One brick in the wall

First brick of the year done! Okay, it was a little one, but it needed to be done for confidence-building, if nothing else. I did a little test-run of the bike-run distances that I'll be doing in next Sunday's Cure Autism Now Triathlon.

I hopped on Buttercup and did 12.1 miles - I would have done only 10 (as I'm doing in the tri) but it's a mile each way to get out of the heavier traffic on the main street of our little town. So I waited until I was out on the open highway to get in my 10 miles down on the aerobars. Once again, it felt great as long as I was going downwind! Ugh, it got hard again when I turned around. I have to remember to start upwind on training rides. And definitely get a new bike saddle. Ai ai ai! It felt like knives!!! But I was pleased with my pace - I was going 18-20 mph in several sections with the wind for long stretches. The overall average was 14.1 mph, factoring in that slow return trip with standing up on the pedals several times to relieve that vicious pressure.

Then a 5-minute transition at home (would have been much quicker but the damn phone rang).

Out for a short run. I was thinking of going to the local track for a time trial, but then realized it was a Monday and there were lots of schoolkids using the facilities. I did a 24-minute jog on the roads for 2 miles. That felt amazingly good! It sure helps me a lot to be warmed up first before running - smooths out all those usual aches I experience in the first mile or so.

I'm more or less ready for the sprint tri - all I have to do is make a packing list and remember to bring everything! And if I don't, well, that's exactly why I'm doing it - to be sure I make my mistakes early!

I just realized that last night I had a dream about an autistic woman that I used to know who became a successful consultant and author. Haven't thought of her in many years. It just occurred to me that this is a pre-race dream about the Cure Autism Now Triathlon next week! Fortunately it was a fairly benign dream, I was just waiting in line at a book-signing of hers. How funny! I wonder if it means anything, other than... I'm waiting!?