Time has gone by quickly here in Tempe.
Wedneday we got into town and wandered around a bit, and go on the bikes for a while. We found a great place about 5 blocks from the race start. Very nice to be able to walk back and forth to the race area. Every morning, they've been opening the lake for athletes to swim in. The swim is straight forward. The "lake" is really a resevoir that's about 400 yards wide by a 1.5 miles long. We just swim down one side of it and back down the middle. The water is about 70 degrees. I call it "60 seconds cold", meaning it takes about 60s before you're used to it. It'll be the right temp for hard swimming. Just outside of the swim they've got tents set up with folks doing a technich called Active Release (no jokes please). So we'd get in there and have some work done. My calf has been bothering me a bit again and having it worked on seems to have really helped. I think it'll be fine for tomorrow.
Thursday they opened up the lake and the expo area. We were able to do registration, get some swag, and get the lay of the place. Registration wasn't too bad, it only took about 30 minutes. Basically they give you a card that has all your vital info on it that you verify, then sign release forms on the back, including one that says "it's okay to tell people medical status" should something happen. They even weigh you in. After that, they split you out to one of a couple of tables based on your race number and a volunteer goes through each of the things in your bag and tells you what it's for, etc. You get a lot of stuff!
The downside of Thurday is that a nasty wind and dust storm rolled in, followed by heavy rain. The rain was a good thing - it helped clean some of the dust out of the air, but the winds were ridiculous.
Tomorrow forecast calls for cool temps...but windy again. Hopefully I can get off the bike before they pick up too much. Deb might have a bit of a fight on her hands for the last our or two on the bikes. Hopefully it doesn't materialize.
Friday, my dad & his wife came into town, and it was a full rest day for Deb and I. I got in the water briefly just to continue to get used to it. Even though I've done a ton of open water swimming in the past, it still takes some getting used to after 6 months in the pool. I'll get back in this morning.
We also spent much of Friday getting organized. I got the bike fully dialed in with spare tire, etc. and started organizing the rest of the kit.
An Ironman is pretty much a full-service event. The athlete-to-volunteer ratio is nearly 1:1. In your race bag, you have:
- Swim cap
- Timing chip & ankle strap
- Race bib number (one with your first name, one with your last name, your choice which to wear)
- Dry clothes bag (before & after race)
- Swim to Bike bag
- Bike Special Needs bag
- Bike to Run bag
- Run Special Needs bag
The way it works is that you pack all the stuff you'll need into each of these bags and the volunteers will have them ready for you when you come through. You just need to make sure you get the right stuff in each bag. Bike & Run Special Needs bags are available to you at the 1/2 way point of the bike and the run, respectively. You can put whatever you think you'll want in here. Some people like to put a treat in there that they'll look forward to, some people put family pictures or reminders in there, some people use it for back-up gel, salt tablets, etc., in case you run out or lose something along the way. I've got a little of each.
Today we'll do a very short (<20 min each) swim, bike, and run workout, then check in the bikes. The idea is to have a biggish lunch and a smallish fiber-free dinner by 5 or 6. In bed by 9. We need to be in the transition area by 5:30, and have eaten a solid (1000-1200cals) breakfast by 4 or so. Good times - nothing is more fun than shoveling big calories down your gullet at 3:45 in the morning. Try it sometime (no, after a long night in Vegas doesn't count). I promise, you won't like it.\
Tomorrow morning at 7am (the time here is the same as the west coast), the gun goes off and we'll see what happens. I'm feeling very good about the race. I was a lot more nervous for my first sprint triathlon than I currently am for this race. My coach has put it well "Nothing extreme on race day, its just another training day with a bitch of a last 90 minutes on the end." All told, I know there's really nothing more I could do or have done to be better prepped for this, which is kind of liberating in a way. I'd be more nervous (duh) if that wasn't the case. I'll just go out there - try to race smart (your IQ goes down a point for every beat over 110 or so your HR goes up, it's amazing what you're rationalize, etc.) and have a good time. It's freakin Ironman!
If you really have nothing better to do on a Sunday, they do live Ironman coverage online: http://www.ironman.com/events/ironman/arizona?show=tracker&y=2007. You can search by name, but my bib number is 486 and Deb is 2193.