Timberman weekend

It's Timberman weekend time again.  The ninth such time I have been aware of it.  (I missed year #1 when I had no idea there were triathlons besides Kona and then dove right in way over my head the following year)  This is also the first time since that first half ironman/second triathlon ever in 2002 that I will actually not be a part of it in any way.  That is sure going to be strange.  Although to be fair, every year that goes by it resembles less and less the race that I fell in love with way back when.  Thanks, WTC.  Maybe next year you should just throw 5000 people on the course.  Why not?  Think of the money! 

Last year I only participated as the bike portion of a relay.  Of course now you can't do that anymore, although even last year I was thinking to myself, this race just doesn't need relays.  I will say though that it is quite fun to go out on the bike course and be able to blow yourself to pieces without the worry of spoiling your run, because once you hit T2 you just have to pass off your chip to that poor guy you suckered into running the half marathon (thanks, Trent!)

It's going to be very strange to not be racing at all this year.  But I think it was a necessary choice.  Two years ago I was in a somewhat similar position and I 'raced' and, well, it was, I believe, the only time I ever actually cried on a race course.  I mean, we all know I've had some terrible races this year, but I have not been reduced to tears in 2010.  Maybe I should've been, though.  So, let's not push our luck.  I've already set my two worst Ironman times in one year, let's not go for the official worst half ironman since the first one I ever did. 

I will say that I was able to enjoy spectating at the California 70.3 when I got hurt and couldn't race in 2008, and hopefully this will be the same.  At least this time I won't waste a plane ride and a bike box fee, I only have to drive 20 minutes to the start. 

So, what next?  Well, a teeny, tiny sprint race Labor Day weekend that is close enough that I can ride my bike to the start and small enough that I am actually one of the first swimmers out of the water (amazing!) and they don't acknowledge winners and pretty much their only advertising is a hand-painted sign out in front of the local info office.  And supposedly I'm running the Manchester Marathon in November if I can get my running together by then.  I've never run a marathon by itself before.  It will be interesting, to say the least. 

Then what?  Another restart.  I seem to be reliving 2008, minus the part where I actually got hurt.  Just can't quite seem to bring it together.  Let's just hope this is not an endless every other year kind of cycle.  So the plan for the reset?  After Christmas, I am off to spend 3 months training somewhere warm.  At the moment, the front runner in this plan is Tucson.  I spent the winter of '07 living and training in Phoenix, except one weekend I rode my bike from there to Tucson and was like, well, I obviously made the wrong choice.  I know the weather is great and the training is great and it's not too expensive, so that's what I'm thinking.  Then I'll drive to California 70.3 in the beginning of April and drive home.  All the way to New Hampshire.  It sounds so simple to type that now, when I don't have to do it for months, but that's the plan right now. 

I am looking forward to a change of scenery and NOT spending such an incredible amount of time in front of my bike trainer.  In fact, as far as I'm concerned, the trainer is staying home.  I mean, come on, I have to fit 3 months worth of stuff into a Nissan-freakin'-Sentra.  The trainer stays home.  Hoping to join a masters group too while I'm out there and maybe get my swimming to improve, too.  If anyone has any ideas about where I should stay when I'm there, or anything really, let me know!

So obviously I'm excited about this year, just not so excited about what I need to do between now and then to actually set myself up for a good next year.  Once I get things going in the right direction it tends to be easy, it's just getting started that's always so hard when things are going so very, very wrong.