This Is It

So I walked into my closet today and wondered why it smelled like a dive locker. Then I saw the wetsuit hanging up that I rented. Yes, I rented a wetsuit and I hope it works for me. I'm a little nervous; it feels a little tight. It's a long sleeved one, and the shoulders feel constricted. My hope is that if there's resistance straightening my arms, then there'll be a snap back effect when I pull.

If you haven't heard, the Branson 70.3 is Sunday. I will be there. I'm bib number 335. I've seen a link on other Ironman races where you can track the racers by name or bib, but I don't see it up yet on the Branson site, or esle I'm just blind.

I will test my wetsuit in the pool tomorrow. I'll do just a few laps to see how it goes. It'll probably look strange swimming in an indoor pool with a wetsuit, but most of the folks there know I'm racing, so maybe they'll understand.

Until afterwards...

One Week to Go

The other day I saw this on my bike ride:

I'm not a herpetologist, but I'm pretty sure that is an anaconda. I was riding along and ran over what I thought was a stick, but then the stick moved. I thought, "I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the staff became a serpent," or something like that. I thought that was rather odd, but then I observed other cyclists riding over staffs and making them snakes, so it didn't seem like such a big deal, but then my snake ate all of the other snakes.

I did shepherd the snake off of the trail so that he/she (I'm not a herpetologist) didn't get hit by another bike.

One more week before I'm in Branson getting checked in for the 70.3. Am I ready to get this done? Yes, I am. It's not that I'm tired of training or anxious about doing it. It's more that I feel ready to do it and don't want spend any more time waiting around. Now, when I say "ready" I don't mean ready to win or be competitive with the good racers. I just mean that I feel like I'm at a place where I can finish it. I've blogged before about how I'm in it to finish it. Finishing is the best I can hope for. Finishing, and not coming in last. Surely I can beat at least one person. Oh great, I just amped up the pressure.

Speaking of taking a break from training, I will immediately cease all swimming related activities for a good little while after I get out of the water next Sunday. Last year I ran my last tri of the year in July, and then didn't swim again until February. I know I ought to train in the wet stuff year round, but I'm so lazy. In '10 I swam from March to July. In '11 I've been swimming since February, and I'm ready for a break.

I did rent a wetsuit for Sunday's race. I hope it arrives so that I can get in at least one practice swim wearing it before I wear it to race.

I also hope my left knee doesn't decide to hassle me during the race. It's still a little angry about our run on Monday. It'll be fine, right? From what I understand I should be tapering down now. I never feel like my training is so intense that I need to taper, but taper I will. The Boy and I will take the canoe out today and explore a local river. No training and hopefully no swimming today.

70.3* Weekend

This weekend I completed a 70.3*.

OK, no, the Branson 70.3 is not until September 18, and I did not complete my 70.3* all in one day.

Here's what I did. On Friday morning I got up, went to the pool and swam 1.2 miles. It was not an impressive swim, but I did it, and it took me 53 minutes and 2 seconds. It's not a great time, but it is better than the last time I swam a mile.

On Saturday, day two of 70.3* weekend, we went to El Dorado Springs to visit the in-laws. So my wife dropped me off in Collins, and I headed toward Wheatland on Hwy 54. At Wheatland I turned around and rode the rest of the way in to El Do. Here's where my asterisk comes in. From Collins it's 24 miles to El Do, according to the highway sign. So I rode 16 miles east, which takes you just beyond Wheatland. Riding back to the starting point would be 32 miles, and the 24 into El Do makes a 56 mile bike ride. When I arrived at my in-law's place, though, my Garmin read 54.73 miles.

Given that I was totally out of gas at this point, I called it good. I like riding Hwy 54 into El Do because there's a good number of hills, and there is a nice wide shoulder on the rode, and the rode is not that busy, but someday I'm going to ride it when it's not 100 degrees Fahrenheit outside, which it was. I got sunburned, and I love the biker tan. Bike shorts make for a very clear and delineated tan line on your legs.

Sunday was spent chillaxing with family. I'm not at all equating that with an endurance sport, I'm just saying that's what we did. Actually, we've been celebrating my son's b-day all weekend as well, so I indulged in a cake made out of ice cream sandwiches.

