Happy Memphre Rap

On Friday morning CBun and STUR took off separately for Vermont's Northeast-
Both rabbits were pumped and excited to say the least!
Once STUR arrived she was greeted by Molly the pig -
She was kind of lazy - wasn't doing a jig!

Molly the pig, not doing a jig!

CBun was out touring the course on a boat-
She went all the way out to Canada she can gloat-

The Canada buoy!

The rabbits met up with the Kingdom Swim crew -
Andy, Jeff, and Robair - that'll do
Checked in - got their shirt and cap -
Then indulged in the pasta dinner, how ‘bout that?

Awesome message on the cap!

Trip to the store then time for bed-
So they'd be rested and the morning they wouldn't dread!
Their B and B was so sweet and comfy-
All that stayed there would certainly agree!

The B&B was comfy!

Saturday morning by the full moon light
PBun was finally going to ride HHPP dynamite

It was a nice fully moon!

They picked up KBun right at 6
Made it to Myersville lickety split
Parked in the "Park & Ride" lot to start
And thought a bit about the elevation chart...

Well they parked and they rode. Just like the sign said!

Their wheels were up by 8am
First talked to Sarah and her friend

Ready to roll!

The hills greeted you right from the beginning
It was the Pain Pain and at times it did sting
It was fun to see the Appalachian Trail crossing over their route
They saw it at least three times without a doubt

PBun would love to hike some of the AT one day!

There certainly was lots of climbing
In PBun's opinion not as fun as rhyming!
Saw a funny and large statue of a kitty
Of course had to get a picture you see

This picture does not do the giant kitty justice!

Stopped briefly at the Blue Ridge Mountain VFD
A doggy caught PBun's eye it would seem!

The message on the front of the engine said "Suck it up, Buttercup!"

Got to meet the cute Dalmatian named Ash
Who belonged to a volunteer fire fighter as a matter of fact

Ash was so cute and friendly!

Was the scenery worth it? That would be true!
Especially the Pen Mar High Rock scenic view!!

Pen Mar High  Rock was pretty spectacular!

PBun was happy to at least once do this ride
Must say too much of a good thing comes to mind
That is in her opinion too much Happy Happy aka downhill
Which to her ultimately was more of a pill

Taking a break halfway up to High Rock...

PBun had a couple of tunes in her head
One for the happy and one for the pain you can bet! 
Up in VT they arrived at the swim start in plenty of time -
And were so very glad that the sun would shine!
STUR finally met up with her "yacker" Jill -
She seemed ready to go, confident and chill!

Yacker Jill with STUR!

Her snack for the day would be a T-bone steak?!
This girl is tough cookie for goodness sakes!
STUR turned over her bottles and her food -
She asked Jill NOT to give her the steak, or she'd be screwed!
Meanwhile CBun was checking in with trusty Robair…
He gives the yacker process quite the flair!

Robair practicing his flair!

STUR waved goodbye to HER trusty crew -
Then hopped in to the 10 mile swim queue!

STUR is in the queue!

Found her kayak with Jill no problem at all…
They were both in for the long haul!

And Jill is off, too!

First 4 miles went by in a blink -
Couple of times she accidentally had a sip of the drink.
Soon after STUR reached up to her ear…
It unfortunately was her biggest fear.
Had her seasickness patch had fallen off?
It had and at first her anxiety went aloft!
Then she calmed down, there was nothing she could do…
Except just keep swimming, swimming, swimming! It's true!
Head down and swim; she finally made it to mile 6 -
Luckily her stomach was not up to any tricks.
Mile 6 is where you take a turn back towards the beach…
Even though it really is a long way to reach!
Jill told me she was going to hop out and pee -
She did it and got back in like a champ - whee!!
Soon all she could tolerate was a sip or two of Coke…
Good thing she had Jill take it in her boat!
The last few buoys were coming very slowly -
Her arms protested a bit - holy moly!
Finally, finally reached the last buoy indicating one mile left -
Believe it or not, here would be the real test.
Stomach was mad so she started counting strokes -
Then right in front of a support boat she tossed cookies - yes folks
Treaded water until the event was through -
"I’m fine, don't pull me!" she said, “Or I'll be blue!”
Next step was the seemingly unreachable pumpkin buoy -
Both CBun and STUR got mad at him – oh phooey.
STUR heard the cheering crowds and swam her heart out -
There was Andy, Jeff, and CBun without a doubt!
This year she finished looking pink not blue -
Wearing a wetsuit was the thing to do!

