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May 16, 2008
And Away We Go!
Today we leave for Columbia! I am VERYYYYY excited. Seems like I've been waiting for this race FOREVER, so it's exciting to see on my little training log countdown that it's a mere two days away!
Of course first I have to pack. Which as you all may or may not know is my absolute FAVORITE thing to do! (note large dose of sarcasm) But we are driving to this race (only about 4-5 hours away) which admittedly makes packing much easier. You don't have to worry about your suitcase weighing too much or taking your bike apart. You merely have to chuck it all in the car and hope you have everything! :)
Anyway, as far as races go, this is a pretty big one for me. We all pick and choose which will be our most important efforts. Someone's "A" race might be someone else's "C" race. Truthfully though, every race is like an "A" race to me. I'm not one of those people who "trains through" races (whatever that means) or goes into a race not wanting to be 100% fresh and ready to go ALL OUT! I can't even do that for the little community 5K let alone a pretty big, competitive triathlon! I always want each race to be my very best and I WILL be trying to PR and I WILL be trying to beat every last person I can! But I've also come to understand that training wise, more than 2 or 3 "A" races a year isn't such a great idea. And as far as training plan structure goes, some races are the target upon which you base your training weeks around, and the other races just have to fit in between.
Regardless, Columbia is a big race for me and I'm very excited! The course plays well to my strengths (hilly run and bike) and my weaknesses (probably one of the easiest open water swims around - no waves, no chop!). The weather should be just like our weather here in Pittsburgh (lows in the low 50s, highs in the mid to high 60s) so I won't be too worried about the "heat", especially in the swim where I'll likely have chattering teeth! :) Come 6:50 am on Sunday morning I will be ready to go!
I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and best of luck to those out there racing! As my high school coach always used to say, "the hay is in the barn, now go out there and bring home the bacon!" :)
Posted by beth at May 16, 2008 8:59 AM
Comments
good luck and i will be praying for you....
Posted by: Kranky C Dale at May 16, 2008 1:17 PM
Good luck! Go fast and have fun!!
Posted by: Bri Gaal at May 16, 2008 2:47 PM
Have a great race, Beth! I'll be rooting for you on Sunday. - Ness.
Posted by: Ness at May 16, 2008 3:11 PM
BETH!!! I am so excited, I will be praying for you too with Kranky!
Your total attitude reminds me of me. I ALWAYS want to be fresh and rested and PR every race and kick some bum... I struggle with training through (funny, I just wrote my post on that) so I can relate to this so VERY well.
I will be tired as heck Sunday in my race but I am taking your attitude to still go for it! Enjoy an "A" race, the taper, the course that fits you, the speed you have worked so hard for... and have some fun! Hope you get a PR too :)
Posted by: Bree at May 16, 2008 5:57 PM
go fast and make good use of that taper - i'll be looking for a PB and fast times in your race report! (now at least i know where you are going...i had been thinking florida...)
Posted by: kerrie at May 16, 2008 11:34 PM