We're TRI-ing - OH NO, IT IS HERE!

Karen: Of the entire time writing about our training, I have to say this has been the most difficult week to sit down and describe where we are.

The race is just a few days away; it is this Sunday.  I think I am emotionally numb.

I am not scared. I am not nervous. I am not excited. I am not worried. I am not anxious. There is no one word I can think of to describe this sensation, except perhaps “still.”  I am still.

I am not worried about if I will finish the race: either I do or I don’t.

I am not anxious about how I place in the standings; first or last, the finish line is the same.

I knew when I declared "competing in a triathlon" was a goal seventeen weeks ago, this day would come eventually.  This training program has never been about the race itself. It’s about having a goal at which to aim.  It’s about making the time up until the race count.

In the past 17 weeks, I've been back in a pool after years of absence. I have reconnected with my love of swimming. 

In the past seventeen weeks, I found that bike riding is more than just a casual pastime for beach boardwalks.

In the past seventeen weeks, I broke through a life-long mental barrier and can now honestly call myself a “runner” for the first time in my life.

After this race, I will not call myself a Triathlete, because you and I both know this is probably a one-time adventure.  But I can say honestly, I've been given three new words to describe myself. I am a swimmer. I am a cyclist. I am a runner.

Whatever happens on Sunday, these things are mine.

Tim:  I’m scared. I’m nervous.  I’m worried.  I will carry that baggage for both of us.  However, like you, I am also not excited.  Not excited in the least.  Could. Not. Be. Less. Excited.

Also like you, I had trouble with this post.  We’ve come on this long journey together and now that we’re almost near the end, there’s not much to say.  I already have a Living Will and the Dead Will, too.

I’ve suffered a few injuries that have kept me from training as much as I’d like, but I’ve done enough to know I’ll probably get through it.  Probably.

Here’s this week’s good news:

Pool Specifications:

Name: Lake Newport Pool

Length: 50 Meters

Depth Shallowest: 3.5 Feet

Depth Deepest: 5.5 Feet

This was the second best news I received all week.  Instead of just giving up somewhere in the pool and drowning, I should be able to just stand up and live. 

So my main worry is forgetting something.  There’s a lot to bring, so I made a list:

Bike, Guitar, Helmet, Pump, Flippers, Mask, Kegerator, Running Shoes, Broadsword, Sexy Underwear, Tube Float – Am I forgetting anything?

Disclaimer: We are not medical professionals or fitness experts.   Read this blog at your own risk.  There will be a party (or a wake) at Tim’s Transition Space after the race.  Look for the Kegerator.