June 2006 Archives
Just checking in real quick before I hit the sack.
Finally home from the beauuutiful northwest, sans another IM finish. Which I'm pretty ok with considering it was absolutely BRUTAL out that day and I pushed until I knew it was stupid to push any farther, which meant to about mile 17 of the run.
The race was pretty rough but the trip itself was a blast. The highlight was surely when we damn near had a head on collision with a bear in Glacier National Park.
Race/vacation report to come!
... that is what Graham Frasier, the brutall honest head honcho of Ironman North America had to say at the athlete dinner about the forcast for race day. Its gonna be a hot one folks.
Last time I checked, about five minutes ago, the weather channel is calling for 90 degrees ... too damn hot to do an Ironman. But we will survive.
I'm trying to be positive about it - there's nothing I can do about it anyway right? Fortunately its not nearly as humid here as it is at home, so that's a bonus. But its gonna be warm, and I am not good when the mercury rises.
BUT the best words of wisdom of the night came from the dude who was being honored as the "Ford Everyday Hero" or something like that. The guy was a marine (I think?) who got his leg blown off in Iraq. He came home, recovered, got himself hooked up with some snazzy prosthetics, and went back to Iraq. And now he's doing Ironman this weekend. Very cool. Anyway, he stood up there and said something to the effect of "Yanno, if the biggest worry in your life is that you are doing an Ironman in Coeur d'Alene and its going to be hot, then your life is pretty damn good". And he's completely utterly 100% right. It was a great dose of perspective.
The trip has been great so far. The butterflies are setting in but all in all I'm feeling far more calm than I have in years past. I love this race. The course is amazingly beautiful, the people are really cool, and the vibe is just great. Swam in the lake this morning and it was a little chillier than I would have liked but not too bad. We had lunch with a friend of Josh's who is racing this afternoon and sat with a few other friends (and made some new ones) at the athlete dinner tonight. We have an AMAZING view out the room of our hotel ... I can hear a live band playing outside and there's a nice cool breeze coming off the lake. Heaven.
Anyway, I need to start packing my transition bags and whatnot and then chill for a while. The big day is coming up very very quickly .... !!
Its hard to believe that Ironman CDA is only two weeks away. Literally.
My focus this last month or two has been on finals and my job, NOT on Ironman. Its not that I haven't gotten my workouts in, because for the most part I have. Its that my MIND has been elsewhere. Usually this is the point where Ironman is all I can think about. Right now I have to keep reminding myself that its coming up very very soon.
Maybe its a good thing. Last year I was a complete and utter nervous wreck before the race. Coming off two DNFs was not good for the nerves. This year I'm feeling calm, if a bit too calm, about it.
Went for a 40ish mile ride today and the legs felt like absolute crap, which I take as a sign that the taper is working. In another week I should be getting to the point where I'm bouncing off the walls. Hopefully the legs will come to life again.
This year is strange because this is the first year I have gone in to the race with the intent of this being the last Ironman for a while. Its always been "well, this year I'd like to go XX hours and then maybe next year I can do XX". This time around I'm just going to try to enjoy every minute of it and do the best I can, because this will be it for a while. I'm tired. Five straight years of Ironman is a lot and I'm needing a break. I've already started eyeing some mountain bikes online and am planning a purchase within the next few months. I can't wait to get back on the trails again.