Monday morning I rolled out of bed feeling fine, ready to put the cap on the 70.3*. When I looked at the thermometer I praised our Lord and Savior for the wonderful blessing He bestowed upon me. The temp read 55 degrees F. I didn't know the thermometer went that low anymore. By the time I started running the temp was 59 degrees and it felt great. I basically did a couple of 4.5 mile loops so I could pick up Powerade at my garage as I went by. The last leg ended up being a 3.88 mile out and back. I did the half marathon in 1 hour and 56 minutes.

I felt great on the run energy wise, but I developed a little tendinitis in my left knee, and another little pain in my left hip. I think I'll be OK. Will just need a little rest. I did a half marathon a couple three weeks ago and finished in 2:06 feeling kind of pooped, but no pain. This time I have pain, but otherwise felt fine.

Thirteen more days to go when I have to roll it all into one. Let's do this.

*70.3 was actually only a 69.03.

The Branson 70.3 is this month! I can't remember exactly when I signed up, but it was months ago. If you look at the official website and review the participants, you'll see my name. That means I have to do it. There's no getting out of it now.

It is not hard to believe that the time is close. It seems like I've been waiting and training for eternity. I'm convinced that the best triathletes in the business are very patient. Of all the attributes that you might assign to a top notch racer, you cannot leave off patience. Sure, there is physical ability, strength, endurance, tactics, nutrition and whatever else you need to win, but don't forget about the ability to train hour after hour, day after day without quitting.

I'm not saying I have that ability. Not at all. So far that has been my biggest weakness. Not that I haven't been faithfully training. I've been pretty consistent, but nothing on the order that will win me the gold. For instance, I'll go out in the evening and ride for an hour or so. That'll give me 18 or 20 miles on the Katy Trail. Or when I run I'll do 5, 6, 7 miles. Not exactly a marathon. Then there's the swimming. Swimming, how dost I hate thee?! It's not that I hate swimming per se, it's that I have to do it on some one else's time, so that means dragging out of bed at 5:30 to swim before work. I'll usually get 1100 to 1500 or so yards in per swim. (Don't worry, I have actually swam 1.2 miles, but more on that tomorrow, maybe.)

At some point during a workout I start having this conversation with myself.

"OK, we've been doing this for a half hour, forty-five minutes, can't we do something else."

"No, I'm sorry, we have a few more laps/miles to go."

"But I'm bored!"

"Well, that's too bad."

"Let's go home!"

"Do you want to finish this 70.3 or not?

"Yes, I guess."

"Then keep swimming/running."

I think I've had that conversation with my kids as well.

So I believe the best racers must posses the patience (and discipline) to stay with their training, even when their "A" race is months away. If we expect to run today and then run faster/lose weight/have more energy tomorrow, then we are kidding ourselves. It's going to take day after day, sometimes monotonous work in the heat of the day or in the freezing cold of winter before we see any results.

Hey, I'm going to make a DVD and sell that on an infomercial! Work out day after day for months on end and mind your diet and you'll get in shape and lose weight! It's that easy!

Branson Mountain Man

There's a new rule at my house; if when I get up in the morning and step on the scale it reads 150 or less, I can eat whatever I want that day. That's a pretty sweet diet plan. I may market that. Eat whatever you want, assuming you're swimming, riding, or running every day, and sometimes two in one day. Otherwise, lay off the carbs and the sugars.

When you're laying off the carbs, that's when you realize how good they taste. Especially cake. I will freebase that stuff when I'm jonesing some icing, which is a very inconvenient way to ingest it, but you don't think straight when you're carb-deprived.

Last Saturday I arose at 3:30AM and got out of the house at 4:00AM. I headed out into a heavy thunderstorm with rain so hard I couldn't see to drive. Why would I do that? It was the day of the Branson Mountain Man Triathlon. I never thought I'd wear a pair of bike shorts in Branson, MO, but now I have and that's all there is to it.

I met up with my friend Micah who is an excellent racer, but given that this was a short pool swim, I knew I had a lot better chance of competing. If you're not familiar with the pool swim, don't worry, I wasn't either until this tri. We jumped in, swam down and back the first lane, ducked under the rope, down and back the second lane, and so on. It was an interval start and so we all lined up according to our expected pace. I duly took my place toward the back. How'd the swim go? 400 yards, 9:02. Ugh.

The bike was 15 miles, 15 hilly miles. Here's a pic of me riding up one of the hills:

Pretty steep. I got done in 58:18.

