A swim through the Russian River...a bike and run through wine country...

This past Sunday, July 17th I endured one of the most physically and mentally challenging events in my life thus far.  My friend Ashley and I competed in the Vineman 70.3 Half Ironman.  This race was serious business...Ashley and I had the bright idea to sign up for this event over a year ago, thinking we had plenty of time to train.  Little did we know that life, school, student teaching, subbing, and coaching would hinder our training process.  However, we made the commitment and buckled down a few months prior to the race.  We did our most serious/intense training only 4 weeks prior to the race...definitely NOT enough time to train!

The Vineman 70.3 takes place in and around Sonoma California.  It is a 1.2 mile swim upstream and back downstream in the Russian River, a bike and run through the rolling hills of the Sonoma Vineyard.  I have to mention these "rolling hills" were NO JOKE.  First let me take you to the days prior to race day.

On Friday, July 15th Ashley, Charley (Ashley's pup) and I left Whittier at 6:30am on our journey towards Sonoma.  We picked up Ashley's boyfriend, Brian in Santa Barbara on our way.  With all of our stops, it took us nearly 12 hours to reach Santa Rosa.  Friday night we stayed in Santa Rosa with Ashley's parents' best friend, Joanne.  She was so kind to open her home to us and feed us a healthy, yummy breakfast in the morning.  

On Saturday, after breakfast we all (Ashley, Brian, Charley, Ashley's parents and Joanne) went for a nice walk around a nearby lake.  We picked fresh blackberries and tried to relax before heading to race check-in.  We arrived at Windsor High School to check in, get our race packets and explore the expo...wow, this was overwhelming.  There were some serious competitors in this race as well as Pro-Triathletes.  This is where I began to have a bit of a breakdown.  We were tracking the water temperature the previous week and it was sitting between 74-76 degrees...however, at race check in it was 71 degrees!!! I forgot my wetsuit at home and got REALLY nervous about swimming without a wetsuit.   Ash and I immediately jumped into my car and drove to the swim site to take a dip.  After standing in the cool water for a few minutes, my nerves calmed a bit and I was able to get a grip.  It wasn't THAT cold after all...but we were going to be swim UPstream against a small current! After our quick dip, we went back to the hotel to gather ourselves for an early dinner and bed.

Sunday + Race Day!  Several of Ashley's friends were in town to either race or cheer us on...so we all woke up at 4:30AM!! We woke up feeling nervous and excited all at once.  By the time we got our coffee and tiny breakfast, parked and walked to the first transition area...I had FIVE minutes to get ready for my swim.  As I stretched and waded into the Russian River, I quickly noticed I was the ONLY one without a wetsuit.  So I did a quick swim warm up and headed to the in water start area.  Everyone was treading water, before I knew it they counted down and we were off! I swam steady in the murky water, tried to avoid being swum over and grabbed.  I kept a steady pace and finished my swim in about 32 minutes, just 2 minutes over my original goal...which I had made assuming I'd be wearing a wetsuit!  Once in the transition area, I took my time to change into bike shorts and stretch.  Then I was off on my bike for the next few hours.  Our bike was through the beautiful, rolling hills of wine country.  It was overcast and even rained a little.  The toughest part of the bike came at the 45th mile, when I had to ride up a 383-foot hill climb over a mile and half!  Ashley's friend Liz rode by just before and gave me some encouraging words to get through the climb...I made it and it was mostly downhill the rest of the ride.  I was able to reach speeds of 34-36mph!!  Once I reached the last 5 miles, I got a burst of energy and booked it to the run transition.  Again, spent some time changing into more comfortable running shorts, going pee and reapplying sunscreen! At about the 3rd mile of the run, a gentleman ran up next to me...and in true "Erin fashion" we of course became friends.  Steve ran the next 10 miles with me, we pushed each other through each mile water station and counted down our miles together.  The last 3 miles were brutal...they seemed to take longer than the first 10!!  Steve and I worked through the pain and rounded the final corner.  I sprinted to the finish line, seeing Dash on my way!! (Side note: Dash informed me the night before that he was coming up, I couldn't believe it...he drove a quarter of the way Saturday night, then woke up early and made it there to wait for me at the finish!!).  It took my last bit of energy to reach the finish line, as my hamstring was cramping.  I crossed and nearly fell over...then this overwhelming amount of emotion rushed over me and I started to tear up a little.  I completed my first half ironman (hardly trained) in 6 hours and 55 minutes, just under my original goal time of 7 hours or less.  I completed the swim in 32 minutes (30 min original goal), bike in 3 hours and 33 minutes (3:30 original goal), and the run in 2 hours 27 minutes (2-2:30 original goal)!  

