Made it to Boulder...

We made it to Boulder. It wasn't too bad of a road trip. Other than the road food which is another word for junk food.

Our second night we Stayed in Lincoln Nebraska. Kind of a scary place from what I can tell. We drove around the downtown of this small town and all it was was bums and people that looked a little scary. No need to stay downtown.

Instead we found a Country Inn near the interstate.

First thing I saw when I was checking in was a guy who walked in to get a room and he had a gun in a holster on his belt. First time I've seen that. I thought I was in the wild west.

He was a nice guy. We spoke a bit when he saw my bike on the back of my car and he had a friend that did Ironmans. The guys was about 50 years old, he was about 5 foot 6 and his wife or girlfriend near 6 feet.

We had dinner and had some entertainment watching a 38 year old mother and her 16 year old daughter put the hook on her boss. He was a contraction guy and I think she might have been his book keeper. What I do know is both the mom and daughter went out side and were in separate trucks, the mom with the boss and the daughter with a seedy looking young construction worker.

In the morning as we were packing I saw the boss get into his truck. Big black kick ass truck. He was still in the same clothes at 10 am. Didn't see the girls. They were definitely hustlers and gypsy types.

Nebraska is one long state. It seemed like we were driving across it forever. We stopped at some one horse town. It stunk. It had a chicken plant and livestock yard and we ate at a restaurant in the middle of it. I have no idea how people could live there.

For me I was most amazed at the ethnic diversity in Nebraska and Iowa. I would have thought it was all country white boys. Not the case. It was as diversified as Toronto and lots of ethnic food restaurants that looked good.

It's obvious why Nebraska are the cornhuskers. Nothing but corn fields for mile after mile after mile. The minute we crossed into Colorado the terrain was cowboy type and it started raining. Bad. Up to that point it was sunny and hot. We hit Colorado and it was wet.

On the way down at the restaurant we ate at one of the waitresses said that Boulder has been wet and cool. Lots of rain and flash flooding. She wasn't kidding it was pouring rain. All grey and very depressing.

The hotel we are staying at is not to bad. It's old but the rooms are redone and the bedding is nice. I'm now a hotel room Nazi. I can no longer stay at super cheep places.

We grabbed some dinner and it was early to bed. I was tired. I was also feeling bloated and fat. Three days of driving and not moving and eating junk food will do that to you.

There was a slight problem. I messed up on my flights to Denver for the Boise Hawks Salmon Social night. I was to leave Thursday. Then I changed it to Friday. Then I realized I messed up and had the flight originating in Boise and going to Denver. Not Denver to Boise. Huge Mistake. DOH.

Called Southwest and got the most awesome customer service person who was sympathetic and changed the flight without charging me. It saved me probably $500 or more.

I must have had about 10 or more hours of sleep last night. Just what the doctor ordered.

At 10 am I headed over to the Ironman registration area. It's at Boulder High School and on the fields. They were socking wet. I was in my flip flops and it was so wet and muddy that more than once my flip flop stayed put and my foot came out of it. Lots of mud.

The one thing I know is to get to registration early. If not the line ups are crazy. It wasn't too bad. Not much of a wait. I did my run through the merchandise tent and picked up 3 new Ironman polo shirts. That's my work uniform. This being my last Ironman I need to stock up. I also picked up a very cool coffee cup and a sign for the Pig & Whistle. All to the tune of about $250.

At the expo I saw a company was offering bike tune ups and lubes for $65 so I went back to the hotel and got my bike. Just to be safe I want to make sure it's all lubed up. I need all the help I can get. I've been going so slow lately that I'm really wondering if there was something wrong with my drive training. I'm sure there was problems with the wheels. Since I changed to my race wheels my speed is noticeably faster.

While I waited for the bike to get tuned up we went to the Cheesecake factory. I had the spaghetti and meatballs. I can't recall the last time I've had spaghetti and meatballs. It was a little bit of Carbo loading. It was really good.

Went back, picked up the bike. I also realized I forgot my profile water bottle for the front of my bike and had to buy one of those along with bike foam sealant if I get a flat. I've never seen the brand before. Hope it works.