Run. 5K. 24:46. There were some pretty steep inclines on the run as well. I probably don't have to tell you that Branson is really only known for the hills. There's not much else to do there.

The reason I wanted to do this tri is because the bike route covered a portion of the route we'll use next month at the 70.3. It's a four lane highway, the Ozark Mountain Highroad, that they close down for the half Ironman.

Anywho, total time at the Mountain Man Tri for me was 1:32:49. I finished 29th out of 62. Didn't place in my age group. However, the one bright spot for me is that my run was the 11th fastest time. I'll take that.

My High Point Today

When at the highest point on the Katy Trail you are at the staggering altitude of 955 feet above sea level. I know that because I rode there and back again, a biker's tale. It's a 44 mile round trip and it took me 2 hours and 50 minutes. I didn't exactly burn it up, but I did meet up with some dwarves and fought a dragon.



I take my high points seriously


I feel a lot like Bilbo sometimes. "I want to see mountains, Frodo!" I'm sure Bilbo would not be satisfied with 955 feet, but it's the best I had today. I live in a part of the country that is not exactly known for its peaks. I blogged a few weeks ago about making it to the top of Taum Sauk here in Missouri and could hardly breathe at 1,772 feet. I spent a good portion of my life in eastern Kansas, and so I know Kansas gets a bad rap for being flat, but Kansas' high point is 4,039 towering feet. Missouri is short by comparison.

The sun was up this morning when I started, of course, it was 7:30 AM by then. When I got out of my truck to get my bike, I vowed to get a new bike jersey. Whose idea was it to make these things out of polyester? The air was as thick as a quilt, and all of a sudden my shirt felt like plastic against my skin. I have other shirts that are more comfortable in this muggy weather, but they don't have those handy-dandy pockets in the back. I'm going to sew cargo pockets onto the side of my bike shorts. Maybe that'll catch on.

Despite the oppressive humidity today, the trail was crowded this morning, relatively. I'm convinced that ninjas used road bikes to sneak up behind people. It's amazing how close you can get to a couple of yacking cyclists before they realize you're there. I always give them a chance to acknowledge me and move over, but they never do, so I have to give them a, "On your left," and then they act all startled and sometimes, quite frankly, indignant, that they have to move over to let someone through. Oh well, they're still not half as bad as the folks who insist on walking in the running lane at the community center. Don't get me started on those people.



It's all down hill from here. Heading East.

Then there's the squirrels. When it comes to making decisions in a high pressure situation, I believe the squirrels have the first step nailed. The first thing to do in a stressful situation, like if you think you may be eaten by something, is to stop, remain still, and assess the situation. That's exactly what I see the squirrels doing when I ride up on them. Their next step, however, seems less thought out. It's always the same--run like hell!



Heading West.

OK, I've rambled long enough. I'm sorry I didn't carry that LOTR theme all the way through. You'll have to find my post about how I keep losing my wedding rings for that. I'll take the time to confess that I did not swim this week, and I have a 70.3 in like seven weeks. I need a kick in the pants.

149.5-Getting Close to My Original Driver's License Weight

Yes, I stepped on the scale this morning after an uncomfortable six mile run, and it read 149.5! When I got my first driver's license in 1980 something at the tender and innocent age of sixteen, I weighed 140 pounds. I know because I still have the license around here somewhere. Whenever I come across it I'm reminded why I never feel nostalgic about high school. That's the mug I had to contend with? With that thought in mind, and the fact that I'm only nine and half pounds from high school, I enjoyed a 20 ounce bottle of Coke today.

Speaking of enjoying things, I contended with other triathletes last Saturday during the Windsor Tribute Triathlon. That part was fun, but I consumed one of those Gatorade Prime deals before hand, and then I ate one of those Hammer goo packs at the start of the bike. They started warring with each other in my stomach and I really wish I could've evacuated them. If you're not familiar with the Gatorade Prime, it's a sloshier version of the Hammer goo stuff. Consult your doctor before you begin using any weird nutritional supplements.

Tomorrow I hope to ride a few miles, but I'll also need to do some work. It's nothing but hot and dry around here right now. I literally can't remember the last time I had to mow the grass. The reservoir is the lowest it's been since they dammed the river, probably. So if I'm going to ride, I should start around 4AM, that way it'll only be 89 degrees when I start. I better take some Gatorade.

