I DID IT!!!

I faxed in my application for Ultraman Canada just about :45 ago, and I emailed a head shot (above--from transition the morning of IMLP) that they require as well. I didn't feel the same sense of "what the hell did I just do?" that can accompany pressing the SUBMIT button online for an Ironman race, but then again, I haven't had any problems doing that for many years now. Besides, this is just an application--I am sure that if I am accepted to race, then when I receive that news is when it will hit home with me.

Yesterday I had a good, short run, and my legs felt fine, but not super-peppy, which is fine--not like I'm expecting to bust out 5K pace or better yet. This morning I had the pleasure to run with a friend of mine, Peter, who is in town with his wife Salome, to visit Peter's parents (Peter grew up near me but now lives in Miami). We met up at Waterfall Glen, and it was an absolutely gorgeous morning--only about 60 and sunny. The place was jam-packed with runners training for the Chicago marathon and who knows what else. Peter and I ran about 9.75 miles and got to catch up on one another during that time. It felt good to run and talk, so we kept our pace pretty easy--around 9:25/mile. Below are some pics of us in various combinations after running (Salome went for a nice long walk while Peter and I ran):



We will be getting together later today for some cocktails!

When I got home, as a preventive measure, I iced the upper part of my hamstrings--really my glutes--since they have been a little on the, um, overused side, drank some Endurox while icing, then went and got my pre-ROTPM Brazilian wax (I still laugh everytime how Caryn thinks it hurts, and I am always like NOT!), then went and faxed my UMC application, came home and ate some lunch, and now I'm just deciding what I should be doing next.

I forget--last night I did my final (I hope) grocery shopping before ROTPM, and I decided I needed some treats, since it is going to be a calorie festival, right?

I also bought some lobster tails, wild sockeye salmon, scallops and crab cakes. The lady at the seafood counter said I must really like seafood, and I'm thinking, DUH, yeah. I plan on loading up on some Omega-3's next week before and during ROTPM. Depending on how tired/motivated I am at the end of each day, I might just go out for dinner, who knows? I may want pizza every night, or I may want sushi especially after the HIM.

I've got my finisher shirt designed, but I can't show it here since I won't finish assembling it until after I'm done! But it will be a daily work in progress, so I promise to put up pics as I march through each day and also distance and time totals.

It feels a little strange sitting here the weekend before I'll be doing something (double Ironman distance) I thought about maybe taking a full 7 days to do next year, but that somewhere along the way this year I came to the realization I could do it this year and in only 4 days, and one thing led to another and I've submitted an application for Ultraman Canada. Sometimes I marvel at how these things come together and other times I see these things as my destiny, but that I had to be ready and believe I could do them. I'm not yet convinced I can finish Ultraman Canada, but for right now I'll just be on pins and needles waiting to see if they let me in. If and when that happens, then I will be hell bent on doing every possible thing I can do to ensure I can cover that distance and make those cutoffs, and of course, I'll be looking for my support crew, because I already know that Ultraman is not a solo effort--sure, it will be me wrestling with the demons in my own head, but I do not want and could not stand for anyone along with me for the ride to tell me I look good or that I should give in. No--I want people by my side telling me that I am there to do what I said I'd do.

But next week--that is going to be about me battling my own demons on my own. And that will be the sort of party that I will happily attend! Tomorrow will be my last bike and run before ROTPM, and then it's 2 full days of rest and in I go! Or should I say down?