It's almost GO TIME!!!

So here I am...exactly 9 days before my first 1/2 Ironman!!  Funny how time creeps up on you.  I remember when it was months away, then weeks, now all of a sudden, a week from tomorrow I'll be heading to Muncie, IN...ready to race on July 7th!  It's a bit overdue for me...a year ago I fractured my elbow exactly one week before Muncie - last year was to be my 1st I/2 IM...needless to say, with a fractured elbow at the very beginning of July, there was no Muncie, no more swimming or biking & most of my tri season was shot.  I did race the women's tri at Bang's Lake in August, against my doctor's orders...but if you know me, I thought "it's only a sprint, I won't get hurt"...LOL  Now, where's that bubble wrap for the next 7 days??

I've been thinking alot about whether or not I feel ready.  I've certainly gone the distances before. And then some!  Last night was my longest open water swim ever...2 miles (or as I'm still calling it...2+ miles)...with no wetsuit.  Muncie will more than likely be no wetsuit - so I'm glad I've had to swim at LITH these past few weeks without a wetsuit - just so I know I can do it.  My wetsuit has always been my "security blanket".  I've been biking well over the 56 miles each weekend for the past few weeks...I'm good there.  Most of my long rides have had a run after it also.  And surprisingly, my legs have transitioned well.  Last week I had a hilly 2 hour run...ugh, in the hot, humid weather.  But I did it & was happy with my average pace.  If I can hold that pace, or slightly better, at Muncie, I will be THRILLED!!  And I've been pretty good at sticking to my nutrition plan...not perfect, but pretty good.  However, being that this is my 1st, and that "unknown" is present in my mind...I'm not committing to any specific times.

Even though I didn't race Muncie last year due to my injury, I still went to support my friend Kim.  So, in a way, I'm slightly less nervous because I've been there - although I haven't been on the course, I've seen the swim, been to the race site, know how far the hotel is from the race...slightly familiar than if I had never been there before.  The drive, on the other hand, leaves something to be desired......

So...here goes...next week is race week...week before my 1st half...I'm going to try to be good.  And remember what I always say to others..."There is no try.  You either do or you don't."  Remember that, Cath...LOL