Instagram story viewer> @pitbu11et> Posts

Monica Apolonia

@pitbu11et

2K

followers

1298

following

✨ sober type 2 hobby hoarder ✨
💌 sharing training + postcards from big days outside
➜ IM 70.3 haines • IRONMAN jax 2027

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

Download All

“Of all the fire-mountains which, like beacons, once blazed along the Pacific coast, Mount Rainier is the noblest.” - John Muir

I reached the summit of Mt. Rainier on Sunday at 5:18 a.m, a dream realized on a foundation of years of stacking fitness, courage, and experience. The ascent wasn’t easy for a multitude of reasons, and many have joked about my life insurance policy and questioned my sanity and lifestyle choices.

I’m not sure what exactly called me to Rainier - subtly at first, then steadily - but I feel humbled and honored to have been allowed passage to stand at her peak.

My connection to this mountain (Sloane keeps correcting me to say volcano) developed through little crumbs of foreshadowing peppered through the years - a postcard from a childhood trip, acquaintances from the area, and an unplanned stop at the park after Sam and I backpacked the Enchantments during which I, with the enthusiastic and delusional confidence that has become a gift and a curse, proudly proclaimed that I’d be back to climb it one day.

When I got clean, I started climbing mountains again- making the pilgrimage to Pikes Peak in Colorado to feel small and alive. I’ve always felt connected to the universe and something greater than myself on a high ridgeline. That trip was a mess (sharing a sleeping bag at 10,000’ + and questioning whether we were hypothermic the entire night was the biggest mistake, but not the only one) but it planted a seed in me to seek out the tops of peaks with gratitude for having sound mind, body, and soul to do so.

I can’t wait to see what’s next - of course, I already have a list.

Deeply grateful to my climbing buddy, dear friend, adventure partner, and co-conspirator in delusion, detention, dilly-dally and the “yes”, @shannandez_ . I truly have no words for the friendship & experience.

And a teary and massive thank you to the top-notch guidance and suport of @lindsnval and the rest of the @internationalmountainguides guides and our incredible climbing crew - Thankam, Vysakh, Travis, Mike, and Atticus, without whom this would have been impossible.

I have so much more to say - lots more to come longform on the blog, so stay tuned! taken in Mt Rainier Summit - 14,411ft by @pitbu11et

145

19

a year ago

We love a good water element! Saving our legs for tomorrow but still managed to get a few short hikes in before gear check taken in Snow Lake by @pitbu11et

130

2

a year ago

Even though World Running Day is made up, I will use it as an excuse to share some memories and gratitude for the sport

Running brought me out of some ~*serious*~ postpartum anxiety and OCD back in 2020. I was struggling big time, and it revitalized me. Running gifted me a sense of identity when I was riding too many feelings waves as a new mom, navigating COVID, and all of the uncertainty and fear that came with both of those new normals. It helped me feel alive and like myself again. When I felt like I couldn’t quiet my brain, a few miles in movement meditation helped to ground and steer me back into the present.

I’ve made some seriously special connections and immersed myself in the most incredible community through running - the friendships I’ve made along the way mean more than any PR ever could. I have so many adventures on the books with the most amazing people because of running, and I’m over the moon to get to do this. I never could have imagined that running (and particularly joining @run__bmt) would connect me with people as unhinged and down for the plot as I am - people I’d later climb glaciated volcanos in crampons with, as an example. Grateful for the community and bringing us all together.

I never had much history with sport growing up, and I hope that Sloane sees (through attraction rather than promotion) how incredible it can be.

Carving out time in the wee hours of the morning before life’s responsibilities commence to connect and get miles in has been such a gift. There is so much power in shared passion and goals - I always tell people that I can never hit paces solo that I hit in a group workout, and I’d definitely be prone to bailing on a run if I hadn’t committed to meeting someone in the morning. There is no way (a gift and a curse???) that I would’ve reached my goals and run multiple marathons without other like-minded folks. @coachbennett always says “this is about running, this is not about running,” and that’s so, so true here.

And if I ever sound ungrateful, remember that Nike sign from Chicago this year - “if you don’t hate running a little, you don’t love running enough” taken in Orlando, Florida by @pitbu11et

162

23

a year ago

this week in training, florida was gifted with a brief reprieve from high dew points and oppressive heat (it won’t last tho)

i haven’t been doing these training recaps consistently, because it felt like i was just building base forever - this is the first time in a few months where i felt really good about my progress and how i’m stacking my workouts

bricks are back after nearly every ride and i’ve added in a masters swim session to the weekly outline. excited to see if i can make some progress in a discipline i mostly have ignored for the past year. in trying to figure out what i want to hit for a goal for my full in may, i realized i have to stop pretending i’m doing a duathlon and actually swim consistently and intentionally

feeling a bit behind in hill training for both the run and the bike, so both will need to be incorporated over the next few weeks but otherwise i’m feeling pretty solid at this point for 11 weeks out (and 33 weeks out from my full in JAX!)

