The Petty's Quest To Complete a Century Ride, Half Ironman, Marathon, etc...

65 Roses Race Report

2011-04-10T17:14:00.007-04:00

My friend Jane talked me into running the 65 Roses 5K race with her this weekend. The race was in Cleveland, TN - so I had to get up early and drive 45 minutes to get to the race site (Lee University). I arrived about 45 minutes before the start of the race because I wanted to give myself plenty of time since I was unfamiliar with the area. Packet pick-up was well set up - so I grabbed my stuff and headed back to the car to get set up. I told Jane I would meet her at the start line, which I had no idea were it was....Luckily a huge crowd started morning in one direction, so I followed.

Once I reached the starting line I did not see Jane anywhere!! It was so hot and humid, I did not want to run at all!!! A day before the race I was hoping to run the 5K in under 28. However, once I awoke and went outside I realized that I was not going to meet that goal. I ended up running the race in 29.12, which is not bad because I have not run in these conditions since summer of last year.

Weekly Rap Up...

2011-04-10T16:58:00.005-04:00

This was a hard week of exercising. Mother nature was playing an evil trick on us with all the heat and humidty...among other things. This week we did not have church service on Wednesday, so we switched our schedule around a little - so Gary mowed on Wednesday so we could do an open water swim on Thursday.

The Thursday night swim did not go as well as planned at all!!! Gary and I purchased wetsuits a couple of weeks ago and wanted to try them out b/c our first triathlon is fast approaching (May1st). From diving I knew the water temp wouldn't play that large of a factor since we had our suits, but I did not take into account we would not swim with gloves, booties, and face masks. Once in the water our feet went totally numb and hands/face felt like pins were pricking every inch. Needless to say, the first open water swim didn't happen.

Then Saturday's run and bike workout was miserable! It was so hot and humid....so much so, I was wanting to quit cycling and give up triathlons. Alas - we made it through a 50 miler in 86 degree weather with humidty at 75%. Sunday early morning ride was a dream compared to Saturday's ride.

Weekly totals: r~10 miles, b~71 miles, s~3400 yards

A good day.....

2011-04-05T21:06:00.005-04:00

Today was a productive day, when it came to training. This morning Gary and I woke up and went to the gym to swim. I ended up swimming 1900 yards, while waiting on him to complete his 1500 yard workout. Then at lunch ran with some friends and ended up running 5 miles. After work, Gary and I met up with another friend and went on a 21 mile bike ride with some monster hills. The "Wall", so the locals call it, was not as bad as I thought. However, Jason (our friend) talked Gary into riding to his house and then he would drive us back home b/c it was getting late. Those last three hills in his subdivision were killer hills!!!! Killer hill #1 - had to weave back and forth 1st have of hill, then realized I wasn't going to make it....very-very hard to un-clip going up a freakin' big hill. I cannot believe I didn't fall!!! Killer hill #2 - not as bad as #1....nothing is bad as #1. Killer hill #3....looked at it then got off my bike to walk up the hill.

Great day!!! Tomorrow is strength training day, which I am kind of looking forward to now. Picture below is me at my very first triathlon. Sports Barn Sprint, which occurred in August - the hottest month in the south!!! Plus, I did the bike ride on my mountain bike. Soon after the tri I purchased my first road bike b/c I was tired of hearing "on your left". Oh and the sign was made by my sister before she went back home to Chicago....so my mom and aunt held it up and yelled ever time they saw me. Gotta love that kind of support.

Plans Change....

2011-04-03T20:56:00.004-04:00

Last night I was talking to Gary about running before church and he convinced me to go run with him after church b/c he wanted to sleep late. Well after church we went and ate lunch by the creek in Ringgold - it was so nice. Afterwards we came home and did a little house cleaning to let our lunch settle. Before we left the house to go over to the park he said that he was going to take the dog and just run a couple of miles with her, meaning I was going to basically run 9 miles by myself :(

Well about two miles into my run I realized it was such a beautiful day and I did not want to spend part of it alone running, so I doubled back until I ran into them and we ended up hiking trails instead. Therefore I ran only 2 of the 9 miles and hiked 3 miles. I do think it was worth it, but that means I am going to have to run 9 tomorrow.

I just could not resist her cute face!!! I just felt so bad about not spending any quality time with her b/c she was by herself yesterday while we were out riding bikes all day.

Hope tomorrow will be a little more productive - training wise.