It has now been 4 days since this incredible accomplishment and my body is starting to finally feel normal.  I'm already beginning to look for another race (not such a big one) this summer!  I feel I will begin lightly training (to stay in "tri shape") by next week.  I know, I might be a little crazy.  It is truly a "high" to complete such a race...there are no real words to truly describe the feeling. :)  I'll post more photos soon... 

I am a Master in Education (completed blog entry)

Wow!  These last few months have been insane.  I began student teaching once I received my CSET results in February, as I was finishing girls water polo season.  My girls' polo team made it to CIF quarterfinals and lost in a heartbreaking game in the rain to the team who moved on to be the CIF runner up.  It's OK, I have a young team and lose one senior starter.  Next season it is on!!

February 7th through May 18th was possibly the busiest 16 weeks of my life! I was placed with two of La Serna's top English teachers in sophomore and Junior classes.  I was responsible for classroom management and lesson planning.  Through Holly and Karen's (my master teachers) guidance I survived my 16 weeks of student teaching. 

In addition to student teaching, I also served as head coach for boys and girls swimming at La Serna.  Along with my coaching staff, we coached 125 swimmers through a successful season winning league on all 4 levels (girls frosh, boys frosh, girls varsity, boys varsity).  Several swimmers swam their best times at this meet and qualified for CIF.  The next week we took our swimmers to CIF prelims and finals.  I had 1 swimmer win CIF in her individual event, several swimmers placed in their individuals and my boys 400 free relay won CIF and broke the school record!  Our girls 200 medley relay placed 2nd, breaking a school record.  Our girls 200 free relay won CIF, thus placing both girls and boys overall in 3rd our of 63 schools! I feel very accomplished as a first year coach at La Serna.

Not to add anymore to my plate, but I also had 2 classes, well 3 technically, this semester to complete my master's and credential program.  These classes kept me very busy with projects, presentations, assignments, etc. 

Often times, I calculated that I worked for 20 straight hours, constantly shifting gears from teacher to student, to coach always planning, organizing, or on the go.  Several cups of coffee were needed to jump start my day at 5am after 5 hours of sleep, and caffeine was necessary at 3p to continue my day, well into the darkness.  Despite all of my craziness, with the support of family and an awesome boyfriend...I made it.  I completed the program and swim season.  This week is our swim banquet, which will officially close La Serna swim season.  Then begins summer.  I'm back at Friendly Hills Country Club as aquatics director and running a summer 16 & under girls polo program for my JV girls and incoming freshman.  A busy summer ahead, but after these past 16 weeks it'll be a piece of cake!

I'll definitely be updating more frequently now that I'm out of school, provided the world doesn't end today! I'll keep you all posted on the job search too!

Peace,
E   

I did it!!!

Yesterday I received my long awaited test results for the CSET (California Subject Examinations for Teachers)!! I have taken this test several times (I'm a terrible test taker) and desperately needed to pass this test in order to student teach this semester...well, I received the test results and.....I PASSED!!! ALL 3!! There are actually a total of 4 tests, but I passed 1 previously.  Now I officially have passed all 4! This is an amazing accomplishment for me and had me a little worried.  The subtests are for a credential in English and I did not major in English, making this test really difficult!

So what's next for me?  I'm waiting to hear from the high school where I am student teaching to find out WHEN I can start.  I'm hoping to get in this week.

This week will conclude the regular season for Girls' Water Polo.  We have a big game today for the League Championships...then our last game Friday before we begin the CIF tournament next week. Next week the high school swim season begins, overlapping with polo season...from high school swim season, I roll into country club swim season (summer job).  I will graduate with my master's and teaching credential in May!

I am so stoked and ready to move on with my life!

I'll update again soon!

P.S. Please click "Be a Follower" so that you receive updates when I update. :)

Ciao!

A Mile a Minute

Over the past year and a half or so, I have adopted a motto to live my life with "forward momentum", hence the name of my blog.  It's a little reminder to continue moving forward no matter the road blocks I encounter in my life. :) 

I have decided to write my annual Christmas letter in a blog format this year for two reasons: (1) Postage & printing is super expensive; (2) I am actually going to try and keep you updated on my insane life (if you're interested) throughout the year! :)

This year in a big nutshell...

Grad School-I can see the light, finally. 
Spring semester was very busy with school and substitute teaching.  I took the most units I've taken as a grad student, registering for 9 units, which for a graduate program is beyond full time.  The classes kept me very occupied, between reading over 200 pages per week, observation hours, projects, presentations, etc.  I made it through Spring semester with straight A's.  I decided to get ahead in my grad program by taking 2 classes over summer, which proved to be difficult with my very busy coaching schedule in the summer.  However, I managed and closed out summer classes just days before I left for my trip (I'll get to later).  Fall semester has definitely been the most busy I have EVER been in my life, I think it's been months since I smelled roses, or any flowers for that matter.  Fall was the most difficult semester in school yet.  I enrolled in two classes, one of which required a TPA (Teacher Performance Assessment), a very silly California State requirement for teaching credentials and my master's class, which required a 25 page literature review at the end.  Both classes were actually beneficial to my future career as a teacher.  My professor recommended that I pursue my doctorate once I gain experience in the classroom...mad props for me! :) I finally finished the semester a week and a half ago and have 6 weeks of a much needed brain break!

