Monday, October 20, 2008

2 weeks to go

Ten days before I leave for PCB. I am characteristically nonchalant about the whole ordeal. Thankful that the days of starting at 5:30 a.m. and finishing up at 2:30 p.m. are over, thankful that I made it through the long days without injury, thankful that I feel ready and confident that I can go the distance, thankful for the lessons I learned about myself in training, thankful for the friends who trained with me in both reality and in the blogosphere, and thankful for the opportunity to become an Ironman on November 1st. Perhaps it will be different once I get down there and feel the vibe, but right now, to be honest with you, I'm not into the hype and the excitement. I have a mission to accomplish - one that I've been on for over 9 months now and one that has taken sacrifice, more than I'd like to admit, by not only myself but my family as well. I intend to accomplish that mission, and I intend to do so in no other than your classic Fire Inside fashion. I'm not going to tell you I just want to finish, that would be a lie. If the ocean does not look like a tropical storm and the wind is not pushing me backwards on the bike and my stomach stays strong for most of the way, I want to cross that finish line and see a "12" in the hours place. Sub 13 will make me a happy iron girl, and 12:30 will mean I had an absolute-perfect day. 13 hours and change is likely as well, depending on the conditions, and I'm not talking about anything more than that. Who knows what I am in for on November 1st? I've been humbled by the marathon, knocked down a notch by the century ride, and been beaten up by many a swim courses....so IM could very well have some lessons for me too. However, my attitude is that I've put in the time, I've done the training, and I expect nothing less than to kick the bad boy's ass.

I won't bore you with my taper workouts for last week, but check out my sweet new bike rack:
I decided against that iPod touch for my birthday, and instead went with this Yakima Hold-up rack. It retails for $399, but I ended up getting it from ORSRacksDirect.com for $299.25 w/no tax and no shipping. ORS Racks Direct had the rack listed for $359, but they also price match, so I sent them a link where REI had all their Yakima racks 20% off, making the Hold-up $321. REI, however, has a store in TN and would charge me tax, so I emailed ORS and asked if they could match REI's price. Not only did they match it, but they beat it. They emailed me a code giving me the rack for $299.25 and free shipping (and no tax since they aren't in TN). Do you know how much I love getting a good deal?!?! Not to mention they shipped the rack immediately and I had it like 3 days later. My Dad helped me install the new hitch and rack this weekend...so we are ready to roll.

21 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sweet deal on the bike rack. You are right. You put the time in, you trained hard, now it is time for the big dance. You are ready.

Andrea said...

I know you've got to feel relieved, excited, & mostly ACCOMPLISHED right now - I'm proud to be able to say that I know you (and have for a VERY long time) even if we don't see it other much, I'm still proud. You'll be in my prayers & I'll certainly be thinking about you on the 1st.

By the way, I sent you an email needing some advice from freeze0872@yahoo.com - let me know if you got it or not. I value your opinion.

Lisa said...

Go get that Ironman, girlie! :)

TJ said...

You're ready for a great day. I'll be down there cheering yall to the finish line.

Cliff said...

Lana,

You are ready for this. Just sit back and enjoy the ride :o)

jahowie said...

Hey, nice rack!! That sounded bad. LOL!! You have put the training in and I know that you will do great. :-)

triguyjt said...

Yeah,.,,,,I'm with Jahowie LOL!!
some how that sounds bad...

but it is a very nice contraption that you strap the bike to...(There, I got around it)

you will sub 13 the ironman...

book it dano!!!!

Missy said...

I'm calling it the 'weird calm.' I think it's just because you KNOW you're there and there's nothing I can do now that will improve what I've got, only hurt it. Be careful and I'll SEE you soon!

Stephanie said...

Everyone says you should never put a time goal on your first IM. How your body reacts that day to the physical stresses you put on it is the big unknown factor. But, with that being said, I think you'll go sub 13 fo sho. I did a 12:40 there, and that was with a training plan that got screwed up by a bike wreck and hand surgery. (That left me a lot of time to run, which was great. My marathon was okay - I missed a marathon PR by only 18 minutes.) You did better than I did at Gulf Coast last year, so you'll be totally fine. I'll be down there cheering you and all of the other Nashvillians on!

Mike said...

I like the way you've put your target time(s) right out there for all to see. Good Luck for Sub13!

Born To Endure said...

You've worked hard no doubt! I hope to meet up with you down there. I can't wait to hit that ocean swim, i'm so tired of swimming laps in the same pool week after week..bring of FLA..yay!

Eric said...

Wow!!! That is a luxury ride for your bike :-)

Michele said...

I have NO doubt you will go sub 13. You have put in the time and you are tough.

I am praying hard for calm water and light winds.

Glad you got that bike rack installed. What about all those other equipment needs hows that list coming along????

Darrell said...

Love your goals.

Enjoy the prerace calm. Save all that energy for the real thing.

SingletrackJenny (formerly known as IronJenny) said...

I have a sub 12 number in my head for you, girlfriend.
I will miss you this time but I know we will do another race together soon.
Erin and Terri are shipping their bikes on TriBikeTransport today... getting close!!!

Take what the day brings you. And take your faith. Jesus totally digs IM and will have a blast on the course with you!

Melanie said...

Lana, I stumbled across your blog a week or two ago and have really been enjoying my time trying to read back a few weeks. It's fantastic! I am so excited for you and your big day coming up, and it has been inspiring me to read about it as I train for my next 2 marathons. Count me in as a regular reader and a regular cheerleader for you.

Benson said...

jahowie stole my line.

You are so marvelous. you're gonna love that day. enjoy it and live it.

Wes said...

Right now, we are at the point where we just want all this freaking training just to come to an end. Get it over with for the Good Lord's sake!! LOL... Come race day, The Fire Inside will be burning brightly. We'll leave it all out there on the course :-)

Anonymous said...

Glad to see you giving yourself the recognition you deserve and counting your blessings as well. Races like this have the power to deliver triumph and anguish, and usually some combination thereof... Your determination and spirit are really solid!
Also, to let you know, I reposted your "Fire Inside" post at our blog, racingcolorado.com/raceblog. Thanks for sharing your inspiration!

Janet Edwards said...

Gotta love a sweet deal! I don't blame ya for the time goal and I am sure you have the fight in ya to go for it! Best of luck this weekend. I will be thinking about ya!

greyhound said...

I love your attitude. Go with it. It will get you there.

Oh, and Shelby says, "nice rack" too.