Yea! It worked!

Ok, so as I was saying, the Ironman is a crazy race. The ultimate feat of endurance. At least for me! I'm not going to climb any major mountains, or run any ultramarathons....so this is my big challenge! It all started in 1999 when I wanted to do the Danskin Triathlon. I did that and was hooked! There was no turning back. I kept doing triathlons and then marathons. I knew about the Ironman race, but had no desire to ever do one. But the Half-Ironman race was something that always sounded like a good challenge. Then I met Kristi in 2008. She was training for her first triathlon. While she was training for her first triathlon, she met her husband-to-be, who was also training for his first triathlon. We did a couple of sprint triathlons together and then decided to go for the gusto. A Half-Ironman! We trained and did the Austin Longhorn Half in October 2009. It was a great race! We vowed never again. But, that summer, I had met Bonnie! Bonnie was training for her first triathlon, the Austin Tri-in September of 2010. She was hooked. Her boyfriend, Todd, had already completed a bunch of full Ironman races. Suddenly I was surrounded by endurance junkies! About this time Kristi heard about a Half-Ironman in Galveston in April 2010. So we did that one too, all five of us. We had a great, windy weekend in Galveston. When we crossed the finish line, Bonnie said she might want to do a full Ironman, Todd definitely wanted to do another full, but Kristi, Wayne, and I were all on the same page. NEVER AGAIN!!!!

So here we are, all signed up for a Full Ironman Race. How did that happen, you might be asking. Well, during our recuperation, while lying out by the pool on a beautiful May afternoon, Bonnie texted Kristi and I to let us know that an inaugural Ironman race was going to be held just outside of Houston in May 2011. Hmmm...Kristi's wheels started turning...no plane tickets, no shipping of the bikes...similar climates for training...lake swim instead of open water....flat course....boy oh boy. What else could we ask for?

Kristi: "Hey Wayne, Do you want to do a Full Ironman?"
Wayne: "No."
Kristi: "Ok, but will you do one?"
Wayne: "Of course darling."
Kristi: "Mary, would you do it if we did it?"
Mary: "No way."
Kristi: "It would be fun!"
Mary: "Ok."

So you can see that this insanity can be completely blamed on Kristi. Heehee! Of course Bonnie and Todd were in, so on the registration day in June, the five of us sat poised at our computers ready to try and register for a race that could have potentially sold out in a matter of minutes. We all got in-and the race took almost a month to sell out! It seems that the possibility of really hot and humid weather in Houston in May was a pretty big discouraging factor for a lot of Ironmen!

And now...here we are. One day before the official training starts. And I have to say I'm a little nervous! The training schedule is pretty tough! I am going to try my best to update this blog daily after our trainings. I think it'll be fun to look back after the race...and fun for anyone who's remotely interested in our lunacy to keep track!

Here's a snapshot of a typical training week:

Monday-Swim
Tuesday-Bike trainer workout, Run
Wednesday-Swim, Bike
Thursday-Run, Weights
Friday-yoga
Saturday-Bike, Run, Swim
Sunday-Bike, Run, Weights

Distances change each week, but it's going to be anywhere from 15-25 hours of training a week!

We've been keeping a base of biking and swimming...we did a century bike ride in October, and have been biking about 80 miles a week since then. We've been running 15-20 miles a week. But no swimming.

I'm starting the training with Achilles Tendonitis. Lovely. I go to an Airrosti doctor though, and he works on the fascia around the muscle. It's kind of like PT. There's no rest involved with the treatment...quite the opposite....he encourages you to run/bike/swim, the same night as the treatment. Icing and stretching are going to become my friends over the next six months...that and Aleve!

Ok, enough for now. Until tomorrow!