Working Many Jobs...
To add to my busy academic life, I held several jobs this past year.  I'm still obligated to Whittier College as a Graduate Assistant for Men's Water Polo and Swimming.  Through the Spring and Summer semesters, I was responsible for attending swim meets and water polo tournaments to recruit high school athletes for Whittier College.  In May, I returned as the Head Coach and Aquatics Director and Friendly Hills Country Club (FHCC).  Working with young children over the summer is refreshing.  Though it can be challenging at time, their innocence invigorates the soul. When you take a moment to listen to a four year old, they have quite a lot to say and it is usually down right hilarious! Returning from my big trip (yes, I'll get there...just building it up), I hit the ground sprinting! I started one day after my return preparing for the Men's team to arrive at Whittier College.  We had about 10 days of "Camp" or "Hell Weeks", which entailed practice three times a day!  Then school started and we practiced from 6-8a or 7-8a and 7p-9p daily.  Our team was displaced from a pool this season because WC is building a brand new Aquatics facility, therefore we traveled about 15 minutes to another local pool.  This made for late nights with the men's team, after driving them back to campus, then home it was nearly 10p!  I worked in the WC Aquatics office Monday-Thursdays, then subbed on Fridays when possible.  I taught a bodyscultping (exercise) class to unergraduate students on Monday and Wednesdays as well. In November, I became the Head Girls' Water Polo Coach at La Serna High School.  Girls' season is through February, in which I will then pick up the La Serna High School swim team. I have officially turned in my high heels and business suits, put the flip flops on and stepped onto the pool deck year around.  This is exactly where I should and want to be.  

Fun & Family Stuff...
This year was a big year in the Brown household.  My brother, Kevan obtained his driver's license and began driving over the summer.  This fall his high school water polo team won CIF (similar to States) for his division!  My sister, Amanda graduated from high school in June and is now attending Cal State Long Beach, living on campus!  Dad started with a new company this year, which he loves.  In addition to the many jobs Mom CA (Jayne) holds, she added one more, she's now a sports club leader for a free after school program at the elementary school.  It's been an adjustment to spend her days at the school from 830a to 6p, however she is enjoying the role model/mentor she is to the children.  Mom and David are still living in Melbourne and doing fabulous.  They are living their lives positively and have such a close bond with each other.  Though I miss them terribly in the holiday season, I know that I will see them in a few short months, which with my busy schedule will go by in warp speed!

For Amanda's graduation, I took her to Scotland and Ireland in August.  It was the most spectacular trip! Mandi and I, and my cousin Nicki joined a Contiki tour in Edinburgh, Scotland and traveled through Scotland and almost all over Ireland.  Our tour group was comprised of 45-50 people between the ages of 18 and 35.  We saw remarkable scenery and experienced Scottish and Irish Culture in addition to being crammed on a coach with wonderful people!  The three of us made friendships with people from all over the world, friendships I hope we can keep for years to come!  We arrived in Edinburgh during the largest art festival!  We experienced true Scottish culture through comedy, mini plays, and the Military Tattoo Festival, which had nothing to do with Tattoos! It was actually a "concert" of bag pipes and other military bands.  Truly a fabulous show!  We traveled through Scotland, into Glasgow and took the ferry into Northern Ireland.  From there, we visited Galway, Cork, Kilkenny and Dublin.  We stayed a few extra days in Dublin with friends we met on the tour and definitely did not want to leave them!  Overall, fantastic experience with my sister and my cousin.

On the horizon... I am going to enjoy my 6 week brain break from school, while coaching the girls' water polo team through the winter season.  I plan to spend New Year's in Big Bear with my new guy and new friends!  I hope to student teach in the Spring semester, then graduate with my master's degree in May.  I'm in my cousin Jeni's wedding in March, then will celebrate my 30th birthday in April....yes, I'm turning 30!  I'll also return as the Head Coach and Aquatics director at FHCC next summer.  Hopefully I will find a teaching position in English for Fall of 2011.  I plan to make it home to Florida in September for on of my best friend's (Ed) wedding.  Unfortunately, as of now 2011 doesn't have any international travel plans, however I know I'll keep busy and will be planning an international trip for 2012! :)

I hope that you all have a wonderful Christmas and Happy New Year.  May 2011 be a year of new beginnings and good things.


Come what may,
Erin

P.S. I'll post Christmas and New Year's pictures after New Year's. :)