53 Miler Complete

2011-04-02T20:47:00.006-04:00

Well - it was super windy today, felt like there was 20+mph wind gusts. We started out meeting some friends up at Grandview Medical Center in Jasper, TN around 1pm. Due to time constrants we only rode 23 miles with them (their daughter had her first softball game at 4pm). The wind on this route was crazy!! The route is wide open, so we had nothing to block all the wind gusts. It was really hard to get into the areo position for me because I have never rode in this type of weather condition. After our friends headed out Gary and I had a decision to make (1) do another out and back in Jasper or (2) head to Chickamauga Battlefield Park to ride.

Gary and ended up going to the park and I am very glad we did. I think the trees blocked a lot of the wind, which was a relief. We started at the visitor's center and ended up in a rural area in Rock Springs and then headed back to the visitor's center. (Only chased by 1 dog!!) We finally finished our last 30 miles for the day :)

Afterwards, Gary said he was pretty sore - I told him that I was ready to run if he wanted to go ahead and get that in. The look he gave me made me realize that it would be best if I kept my mouth shut. 53 miles - 3hrs 36 min - @ 15mph pace....pretty happy about this due to the wind gusts that seem to always be in our face!

Up next.....9 miler before church tomorrow. Now....time for bed!

It's been awhile...

2011-04-01T21:01:00.014-04:00

Apparently, I have not posted anything since 2009! So, I've either been busy or have completely forgot about this blog. After about 30 minutes of trying to figure everything out again, I think I am back on-line, so to speak.

Basically, I am going to start blogging again to keep myself accountable for the training Gary and I are about to endure. What you ask?? Well, May 21st we are doing our 1st century bike ride. We are also about to beginning training for our first half ironman, which takes place in August. Then we will also be training for our first marathon coming up in November (unless I decide to sign us to for the one in Chattanooga in October). A marathon back-to-back, I'm not too sure about but we will see.

Tomorrow - we have on schedule a 50 mile bike ride. It's going to be a beautiful day, so I'm pretty excited about it. Sunday - we have on schedule a 9 mile run.....I am trying to get ready for the Chickamauga Chase 15K coming up April 16th.

Until next time.....

Ever wonder why things happen to you???

2009-07-29T20:27:00.002-04:00

So, do you ever wonder why things always happen to you? Well you are not alone....

Earlier this month I was doing my usual morning swim at the Rock and I was perplexed because guys were coming up and talking to me (never happens). Usually I swim alone and hardly anyone comes in the pool area unless they are going to the water fountain. However, this morning a couple of guys were swimming in the pool with me. They actually stopped to speak to me and also a couple of guys that came to use the water fountain said something. I thought to myself - "Wow, it took about a year and a half but these guys actually think of me as a dedicated person....."(at least some of their comments suggested this)

Anyway, after I finished my workout I went into the locker room to change. When I started straightening my swimsuit back out - I noticed that I could see my hand, which was on the other side of my suit. In horror, I lifted my swimsuit up and noticed that you could see straight through it!! Oh well - it's not like the guys haven't seen anything before.... Needless to say when I got home the suit went in the trash and I ordered another one.

haaaaaaaaa, why me??

The Las Vegas Adventure...

2009-04-25T14:09:00.017-04:00

This year I had to opportunity to go to Las Vegas due to a work related conference, so I decided to take the company up on the offer. I knew that my mother has always wanted to go to Las Vegas and Gary did not have any interest in going, so I decided to take her with me. I only had one really big concern about taking my mother and that was, "Could she handle a 5 hour flight?" because she is prone to panic attacks. I discussed this with her and she decided to call the doctor to get an increase in milligrams to some medication. We flew out of Chattanooga early Saturday afternoon. It turned out to be the perfect day to fly, it was really beautiful up in the sky. Plus, my mother did excellent the entire time, other than she talked very loud on the plane.

We landed at 10pm Vegas time (1am Chatt time). To go ahead and get adjusted to the time change we stayed up until 1am Vegas time (4am Chatt time). When we finally made it up to the room we went straight to bed. 30 minutes after falling asleep I was awaken by the horrible noise. It took a couple of minutes to realize that the noise was coming from my mother!! She was SNORING very loudly!! I couldn't wake her up, so I just put two pillows over my head and got a couple hours worth of sleep before we woke up and went out site seeing before my first class.

