DOWN...BUT NOT OUT!!

Just over three weeks out from Ironman and I laid the bike down today. Not just a cruising to a stop tip over either I was smokin'! I was going about 50km/hr on a downhill with a slight tailwind when I hit an oil slick and it was all over.

The damage: much missing skin, mostly on the hip and shoulder, but thankfully no broken bones. The bike will live to ride another day, I twisted the left shifter around which I have already fixed, and ripped up the handlebar tape. Other than that no worse for wear.

So I am 24 days out and have a last BIG weekend of mileage this weekend, then it is lots of BRICK work. Last weekend I rode 182kms on Friday then on Saturday did 1 hour on the bike followed by 1 1/2 hour run. This weekend I will ride about 200kms on Friday and have a 3 hr run on Saturday. On Thursday night we are going up to Al Arish for the weekend. We have never been there but it is supposed to be very nice. It is on the Medditeranean near the Gaza border. There is big surf with lots of palm trees and white sand beach. I am taking the bike and will do my ride there as well as the run. I should be able to get in a couple open water swims as well.

Then it's trying to keep the rubber side down and taper time!

Cheers

COUNTDOWN IS ON!

Exactly 4 weeks from now I will be wading in to the water in Lake Zurich for what is sure to be an exciting, exhausting, and hopefully rewarding day. I feel like as of today I can officially start a countdown of sorts. I have one more big week of building mileage, then the peak/taper period begins.

I was feeling really good about everything over the weekend, but this morning as I flipped the page on my training calendar I am a bit more nervous. Training has been going well considering I have a more than full time job, family, +40 degree heat by 9:30 am, no pool, and training in Cairo has it's drawbacks.

This past weekend I did a 182 km bike on Friday. My average speed was 30.7 km/hr. I felt good through the first 140 but the last 40 was a struggle (as I expected. It was good for my confidence and made me feel like I am where I need to be in my training. On Saturday I did a 1:15 bike followed by a 1:30 min run which was o.k. considering what went on Friday, but of course after this mornings swim I began to question my readiness. I know this will pass also.

This weekend I am travelling to Al Arish on the North Coast for a couple days with the family and some colleagues from work. It should be a nice relaxing weekend except I need to do a 6-6 1/2 hour bike and have no idea what will be possible up there. I also have a 3 hour run to get through but am looking forward to running parts of it with some friends from work.

Cheers

SLEEP DEPRIVATION

It's been almost 8 months of consistently getting up at 4:30 am EVERYDAY. I've always been a morning person and getting up that early has become a routine I have grown accustomed to through this training and quit enjoy. As I become more tired I just go to bed earlier to the point this winter I was going to bed at 8:30 pm some nights. The problem is, right now it is so hot during the day everyone is out and about in the evenings. Add to that the fact that our school year is winding down so there are many functions and people that need to be seen.

Because of this I am KNACKERED! I have been trying to make a point of getting to sleep earlier, but it just never seems to work out that way. To this point my workouts haven't suffered but this is peak training time and I know I need to get to be earlier or find a way to nap.

Today I took my in our school band performance. Sitting in the back of the theatre while the concert band was performing I nodded off...for at least 10 minutes!

I definately need to get to catch up on some sleep this weekend!

Cheers

ON THE PODIUM

This past weekend I competed in our little 'MaadiMan' sprint triathlon here in Cairo. The swim was 750m at the Cairo American College pool, the bike was 20km around Maadi, and the run was 5km on the CAC track.

I came out of the water in 6th place after an ok swim of 13 minutes. I came in to T1 in second place only 3 seconds behind the leader. My bike time was 36:05...not fast but a very solid bike considering the conditions of the roads we were riding on. After a solid run of 20:12 I broke the tape with a :25 lead.

Overall I was very happy with the race. The competition this year was tough as triathletes came out of the woodwork. The swim was especially fast with the Egyptian National 1500m record holder swimming a 8:05 as part of a team.

RAVE RUN

This past weekend I was in Jordan for meetings. As has become the norm over the past few years I took my running gear along. We were staying at a resort at the Dead Sea. On the first morning I headed out and found an old road leading down to the edge of the Dead Sea. After running running for several km's along the Dead Sea the road turned in-land and because I was feeling good I just carried on. Before I new it I was at an antiquities sign that said 'Jordan River-Baptism Sight' How cool is that!!

This got me to thinking about some of the cool runs I've been able to do and cool places I've been able to run: Cyprus..Thailand..India..Norway..Isreal..Oman, and of course all over Egypt and the Sinai. I don't run fast, and not always that far, but I've been able to run in some very cool places!!

7 WEEKS TO GO!

Well, I think it's time I let myself begin to focus on the race itself. It's seven weeks today and to this point I have been pretty good at focusing on training and not letting myself get too carried away thinking about the race. I'm somebody who needs to feel mentally prepared as well so I think I can start that process.

Physically, I'm feeling pretty good. In the past 6 weeks I have done 4 one hundred mile rides and have done 3 two plus hour runs. My long ride and run has been stacked on Friday and Saturday and to date the body seems to be holding out pretty well. This past weekend was 100 miles on the bike Friday followed by a 20 minute run and a 2 hour 45 minute run on Saturday. I have 3 long bikes and 2 long runs left in my program.

So now the mental game begins. I know the hurt that faces me in seven weeks so that won't come as a surprise, now the trick is to begin sorting out how I'm going to deal with it. Sort out the positive self-talk, the positive images I will call upon when I need them, the personal dialogue that always goes on in my head. This has always been a strength for me...the ability to dig in when things get tough...the ability to work through rough spots and right the ship. The key for me is to just be prepared and not be surprised.

Life for me right now is crazy with all the things going on. The end of the school year is coming, Ironman is around the corner, I'm registered and preparing for a masters program that begins this summer. Thankfully this week is a recovery week and I'm off to Jordan to a resort on the Dead Sea for athletic conference meetings beginning on Wed.

A pleasant surprise last month as a friend purchased my training supplemments for me (Hammer Products). This month another guy I know has offered to put in another order for me. It will help me a great deal as with all that's going on, money is definately tight right now. So a big thank you to my first two sponsors...Kenny Boone and Kerry Rogers.

Cheers for now!
Kevin