Just like last weekend, I spent my Sunday riding up and down the GAPS.

Unlike last weekend, this time, the weather was absolutely beautiful!

I may have been oblivious to the basketball hoop-la down in Houston, but I witnessed plenty of madness here in Georgia.

Like Drew running to the top of Neels GAP.  It takes me 40+ minutes to ride my bike to the top of Neels. Drew RAN it in under an hour! CRAZY!

Drew's secret: Post-run Mexican Coke!

The madness continued as Betty, best known for running through Atlanta in long sleeves, running tights, a hat and gloves (in July), chose to soak her legs in the icy creek. INSANE!

Fortunately, I held it down for the rational folks with a relatively easy training day. But my workouts are about to get much more exciting and take a  real turn for the loony bin. I have some crazy training scheduled for this weekend and I cannot wait!

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First things first – proof Coach Diablo held up his end of the bet: 

That’s his happy face.  

Rain poured in Atlanta this weekend, but that didn’t keep my friends Betty, Drew, and I inside. We headed up to the North Georgia Mountains to ride the GAPS.

What are the GAPS?

I get this question a lot, so  I Googled it to find the official answer:

Sometimes I find dictionary definitions unecessarily boring, so I also drew a picture:

So when I “ride the GAPS” I’m riding my bike uphill, between what feels like the two highest mountains in the world, until I finally reach the point between the two peaks. Then I get to go down the other side, only to start climbing the next GAP.

I think out West “GAPS” are called “passes” but I’ve never heard a Westerner says he’s “going to the PASSES.” I guess Southern Charm really doesn’t exist in the West.  Or caps lock.

The GAPS are my favorite place to ride. I love riding uphill. I absolutely hate descending, but I’m hoping with practice I’ll grow to loathe it a little less.

This was my first trip to the GAPS in 2011 and it was as humbling as ever. Drew and Betty are training for Ironman St. George in early May and they were riding so strong! We escaped the rain, but we did have to deal with a little fog:

Drew & Betty: Oh no, it's foggy! What do we do? Ride like mountain goats!

The good news – I don’t descend any slower in fog than I do on clear days! The bad news – I still get passed by snails and small children regardless of the weather.

We had a blast and plan to return very soon!

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Last weekend the University of Georgia Women’s Swimming & Diving Team fell just short of their 5th National Championship crown. The Lady Bulldogs came in second to a speedy group of Cal-Berkeley Golden Bears, but I couldn’t be prouder of my alma mater. The Dawgs fought hard to the bitter end, finishing the meet with an American Record setting performance in the 400 freestyle relay. Very impressive!

The Dawgs’ stellar performance was one of a couple things that inspired me during my race at the Publix Georgia Half Marathon on Sunday. The other was the Pease Brothers, running their first official race together. The trio crossed the finish line in an amazing time of 2 hours and 5 minutes, and I know this is just the beginning for Team K-Peasey!

My race was a bit of a surprise. I’ve been working on my aerobic fitness and most of my running has been slower than half marathon pace. Coach Diablo warned me it might take a little while to get my legs going. I fully intended to get to the race early enough to do a good warm-up, but that’s easier said than done. At 5am Sunday morning I was much more interested in finding out who won Saturday night’s NCAA swim meet than getting on the earliest MARTA train, so when I finally made it to the start line I only had a few minutes to spare. I may have been a bit late, but at least this time I showed up on the right day!

The first four miles of the race I was cursing myself for not listening to El Diablo’s long warm-up advice. I hurt so bad I wasn’t sure I could run the full 13.1 miles. But I knew I couldn’t quit. The Swim Dawgs didn’t quit, even when they knew they couldn’t win the meet. The Pease Brothers didn’t quit, even when people told them their efforts were hopeless. My little half marathon seemed so small compared to those battles.

After mile 4 things started to get better, and by mile 9 I was feeling GREAT! I passed a bunch of my Dynamo teammates and friends volunteering and cheering along the race course. It was so fun seeing them! I finished strong in a personal best time of 1:26. I was super excited, especially since I felt so good at the end. It was very nice to find out I had more endurance than I thought!

The half marathon was a huge win for me. It gave me a little confidence boost as I head into the summer triathlon season. I know I still have a lot of work in front of me, and I’m definitely not complacent, but it’s always nice to get a little reassurance that things are moving in the right direction.

My other weekend win came from the Dawgs. While they didn’t capture the NCAA Swimming & Diving Championship title, they did manage to trounce Stanford, which means I won my bet with Diablo!!! He already accepted defeat via Twitter:

@diablodelverde: Congrats to the UGA swimmin’ women Dawgs and alum, @haleychura 2nd at NCs and a convincing win over my Cardinal. Time for me to pay up.

Now I’m looking forward to posting some  fun pictures of my Cardinal-loving coach donning Georgia Red and Black next week!

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As I grow older, the world seems to grow smaller.

Sometimes having connections in unusual places can be a really good thing; like when I went to the airport with my jet-setter friend DJ Kidd. The ticket agent took one look at my very large bike box and commented “you must be with Mr. Kidd, no luggage fee today.” It made me feel kind of awesome.

But last week when I heard about the devastating earthquake in Japan and resulting tsunamis in the Pacific, my thoughts were instantly with some of my favorite people, currently in Japan, Hawaii and the West Coast. Luckily, even though I feared the worst, everything turned out ok for my friends, though the images of Japan are still really sad.

It’s kind of wild how something happening so far away could have such an immediate impact on me. Truthfully, I know I wouldn’t be the same person without my friends, both near and far. Thank goodness for social media keeping us all connected!

Here in Atlanta, things are starting to pick up, training-wise. The recent beautiful weather coupled with a few great rides and runs has me looking forward to my upcoming races.

This weekend I’m running the Publix Georgia Half Marathon here in Atlanta. I’ve lived in Georgia long enough to call Atlanta home, and there’s nothing I love better than running through some of my favorite parts of the city. The half marathon also marks the official start of Walking with K-Peasey, which is sure to be a huge success.

I officially registered for my first triathlon of the season – the Rev3 Triathlon in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Olympic distance race (1500 meter swim, 40k bike, and 10k run) isn’t until May, but I’m already excited about it. I raced in Knoxville last year and loved it. Now I’m committed to getting as many friends and teammates as possible to join me. All races are more fun with friends, so if you’re thinking about racing in May come to Knoxville!

Finally, the Women’s Swimming & Diving NCAA Championships start this Thursday. That means by Saturday night I need to have all my Georgia T-shirts clean and ready for Diablo to wear next week to celebrate the Bulldog victory! Luckily, I have Ebeth to help me out with this – yes, my mom sent my coach a surprise care package:

Apparently there was a long line at the post office...

It’s going to be an exciting week!

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