Rounding it off

Shawnee Mission is so close I can taste it. I have trouble getting to sleep, envisioning race day. Mostly fantasizing about how much ass I am going to kick this year. Although I have to say I have little doubts sneaking in . . . In order to hit the top 10, I'm going to have to do the race in under 2 hours, if this year's field is anything like last year's. 20 minutes for 1000 meters is very ambitious for me. 18 MPH is (I think, at this point) entirely doable. And a sub-10:00 mile is . . . well, it might happen. But doing all of them together, with transitions and all, under 2 hours is very, very ambitious for me. And I find myself wondering . . . what if I'm not as good as I think I am? What if I'm not so fit? What if there's just too much depth in the field? Inevitably, I come to the conclusion that, whether I podium or not, whether or not I can claim the bragging rights of a top 10 overall finish, I will still kick ass. Because I am so, so, so much fitter this year than I was last year. And even if I don't kick everyone else's asses, I will still have kicked my own!

So with race day in clear view, I'm working in more bricks and some transition practice. Wednesday, I went to Pawnee Prairie Park (after picking my bike up at Bicycle Exchange, because one of my spokes broke and so I had that fixed) and did a 20-2 workout. 20 miles on the bike, 2 miles of beautiful trail running. I have to admit, I hadn't done a bike-run brick in a long time. Like, multiple weeks. I can't actually remember the last time I ran right off the bike, with the exception of races. Anyway, the brick was hell, I'm sure, but all I really remember was how completely awesome I felt after doing it. Not awesome as in, "Ah! I feel quite refreshed after that brisk jog!" More awesome like, "Yes! I am such a badass! Now get me into a shower."

I think the badass element is my favorite part of this sport.

Today, I've already done my 4-mile tempo run (39:18! yeah, sub-10-minute pace!) and I still have a swim-bike brick. So, with any luck, it won't rain and I'll be able to ride the 18 miles to Lake Afton, swim, and ride back. But even if it does start raining, I'll probably go. The only way I'd miss a workout, at this point, is for a full-on, thunder-and-lightning storm. Or a tornado, I suppose.