By the end of the first day at the conference I was worn out, due to lack of sleep. However, I got my mother and I some tickets to go see Bette Midler (her fav) for Sunday night. So, I got back to the room changed and we headed to Caesar's Palace for dinner and a show. The show was great!! I loved all of the show girls and Bette Midler is really funny. When we returned to the hotel after some more site seeing, my mom decided to stay up even later so I could get some sleep. It seemed like a great plan, however I think I slept for 2 hours before she decided to come to bed. So, at 2am in the morning I found myself at the foot of her bed crying and wondering if I could get away with murder. I felt horrible, I eyes are bloodshot and I'm so TIRED!! I finally got the cushions off of the couch and went into the bathroom to make myself and bed. I then shut the door, covered up with some towels and went to sleep. Then at 5:30am I was awaken by my mother again, but not by the snoring, but by her having to use the restroom. HHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAA!!

After about 4 hours of sleep I had to get up and attend classes all day long. My eyes are still bloodshot and I feel like I'm on crack or something of that nature. When the 8 hours of listening to people talk all day mom and I went out and had some fun with some more site seeing and going out to eat at this great restaurant at MGM. Also that night I went up in the Eiffel Tower to get some pictures of the strip when it is all lit up - which was really cool!

By the time we got back to the hotel that night we were worn out from all of the walking we have been doing. My mother suggested that she say up later and let me sleep for a couple of hours before she came to bed, but told her that there was no need in that. I decided to make my bed in the closet and to just shut the door when I was going to go to sleep. She felt bad about it all, but I didn't care because I was about to turn psycho due to lack of sleep and someone was going to fall for it and it wasn't going to be me.

Ah.....sleeping the closet worked!! I felt a lot better having 7 hours of sleep under my belt, so after that night I slept in the closet for the rest of the trip.

All in all, I think my mom and I had a really good time. I love that I got to spend some time with her. (Oh and just for you to know we didn't win any big money.) However, I think Las Vegas is something everyone should see once, but I don't think I would ever go back. I say this because of all of the partying that goes on constantly and all the crazy people that come up to you asking for your picture and getting hit on by drunk guys. YUCK! Not to mention the pictures of naked women on cards that are littered all down the strip and all of the half naked pictures of hotels advertising either clubs or shows. Plus, in the hotels they have workers dressed in hardly nothing dancing up on bars, tables or dealing card games.

Below can you guess which bed is mine? hahahaha......

There are a lot of other stories I can tell, but maybe later because this blog post is getting to be a little too long.

Paradise or Alcatraz??

2009-03-25T20:29:00.006-04:00

Well as many of you know, I work for a large insurance company in Tennessee. This past Monday the department I work in moved into the new corporate headquarters. The people that do not work for this company call the new headquarters "The Golden City on a Hill"; however some of the people that actually work for this company call it "Alcatraz" (or "Camartraz"). Right now there are only 2,000 employees on the new campus out of 4,000 that are scheduled to be there when all of the construction is completed.

So far I only have a couple of complaints, basically all relating to privacy (the cubical walls are not very high). It does feel funny though working around so many people. For instance, this morning when I was walking from the garage to the main entrance, I felt like I was part of the herd of cattle that was being led into the field (so to speak). Sometimes when I am walking around on campus, I feel like we should all be in white spacesuits speaking in Orkan.

Buildings 5, 4 and 3 are the only ones completed - buildings 1 and 2 are still under construction. I cannot imagine what it is going to be like working and parking in the same garage with 4,000 people!! Anyway, once everything is complete the campus will contain a total of 5 buildings. Some perks in these buildings will include a Starbucks, Smoothie Bar, CVS, Medical Clinic, Credit Union and a gym. I think all of the construction will be completed in June and then all the tours for employee family members will begin. So, if anyone is interested just let me know and I'll keep you updated on when the tours will start.

Sorry - I didn't publish any photos, but the weather is bad so I didn't think the pics would turn out. I'll try to put some pictures out sometime next week.

The Thirty Something Body

2009-03-18T19:57:00.005-04:00

I remember growing up, my mother always use to say, "Enjoy the way you look now because when you turn 30 your body will start the middle age change." As like all teenagers, I thought "Whatever, that woman doesn't know what she is talking about." By the age of 28, I thought maybe I could beat the system (so to speak). I was convinced that a women's body would change only to those who had children. So, I swore off from having kids....At 30 I actually believed I won the fight to keep my youthful figure I have always known.....So, I continued to have my candy bar or brownie or M&Ms (you get the picture) once a day or every other day. Life was good!

However - nature apparently was running about a year behind schedule. It's finally hit - I have the "Thirty Something Body"!!! Dimples are appearing and things do not appear to be placed correctly anymore (meaning a little drop has occurred). OMG!!! I cannot make this stuff go away!! No matter, how much I go to the gym or how much I run it just doesn't help. I do not eat as many sweets anymore, but now when I think about them another dimple appears or my pants seem to get a little tighter. It is so frustrating....Today I was feeling defeated, so like any sane person, I went and got a pizza for supper followed it with a handful of M&M's.