#ironman #ironmantraining #triathlon #triathlontraining #swimbikerun by @pitbu11et

74

6

10 days ago

a few snaps from my meander around town on sunday when I got to remember how nice it feels to just go ride your bike without caring about watts or splits. I swapped the six miles I was supposed to run that afternoon for a short cruise before hanging with the @sobersundaerc crew 🫶

big shout out to @saltysummit_bike for sending some sweet pink bottle cages my way ! Ive never had a cage on this bike before - I filled a bottle with la croix and it was so nice to have some seltzer on my saunter !

fun fact: my first track bike when I lived in Brooklyn was a pink + green Mercier that sadly got parted out during active addiction. I love that the redux is staying true to the original aesthetic 🥹 bonus pic of her (and a very puffy me 🙃) on the last slide

def check out @saltysummit_bike and give them a follow if you’re looking for titanium cages in all sorts of colors (including this perfect shade of pink!) + want to support a Utah-based, cyclist-owned small business ! They’re titanium and super lightweight ! taken in Orlando, Florida by @pitbu11et

92

10

21 days ago

Finished the fourth and final race in the @sommersports Cool Summer Mornings Triathlon series today with a season PR of 1:01:57, which was good enough for 3rd female overall and 25th out of all participants 🥳

The swim went about as well as it can for somebody who barely swims, and my transition times are long because you will never catch me riding without socks

The bike went pretty well, even with already logging 120 miles this week (more than I usually do) and riding hills yesterday 🤡

What I’m most pleased with is how much easier running off the bike felt today!!!! It’s definitely not a run PR, but my pace is much closer to where it should be, which means I’m either gaining fitness back or it’s finally getting a smidge cooler with a kinder dew point

Either way, local triathlons are super fun, and it’s been (mostly) great sharing the experience with friends and seeing where my fitness is on a monthly basis!!

Swim: 8:18.61 - 1:53/100m
T1: 3:07.14
Bike: 23:50.50 - 20.7 mph
T2: 1:47.25
Run: 24:53.75 - 8:02/mile

#triathlete #triathlon #ironmantraining #swimbikerun #endurancesports taken in Clermont, Florida by @pitbu11et

125

40

24 days ago

Continuing base building and upping my running mileage to a humble total compared to last year, but happy that I’m not injured and things feel relatively okay, despite the oppressive humidity that I am definitely not acclimatized to after this trip. I just keep repeating slow summer = fast fall but I’m not sure I fully believe it yet

Unfortunately (and for the second year in a row 😢) our rim to rim to rim plans have unraveled due to natural disasters in the Grand Canyon so a pivot adventure plan is TBD. Feeling less concerned with paces and structure at the moment, just building and adding to the base through a possible side quest in early October before pivoting into a full triathlon block for Haines and JAX

Also, in what feels like an early Christmas miracle, I managed to get TWO pool swims in this week

Happy Training!

#ironman703 #ironmantraining #ironman #swimbikerun #triathlon taken in Orlando, Florida by @pitbu11et

62

9

a month ago

ciao august 👋 by @pitbu11et

77

11

a month ago

Postcards from days 4-7 💕

Trip stats
•Miles covered: 63.26 - 56.53 on foot
•Ascent: 22,579 feet - 20,541 feet on foot
•Descent: 24,629 (one lift)
•Cows befriended: 3

Spent 8 magical days in the Fassa Dolomites with one of my longest, dearest friends, @sampaulsampaul 🫶

Every (almost every) morning we woke to the gentle clinking of alpine cow and sheep bells. Enjoyed incredible food, company, cappucino, hospitality, and befriended all different species of animals over our week here.

So grateful for the quiet, peace, friendship, and the magical feeling of being small and a part of something greater that I only get in the mountains.

A big kudos also to the weather gods for giving us impeccable conditions with only a small summit thunderstorm and a sideways monsoon for the last half mile back into town

We managed to be mostly alone for the trek since we took a much less trafficked route, for which we were very grateful. This is such a magical place and I felt fully immersed and more satisfied than just checking off the highlights

Now off to Selva for a quick 48 hours to switch sports and get humbled by cornering 🙃 🚲

#dolomiti #dolomites #girlswhohike #hiking #optoutside taken in Dolomites, Italian Alps by @pitbu11et

65

12

2 months ago

I did it 🥹

I wasn’t sure this ride would work out - the weather on Friday was a complete washout and I only had an 8 hour window on Saturday morning to make it work with logistics and my bike rental. When I woke up, roads were still a little wet and it was cold on the descent but otherwise the universe gifted absolutely perfect weather for a beautiful dream ride that pictures could never begin to do justice to

It was not easy - between starting in Selva proper and a couple wrong turns (shocking, I’m sure, for those who know me) I added on like 2K extra feet of vert, making this the most I’ve ever climbed (on wheels) by a long shot.

All in all, I totaled 7,434 feet over four passes, had two mid-ride cappuccinos, several cow spottings, and experienced the blissful sensation of 6 solo hours (elapsed!) on the road without fearing a car would hit or harass me (nary a single honk!) and got to relive some magical moments from our hut to hut trek as I passed by several waypoints that Sam and I were at earlier in the week.

Pass details and numbers in the slides. Itinerary, logistics, and what I’d do differently coming soon !

#sellaronda #cycling #womenwhobike #cyclingdolomites #roadcycling taken in Sellaronda by @pitbu11et

108

30

a month ago

Antermoia swooning taken in Lago d'Antermoia by @pitbu11et

81

13

2 months ago

Ciao from Sassolungo ⛰️💕 taken in Sassolungo by @pitbu11et

60

0

2 months ago