Got the Nerve Report Part 1

This is the first of a series of reports on the Got the Nerve Triathlon held in Mt. Gretna, PA on May 22 2010.  It was my first triathlon so its a pretty cool deal.
This post is a prequel to the actual race itself.  We used a disposable camera and still have 12 pictures to burn as of the writing of this blog.  So pictures and video are coming soon.
Friday afternoon I shot out of work to lots of well wishes and re-explanations of what I was going to be doing the next morning, which is no problem because I love talking about it.

I got home laid out all my gear to make sure I had everything  For those who know me well I have swiss cheese for brains and I tend to forget things.  Once I got everything laid out I packed it up got everything into the car and took a 15 minute cat nap Renee and Liam got home.
As we headed down the road Liam was acting a little more fussy than usual.  Those with toddlers know that long car rides are not the most fun in the world.  Liam also has a screech which leaves his mouth and goes right into your spine.  It does not stop there but spreads itself out along you neck and shoulders.  This does not provide for a relaxing or enjoyable ride, but this would only serve as a precursor for the night to come.

We stopped in Wilkes -Barre at an Applebees for dinner.  I found to best looking pasta dish on the menu to store some carbs.  It was a Three Cheese Penne with Grilled Chicken.  It was not anything to write home about, but good enough to serve its purpose.  One interesting site we saw was this, a alrge dresser sticking out of the back of a sedan...it did not look very safe.
Our original plan was to stay with some family in Lancaster but due to a lack of beds we opted to stay in a hotel.  There were a couple of reasons for this, but the primary one was I needed/wanted a good nights sleep.  Second it was only about ten minutes from the race site.  We made a half-hearted effort the night before to find the race site site but to no avail. Turns out I turned around about 500 yards from the turn-off.
We got to the hotel around 7:30 which normally is Liam's bed-time.  We did our best to rock him, give him a snack, but by 9pm he still was not going down.  Renee and I were both losing steam and I really wanted to get some rest.  So I took liam for a walk on my shoulders through the hotel.  I thought he might be fading, but by 10pm he was still going.  I got the stroller and we did laps around the Hampton Inn.  I am sure I covered over a mile and it still did not seem like he was fading.  Finally at 11:15 he passed out-and so did we.
At 3am we were awoken abruptly by some yelling and arguing.  And it wasn't like it was down the hall, it was right outside our door.  The guys was going on and on about who knows what.  Finally I hear another voice of a older woman scream "Hey big-mouth, people are trying to sleep!"  I thought she handled it well because things quieted down after that.  I found out the next morning it was a drunken wedding just back from the reception and the State Police had almost been called.

My wake-up call came at 4:45 I got up went downstairs ate a bagel with Peanut butter, a banana and some coffee.  When I got back upstairs my family was still sleeping.  I got them up (reluctantly-he's so precious when he sleeps) and we got on the road.
The parking area was already filling up when we got to the race site.  I started to feel twinges of self-inflicted intimidation as I got the bike out and my gear set.  I picked up my race packet and got my body marked with my bib number 534 and my age on my right calf.  This number would prove very useful in my own observation during the bike leg which i will save for the next post.  Thanks for reading!

The Final Countdown

For your listening pleasure while you read this blog.
The Final Countdown
But here were are, 6 months in the training.  It is amazing to think how far I have come since November.  As I ws thinking the other day it really all started when i watched a "where are they now" episode of the Biggest Loser.  Two of the guys on there went on to do Ironman Triathlons.  Those are the bigs ones and take well over a year to train for-so we are starting small.
But in a little over a week I will be participating in my first Tri.  I am very stoked, excited, nervous and I know the next week will be filled with dreams about me missing the race or getting there late or something like that.  This always happens when I get close to some big event.  I am comforted by the fact that I will have an awesome cheering section.  So far it is up to 4.  Renee and Liam, my sister Emily, and a close family friend Erin.
My biggest worry is my bike to run transition.  I was disheartened by a brick workout I put myself through last week.  When I got off the bike my legs were spent and my pace was less than satisfactory.  So I have been battling in my mind the different possibilities and reasons for this.  My cardio is more than prepared for this race.  I can perform twice the distances required in all the disciplines without any great difficulty, is it just a matter of my body not being ready for it?
Or do I need to do something I have never thought to do, refuel nutritionally during the race? It is a short sprint and should take longer than 1:45 but do I need to intake some calories halfway through?  A problem with this is that I have not practiced refuleing during training, only pre-workout and post work-out.
There are ton of questions cruising through my mind right now and each one feels more confusing than the rest.  Just praying that I can do what I know for this one and look forward to the next.
Be praying for me this week, and know that I have more excitement than worry.  The worry just tends to be more vocal sometimes.
Peace.

New Supersuit

My new Trisuit came in the other day and I have been just itching to try it out.  I have also decided that I will no longer call it a trisuit but a super suit.  I think it will make me faster.  Up here in in North East Pa we have had some nice weather this past week.  In fact it has been so warm that we had to open up all the windows in the apartment and employ the use of fans.  This has also been encouragement for me to get out and do my first open water swim.
Everything I have read says "Do not wait till the day of your triathlon to swim in open water." This is a challenge for me because the water stay pretty cold till June around these parts.  Yesterday I found a straw and decided to suck it up and take the plunge.  The water I will be swimming in on my first race will be between 68 and 72 degrees.  I have opted not to go with a wetsuit despite the many benefits it offers (warmth, buoyancy,  and better hydrodynamics) mostly because I don't want to spend the 40 bucks on the rental or the 200-500 on one to keep.
I asked Chris to come watch me and make sure I didn't drown and went down to a small lake that is probably 250 yards across and never has any traffic on it because it is private. 

I donned my new super suit and my goggles and jumped in.  Now I have been in very cold water before.  3 years ago Chris and I went whitewater kayaking in March on the West branch of the lackwaxen.  We launched off a snow bank and saw numerous ice chunks as we paddled down the creek.  Unfortunately I caught and edge wrong and over I went-that was cold.  I can honestly say that yesterdays dip was nothing compared to that.
The only thing that made me uneasy was the very dark storm system just to our south.  As I jumped in I could hear the thunder. Made it about fifty yards out and was so distracted by possibly being electricuted that I turned around and came back.  A I came close to the dock I cam face to face with something underwater.  I still cannot tell you what it was, but I let out and audible yell into the water...yes I am a wimp-but I'll have you know there are some very large Bass that live in the lake, though this was not a Bass.
Very short lived and pretty disappointing swim, but I'll be jumping in again within the week-thanks for reading and all your support.