Happy finishers!!

CBun had also had one amazing day -
Lake Memphremagog is a great place to swim and play.
Both swimmers agreed the conditions were pretty variable -
Plenty of calm AND chop. It was never dull!

Kingdom bling!

The Rabbits now need a shower and a nap!
Luckily the B and B is super close - hand clap!!
After their rest, it was time to attend the after-party…
Time to have a beer, CBun and STUR did agree!

Cheers!

Once again the "Hitmen" were there to entertain -
Robair danced for one song, his dance moves were insane!
Next day they took a drive over to Jay's Peak…
Took the tram ride all the way up to 4000 feet!
Hiked around and saw a great view of THE lake -
Being up so high made it look fake.
Drove around next to see the Canadian border-
Along the way lots of cows and corn - yes sir!
CBun had to catch her plane back to DC -
So STUR went back to Andy and Jeff's you see!
Relaxing night, dinner, and a great day on Monday -
Then goodbye to Vermont she had to say!
As Saturday turned out to be a very long day
PBun spent the entire day relaxing on Sunday
Later that night she went out for a walk
But also ran a little – don’t scoff

Rainy Superhero Rap

AKA the Rainy Roadkill Rap! 

Saturday morning well before the crack of dawn
PBun and Jeff were off to ride with The Beast and Morgan before long

Ready to roll...not fully light out!

Biked to Four Mile Run then crossed the Potomac into DC
Then they ended up at Hains Point you see!
Riding around PBun thought she saw a Superman cape
It was a lady in a red T and yellow backpack for goodness sake
Later she did see a dude in a Batman T shirt
Standing along the road on his phone not being a jerk!
Early when the group was doing their second loop
Almost got taken out by a group of women across the road, that's the scoop

Poor Rocky!!

There was a poor raccoon lying dead in the middle of the road
Clearly he didn't make it back to his abode

Speed work, check!

As they returned going through Gravelly Point
Saw a guy puking near a dead rat in that joint
Before heading up to do the hill climbs
Stopped for Slurpees - this was wise! 

Slurpees are always a good idea!

After a couple of hill climbs on Old Dominion
Headed to the parkway called Fort Williams

Hello Fort Williams Parkway hill!

Hoped to say hi to friend Harriett
She wasn't home though - dagnabit
Two climbs, or three? The choice is yours
A 3/4 mile hill is what it is of course

They beat the rain...mostly!

Finished things off with a short brick run
On a 200 meter loop, it was kind of fun
It all in all was a successful day
PBun was glad she went out to play!
To warm up she and Jeff headed over to a Starbucks
It was the one where she used to meet RBud, aw shucks!

People were actually out there under the umbrellas!

For STUR and CBun would  the rain ruin the swimming plan?
Let's just say they wouldn't get a tan!
Got in a good two hours in the pool going back and forth -
STUR had a lane entirely to herself for what it's worth!
BLUR conquered a rainy ride with Al
He's an honorary rabbit now
This was her furthest ride to date
The rain didn't stop her, make no mistake

Rain cannot keep a good rabbit down!

Later on Saturday PBun's house lost power
But it came back on after several hours
Thankfully it hadn't been hot outside
And things were quite comfortable otherwise

It was kind of dark inside...

Sunday morning before first light
PBun walked with Riley, it was a delight
Then she ran several miles more
Before heading to swim practice, it was L4
The Beast also headed out when it was quite early
Over 2 hours on her feet and time at the track, surely! 
PBun met up with STUR and BLUR at the OKM pool
After the prior day's rain the water was perfectly cool

Goggles at the ready!

It had been a while since PBun swam long course
Was she happy to be back? Yes there was no remorse!
STUR had a nice group in her swim lane -
Although the peer pressure to keep going was insane!

They did it!

Then both BLUR and STUR went on a run in the neighborhood -
Avoided the rain,  got a few miles in, it's all good!
Later STUR spent some down time out in the yard
Hanging with the neighbor's pup is not hard!

