Tomorrow

My trip to Madison is now over. I made beautiful friendships, watched a savvy wedding and fell in love with a gorgeous city.

I can't wait to recap it all for you.

Tomorrow. :)

Healthy Spirits: New Releases

The newness.

1. Lakefront Fixed Gear American Red Ale

2. Lakefront "Big Easy" Imperial Maibock Lager

3. Sudwerk Imperial Pilsner

4. Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous is back!

5. Big Sky Buckin' Monk Triple

6. Bridgeport Highland Ambush (Barrel Aged Scotch Ale)

7. Anderson Valley Summer Solstice now available in cans!


cheers,

dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610

Hello from Madison!

Hello from Madison, WI!

I am currently up way too late on my sleepover with Savvy Julie and Then Heather Said. I'm loving Madison and will have much to report tomorrow. For now I need to get to bed to catch a few hours of sleep- farmers' market in the morning before the Madison Marathon expo!

Healthy Spirits: Beer of the Month Club June 2010...

...is now available for pick-up!

Also, a few people haven't picked up their BOTM selections from the last 2 months. Please retrieve them within the month to avoid having them shipped.

cheers,

dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610

Packing My Bags

Today has been crazy working and getting ready to fly out to Madison, WI, tomorrow, but it's been a great day! I began the day super early with a banana and English muffin with peanut butter.
Morning snacks included an apple and a Luna bar. Mmmm, Caramel Nut Brownie!
Lunch was an Amy's Indian Tpfu and Spinach wrap. I love these for a quick and easy lunch!
I feel like I am always eating. I picked up a Two Moms in the Raw granola bar from Starbucks mid-afternoon.
After work my new friend Alex and I headed to Whole Foods for a fun field trip. We had tons of fun browsing our favorite products, taking multiple samples and finally eating all the goodies we bought!
Alex is tons of fun. She's thinking of starting a blog of her own soon!
We shared some unpictured yucca fries... and I ate almost the whole bag of Food Should Taste Good chocolate tortilla chips! Yes, I ate about 5 servings of chips. It happens!
Alex and I also split a vegan peanut butter cookie. The edges almost taste carmelized. Oh, love.

After Whole Foods with Alex I spontaneously decided to head to yoga at my favorite studio down the street. It was so nice having to travel only 1 mile when it used to take me 35 minutes! I love my new town.
Now I am enjoying a Whole Foods strawberry bar while wrapping up last-minute details for my trip tomorrow. In just six hours my flight leaves to Madison, WI. I am working a Bondi Band expo- but I am also attending Savvy Julie's wedding with Then Heather Said! So excited!!

Have you ever met a blogger in a state other than your own?

Firestone Parabola in stock, read carefully

Just received a very small shipment of Firestone Parabola. We will be releasing them as follows:

-Beer of the Month members may call and reserve one bottle

-Everyone else is first come first serve with one bottle limit

These are going to go fast, good luck

Nate

Vegan at Panera

I failed to mention the intense sunburn I got in my Half Ironman race recap. My body was fine the days after the race... but my skin burned!! I slept in sunscreen the night before and applied it again roughly during each transition. Still, I got the burn of my life! :-/

Any tips on keeping skin safe during a wet/dry triathlon?

Things have been yummy in the food department.
Ryan and I ordered Infusion Tea and shared cookies (with her new kitties) at her house-- 5 mnutes down the road!!!

Tonight Brian and I went on a slow and steady 15.7 mi. bike ride. I loved getting exercise while still laughing and carrying on a conversation.
After the ride we headed to the Park Ave. Panera Bread in Winter Park, FL.
Ordering vegan at Panera is easy. I order:

-1/2 black bean soup
-1/2 classic salad
-whoe grain baguette for dipping :)

There's my catch-up. I'll see you tomorrow for a full days of eats!

Healthy Spirits: New Releases

First off all, I will address the PARABOLA issue. It didn't come in today. It will (probably) come in tomorrow. Ugh. When it comes there will be a post on the blog. Only people in Beer of the Month Club will be able to reserve bottles, and there will definitely be bottle limits. We are only getting a few bottles of this one and we want to make sure everyone has a shot at it. I wish you all the best of luck.

We received a couple great bottles today, which you will find below.

1. R.I.P.A. on Rye-He'Brew's Bittersweet Lenny DIPA aged in Sazerac Rye Barrels

2. Port Brewing Anniversary-10% Imperial IPA

3. Lost Abbey Tumblers and Stemmed Glassware!

4. Einbecker Mai Ur-Bock-Delicious, sessionable German seasonal

5. Gavroche Red-French Biere De Garde

Buffalo Belgian Bitter-A Hoppy Belgian Strong Ale from the makers of the fantastic Buffalo Stout

cheers,

dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610

Pushing My Limits

What a week it has been! I am currently in Fargo, ND after finishing my second day at the Fargo Marathon expo with Bondi Band. It has been a long week with little sleep, but I've loved it. I was able to explore downtown Fargo, a few parks and residential streets this morning on a solid 15-mile long run.
Tomorrow normal daily blogging will resume, but I wanted to spill some big news today.

