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Friday, October 21, 2011

Just thinking out loud

I am "athlete # 766" . Yep, the numbers are posted for IMAZ.  I want to thank everyone who took the time to answer my Ironman questions. It was very helpful and gave me things to think about.  Sometimes I ask myself where this year went. It seems like yesterday when I was standing in line to sign up for the 2011 race. That fact that it is just a month away really makes me nervous but I am committed to seeing this through no matter what the results are.  I feel like I should be doing more in the way of prepping for the trip to Arizona but I am so focused on getting my training in and still staying awake at work that it is hard to think about much more. I admit it, I am tired. This Ironman stuff takes a lot of work! :) 

For those that have followed my blog (thank you by the way), you might remember that I have lots of GI issues on long runs. While I haven't found the magic answer to the cause of this problem,  I have switched up my nutrition a bit which seems to be helping. Out went the GU gels and GU chomps that have caffeine and now I am using Cliff gels (chocolate) and Cliff shot blocks (strawberry and mountain berry) all of which do not have caffeine. Can I also say that the chocolate Cliff gels taste really good! So much better then the Gu brand.

I have changed out my saddle again. I so wanted the Adamo saddle to work but after the last long ride I did, I knew that I had to do something. I went to the bike fitter (been there numerous times over the past week) and put my road saddle on my tri bike. While it isn't perfect, it will be better then what I had. If anyone is interested in a white adamo saddle at a very good price, let me know.

I did a pool swim in my wetsuit this week. I wasn't thrilled about doing this for numerous reasons but in the water I went, wetsuit and all. I made it 3200 before I had to take it off. I was way to hot. I have to say though that it was the fastest I have ever swam. :) 

Aimee from I Tri to be Me educated me on "uncrustables" last week during our long ride. I had no idea what they were.. well I had an idea but I just thought it was a nickname for a sandwich. I had no idea they were little pre made pp&j sandwiches.  I have them in my freezer and am going to try one out tomorrow on my ride.

Any suggestions on what to think about as I walk a good part of a marathon in a month? :)

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Ironman Questions

I have been away so long that I don't even know where to begin. Wait, yes I do! IMAZ is seven weeks away. How is that possible?!?!  I remember waiting in line to sign up like it was yesterday. There are so many different thoughts and questions that go through my head that I thought I would share them with you all. Any thoughts, in site or advice is more then welcome.

  • What do I do when it gets dark and I have my prescription sunglasses on?  Do I carry clear lenses and change them out? I have inserts(actual lens that correctmy vision) that attach to my glasses.  I don't want to leave anything in the special needs bag that I might lose.
  • Just how long would I have to wait after the gun goes off to really avoid being mauled during the swim?
  • At what temps are booties  permitted and do they actually help? What about neoprene swim caps? ( I have the sense that any cap that has a strap would drive me nuts but if the water is really cold.....)
  • Fuel belt on no fuel belt?  I haven't found a liquid nutrition that is working for me and carrying extra weight during the run isn't going to help matters. Yet, having water available at all times seems like a good idea and I will have to carry some other items.  Wish I could dump the fuel belt if I wanted to (would it be really bad of me to hand it off to a friend even though I am not supposed to?)
  • Talk to me about sandwiches on the bike. Seems like a PP& J might be something that I would like. Do you carry it with you from T1 and if so where are you keeping it?
  • Currently, I have two places to hold fluid on the bike. I have an aero bottle and a bottle holder on my frame. I like the idea of not having to carry more fluid then necessary and just grabbing more water from the aid stations. Since I plan on using solid food for most of the bike does that seem reasonable?  Am I missing something?
  • Cut off times.  I know the cut off times for all three events but I also know that there are additional cut off times within the bike and run. Anybody care to share what they are?  Also, don't you have to be on the bike by a certain time?
  • Morning clothes... how does that work?
  • I know they sell all the finisher stuff early the next morning. What if you can't get out of bed (literally)?  Can I still get the items on line? ( If I finish this thing I want something saying I did so!)
  • Just how painful is it to walk a full marathon? ( very well could be my reality) ( I know you can't really answer that but it is something I think about)
  • Additional socks and  sneakers in my special needs bag?
  • How is the bike support on the course?  Will they eventually show up if I get a flat and can't change the darn thing or run out of CO2 cartridges? 
  • How many tubes/cartridges do you carry with you?
  • Long training rides.  I am finding that I either have to ride alone or do them on a trainer. I prefer not to ride alone for safety reasons but finding people to ride with who are doing what I need to do are few and far between and the outcome so far hasn't been very successful.  I can handle being on the trainer for hours (call me crazy). Thoughts?
I could go on and on and writing this all down is helpful.
Thanks for reading.