and a cow goes moo

i survived. i survived.  and that is the important part.  i learned new mind tricks and added new mantras.  i've added a few songs to my mental playlist and cleared my mind of clutter more than once today.  i woke up at 6 and hit the water.  i tried the beginner lane but was quickly moved to the intermediate lane.  the hour and a half flew by, i know this is like saying "i love vegetables"  but its the actual truth.

i came home downed a cliff bar, took the second shower of the day and headed over to the house for a 15 minute endurance workout.  this was no joke.  if you don't know what a burpie is, trust me you never want to find out.  ever.

now the bike.  one loop on the actual st george ironman course.  50 miles.  the first cow i saw was hidden behind rock formations in the red canyon at mile 20.  i literally yelled "holy shit"  i mean three black cows just hanging out on the road, can't say i'll ever see that in riding around manhattan beach.  i felt amazing and even told myself i was a few times.  i hit the hill, the mountain, what the locals call the wall, head on.  i even passed three people on it!  in that moment in time, i was amazing.

 its  spiritual being out there by yourself. cruising down mountains at speeds that make you feel invincible.  (until the tractor trailer speeds by you doing 70 jolting you back to reality)  and climbing ones that put you at the top of the world.

the run was a trail run and i chatted with a new friend the whole way.  40 minutes.

the best part of the day.... i get to do it all again tomorrow.

target - there's one in everytown

this will be quick since my alarm is currently set for 4:30 am.  i arrived in st george around 4 this afternoon and the drive could only be described as majestic.  i know. not the most attractive of adjectives but the only one i could think of as i drove through the walls of rocks whose beauty could only be felt by ones presence.  it was a drive much like i hope my remaining journey will be.

after i found the hotel and managed to get all my stuff up the stairs.  first lesson when tri traveling, request a bottom floor.  i then ventured out to find a target.  i forgot advil and even i know that this weekend was not going to be possible without a little help from my friend.  and there it was never to let me down.  then it was off to dinner to meet "the others".

i've been training solo, being the turtle with his or hers (respectively) head in my shell.  i've been stuck there and is always been easier to just do it myself then to reach out to others.  so although the "training camp" hasn't technically started yet.  i made my way across the street to meet 10 other triathletes for dinner.  i went for two reasons.  1. to see what i was up against and 2. to determine if i'd show up tomorrow.

i decided on number two.  so my alarm is set and hopefully i'll decide to hit the pool at 6 with a my new found tri group.

PK and a few thoughts pre camp

meeting PK was like seeing the bright light to the gates of heaven.  he is hands down the best spin instructor out there and has managed to work my butt to a much smaller size then it was pre pk.  the rest of me well, i still love my vino and cookies so i'm working on it.   i leave for training camp the day after tomorrow and i'm having that "in over my head feeling".  the fact that my favorite tri store got hit by the recession and had to close didn't come as a good sign either.

55 minutes with PK and i was feeling back to normal.  i hit the treadmill for a 20 minute quick run and then headed off to class.  lately, i've been having a mix of emotions when it comes to this training camp.  it doesn't help that 22 of the 23 people attending profiles pictures on facebook include them at a finish line and the one that isn't is sitting in an ice bath.  good thing i took the one down of me at ally's fire pit sipping vino and eating marshmallows!

its mind over matter for me at this point,.  i'm counting on my mental strength to get me through this weekend.  four days of non stop training.  to date my biggest nightmare was when Mr. T used to make us run until he said stop with our lacrosse sticks in the air, that was almost 20 years ago. i'm pretty sure i'll have a new "nightmare" by the time the weekend is through.

less than 100 days to go until the actual ironman and i found a mantra, its a personal one so i won't share but it will get me through the steepest of hills, i'm sure of it.

 i'll be making updates, if i'm still alive, from st. george this weekend so wish me luck.  i'll need it!