Taking stock

Wow, it's been 10 days since my last post. I guess with Triscoop, twitter and other media it's easy to vent and express yourself outside of an "old fashion" blog. I'm still not sure about Twitter, it's nice but down a lot.

Well my first triathlon is coming soon! It's a significant drive to Lakeside, over 2 hours according to Google maps. I'm getting more nervous than I anticipated. Definitely more nervous than for a regular running race. Three sports to worry about. I have NO idea how the swim is going to go. Thank god for the wetsuit. The bike also will be a new experience. I don't feel like I trained quite enough, although 18km should be no problem. How fast though? The running at least I'm comfortable with.

My strategies are:

• For the swim, start on the outside and concentrate on a nice, slow glide through the water. I'll try to stay out of the "washing machine" but I won't be a wimp either. When I train with pull buoys, I can basically swim forever, so I'm hoping the wetsuit will be similar.
• I'm going to wear everything under my wetsuit, including my HR monitor strap. I might even pin my number although I have a number belt and might use that. I will wear socks in my bike shoes. Before leaving T1, make sure I have a good swig of Gatorade.
  
• I have no specific target for the bike. I'll try to keep my HR below 172, which should be close to my lactate threshold. Make sure I drink a bit on the bike. I will not try to take my shoes off while on the bike.
• T2 should be a no-brainer. Drink a bit. Switch shoes. Switch Garmin from bike to wrist. I'll probably wear my Nike Free.
  
• The 4k run will hopefully be at sub-4:30/km. I should still be able to handle that, at least for 4km. My HR should definitely be above 180.
  

Even though I'm fretting a bit, specially for the bike portion, I've been training fairly consistently. It's a bit hard to get decent long bike rides in the city. The bike paths are full of runners and slower cyclists and the speed is supposed to be limited to 20km/h. The streets are a mess. I haven't gone out in the boonies yet.

I bought the "Total Immersion" book and DVD to help with my swim. I'm a believer now. It makes sense to me. I'm about half way through the lessons, but even though I'm not finished, I can use what I do know on my swim on Saturday.

Again, my wife needs the car on Saturday so I've signed up for Zip cars. Basically, it's a rental plan without having to go through the pains of a rental office. You walk to the Zip lot, get your key using your Zip card and drive off. You pay for the day or by the hour. Insurance and gas (up to 125 km/day) are included, you pay for gas with your Zip card. More on that later.

This week I'll practice my transitions a bit. On Thursday I get my wetsuit rental and I'll practice getting out of it. I might (not likely though) jump in the lake and try a few strokes.

Only 4 dodos!