Neglect and Preparation Woes

I attempted to design a little wishful thinking into my race helmet.

My apologies for neglecting this blog lately. There are so many things happening, I've not had time to sit down and write about any of it. And worst of all, I can't slow the progression of time. Here's a quickie update on things:

• I'm tapering for Ironman St. George. This involves the typical taper madness, feeling excessively sluggish and not at all rested. Hours of sleep are down, anxiety is sky-high and worries about not finishing are getting the best of me.
• My knees are hurting. Bad. It's my first time ever with knee problems. I'm trying not to think about it and saying a lot of prayers. This is also another first for me.
• I'm maxed out at work, working through lunches and taking extra hours of my own time because my employer, Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, is opening a huge world-class elephant exhibit - African Elephant Crossing - on Thursday, May 5. Don't get me wrong, the only regret is that the opening and my race accidentally (but inevitably) fell on the same weekend. Also next week, the Zoo will be launching a new technology initiative that I've been intimately involved with and working feverishly to finish up.

But, as I said, time marches on with no signs of slowing. My P3, nicknamed "Toothless," is already on its way to St. George with TriBike Transport. Unfortunately, because of (real) disaster recovery in Japan, my new Pearl Izumi team racing kit will not be in until mid-May so I'm going to have to dig up some old threads to race in. The weather in Cleveland has continued rain and cold and windy and I've not done much riding outside. And with seven days to go, I still haven't attempted to swim in my new Quintana Roo wetsuit.

But despite all the insecurities and falling behind in my race preparation, there are some positive things to report. The water temperature at Sand Hollow (IMSG swim site) is now 62 degrees F (up from 55 on April 21), and the weather forecast for St. George on May 7 is sunny and dry with a high in the mid 80s.

It's finally sunny and getting warmer today, so I'll be taking the beloved 2003 Cannondale Ironman 5K out for a spin on my final race simulation brick.