Last Sunday I completed the Florida Half Ironman. It was my first triathlon and, although they still intimidate me to a point, I really enjoyed it. My body liked it, too. I wasn't sore at all and jumped right back into my training the next day (keeping it light with yoga).

I'm a girl with goals and I believe the only way to reach big goals is to build the bridge to get to them. I also live by the testament Do it now, do it now, do it now!! As a result, I moved a life goal up a few years...
I am registered for the Great Floridian, an ultra triathlon (full Ironman distance), this October!

2.4 mi. swim- 112 mi. bike ride- 26.2 mi. run

Yes, this is my biggest undertaking yet. Yes, I have a lot to learn about triathlons and a crap-load of training to do. But I am challenging myself and testing my limits... and that makes me feel alive!

I can't wait to share my experiences with training/nutrition for this!

Healthy Spirits: Marin Bourbon Barrel Aged Dipsea Barleywine!

This annual release is usually exclusively sold at the brewery, but the brewer was kind enough to sell us a generous portion of the cases (only 100 cases were bottled).

The already awesome Old Dipsea is brewed with an English strain of Brettanomyces and then aged for 10 months in Heaven Hill bourbon barrels. HOO HA!

If you're in Beer of the Month Club, you will be getting one of these with your June selections. For everyone else, it is on the shelf. Come and get it!

cheers,

dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610

Healthy Spirits: New Arrivals

The newness.

1. Drie Fontinen Schaerbeekse Kriek (bottled Oct. 2008)
2. Howe Sound Bailout Bitter(1 Liter)
3. Howe Sound Nut Brown Ale (1 Liter)
4. Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast
5. Mikkeller Black
6. Lucifer Glasses (beautiful goblet-style with a heavy, thick base)


cheers,

dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610

Florida Ironman 70.3 Race Recap

Yesterday I completed the Florida Half Ironman! I completed the 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike ride and 13.1 mile run in under 8 hours with a big smile on my face through (almost) the whole thing.

First, Caitlin needs to be recognized for being my #1 race supporter and photographer. She showed up at might house at 4:30 a.m. and never stopped encouraging me and laughing with me until much later in the afternoon. Plus, she took some awesome photos! Thanks Caitlin. I’m forever thankful :) Pre-race I fueled with an English muffin, PB, jam, a banana and coconut water.

We arrived to Disney’s Fort Wilderness around 5:20 a.m. The race started at 6:20 a.m., but I wanted plenty of time to take care of anything and everything since this was my first triathlon.

I wore Pearl Izumi tri shorts (the padding is thinner than regular bike shorts) and a Not So Deep V lululemon bra and lululemon racerback tank (for the bike and run). The outfit performed really well… except for my shorts being a little too big!

I immediately headed to my bike (which I dropped off the day before) in the transition area to get everything set up. Laying out my materials for the bike/run was kind of a shot in the dark! I basically packed everything from Caitlin’s list:

Swim:

Cap

Goggles

Sports Bra

Tri Shorts

Sandles

T1:

Bucket

Water

Two towels

Sunscreen

Fuel

Helmet

Glasses

Gloves

Shoes and Socks

Pump

Spare tire kit

Two water bottles, filled

Garmin

T2:

Hat/Bondi Band

Sunscreen

Extra socks

Running shoes

Anti-chafe stuff

Fuel

Body marking was fun. It’s neat to see how most triathletes look so much younger than they are!

SWIM

There were around 20 waves for the swim. I was about in the middle, beginning my swim 40 minutes after race start.

I always wet my hair before putting on the cap, so doing it all dry was a little bit of a challenge ;)

I was SO excited right before the swim. The music was pumping and the reality that this was the major event was about to start for me had me super excited. I was literally jumping up and down out of excitement!  I was able to splash around in the water a minute before our wave went out. I think the temperature was about 85- perfectly warm for a beginning swimmer like myself.

Then the tough part. I put my head under water, saw nothing but dark brown in front of me, felt all the seaweed and junk with every hand stroke… and I stopped breathing. I had a mini-panic attack as I watched my entire wave progress as I was frozen between my group and the start area. I flapped around trying to calm myself. After a minute I made my way to a lifeguard’s canoe and held on for a moment.

