paradise

the other day i got a note from a designer friend if i would be a fit model for her for some photos for her portfolio. i of course said yes since i was indeed a super model before becoming a professional triathlete, and i love her, too, so of course i wanted to do it. and it was for cycling clothes, so that was fun, too. she was trying to decide where to do the shoot since she wanted good scenery and all. first we were going to head down towards crystal mountain and then go mtn biking and trail running after.
but once we all started thinking about it, we realized we'd be hauling 5 bikes and road riding gear, mtn biking gear and it was just getting to be too much. so location changed to Paradise up by Mt Rainier and we'd do a road ride and trail run. i hadn't ever been to Mt Rainier park before so i was really looking forward to it.
i met them at 6:30am and we got loaded up. we drove for a few hrs, met up with the photographer and then drove up into the park. we scouted locations, decided where we wanted the shoot and parked the van. burr, it was cold! super sunny, but burr! I took this photo with my iphone from where we parked. it was THAT amazing out.
we did the shoot which involved a few clothing changes, some riding towards and away, in circles and some standing there look good. then we had lunch. we drove down the mtn, changed into some casual wear and did some more photos. it was much warmer at the bottom. once the photos were done, we drove out of the park and said good bye to the photographer. we all changed into our cycling gear and got ready to ride back up the mountain. we had already driven up it so i sort of knew what to expect, but as we all know driving it and riding it are two different things.
on the way up i wore arm and leg warmers with shorts, a short sleeve jersey, a vest, booties and shortie gloves with some light glove liners under them. i packed a bunch of other things for the ride down since i knew it would be cold. the park was not that busy, but got much busier as the day when on. the drivers were mostly really good about having us on the road and a few would yell out words of encouragment as we were riding up. the grade was never so bad that i was ever dying. my workout was to be in zn3, so i was easily able to stay in it the entire 18 miles. the three of us stuck together the whole time, but we didn't do too much talking. while i was zn3 the whole time, the guy with us never got over 100bpm. he obviously wasn't trying hard enough. i had brought two bottles of discontinued LUNA Sport Electolyte Splash in Pinkgrapefruit and it was delicious. the wooded areas were amazingly wooded, and then we hit the snow. when we would be in the sun we'd be toasty warm, and then we'd hit the shade and it would be very cold. after almost 2hrs we were at the top. the trick to it all is to get up there, put on your layers and head down before you have the chance to get cold. so not a lot of enjoying the top, but enough to get a photo!
by the time we got up there, the parking lot was full and several people stopped to ask us about the ride. it is winter time and all... for the ride down i put on a dry base layer under my jersey, a wind breaker jacket, winter gloves over my glove liners, and a hat. i was pretty good temp wise for the ride down, but the ride down was really not very much fun. it was very scary. i'm not so big on going down hill, plus with the cold, the icy patches on the side of the road, the cars, the gravel.... it all lead to a stressful descent. i tried riding in my drops, but i have zero confidence in them and i'd just wind up going so fast that i wound up staying in my hoods for the most part. braking for 18 miles in the hoods is on the uncomfortable side. luckily, it wasn't the whole 18 miles, towards the bottom there are a few very fun miles where you can pedal hard, the road is wider and smooth, you are out of the snow and its just more fun. i think it took about 45 minutes to get back down. crazy! when we got back to the van, we made the decision to not go out for the scheduled run. i had a sore throat all day long already (i just didn't tell anyone) and it was getting late, almost 5pm, so we bailed on it. i felt like i had the energy to do it, but i also felt like if i did, i might be sorry. turns out i was right about that... but we headed back home and were treated to some amazing views of the sun setting on rainier - the whole mountain was pinkish orange! totally breath taking! once we got back to seattle, i jumped in my car for the 45 minute drive home. i was beat and feeling pretty thrashed.
sunday morning i was wide awake at 630ish and had not an ounce of ability to fall back asleep. not cool. it was a busy day and i felt terrible. my throat was so sore and the kids were driving me crazy. i felt back because i wasn't any fun at all and they were stuck with me since eric was out riding. they were going to a birthday party at 230 and would not stop about wanting to go to the party. they didn't want to go home or run errands or anything so finally i said fine, we will go and sit in the parking lot. for an hour. we sat there for a few minutes when sirus decided he had to use the bathroom and couldn't wait a single second so we left and went to the gas station. we all got back in the car and went to go wait the remaining 1/2 hr in the parking lot. we weren't even in the parking lot for more than 2 seconds when seamus decided she had to pee so bad that she was going to pee in her pants. i about lost it. we went into the birthday party place and everything was fine but OMFG. they had a ton of fun at the party and i just sat there. i didn't feel well, and i didn't know any of the other parents, so i just hung out. on the way home the whining started INSTANTLY. i couldn't beleive it, so we had no talking on the way home. i haven't ever done that before, but it was actually quite nice. i felt like a terrible mom, but ya know. sometimes no talking is best. and the even better part is that everytime i was about to lose it seamus would come up to me with open arms saying "awww, does someone need a hug?" aaakkkkk!!! NO I DO NOT NEED A HUG JUST STOP WITH THE WHINING!!!

so this morning after 10 glorious hours of sleep i feel better, not great but better. i did not do my workout on sunday which was just a short swim, and i am taking a total rest week today. i am taking the day off from work tomorrow, so i am just going to chill out and try to chill the hell out.