A Week Away

The big Tahoe ride is one week from today! Yikes and wahoo all at the same time. At times the season seemed like it was getting long, but at yesterday's practice, it was hard to believe that it was the last group practice before Tahoe.

We met at the assistant coach's house and headed out from there for a nice out and back. The only bad thing is that you don't realize going out how much of a tailwind you have and how many downhills you are going down --- until you turn around to come back and it hits you smack in the face. Going out, we averaged 17.5 mph. My total average when I was done showed 14 something. That tells you how slow we were coming back in. But it sure was fun to fly down the hills at 35mph on the way out!

After the ride, we went back to his house where they grilled hamburgers and hot dogs and ate lots of other yummy food while we had our "things to know before you go" meeting. When you go to a marathon, all you really need to remember is to pack your shoes, socks, shorts, sports bra and singlet. There's so much more with a bike. And not only do you have to remember more, but we have to ship our bikes early. We have to have our bike at the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society office on Monday (yes on Memorial Day) at 1:30 to pack up. That's when the truck will be there and if we miss it, we have to find another way to get our bike to Tahoe. I think I'll be there at 1:00 just to be safe. And sometime Monday morning I need to get the bike ready for shipping. They suggested we put foam padding around the tubes so they don't get scratched in the process.

Anyway, after getting all that information and last minute reminders on when to be at the airport and what to pack, we took a group picture with one of our honored heroes. It really has been a great season and we have lots of fun, caring people on the team. The event weekend is going to be a blast.

This past week was also a good one in the fact that I FINALLY got to the pool for my first swim of the season. With triathlon season right around the corner, I really need to get some swims in. I wasn't as winded as I thought I would be, but I do need some work. Since I will be bikeless (well, road bikeless anyway) after Monday, I'm hoping to hit the pool next week for some swim time. And then I need to determine whether I'm doing Danskin or not and see if registration is still open. Danskin is June 8, so one week after Tahoe.

We are trying to enjoy the 3 day weekend, so last night we went to The Main Event for my friend's birthday and bowled. It was lots of fun. Then today after church, the whole family decided to head out to the lake to ride bikes - the kids and my husband on the path around the lake (about 3 miles) and me out on the country roads around the lake. I was a little nervous as I have always had someone with me in the past. Today I was going to fly solo. I intended to get in about 20 miles, but the heat and wind was brutal and I cut it short at 11. I may (depending on when I wake up in the morning) try to get in a short ride Monday morning before taking my bike to load on the truck. We'll see. I know I'm ready and I know I need to rest my legs. After all, I have a 100 mile bike ride in 7 days!

Other than loading my bike tomorrow, I have no idea what we will do. I don't plan on using an alarm clock to wake up to. When I get up, I'll do some sort of exercise. And sometime tomorrow I want to go to my parent's house. My mom got the new Wii Fit game and said it's lots of fun. We haven't gotten it yet, but I do want to get it.

To anyone who may be reading this who is currently or has been in the military, THANK YOU for your service to our country. May God bless you and your families.