STUR and the pup!

CBun found the hidden sunflower field
Were they still blooming? See what her pictures reveal...

Happy bees!

Still blooming!

Italian Steel Poole Rap

Saturday morning early, some rabbits met for a ride
Headed to Poolesville was not a surprise
Early on the rabbits did a short loop that had them go off road...
They would have skipped it if they'd only known!!
It was a recovery ride and the first half was flatter
But it warmed them up for the hills that would come after!

Beautiful bike ride views!

Mt. Nebo road was a fun little street
Though PBun could have done without the dead leg meat!
KBun and PBun saw a fox hopping in the grass!
Glad he stayed off the road as a matter of fact
Took a trip on Sugarland Road
And saw the concert later that night don’t you know?

Right, onto Sugarland Road!

Sugarland just reunited after a 5 year break!

Sugarland the band was way better than Sugarland the road!

Saw a few familiar faces along the way
Were they old Team Z mates? You don’t say!

PBun's first attempt at the 'portrait' setting on her phone!

In the end they saw the field of gold
Hundreds of sunflowers truth be told

So many sunflowers!!

They were just amazing!

The sunflowers offered an amazing view!
And a lady was even painting them – how cool!

PBun asked the lady if it was OK to take a picture of her painting a picture!

Meanwhile, The Beast and Morgan got a half distance bike in
They went 56 miles in under four hours – for the win!
Some speed work and hill repeats were their fate
Isn’t Ironman training great?
Saturday morning- STUR went over to Reston - real quick-
Got in a Reston swim practice before leaving with CBun on their trip.
CBun drove the Outback all the way to Robair's place-
The Rabbits were impressed with all his space!
Got a tour of his pad - so many kayaks and bikes-
And a huge van to carry it all in if you like!
Met up with Sandy and husband David for dinner-
At an awesome Italian place - it sure was a winner!
Woke up pretty early to get to the race -
And got an amazing parking space!
The Rabbits were chilling in the car -

Who could this be?

When what did they see from afar?

Well hi there, Robair!

A white shirt on a yellow kayak…
It was Robaire – they weren't under attack!
Finally, it was time to do the wetsuit dance -
There was a warm up swim, and they took this chance!

STUR and CBun are ready!

Ten minutes later it was time to line up for real -
Water was fine for wetsuits - what a great deal!

Look at that calm water!

The sky was certainly looking a bit threatening and dark -
They started the race anyway, not on a lark!

Thanks to the support crew!

STUR was happily swimming along
CBun was also feeling very strong
When lo and behold a support boat went by…
With a lady banging hard on its side!
That was the sign; athletes had to swim back to the start -
Now the lightning was off the charts!!!
The OWS turned in to swim for your life part 2
Return to shore is what the rabbits had to do
Went back to the car to ride out the storm
Believe it or not it was good to be warm

Would they get to go back out?

Then they were told it was official -
The race was cancelled - just that simple.
CBun and STUR high-tailed it back to Virginia -
After saying goodbye to Robair and all his charisma.
STUR made it home in time to hit the Old Town Pool practice -
Ended up with 3 miles of swimming as her status.
The Steelman OWS was well organized on a beautiful lake -
The weather wasn't their fault for goodness sakes!
PBun went to powerlifting for the first time in ages
A friendly competition was the wager
PBun's team won their team events but lost in the end
It was a fun and different workout but won’t be a trend
PBun enjoyed the group sit-ups and truck push
And most of her individual ones - woosh
The attack bike was super hard she thought
Of course she gave it all she got
She PRd her bar hang time and her strict curls
Though later she might not be able to raise her arms, oh well!
Sunday night she attended a fun family dinner
La Scala in Little Italy-Baltimore was a winner!

More fun family festivities for PBun!