So - for those of you that think you can beat nature, I'm here to tell you - there is no way that it is possible. Your day will come eventually. ....wwwwwhahahahahaha

Enjoy your youthfulness----I'm heading off to do some yoga.

Everyone Has A Story.....

2009-02-24T19:39:00.008-05:00

I find it amazing that everyone's story about how they were led to Christ is just so different. I love to hear the stories people tell about their journey and what life was like before they were saved - I think the sharing of these stories also helps the non-believers....

I've been contemplating about blogging my story for over a month now because it is so easy to judge people. However, I realize that it might actually help someone out there in the blogging world. After I came to know Christ is took about 8 years for me to realize that Christ does forgive and has forgiven me for all the stupid things I use to do. The verse, that helped me out the most with this was Isaiah 43:25, "I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins." - this post will probably be a little long, but I'll do what I can to shorten it.

Growing up as a little girl, we did not go to church. I'm not sure why, but I think it was because my dad wouldn't go (just a guess). I really did not start going to church until close to the end of my senior year in high school. During my childhood I can only remember a handful of times we did actually go to church. It was on Easter, because everyone else goes on Easter or it was because I went with a neighbor. I remember going to my neighbor's Sunday school class one particular time because the teacher asked everyone to draw what God means to us. I remember thinking, who? what? I don't understand? So, in turn I just copied my neighbor's drawing.

I also remember growing up my mother sitting at the kitchen table reading her Bible, which I really didn't have a clue about (other than some of the words were in red and others in black). While she was doing that my dad would be in the living room reading his newly sent Playboy magazine. Which I might add, that he was reading this out in the open, not trying to hide anything. Plus, if we ever wanted to see what was illustrated in the publication, all my sister and I had to do was look in the bathroom magazine rack or in the floor of his side of the closet. (if you wanted to know - yes we looked did through them) I remember, taking some of his really old magazines (the ones in the garage) and selling them to other kids....Yep, I was that kid that sold your boy his first girly book.

Next, I took my first drink of alcohol when I was in 5th grade. My best friend had a father that was an alcoholic, so he never knew anything was missing. Needless, to say after that first night of drinking when I came home the next morning I was vomiting in the kitchen sink. I just told my mom that my friends sister had a stomach bug, so I must of caught it.

So, as you can imagine by the time I was in high school I had a pretty messed up mind. I continued to drink, heck I could even get served alcohol at one of the local bars downtown and I was only 18. Plus, I had been in multiple adult book stores getting things some people could only imagine. With these two previous sentences, I think you can put one and one together on some of the things I was doing. - So, I don't think there is a need to go into any more detail.

My turning point.........It was funny how everything turned around. I remember it was close the the end of my high school career and the guy I was going a lot of these "things" with ask me if I knew God. I of course, said no, not really why? Then we talked about God for the course of about thirty minutes to an hour and this guy told me what God meant to him. Afterwards, we started attending church however we still participated in the things that were not considered good in the sight of God. Finally, we broke it off and I got my life straightened out. I started attending Woodland Park Baptist Church and the preacher at the time taught the Bible in ways that anyone could understand.

Well - that it, that's my story. Oh - and Gary knows all about this, I told him everything once I thought our relationship was getting somewhat serious. Plus - I confessed everything to my mom as well....

What Am I Thinking.....

2009-02-18T08:47:00.002-05:00

Ok - today I have a different feeling about school and not sure if I can make that kind of commitment again. So, I might just take the GMAT to see if I score high enough. Then from there do some more thinking to see if this is really what I want to do.....

Got to go at work - trying not to get caught blogging.....:)

Back to School, Are You Serious??

2009-02-17T20:11:00.004-05:00

The department I am currently working in is looking for two more employees. Today my department, as a whole, got together to go over all the resumes and I noticed that a lot of candidates had or were in process of receiving a master's degree. Actually, the job description stated master's degree preferred.......AHHHHHHHH!! I graduated back in August 2006, so I guess 2.5 years is a pretty good break. (or at least enough time for me to forget about all my negative feelings toward school)

A couple of months ago I started talking to Gary about going back to school and he said that he would prefer that I did not go back. --Only because he doesn't want me to work for the rest of my life. (I do not agree with this, because what would happen if he left this earth before me or he lost his job??) However, after I expressed my concerns about my departments job posting preferring a master's degree tonight, he finally gave me his blessing to go back to school. We talked about it for awhile because I was looking to just get a general MBA, but he stated that it would be a lot better if I got my Master's in Accountancy instead. He said that being more specialized would be a greater advantage in the workplace. Plus, I would then be eligible to sit for the CPA exam. So, tomorrow I will probably get a GMAT study guide and start studying to take this test to see if I can actually get in grad school.

