Inspired by Anna (thanks for the great updates and photos) and reminded by Meegan to put finger to keyboard, here's an update on what I have been up to for the past few weeks.
For those of you I haven't seen, I had a fantastic week in San Francisco. We stayed in the Castro district which was pretty out there and enormous fun. We did heaps of things, among the most memorable being cycling across the Golden Gate Bridge and taking part in the Bay to Breakers annual fun run, a 12km race in its 99th year. With 30,000 entrants, the whole city gets out to support the race, and entrants vary from serious athletes, to fancy dress runners, to floats to the more than a few who run it naked.
At the last moment I changed my plans to add on two weeks in Europe, split between South West France and the UK. It was great to surprise family and friends and I wished I had stayed longer, but I am supposed to be job-hunting...I did manage a couple of short swims in the local lakes,which were probably a lot cleaner at the start of the summer season than the end. They were small and safe enough to warrant a traverse and were surprisingly not as cool as I had expected for late May. As usual in France, I encountered the same sort of mild bewilderment that I receive when I go out for a jog! I'll assume that it isn't me/my body that evokes that reaction, and more the fact that you just don't see the French out exercising.
Since being back in NZ, job-hunting has been the focus (no joy yet). On the leisure side I am doing a one or two sessions at the Teps in Haydn's womens' classes, but my progress has been unremarkable (at best)! I am also trying to get to Steve Farrell's Wednesday evening and Friday morning sessions, but am nowhere near as hard core as the rest of the girls who are swimming with the Tri squad!
So nothing else for it but to get back into the ocean, where at least I can boast being staunch and stoic, albeit at the expense of technique! So far the core group of nutters apart from me has been Richard, Geoff Carter (swimming in togs as training for Cook Strait) and Hamish. However this week we were joined by Vic and (Jon?). Geoff's thermometer had the water at under 12 degrees this week, but we think it may be out a bit, so we will re-test - maybe we are not as hard as we think! Geoff's wife Helen is there to meet us as we come out of the water, and makes sure that Geoff gets a dousing of hot water and a warm drink ASAP - he is still shivering in the cafe half an hour afterwards, wrapped up in warm clothes like the Michelin Man. I can no longer keep up with Richard, who is heaps faster. Up until this week, he had led me to believe that no training and lots of rest was all he was doing, but now I know the secret!
For the past couple of weeks we have been lucky enough to have clear flat seas, and have swum to buoy 5. The previous Saturday was magical, if a little dangerous! It was the weekend of Helen and Meegan's marathon and Auckland was covered in thick fog. We had to make sure we could see the shore at all times, because it was very disorienting, and we could scarcely make out the buoys. When we finally sighted one, it looked far closer than it actually was, because you couldn't see anything else in relation to it. It was so quiet out on the water, and really felt as if you were in your own private little world. When I wonder why I am still battling the cold and doing this, then that is one of the experiences that makes it all worth while.
So for the next few weeks, I am trying to focus on a few swim technique sessions, plus getting into gear for training for the Auckland Half marathon. Unfortunately this will have to be combined with a treat and wine withdrawal, having gained a few kg since coming back from Europe and doing lots of comfort eating and drinking!
On Friday we are off to see Big River Man at the film festival, so who knows what new adventures this might spur us on to?!
PS Sorry the images and formatting are a bit off, but I am struggling to get to know how to use the Mac at home, and it was difficult enough to download and upload photos, let alone know how to change where they appeared on this page!
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