May 15th. How did it get here so quickly?!! I'm looking at the family of two calendar and already the summer seems to be jam packed and full of fun. But seriously, Ironman in 6 days?
This weekend we came to Lake Tahoe with some friends to watch the tour of California and get away from the Bay Area for a few days. That meant that two days of taper would be at altitude, and seriously those gals from Colorado have got some iron lungs. 20 seconds into an effort and you would have thought that I was an out of shape, overweight gal from my breathing. I will say this for the record. Training at altitude never inspires confidence. Period. No problem though as I was riding with one of my best pals who is 4 months pregnant and we had tons of catching up to do. Taper workout number one done.
One of my key items that I always bring to altitude is my supply of nuun. And everyone always seems to need it- good thing I am such a good sharer. Altitude makes you so dry and nuun keeps all of the altitude sickness that Mark always gets at bay.
We were all amped up to watch stage one of the tour and had our fingers crossed that the weather predictions of below freezing temperatures and a rapidly moving storm would pass over and not bring any snow. Wake up this morning at 8, peek out the window and what do I see? A large coating of the white stuff and more falling from the sky. Shoot!! Quick check of Twitter and the web revel a decision to be made at 9. 9AM comes and the start is delayed until one. perfect for us, we grab another large breakfast at the Log Cabin in King's Beach and head back home to taper workout number 2 at altitude. Taper workout number 2 felt much better than number one although riding on a spin bike indoors really isn't my thing. Oh well, we make do right? As we leave the gym to get ready for the race, turns out they cancel the whole stage less than one minute from the start. Poor riders have less body fat on them than your average triathlete. That mixed with thirty degree weather and snow is not a good combo. Rumors flew that the riders were willing to ride but a neutral stage and that the tour organizers wanted only a race and so they decided together that no race was the best way to go. Poor us. So what to do now? Another meal? Why not! Wild Cherries in Truckee here we come. This happens to be right next to the local Dairy Queen. Seeing how as the one was closed on my way home from Wildflower, I made an exception to my no out of competition Dairy Queening.
This leads to another one of my thoughts. I have real trouble during taper mode not feeling deprived of food. I know, you are thinking I must be able to eat what ever I want when ever. How I wish this was true. And most of the times, I do not struggle with this, but this particular taper has been bad for me hunger wise. I am close to the end and I know I have been so focused nutritionally that I think mentally I need a break. One more week girl! Tomorrow is a new day. If any of you ladies have the secret to this or just any tips, please share them with me!
So now here we sit driving home in Sunday night Tahoe traffic, me typing away on the iPad. How I LOVE technology...most of the time. This week will be busy, busy, and more busy! Massage tomorrow to get the last kinks worked out and muscles firing properly. I have to get my nails done so I can feel girly on the course and then of course my bags need packing. The bike is already en route to Texas via tri bike transport. One less hassle for me to have to worry about. Seriously worth the cash, especially since my CBM (chief bike mechanic) will be sitting this one out. I fly out Thursday morning and will meet Iron Anne there. She is racing but likely won't start the run due to a broken metatarsal that happened five weeks ago. Almost enough time to start running, but not for a full marathon. This is a true disappointment. But, we will make it a girls weekend and celebrate another ironman and her birthday on Saturday night with a big...you guessed it, Dairy Queen!!
So with six days to go here is what I have to say. I am SO looking forward to this race. The heat, the humidity, the tough mental spaces that will inevitably come- I feel I have a strong plan for them all. I have a feeling of calm this time around and know that my preparation has been what it needs to be. If all goes as close to plan as possible next Saturday, I know the race of a lifetime is possible. And that makes me smile from ear to ear.
More to come in just six short days.
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