Deep Eddy Makes Me Happy

Everyone in Austin raves about Barton Springs. Barton Springs is nice, but in my opinion, in the HOT of Austin summer, Deep Eddy is where it's at. It is a spring-fed pool (as I believe is Stacy Pool as well), and the temperature is usually around 70F. I think it settles around 72, which is just perfect to be refreshing without too shocking. In the winter, it will get down to the upper 60's... a bit too cold for me, so I go to Stacy which is a constant 80-ish. The thing about Deep Eddy is just the entire experience. For $3, you walk down these endless stairs (ok going down, but very tiring coming back up) and head to the left where the 8 lap lanes are. If they are all full of 2 people each (not circling) then people simply 'wait' in an unspoken 'line' for people to get out. Sometimes people are asked to circle...the length is 33 yds long, so circling is not that big of a deal; it is usually only 3 people per lane. Even if I am doing a workout, I am very open to sharing the lane. It's just the Deep Eddy vibe.

You cannot stop too long, because then, even in the HOT of summer, you start to get cold. I try to do my usual 'get in and warmup then go right into a main set without talking to anyone or inviting conversation', hammer out 3K or so then take a breather. If I am lucky, I will see someone I know and start chatting... at which point about 15 minutes later, I realize how cold I have gotten and voila! My workout is done! And the next happy customer takes my spot in the lane; it's such a nice flow of traffic.

Then comes the best part, the showers. After drudging up the 62 steps (ok maybe not that many, but it feels like it some days), they have this outside shower/change room and excellent showers. By 'excellent' I mean good pressure and hot! Even though it may be pushing 100 outside, after an hour in the brisk water, it feels good to bask in the hot showers. The best part is, when you leave, you usually have a bit of a chill from the swim that seems to help keep you cool for awhile. As I said, to put it simply, Deep Eddy makes me happy. If you are in Austin sometime, you should check it out for a splash.

Other news:
- Derick and I are having a house warming party on Saturday night! Quite exciting, I guess this is what you do when you 'buy' a house. We really do love this little house and I think our cat Shackleton does, too. Though, Derick thinks he may be depressed; we don't let him out since he got nailed by a truck as a kitten and I saw it happen. He ran straight to it. It was awful. I don't think he is depressed, though I must admit, I did search 'cat depression' the other day. He does not have many signs... he still grooms himself, eats, and will hang out in the house near us. I just think he wants to play outside. I debate allowing it every so often, but I think I am too attached to him to come to terms with the fact that he could get hit again...

- This Ironman training stuff is for real. I am starting to ramp things up for Canada in August; the 30th to be exact. I think I have done a handful of 70+ mile rides, and this past weekend was my biggie -- 90 miles! Since I didn't have my TT bike (my SRM had to be sent back for some TLC), I was on my road bike and didn't have any 'data'. So, I came home and Mapped My Ride (I know, I am a dork but I HAD to see if I hit 90!). My riding time was 5:15, and it was about 89.5; which in my book is definitely 90 miles. It was a pretty hilly course in/around Austin, and the most amazing part was that I ENJOYED it! I did this solo...

- Then came Saturday night, post-ride, when we went to see BRANDI CARLILE live here in Austin @ UT. She is one of the most amazing performers ever. Derick and I decided for some odd reason to take it upon ourselves to, well have a bit too much sangria before the show. Why? I really do not know. Maybe I was celebrating my biggest bike ride ever, maybe we were excited that we were 'out on the town'. In any case, we had dinner, some Sangria, then visited Mellow Mushroom across from the Texas Union Ballroom and had some Dogfish Head beer. Tasty stuff! Good beer is one of my vices. The show was beyond amazing, as she always is, but why, for a very chill show of 325 people (seated, might I add) did we do this to ourselves? Not so sure, especially since Derick did the Rogue Trail 10K the next morning at 7:30 AM and I did a 15 mile. Lesson learned? I cannot do this to my body when training for 7 hours in a weekend! But, it's all good. We have to learn these lessons somehow, don't we?

That is about it here. In all honesty, I am really enjoying my new routine sans-school (I took 2 classes @ Austin Community College this past spring). Currently, I can divide my days up with training sessions and work (Source Endurance). Work is going great, and I am really enjoying it; we have to count our blessings in this economy to be 'busy' with work, I cannot complain. It seems that minus just that one element, 2 classes 2 days/week, my time has opened up a bit and I can balance things very well. I just have to be cognizant of recovery, fluid intake and time management with this increase in training. But, the new challenge is great! That is what life is about.

And one more thing...a HUGE congrats to Dede Griesbauer, who recently NAILED an Ironman in Brazil. Dede trained here in Austin a bit a few months back; seems like a very cool girl. She won it with a 9:10! Absolutely stellar performance. And the most amazing part? I believe Dede is 40, or pushing it. I think that is simply awesome to see women doing lifetime PR's at that age. More power to her, and everyone else out there challenging themselves...

I am off for some dinner and a movie. Thanks for reading; and if you are in Austin, training in this heat, drink up! ...And, by that I mean water. :)