As Ready as I'm Gonna Be

Five days out from Vikingman, my first half-iron distance triathlon.

I'm as ready as I'm gonna be.

I have no delusions about the race. 5-6 hours if I'm lucky. I won't be winning anything. My training hasn't exactly been to the letter. Still, I feel prepared for a good race. I'm swimming solidly. My bike is okay. The run is decent.

If I have any worries with the swim, I am always a little concerned with anxiety. I deal with it with most open water swim sessions. But I am now able to push past the fear and keep going forward. I'm confident my swim time for the 1.2 mile distance will be between 35-40 minutes.

The bike is usually my strong discipline in a triathlon, but lately it has been giving me some difficulty. I have a tough time getting comfortable and my quads don't cooperate, getting achy far too quickly. It could be nutrition-based though, so I am going to really be cognizant of eating and drinking during the race. Time should be around 2:50-3 hours for the 56 mile ride.

Running is the big unknown. How will my body respond after 3 hours on the bike? So far, my brick workouts have been positive, with runs following rides of 20-30 miles starting strong. After my last long run in my Lunarglides left my toes blistered, I'm having a debate on shoes. Maybe the Nimbus would be a better bet even though they are old. Or the Lunars with lots of BlisterShield on the feet would be better. Still, if the feet hold up I think a run of 1:50-2 hours is a good possibility.

Add in transitions and I really think that I am capable of a six hour gig. Provided I can stay out of the porta-johns, of course. Could I do better if I had trained harder? I'll know soon.