OMG!!! I cannot believe I'm talking about going back to school, but it should take me less than two years (by my calculations I will only need 10 classes)......If I actually get accepted into the program, I must maintain a 3.0 and any class that I receive less than "B" I will have to repeat. OHHH - I hope I don't end up in the loony bin!!

It Started Before Sunrise....

2009-02-08T14:25:00.004-05:00

Saturday morning I was suppose to go to a Women's Ministry Brunch, however my plans changed. This past week I've just been plain mean and evil to Gary. I don't know if has been due to lack of sleep because of getting in bed late, or lack of sleep because Reagan has been sick again. (Stupid rock eating dog!) So, instead of going about pretending that all is well in the "Petty" world, I decided it would be best if me and my faithful companion (Reagan) to go out for an early morning run.

Reagan and I headed to the park before 7am, so when we got there it was still dark but the sun was just about to rise. We started down on one of our normal roads and during this time I spent it in prayer and voicing my problems to God. During the first mile we had trees on each side of us, but then when we came upon an open field on our right it was truly amazing. I say this because the sun was shining bright over the tall trees to my left and was highlighting the hill of the field. It seemed like God was just letting me know that He has always and will always be there. After reflecting on everything He has done in my life and again letting Him know how much I am struggling with anger towards others and taking it out on Gary - by the end I said that it was all in His hands and I cannot change or do anything without Him.

Needless to say after my early morning run, I felt a lot better about things. Which is good because by that afternoon drama crept back into my life......

Until next time.

What you never knew you had.....

2009-02-03T20:51:00.013-05:00

Well.....this month is going to mark the 2 year anniversary of my dad's death. It's true what they say, you know - You don't know what you have until it's gone. Throughout my childhood my dad always pushed me to get the best grades and to try to be the best I could be in sports. I remember getting in trouble for C's and him saying that a "B" means that you could have done better. I even chose my first college major, computer networking, just to please him. After graduating with the degree, which I hated, I ended up going back to get my accounting degree. During my pursuit of my accounting degree, he was still calling asking about my grades. There were plenty of times that I became physically and mentally sick, because I knew that I had to get an "A" just to here good job from him. I hated him for this!! It was so stressful and I think Gary was sick of putting up with me during school. I would always read my chapters - cry because I didn't think I could do the homework, then do it. Then I would study - cry because I thought I was going to fail, then pass. I HAD TO GET AN A IN EVERYTHING...

Other than pushing me in school, I made the mistake of telling him about going to the gym everyday. Then I graduated with my second degree he would always call asking if I was still working out in the morning. The days I didn't I would hear disappointment in his voice, which ate me up for the rest of the day...until the next phone call we had and I could tell him that I haven't missed a day. So, as one could tell something I enjoyed doing became another task in trying to please my dad. Don't get me wrong though - I loved my dad, but it was like a love-hate relationship.

However - now that he has been gone for two years, I really miss those phone calls and that pushing I use to get from him. I would love for him to know that I have been going to the gym for the past two years without hardly missing any days. I know that he would love to hear that I run in 5K's and 1/2 marathons......Here lately it's been hard to push myself to go to the gym (I'm still doing it though) because I don't have anyone pushing me, no one encouraging me to go, or no one patting me on the back saying "good girl".

Sorry - I'm just rambling on here....I just wanted to get all my thoughts down so hopefully I could quit thinking about it.

It's been two years and I really miss him. I miss everything he said to me, even though I hated it at the time - I understand everything now and want to hear it again. Love ya, dad!!

I cannot believe I've joined the cult!!

2009-01-21T20:07:00.003-05:00

Well it was only a matter of time for me to start blogging. It seems like almost everyone I know has a blog, so why not join the crowd.

Anyway - for the next four months it looks like I'm going to be living the single life. (Gary working late all the time to put out the annual report.) In the previous years of our marriage when this time comes around I drive him crazy always calling asking when he is coming home. Well now I have developed some hobbies - (1) joined a running group, (2) Take Reagan to Agility class, (3) play Wii and of course, (4) scrapbook. When he finishes up in April I hope it is not hard to adjust back to being married....haha j/k.

Oh well - that's all for now. Hopefully, I'm going to set aside some time to post blogs about bible studies and various other things that I find interesting.