Windsor Tribute Triathlon-2nd Year Run

What did I do last weekend? Well, for an hour and forty minutes of it I competed in the Windsor Tribute Triathlon. How'd I do? Twenty-second over all, out of seventy-one males and females. Two girls finished ahead of me. I finished third in my age group, unless you count the forty year girl that beat me, then I finished fourth. If none of that sounds impressive, consider this, five guys older than forty-five beat me, including a sixty-one and sixty year old!

But really, I did as well as I should have.

Swim

The water was very wet this year. If you didn't keep moving, it would've been very easy to sink beneath the surface. I employed a strategy of thrashing my arms and legs about until I reached the other side of the lake. That took about ten minutes. They tell me it was five hundred meters, which I guess is about five hundred Canadian cubits, but no one really knows.

Bike

No training wheels, but my dad did give me a good push. Eighteen miles and an hour and one minute later I found myself putting on my running shoes.

Run

Five Kay run, which is roughly four Spanish furlongs. The run was just like the bike, except you do it without a bike. I rode the run in twenty-five minutes and fourteen seconds.

While we were standing around making excuses, Micah and I decided to do the Branson Mountain Man Triathlon in Branson, Missouri, USA next month. That bike course takes you on the same route as the seventy point three event in September. I believe I have Micah talked into doing the half Ironman. He's a very good racer, but he's not in my age group.

Here are some pics. I had to attend this event sans family, and I hired the worst photographer in town. I didn't end up in any of the shots!

Oh wait, there was a pic of me.

Losing Weight

Just a little update on my weight. I know everyone is wondering.

Last year about this time I stepped on the scale and it read 152. I got on a few days ago and saw 150. Over the winter I was hanging around 166. At one point I was up to 168. (5'11 3/4", just so you know.)

Where did all the pounds go? I suppose my body consumed most of them once I started running, riding, and swimming more consistently into the Spring and Summer. For the most part I don't mind being so light. It seems like it would be easier to run, ride, and swim when I'm not dragging around eighteen extra pounds. However, some of those pounds may have been made up of muscle mass. I quit lifting in May and started logging more endurance miles. I'd prefer to maintain what strength I have, but I see very few big runners.

Diet wise I did make a little change about a month and a half ago. In addition to taking in a few more grams of protein in the form of protein powder, I've cut back on carbs. I'm not a teetotaler mind you. I did, however, give up sweet drinks of all kinds (for the most part), and I quit eating breakfast cereals, which are very carb-laden. So instead, for breakfast I try to get in my protein with eggs, sausage, and cheese. In the evening, after supper, I'll mix up a protein shake with some frozen fruit of some kind. A lot of evenings I'll even throw in some ice cream (I'm not a teetotaler).

For the last couple of weeks I've been very consistent with training, and I did a triathlon in that time. I only say that to say this, for whatever reason, for the last couple of weeks I've been voraciously hungry. I don't generally get hunger pangs throughout the day, but I've felt them recently. I don't snack on a regular basis, so it's not like I've given something up, and now my stomach is growling for it. Should I take in some more calories? When my weight drops to 149 I'm going to start throwing in an extra scoop of protein.

SM Tri-Part II, and Bike Shorts

I forgot to give a shout out to the organizers of the Shawnee Mission Triathlon-2011. Very well organized, a lot of good volunteers.  The volunteers even cheered for me as I came around, and that says something about their dedication!

I didn't mention in my earlier post about how this almost didn't happen for me. The thing is, I forgot my bike shorts at my in-laws house (yes, I only have one pair). So on Saturday I had to buy a pair at a, gulp, store. If you're like me, you only buy items that will reside in close proximity to your crotch from some unknown seller on the interwebs, and trust me, I only trust the provenance of my groin coverings if it's been verified by three stars or more.

Have you seen what they charge for bike shorts at Dicks? Why would I drop that much dough on an article of clothing that my family will laugh at me for wearing, accentuates my skinny legs, and has a built in Depends diaper? Anyways, you can find them cheaper online.

Oh, and btw, you can't just run over to Wal-Mart and pick up a cheap pair for the day, cause they don't sell them. I did end up getting a pair at The Sports Authority, I think, on 95th, over there buy Sam's Club. They were thirty bucks and I felt ripped off. However, I do have to admit, they are way nicer than my ebay find. Way higher quality and more comfortable. I believe the brand is Canari.

