stress fracture. I figured there was still a chance for me to train for the Marathon if I started now. So, I got home from Joe today at 6 and put on my shoes and went outside and took a few hops, and OUCH! Not ready...

Here's an interesting page of facts about what stress fractures. Read it and learn from my mistakes. And feel very sorry for me.

Monday, July 30, 2007

Donate Shoes!

Ciara's cousin Greg, who finished Badwater Death Valley's extreme 155 mile ultra-marathon (in 32 hours!) says this is a worthy cause to donate to, and I agree!

More about Java and jogging

How many times have you all waited for me to finish my cup of joe before we can start running?

In the constant back and forth about the effects of caffeine on exercise, it's still looking good for joe...not that I'm taking sides..

This article's in September's Runner's World.

Monday, July 23, 2007

OMG! Ciara's cousin!

It must "run" in the family. Ciara's cousin is running the 135 mile race through Death Valley. I'm actually speechless and have linked up the article she sent me for your, um..enjoyment...and we thought 6 flat miles down and back and a skinny latte was a hard workout!

Sunday, July 22, 2007

Mary,Anthony and Steve kicked some Park's butt!

Here are the results for Park to Park race that was last week. Go Team Joe!

And here's the result of Steve Bookman, although he raced under a different team...we all know Steve's really our own.

http://web2.nyrrc.org/cgi-bin/htmlos.exe/34469.1.658074892400002061

Did I miss anyone else? Give me a shout out if I did!

Also, I forgot to mention in my earlier blog that I wore the team shirt today for the running portion of the tri..and got recognized by some ladies who've joined us for runs! Also saw Doug from Jackrabbit who made up the delightful eye-catching shirts! And my own Mother saw me coming because of the shirt! Moral to the story: don't leave home for a race without one!

NYC Triathlon, July 22, 2007

Here are the stats from today's race:


139 Gabrielle Rubinstein 34 New York NY
overall rank;name;........................age....yadayada...

139 24:39 /9:35
swim rank & time/transition

161 1:42:10/ 3:34
bike rank&time/transition

88 / 54:54
run rank&time

3:14:49
overall time

Ouch. That's 139th out of about 220...not my PR...although I have to say that at least my run was better than the rest.

Details: I woke at 4:30 this morning. I set two alarms but was still restless with excitement (really fear..). I took the free bus they provide to be closer to my competition..ok, these people are generally superfit and heavily armed (muscles, that is). I chatted with a Tri wife - kind of like an army wife. She follows her hubby of 39 years all over the world to watch and support while getting to pick the locales and not do any competing herself..not so bad. Lovely woman.

When I got to the transition area - the place you run back to between swimming, biking and running- I had half an hour to get organized, which includes setting biking and running stuff in little piles by ones bike so as not to forget anything when in great haste later.

I had met a lovely young Israeli woman on Friday at the expo, who was competing to raise money for One Family, an organization for victims of terrorism in Israel. Orli. It was her first Olympic distance tri, so I used my calming skills to, well, calm her fears. We walked the roughly mile and a half from 72nd to 100th street for the start of the swim. N.B. always bring your own toilet paper for the vile port-a-potties.

My swim start was 6:40 a.m. The current was swift, and yet the swim felt interminable, perhaps because I was weaving all over the place. It's easy to get kind of lost in the action of the race..especially when swallowing the city's waste.

When i finally made it out of the water, I decided to take off my wetsuit before the half mile run to transition. That was a good idea. As the salesperson who sold me the wetsuit said to me yesterday, the wetsuit was engineered for swimming, not running.

I took my time at the transition area(as you can plainly see above) and started my bike ride, forgetting to take a Gu (can I blame that for my slow time? I sure can-it's MY blog!). The ride was beautiful, but seemingly endless and with some nasty hills. There were several dazed and bloody people on the side of the road as a cautionary reminder of the fact that we are speeding down hills on nothing more than 2 wheels, some chain and some very tight bicycle shorts. The end of the ride goes down to 56th street and turns around, and at that point I almost lost the will to live. Really, it was that painful.

Then, the part I'd been longing for: The Run! My strong suit! usually... My legs felt like lead, my will alone pushed me along for 54 minutes. I tried to pass as many disspirited runners as I could to make up for the other portions of my tri.

All that said (and that's already too much), I had a blast and can't wait for the next one! My competitive spirit has awoken, and I am sure that with enough training and expensive gear, I'll be able to beat this year's time and maybe...even last year's time!

Am now signing off to enjoy a well earned beer and a large meal. Cheers!

Monday, July 16, 2007

Drink from the tap!

Interesting article today in the NY Times about the trend of drinking bottled water. As athletes, we tend to drink a lot of water and should make the decision as outdoor sports enthusiasts, who need and respect nature, to not buy that bottle. Bring your own and fill it up! not only will you save hundreds of your own dollars a year, but you will not be contributing to plastic waste and greenhouse gases from shipping. Not only that, but tap water has flouride, which helps you to keep your teeth..bottled water doesn't have that. From what I've read, there is a rise of tooth decay in first world countries that parallels the rise of drinking bottled water(see article in link below).

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=health&res=9C0DE4DB1238F935A25754C0A961958260

Yes, Joe sells bottled water. But you don't have to buy it! Our tap water is tasty tasty! And, we'll soon be selling personal bottles to cart around in your purses and backpacks!

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Caffeine helps your workout!

Here is a concise article on how and why coffee is good for your workouts...not that I'm trying to get you to buy more coffee at joe or anything...but you might want to start taking me up on the offer of a small drip before our runs sometime and just see if you notice a difference in your performance.

My Marathon Goals

So, I thought I'd post my last Marathon results (4:16:52)up on this blog. Why not. I'll use it as a signpost that I want to pass. My goal has been to break 4 hours. Now with this stress fracture, I'll be 3-4 weeks behind schedule with my mileage and long runs. No matter. With teammates like you, I am sure I will reach my goal. Feel free to share your marathon results! When I can access today's race, I'll post those as well.

Today's Run

Today was beautiful outside! We had a lovely bunch of runners, new and "old"! Congrats to those who ran the 10k today and got to splash in Lasker Pool!

So, as I was riding my 23 year old steel bike today, wistfully remembering all the good runs we've had together, a funny thing happened...well, it probably wasn't so funny to the kid. Is this my fault? I'll let you decide. I was trying to pass a father and son, son aged about 5-7. I gently but audibly called out "on your left" seemingly causing the kid to get nervous and start veering all over the road, riding into a pedestrian. The pedestrian started yelling at the kid, by which time I was making a run for it, so to speak. I felt kind of guilty, knowing that this will not only ruin the kid's day, but probably be a memory that gives the kid fodder for a lifetime of therapy. Sorry kid.

Friday, July 13, 2007

Article yesterday

If anyone didn't catch yesterday's Fitness article in the NY Times, it talks about how dangerous running by highways because of the smog. It also says to run earlier in the day before all the smog builds up. Our run being by the West Side highway gave me pause. However, the earlier in the day, the less harmful the environment. Maybe it's time to have a Joe run in Central Park? At lease once in a while.

Thursday, July 12, 2007

How to race for joe coffee

It's slightly complicated because the Road Runner website doesn't list Team Joe under the regular lists. When you are signing up for a race online, you first choose the races you want, then the next page they show you has all your personal info and there is a scroll down list of teams. It's under Joe Coffee Team. Go Team! And don't forget to wear you team shirt!

First blog of my life!

Hi runners! Welcome to Team Joe's blog. This will be a good way for you all to communicate with each other, so I've been told. You can post races you want to do, shows you're performing, happy hours you're hosting, etc. Cheers! -Gabby