Fine Print

1. I HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGE AND ASSUME ALL OF THE RISKS OF PARTICIPATING IN THIS EVENT. I acknowledge running, bicycling, swimming, and/or other portions of this Event are inherently dangerous and are an extreme test of my physical and mental limits that carries with them the potential for serious bodily injury, permanent disability, paralysis and death, and property damage or loss...

This is the beginning of an 8 page waiver I printed, and of course signed without reading much further.

Six Hundred and Thirty Dollarinies

Perhaps crazier than actually completing an Ironman is paying $630 to compete in one. I have completed 1 Ironman and am currently signed up for 2 more.

Maybe I need a lobotomy.

IRONMAN 3!!!

They are adding an Ironman in my own backyard!

Sign up is today at Noon, I'll be at my computer hitting the refresh button about 100 times at 11:59.

Doing Things Differently

This Ironman will not be the same. Different course, different me.

Ironman Lake Placid's swim was in a calm lake with biking and running in mountains. Ironman Florida's swim is in the Gulf of Mexico with biking and running basically on a runway. I was a tank before, it worked, and I think it would work again. But, somehow I hope I am smarter, more experienced and am building a better ride for the journey.

Here are some notable differences from ironman me a year ago:

• I eat a lot less. Before I usually ate 2 dinners most nights. It was an awesome feeling to eat 2 dinners and somehow feel stronger, like much stronger.

• I drink a lot of water and really not much else. Before I would drink Gatorade at an amazing rate.

• I am running more barefoot. I want to do a marathon barefoot, mainly for shock value, but for now my FiveFingers are getting a good run.

• I don't care about building up muscle. I use to do a lot of push ups, the Perfect Push-up will just have to gather dust for now.

I am going for lighter and quicker. Only one way to see if this way works.

The Opponent

One bad thing is it seems for the past month I haven't thought about Ironman. Not that I forget I am signed up and not that I haven't been active, just not really thinking about a grueling event that wants to put me in the hospital.

It makes you think about a boxer with an upcoming fight, you know they are thinking about the other person wanting to punch their face in, every day.

Currently, starting over, building up and serious training for 4 months leading up to another Ironman seems tougher than just going out and doing the event itself tomorrow.

Maiden Voyage

One day I might do some real running, swimming and biking. Not today. I carried this beast of a pack 3 miles, but got a 2 hour kayak warm up in before all the heavy lifting. 

                                   

This is much easier to carry than the ladder.

The unload. I love you SeaEagle.

National Running Day

Today is National Running Day. I guess I should run today, seems to be how you celebrate the occasion.

I have been reading 2 books on running, I'll write a book report on them for you blog lovers later. I think any book about running is pretty simple though, you ran as a kid, everyone did. It was fun, fun to be timed, fun to see how fast you could go. And with all the many times of being told to slow down, everyone did.

109 more days until International Talk Like a Pirate Day.