So, in Gijon, 48hrs from what is arguably the A race of A races in my racing "career", and I pinned on my first dossard in 1989! How am I feeling?
Well, kinda prepared. I did the Shubie Sprint two weeks ago, just to test the legs. The swim sucked, but it was my fifth swim in four years, and that included the Optimyz photo-shoot! I had a great bike-leg; it was hilly and I just rocketed through the field, from 44 to something like 7th. What gives, I thought I'd lost any kind of cycling legs years ago? I had a good run too, a 20 minute 5K , but that did include the world's worst T2 ever, but then that was part of the plan to doing Shubie in the first place; to do a real T2 in anger. I'd never raced in the Ronins before, and what's the good of a fast shoe if it takes you over a minute in T2 wrestling with the damn things? Might as well have slow shoes and enjoy the run! Still, I know what I screwed up and it won't happen in Gujon, I promise.
Last weekend I did my final 20 miler before the autumn's madness. I headed out with Ray Morehead and Denise Robson and we rattled off a repsectable 35 kms. Knowing Worlds would be a 2.5 hr race with a 5K at the end, when we hit 30kms I tried, and suceeded, in upping the pace for the final few kilometres. It felt pretty good, so I think I can head into the race on Sunday with some confidence in my own abilities to challenge the distance, if not with any pretensions of any kind of placing!
AD
