My ankle is still swollen (cankle), so it's a little difficult to fit into normal (and athletic) shoes. Not a huge problem. Even though my achilles did not have to be detached, it was still "manipulated" in order to make room for the doc to shave off the bone spur, so it is SORE. Thanks to my Computrainer spin-scan function, I can clearly see that I'm favoring my left leg (surgery was on the right) and that my "right" foot pedal stroke is not smooth at all. While I'm completing my workouts, I'm trying hard to fix this so I don't create a permanent imbalance!
I still can't put a whole lot of stress on the achilles, particularly when I "plantar-flex", or point my toe. I have no problem pointing the toe w/o any stress or weight on it, but I can't push-off or stand-up on that toe yet :( Eccentric stress, like walking down stairs, is painful too. My next doctor appt. is next week, where I may be cleared to start some light jogging... At this point I couldn't jog, but we'll see how recovery progresses over the next week!
Anniversary & Camping: Since the weather was SO awesome over the New Year's weekend, Dan and I decided to take our new RV out for it's first FULL maiden voyage! We packed up our stuff, some groceries, my bike, and our dog Winston and headed for Lake of the Ozarks, MO! We had a GREAT time, but had our share of RV nightmares too... here are the highlights:
Cooking was fun and saved us $$, as we usually eat out for every meal on vacation! We brought snacks and supplies for sandwiches, omelettes, chicken/dumplings/vegetables, and adult beverages!
Our second wedding anniversary was on New Year's Eve! With 65 degree weather, we celebrated with:
Could it be anymore perfect??
On New Years day, we slept in, relaxed, and enjoyed a lazy morning.
In the afternoon, I seized the opportunity to get some HILL training on the bike! I had a great time averaging 24-25mph up and down and around the windy hills going OUT on my out-and-back route, but I was greeted with some of the stiffest winds EVER on my way back! I was pushing some serious watts on the flat sections just to average 16mph, my legs BURNED going uphill & into the wind, then I was scared sh*tless going downhill with nasty crosswinds! I am used to putting my head down and hammering on flat IL roads, it looks like I'm going to need to do some WORK on hills this year!
That evening we started our journey back home and stopped in St. Louis for the night. Dan is such a CHAMP driving our 31ft. monster- the crosswinds were not only challenging on the bike, but on the highway as well!
In St. Louis, we stayed an RV park in the middle of the city- not exactly what I would expect for "camping"! It was only a short walk to some major attractions, and we had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe!
The crazy wind continued through the evening, sometimes waking us up to a (literally) rocking RV... the temperatures also were quite cold with the windchill.
We woke up the next morning to FROZEN pipes!! Yikes!! We were not prepared for below-freezing temps (only made so by the wind). After heating up our bottled water supply in the microwave, we were able to thaw out the pipes and get rolling back home.
Once we back in McLean county, we stopped at a campsite to dump our tanks.. and to our dismay, our grey tank had frozen on the DRIVE up! We had bought 2 space heaters, so we planned on plugging them in letting them do work on the tank...but then our outlets blew out, and we were left with NO electricity to heat up water or use the space heaters- DARNIT!
We took the RV out to Dan's parents house and with the help of his Dad, they used a blow-dryer to thaw the tank and dump it. Crisis averted. We still haven't figured out the outlet thing. We tried resetting it at the power center, and they DO work when we plug the RV in to an external power source... we think we tripped a breaker on the generator, which supplies the RV power to itself when we turn it on.
We've definitely learned our lesson about cold-weather camping...next time we'll have a skirt, heat tape for pipes and the tanks, and foam piping!
So that's it for now! I'm still enjoying time at home with the hubs, but I'll be getting ready for the new school year pretty soon- we have 1 1/2 weeks left!
Finally, I'll be posting soon about some of the exciting REV3 stuff that you may have seen floating around the internet... REV3 will be running across America (3000 mi!) to raise $100,000 for the Ulman Cancer Fund, and you can help! Spread the word, donate, and/or be a relief runner for the 10-person crew along the way!