So there you have it, disaster averted. Why couldn't I just wear a pair of gym shorts? C'mon, how often do you get to wear lycra?

Me and my new bike shorts

Try a Triathlon!

If I can finish a triathlon, I'm sure you can too!

Every once in a while someone will ask me about training for a triathlon and they seem interested in doing one, so I say, "Sign up for one." They generally say something like, "Oh, I couldn't do that. The (swim/bike/run) would kill me."

Well, I'm here to tell you, if the safety swimmers aren't being careful, the swim could literally kill me, but I do it anyway.

Heaven knows I'm not an athlete. Just look at my times! But thankfully with most events you don't have to qualify, you simply have to sign up. It is true that there are a lot of athletic-y people that race, but there are a number of folks like me too, people just trying to stay in shape. We won't win, but that's cool, we're just there to have fun.

So what's your next step? Get on the inter-webs and find a race in your area, probably one that doesn't have "Ironman" in the title, and then sign up. There's nothing like paying your entry fee that makes you want to go train.

Shawnee Mission Triathlon-2011

Yes, we were able to finish this year! No lightening!

The day started at my parent's house. We stayed over the night before since they live in town and we live an hour and a half south. I woke up about 3:30 AM, dozed off and on until 4:50 AM when I got up. My wife and son got up and we headed over to the park.

I checked in. The Shawnee Mission Tri uses Tri Tats, so I already had my number on, but we had to get our age group mark. They initially marked me with and "F" for the 35-39 age group, but evidently since I turn 40 in September, I was put in the 40-45 age group, so the volunteer had to draw a "G" over my "F". So even though I'd aged up, they switched the groups around, and I had to start with the first wave at 7 AM again.

My swim sucked buoy again, though I felt better about it this year than I did last. I did very little breast stroking. It wasn't an option for me, just like when I swam in high school. The swim is 1000 meters, and somewhere around 750 meters I dropped anchor. I tried to look up at the finish, but couldn't see it because my goggles were all fogged up. Then I got off course and the kayak girl had to whistle at me to get back in line. I did finally get out of the water. I think my fingers were all wrinkly because I was in so long.

Got on my bike and started getting passed, and I didn't pass too many other cyclist. I enjoy passing fellows with expensive bikes, but that happened far fewer times that I would've liked. On the dam hill I passed a fellow with a very expensive looking bike and tri suit, because he was having mechanical problems. The next time I came around he was walking his bike back. I felt bad for him and prayed my bike wouldn't break. I felt worse for him when I saw the results. There were two men with DNFs. One had a swim time of 13 minutes! I assume it was him.

Please pass on the left! Not like this one knuckle-head who tried to pass me on the right, went off the pavement, and then knocked me and two other riders over when he tried to get back on, crashing himself at the same time. I wasn't hurt, but my chain came off. So now my hands are greasy and I'm wearing a white shirt. Not cool, knuckle-head dude!

Started running and passed a few people, but did get passed once or twice. I didn't get to the run course last year, so I was not familiar with it. The 4.5 mile run takes you down some trails below the dam, and it's a very cool run. At the finish I gave it a kick and crossed at 2:13.

So, I'm disappointed with my results, which you can see here, but hey, I took up this sport last year and this was my third triathlon ever. If I could ever learn to swim it would help, but honestly, my bike is pretty weak as well.

Had fun, and that's what counts, right?

Clinton to Windsor and Back

Rode to Windsor and back today, 33.48 miles. Total ascent: 2,109 ft. Time: 2:13:52. It was nice ride in the heat of the day. The Katy Trail is relatively flat, but you don't have to worry about getting hit by a car, and that's important to me.

Once there I went into the Casey's General Store. I needed some carbs to power me back home. I can't believe what they charge for a candy bar. $1.25! And this wasn't the giant sized bar, this was the normal sized bar. You're ripping me off Casey!

Johnson's Shut-Ins

Last weekend The Boy and I went down to Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park. This year I managed to keep the camera dry.  We also went back to Taum Sauk Mountain and Mina Sauk Falls.

We had a deck, but we had to hump all of our stuff back to the site, a quarter mile hike.

The Taum Sauk resevoir broke a few years ago, prompting these signs, I'm sure.

It was fun swiming the shut-ins.









On top of Missouri, at the staggering elevation of 1,772 feet.