By the time I got back to the hotel I was tired. I had a run planned and then a bike. I can tell you all I wanted to do was lie down and sleep. I had zero motivation. I literally pushed myself out of the door.

Before I left I saw that there is the Boulder river trail that runs behind our hotel. I got onto that and did 30 minute out and back. It goes right behind the expo and T2. It's a whole new world on those trails. It's kind of surreal. On one side you have this City with streets and seems busy. Then you have this blissful set of trails. The trails are also the run portion of the Ironman. It's really scenic and if it's hot there is lots of shade.

Weather wise it's supposed to rain on Friday, be sunny and hot on Saturday and Sunday and then back to rain on Monday. I hope they are right. It forecasted to be 82 F.

I felt so fat and bloated on the run. In hindsight I should have done at least 30 minutes each of the driving days. My Achilles was tight, which is why I should have ran. I had that problem before and I've over come it, or so I thought. Consistency seems to be the key.

When I got back I got on the bike right away. I was feeling better than when I went on my run but I knew if I didn't head out right away I'd lose my mojo. I started off the ride on the trails but it was too much hassle with the twists and turns and people, then there was water from all the flooding.

I did notice the bike was running smooth. I think it was a worth while $65 tune up spend. I moved onto the road and I was really doing well. At 30 kph it felt effortless. I even got up to 42 kph at points. I don't want to jinx it but I'd love to be able to have a relaxing ride and average 30 kph for the bike portion.

The dryness and altitude is apparent. The dryness reminded me of Arizona. I definitely will have to be drinking lots during the bike.

When I got back all I wanted to do was lie down and sleep. No rest for the wicked. I had to shower and do the pre-race body shave. I don't know what it is, I'm assuming the protein whey, but my hair is growing back faster than it ever has. It took a while in a hot shower to get it all done. Definitely dehydrating.

Then still no rest. I had to change my hotel and car reservations and then update the blog. I'm tired and really want to sleep. I can't. I need to get my race bags ready as I'm not going to be able to do it tomorrow and I don't want to rush it on Saturday when I get back.

To add to the challenge we have to get up at 5:30 am to get to the airport to catch our flight to Boise. Worst than that is our flight back from Boise to Denver on Saturday morning is a 6:30 am departure. Yikes. All I want to do on Saturday is drop off my bike and run gear and spend nothing but time lying on the bed in my hotel room and letting my body get as much rest as possible.

Bringing the mountain bike for Alice is working good. She's already been riding the trails. I really can't believe how many miles of trails there is. It seems they are never ending and lots of splits. I could see it really easy to get lost. I hope that doesn't happen during the Ironman.

From the feeling of this Ironman so far I think this is going to be a premier event in the future. They even have an underwear run and it seems many of the athletes are uber fit like Kona. Except me of course. When I see another fat guy I feel a bonding that we are going to do it and weight is only one measure. It's the heart and a strong mind that gets you through.

Alice is right into it. She knows more of what is going on that me. She said that it was close to the swim being cancelled. What? Yup, apparently there is a high algae level. They just checked it today and announced good news that the swim will go on at the reservoir.

What I do like about this Ironman that I haven't seen before is that their is no pre-race meal. Instead they have given $25 food vouchers for a number of participating restaurants. For the first timers I can see the pre-race meal being a part of the adventure. For most it's a lousy meal. I much prefer this $25 voucher idea. They also had some good swag. A backpack and in the kit was a bike tool kit with the Ironman Logo. Very cool.

You can definitely tell that Boulder is an athlete friendly zone. You get the sense on the bike that the drivers of the cars are very respectful and the cyclist are the ones that own the road.

Anyway, it's now 6:51 pm and time to go grab some dinner before an early night to bed. After I pack all my gear up of course.

Oh, last but not least. Saw the greatest tattoo. On one calf it said I'm an Ironman, on the other Calf it said "Chemo is Hard".

Run - 1:00:09 / 10.25 km
Bike 1:00:54 / 28.15 km