ALSO, REV3 is starting an internet-based group coaching program!! With a start-up fee, you'll receive a racing kit, $25 off any REV3 race, sponsor discounts, a full training program, and access to the group forum. Each month after that you'll pay a $50 for ongoing coaching and forum access. You'll be able to attend group training sessions, course previews, and training recon's of the courses. More info to come!
Cooking was fun and saved us $$, as we usually eat out for every meal on vacation! We brought snacks and supplies for sandwiches, omelettes, chicken/dumplings/vegetables, and adult beverages!
Our second wedding anniversary was on New Year's Eve! With 65 degree weather, we celebrated with:
- a big breakfast
- a long hike at the State Park in 65 degree weather (achilles did OK)
- a trip to the local winery
- some shopping for new outfits
- and a dinner cruise to ring in the New Year on the Lake!
Could it be anymore perfect??
On New Years day, we slept in, relaxed, and enjoyed a lazy morning.
In the afternoon, I seized the opportunity to get some HILL training on the bike! I had a great time averaging 24-25mph up and down and around the windy hills going OUT on my out-and-back route, but I was greeted with some of the stiffest winds EVER on my way back! I was pushing some serious watts on the flat sections just to average 16mph, my legs BURNED going uphill & into the wind, then I was scared sh*tless going downhill with nasty crosswinds! I am used to putting my head down and hammering on flat IL roads, it looks like I'm going to need to do some WORK on hills this year!
That evening we started our journey back home and stopped in St. Louis for the night. Dan is such a CHAMP driving our 31ft. monster- the crosswinds were not only challenging on the bike, but on the highway as well!
In St. Louis, we stayed an RV park in the middle of the city- not exactly what I would expect for "camping"! It was only a short walk to some major attractions, and we had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe!
 |
| Winston loved playing with Mr. Giraffe. |
We woke up the next morning to FROZEN pipes!! Yikes!! We were not prepared for below-freezing temps (only made so by the wind). After heating up our bottled water supply in the microwave, we were able to thaw out the pipes and get rolling back home.
Once we back in McLean county, we stopped at a campsite to dump our tanks.. and to our dismay, our grey tank had frozen on the DRIVE up! We had bought 2 space heaters, so we planned on plugging them in letting them do work on the tank...but then our outlets blew out, and we were left with NO electricity to heat up water or use the space heaters- DARNIT!
We took the RV out to Dan's parents house and with the help of his Dad, they used a blow-dryer to thaw the tank and dump it. Crisis averted. We still haven't figured out the outlet thing. We tried resetting it at the power center, and they DO work when we plug the RV in to an external power source... we think we tripped a breaker on the generator, which supplies the RV power to itself when we turn it on.
We've definitely learned our lesson about cold-weather camping...next time we'll have a skirt, heat tape for pipes and the tanks, and foam piping!
So that's it for now! I'm still enjoying time at home with the hubs, but I'll be getting ready for the new school year pretty soon- we have 1 1/2 weeks left!
Finally, I'll be posting soon about some of the exciting REV3 stuff that you may have seen floating around the internet... REV3 will be running across America (3000 mi!) to raise $100,000 for the Ulman Cancer Fund, and you can help! Spread the word, donate, and/or be a relief runner for the 10-person crew along the way!
ALSO, REV3 is starting an internet-based group coaching program!! With a start-up fee, you'll receive a racing kit, $25 off any REV3 race, sponsor discounts, a full training program, and access to the group forum. Each month after that you'll pay a $50 for ongoing coaching and forum access. You'll be able to attend group training sessions, course previews, and training recon's of the courses. More info to come!
4 comments:
Looks like a fabulous trip. Now, I'm TOTALLY wanting anRV!!!
Happy Anniversary
I'm so glad your foot is healing well! Congrats on your anniversary too!!
What an awesome way to break in the new ride! love it.
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