Peak Half Rap

Saturday morning STUR headed over to the Reston trails-
Here are some of the bunny details:
The weather was perfect and she got in a bit over five-
To get to swim practice on time was her drive.
A mix up with the pools caused her to be a tad late-
Slipping in during warm up was her fate.
Practice with the Reston Masters was fast and furious -
Got in 4900 meters if you were curious.
Afterwards STUR and CBun stayed for extra laps…
Did they each have a peak goal? Perhaps!
CBun got in 24,000 meters for the week!!
She feels good and got it all in - no critique!!
STUR swam 9 times for 21 miles over the course of 7 days…
Inside her goggles her eyes began to glaze
The two rabbits relaxed afterwards in the lovely hot tub
Since time to relax they should not snub!
Saturday morning just after the crack
PBun went on a ‘hood run – how about that?
Afterwards she met up with The Beast and Jeff
Loaded up for Williamsburg – no jest!
Made pretty good time along the way
Stopped for lunch in Fredericksburg at Chick-fil-A!
Meanwhile, KBun and Lionel had already left
Arrived at Rev3 Williamsburg for the practice swim, KBun was not bereft!
The others arrived there in the early afternoon – sweet!
Packet pickup, athlete briefing – check and a new tire for the Beast!

On the dock at the swim finish!

While waiting for the Beast’s tire update
Did PBun checkout the Normatec recovery boots? Damn straight!

These were like giant blood pressure cuffs for your legs!

Next they met up with KBun for a bike course tour
Was it mostly flat with a couple of rollers? Sure!

Virginia IS for Lovers!
This sign was made out of recycled stuff - very cool!

 

There was a ‘hill’ that was familiar to a couple of those rabbits…
KBun and PBun had ridden it on the old Cap2Cap course with STUR - what!?
Yes – it was the bridge over the Chickahominy River
That bridge might have made a rabbit or two shiver!
After the course preview they picked up Lionel
It was time for dinner at Olive Garden, mind you!
Kris Kringle was apparently spotted by some of the group
Everyone saw his ‘sleigh’ in the parking lot after if you want the scoop
It said SNTAWGN on his personalized tag
PBun can’t believe she didn’t get a picture – what a drag!
Back at the hotel it was time to get tatted up
Rev3 Triathlon really knows their stuff!
There might have been a mishap on KBun’s hand
But the Beast came to the rescue with her sharpie…understand?
Sunday morning everyone was up well before the crack!
Gathered in the lobby by 5:10AM that’s not whack!
Made it to the park on time at 5:33
It was time to set up transition you see!

A nice view of transition!

The Beast and PBun were only doing the aquabike
So their transition area was kind of light!
Jeff and KBun were in for the whole shebang
Regardless, they were all a happy rabbit gang!

They are ready to roll!

It was a long distance from the swim exit to T1
Three of them dropped shoes off so they could run
PBun also planned to run it – but in bare feet
Her plantar fasciitis doesn’t bother her any more, neat!
The swim start was rolling based on 100 yard time
Everyone decided on their own where to stand in line

The 'road' to the swim start!

They partnered you up to jump off the fishing pier by 2s
PBun noticed she had sunscreen on her goggles – not good news!
Within the first 400 meters she got it cleaned off
Then she was good to go – no time to scoff!
Later there was some discussion about a moving buoy
Apparently a current had ramped up – oh phooey!
All four racers were happy with their swim
It’s on to the bike portion with no chagrin!
At first PBun felt like she couldn’t move
But after the first 20 miles she got into a groove!
There might have been a pit stop for her around mile 34
She was happy to get back on the road – that’s for sure!
The Beast crushed her first multi-sport in several years
The rest of the group was quite inspired it appears!
PBun and The Beast were craving something sweet
This vanilla soft-serve was the perfect treat!

Yum!

While The Beast and PBun waited for the others to finish the half
Took the opportunity to hang out with Mr. Peanut – and get a photograph!

Mr. Peanut even dropped the Team Rabbit gang sign!

They then had more fun by the Nutmobile
It was pretty nuts – for real!

The Beast and PBun being nutty!

Jeff crushed the run portion of his race
And KBun hopped on the podium in this case!

Way to go, KBun!!!!

All in all it was a fun and successful weekend in Williamsburg V-A
Rev3 Tri really goes all out for athletes by the way!

Not just 3rd place in her age group, but also the USAT Regional Championship!

Sunday morning was another beautiful day!
STUR did a short 5KEH run? You don't say!
Then she headed over to Old Keene Mill Swim and Racquet
Was it for the Lane 4 swim practice? You bet!
BLUR was there and had a great swim -
The chance of either rabbit getting out early was zero to slim!