Descending Mina Sauk Falls

Did it rain? I don't know, is there water in the skillet?

Our favorite part of the weekend, cleaning up.

Adult Soccer

If you haven't played soccer since you were eight, let me give you a word of advice: Stretch!

It's kind of embarrassing, so don't tell anyone, but I hurt a quad muscle kicking the ball.

Kicking the ball! How do you get hurt from doing that?

It's just my right quad (the kicking quad), and thankfully it doesn't hurt when I'm running or riding. Also, I'm not the only geezer out there with this injury. There's at least a couple of other guys on the team complaining of this, and some other guys complaining of various other ailments, not to mention everyone huffing and puffing all over the pitch.

There is one part of playing soccer that I believe helps with triathlon training, and that's the running part. When I'm out there I find myself running full tilt, coming to a stop, and then sprinting the other way. Speed work? The part where you're flailing your legs out in a vain attempt to put your foot on a moving ball is not as helpful.

The tournament is 4th of July weekend, so pray that we all survive until then.

Sedalia Duathlon Part Deux

You can read the exciting lead up to this race here.

The gun went off, and the race is on. By gun, I mean someone yelled, "Go!"

Run Two Miles

I wanted to run in the low sevens. That was my only goal. After about a half mile I had a new goal: beat that ten year kid in the triathlon racing kit.  I can stand for a lot of things, but not to get beat by a tween.  I am happy to say I did pass him. However, there was a girl or two ahead of me that I didn't quite catch. I won't tell anyone if you won't.

Bike Eleven Miles

Transition One didn't go as smoothly as it could have. Even my wife said later it seemed like I took my time. I used the fact that I have mountain bike shoes to change into as an excuse. Each shoe has like three Velcro straps to contend with. There was another guy in transition with me, and his wife was yelling at him to move faster. She said, "C'mon honey, you need to get out of here!"

The course is an eleven mile loop. Headwind and hills going out. Coming back in was a pleasure as the terrain flattened out and the wind was at my back. I passed a few people out of the gate, but later got passed twice by a couple of bikers. I did end up passing another guy at about the half way point. After that I rode by myself until I got back in.

Run Two Miles

My second transition was a lot faster. My wife admitted as much. Got my shoes on, started running, passed one guy, then passed another guy that had passed me on the bike. After that, with a mile and a half left to go, I ran alone. There was another fellow about a quarter of a mile ahead of me, but I couldn't gain on him.

I came across the line in 1:13 or something like that. Mo hasn't emailed the results yet, but I think that's what he said as I came across.  That got me a third in my age group, 30-39. Just wait til next year!

Sedalia Spring into Summer Duathlon

This weekend I participated in the Sedalia Duathlon.  Last year I did this race after being up until about 1AM because I attended a baseball game in KC the evening before. This year I got to bed earlier. I wonder if it helped.

I got up at 5:30AM after some very strange dreams. One in particular will haunt me and I shall not relay the particulars here. I ate breakfast, and allowed myself a bowl full of carbs in the form of cereal. I chose this particular cereal because it is packed with 51 grams of carbohydrates per serving. Carbolicious. On the way there, I also ate an apple. I also sipped some coffee. However, like an idiot camel, I failed to properly pre-hydrate with plain old water.

It's not even advertised as a carbo-loading food.

We loaded up and left the house at approximately 6:30AM. Sedalia is about forty minutes from my house, and registration started at 7AM. But then my gas light was on. I never get gas until my gas light comes on, which usually isn't a problem, but it was a bit of an inconvenience this morning.

It turns out that we arrived at Clover Dell park in plenty of time. I registered, and just like last year, they were out of shirts. It's hard to prove you ran a race without the tee shirt. Dejected about being shirtless, I went ahead and racked my bike, stretched, and ran a short warm up run. I also started hydrating from one of my water bottles.

My race manager.

The Lotus

Now the race organizer called us all to the start line. There are no timing chips in this race, and it's a mass start. I know it's probably just the glasses, but the race organizer looks like Mo Racca. No pic, so just take my word for it. Mo gives us some instructions, and then we're off. It's a two mile run, eleven mile ride, and another two mile run. Not exactly Ironman, but it's a good start for me.

If you'll come back tomorrow, I'll tell you how the race went, and the day after that I'll tell you what soccer does to a thirty-nine year old's legs.