A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

OMG, OMG, OMG

Saturday, August 25, 20102

It seems I am a bit cranky today or so it is claimed. I guess, I might have to own up to that. With only one sleep to go, my mind is a whirlwind of emotions. Happy, sad, scared, confident, miserable, not miserable and if you can believe Nonie, grumpy.  I am so looking forward to the end of this and at the same time afraid to start. I think that allows me some leeway to be a little grumpy.





The transition area was opened today and I had to transport my bike down to the bike lot, to be stored and hopefully ready for me tomorrow.  I also had to pack two bags that would contain a lot of my worldly triathlete crap that will be needed for tomorrow. I tackled the "swim to bike" bag first. Helmet, beanie, gloves, shorts, jersey, shoes, socks, sunscreen, race number, race belt and the secret to all successful triathletes, several mega-doses of ibuprofen.  I dumped the bag and refilled it several times to make sure I had not forgotten anything. No WalMarts in transition if I forget anything. The "run to bike" bag went a little smoother.





Tonight, I have three more bags to fill. The "morning bag", to be used for my morning warm clothes along with my after race warm clothes. The "bike special needs" and "run special needs" that will be available to me at the midway point of the bike and run courses. These bags will contain my personal nutrition and hydrants. (Tri speak for  food and Gatorade) Along with the three bags I will also need to bring a wetsuit, goggles and most importantly my swim suit. Nudity is frowned upon at Ironman Canada. I will be glad when my work outs won't require three changes of clothes.

My expectations for a good nights sleep are low. I suspect, I will have to be happy with short bursts of napping interspersed with long bursts of freaking out. But staying awake tomorrow, will not be a problem.  Tomorrows weather forecast is for a low of 12 C and a high of 31C. Hopefully, just a light wind. 

 

What The Hell Was I Thinking

Friday August 24th, 3:00 PM

Only two sleeps to go before Ironman. My confidence levels fluctuate almost by the minute. From low to really low. I try to keep my mind occupied with good thoughts but bad thoughts have a way of creeping in, taking hold and are tenacious once they have their grip. I am afraid that I will run out of good thoughts before race day. What am I saying, I ran out of good thoughts days ago and have just been recycling them.

Went for a short swim this morning followed by a short run. Just to keep the joints from seizing up. Felt sluggish and needed a whole pile of recycled good thoughts just to move on. Thank goodness for chocolate milk. Taken directly after any workout and it seems to enhance and strengthen the endorphin rush. I am drinking a lot of chocolate milk these days. I will miss it when my activity levels fall off after Ironman and I won't have an excuse to drink a couple of litres (that's two quarts to you Americans)  a day.


Tonight is the athlete welcome dinner and mandatory race meeting. A chance for all the triathletes to meet and swap stories.  I am always intimidated at these events for despite the fact that I have completed two triathlons, I still do not consider myself an triathlete. Listening to their stories can fill you with fear and trepidation as they never talk about the good races, just the bad ones. But in every story, there is a opportunity to gain a little knowledge and avoid similar mistakes.  In some cases, that knowledge comes to late as the mistakes have already been made.

Sad news today. This will be the last Ironman Canada race to held in Penticton. I am sad to hear it but glad that I have the chance to be part of it. A race will continue to happen in Penticton but under a new name and new organizers. Ironman has been part of Penticton for 30 years so it will not be an easy transition. The new organizers come with a good pedigree and are known for putting on athlete centric races, something that may have been missing from Penticton over the last few years. Next years race will be interesting.

Dare To Ride The Richter

The Richter or as it is more formally known, "The Ironman Canada Bike Route. A ride that would challenge even the Tour de France riders although they would not have to get off the their bikes and run a marathon after the ride, the wimps. 180 kilometres (100 miles for you Americans), two passes with climbs of over 1400 feet. (370 metres for everyone else) The winds can be gentle and kind or vicious and unyielding. The route travels through the only desert that exists in Canada so the heat can be unmerciful.

Three riders would dare to challenge the Richter  this day. Two young and foolish and one older,  well past his prime and who should know better. The temperatures hovered in the low 20s but were expected to rise to the low 30s as the day progressed. Today they would test the months of training and discover if they had it in them to ride the Richter.





It takes more than stamina to finish a Richter ride. On the bike for 7+ hours with your body losing up to 1.4 litres of sweat every hour, fluids and nutrition play an important role in a successful finish. Sarah and Kevin spent the night before mixing their potions and elixirs that would power them over the Richter.

80 kilometres (50 miles for you Americans) into the ride finds you at a lookout halfway up the Richer Pass. You can see how the orchards and vineyards give way to the desert when irrigation is missing.

 

90 kilometres (Americans, divide total kilometres by 1.8 for mileage) into the ride, Sarah meets the challenge of the Richter Pass with a smile on her face or perhaps that's was a grimace.  

 

The Richter can be a lonely ride. Thanks to Nonie, who supported us all along the way. Especially from the grumpy old guy who suffered two flats in the first 40 Kilometres.
                                                                              

Kevin at Yellow Lake, 150 kilometres into the ride and 34 C. Now, that smile is definitely a grimace.  Saddle sore doesn't begin to describe what the Richter has wreaked on our behinds.

Thankfully, we were met by Nonie who took our drink orders to be ready upon our arrival in Penticton.

Yes, Yellow Lake is really yellow.

Ride over but not done yet, Sarah goaded the old guy, who should know better into a 30 minute run to see if we had something left in the tank for the marathon we would need to run on Iron Day. Only then did she let me sit down with a cold glass of my favorite recovery drink,  chocolate milk.

Kevin opted for the kinder and gentler post race nap. A wise choice.