I registered for Honu — the Ironman 70.3 Hawaii — today. I'm officially checked in. I have my official race numbers for my shirt, bike and helmet. I've turned in my bike-to-run gear (shoes, socks, hat and misc. stuff) and have my bag for the swim-to-bike transition ready to turn in tomorrow. I've been banded (see photo) and have my swim cap. I am ready to pay the price for my dream — to be half an Ironman. Well, honestly that's not my dream, but it is a step toward my dream of becoming an Ironman.
But what makes me feel even more ready is I actually ran today. I haven't ran since late last week because of a bad calf muscle. But today I climbed onto the treadmill and ran one mile. It's only one mile but there was no pain and my legs felt fresh. The only bad thing is I ran right after eating a big plate of pasta, a cupcake and some ice cream (hey, I'm carbo loading ...) Not a good idea to run on such a full stomach, but it still felt great.
After registering at the Mauna Lani Hotel, I drove the nearly five miles to Hapuna where the swim course is and where the bike portion of the race starts. It's very beautiful there. Even from the parking lot you can see the palm trees framing the gorgeous ocean.
I went for a short swim, about half the race course. The water is very warm there. It was windy today with lots of heavy chop and swells. Basically, a typical day at the pier, but this was Hapuna. Anyhow, I felt pretty much at home in all the chop since I learned to swim in this kind of water. You just have to get the feel for the energy of the ocean. It was rough swimming south, since I breathe on my right side. The chop was right in my face. But as soon as I turned north it was pretty easy.
The nice thing with Hapuna is it is all sand on the bottom and the water movement creates ripples in the sand that parallel the shore pretty much. What that means is you don't need to sight as often because you can generally follow the ridges in the sandy bottom and go straight. That's presuming the race course will parallel the shore.
So, I am ready for Saturday. I'm nervous, excited, scared, confident, doubtful and so many other emotions on this roller coaster ride. The distances seem overwhelming at times. And at other times, well, they still seem overwhelming. But here's to paying the price for my dream of becoming a full-fledged Ironman some day.
2 comments:
Hi Randy, Good luck Saturday, I will be thinking about you all day. You sound like you are really ready. How amazing that must feel. I hope everything goes super well. Have a great race.And in the words of the true Raider fan that I am " Just Win Baby Win"!!!
"Rest'em up!" Have a great race and great day. There's lots of jolly nice grass around the finish, where you can recuperate, and a sumptuous meal where they announce the slots.
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