This was the scariest moment of my life. I definitely thought of quitting. Really, it seemed like the only option. It wasn’t that I was scared or just didn’t feel like tackling this… my body literally froze and I felt as if I could not breathe. It’s hard to explain that feeling unless you’ve been through it.

As I hung on to a canoe in a huge lake about to tackle my longest distance so far, I tried to calm myself. I said, “my name is Ashley and I don’t quit!” I reminded myself that I know how to swim… put one hand in front of the other and breathe. I let go of the canoe and trucked on.

The swim never felt totally relaxed, but I did it. I fell into my own groove that worked. In an odd way I loved it, actually. I took in air every other stroke.  I didn’t even mind the other athlete’s kicking/hitting me. And I actually didn’t fear the alligators. It was just me and the water :)

I felt so proud and strong finishing that swim!!!

Below is my favorite photo of me ever! I look hardcore, right? :)

I had a short run to the transition area where I was just as interested in chatting and photo opportunities as I was getting ready for my bike ride!

After some difficulty with my helmet randomly not fitting I got everything I needed and headed out for the bike leg.

BIKE

Running is my thing, but I am definitely strongest when on the bike. I rode the first part of the ride at about 20 mph. Then I got terribly bored (no headphones allowed on a very boring course) so I made friends with Nolan from Chicago. (Hey, Nolan!!!) We rode maybe half of the ride together at an easier, conversational pace.

I was so hungry during the ride that I ate everything they threw at me. I had 3 gel packs, 1 Powerbar and 1 Gatorade.

Apparently I was the only one who thought it was Swim Vinyasa Bike Vinyasa Run!

RUN

Getting off a bike that my butt had been glued to for more than three hours and then prepping to run a half marathon was weird! I hadn’t practiced brick workouts enough, so I didn’t really know how my legs would react.

The course was three loops of a varied-terrain course. It was half pavement and half grass. Unfortunately this course was pretty boring with lots of straight out and backs…. done three times.

Nothing screams hardcore like taking the time for a photo op ;)

My legs felt amazing for the run. Most people walked but my body was actually wanting to run. I think my legs operate best on exhaustion- some of my best races were within a week after a marathon!

I had another strategy during the run: eating chocolate chip cookies at almost every aid table. Hey, whatever works! (ps- The cookies and Powerbars weren’t vegan. Oh well.)

The run is where I noticed my real weakness: I have no “game face.” My body wanted to run, and I was in a RACE, but I was more interested in having fun. On the third and last lap I didn’t run as much and chatted with Nicole from Michigan.

It’s nice to have fun during a race, but I need to know how to focus and push hard when it counts. I could have biked harder and run faster very easily but I chose slowing down and chatting. That’s okay some of the time, but soon I want to see what my full potential is and make a time I can be proud of!

I sprinted a little to the finish and BOOM! I finished my first half Ironman. What a feeling! There’s a sweet mix of pride and relief that keeps me running to the finish lines.

Final Stats:

Total time: 7:51:36

Swim: 1:05:34

Bike: 3:38:26

Run: 2:47:12

 Reflections:

The race: It was challenging but doable. The three legs keep your body guessing, but they also help keep you from getting burned out from one sport. I was outside working my butt off for almost 8 hours, but it didn’t feel that intense. When I finished I immediately thought how I could do more. (hint hint)

The course: I hate to bash races, but this course was boring. There were a lot of out and backs and nothing especially interesting to look at. Not having headphones at all for almost eight hours definitely didn’t help. Also, it was insanely hot. I completed the run portion at the hottest part of the day (after noon) with little shade.

My training: I felt so strong this race! I never trained specifically for this triathlon. Instead I ran a bunch of marathons, biked two metric century distances and swam as much as I could. I don’t regret my training decisions at all. My body was well-conditioned and ready to handle the challenge, even though I hadn’t followed a specific training plan or done any brick workouts (one exercise followed immediately by another to mimic a tri). I might have performed better with a few bricks, but I don’t think I lost out.

Afterward: I feel awesome. My body was sunburned beyond belief (even though I applied sunscreen during each transition and slept with it the night before), but my muscles weren’t sore at all. Even more of a reason I should have pushed harder!

More than anything I am proud of myself for overcoming the swim. I pushed myself to swim 1.2 miles in a dark, deep lake full of alligators when I had only swam 1,000 m. in a lap pool. Everything in my body begged me to not swim, but I pushed forward in the hardest moment possible. Fear was rushing through my veins and closing my lungs, but I conquered it!

What’s next? How do I like triathlons compared to running and biking races? Am I really crazy enough to sign up for a full Ironman now? You’ll have to check back tomorrow for that. ;)

Of course I basked in my 70.3 glory by applying my hard-earned bumper sticker before even leaving the parking lot!

Have you completed a triathlon? Is a half or full Ironman in your future?