Pre-race rituals

Last night I went up to Smithville lake and swam with a co-worker who is also doing the Jackson County Tri. The lake was much greener than I remember and the bottom was slimy (good reason not to touch the bottom). I guess that's the downfall to warm weather. I see it as boot camp for my immune system. I figure there are women who pay good money for a seaweed body wrap - I should take advantage of swimming through it for free!

I decided an OWS the Thursday before race day is a good pre-race ritual I'm going to keep up. It felt great to be in the water and it really helps my confidence. I think my co-worker also felt it was beneficial. I haven't been swimming as much as I should due to limited pool hours now that school is back in session but I have no problems with six tenths of a mile.

And I definitely learned my lesson from the Bike Source triathlon - no BBQ at 9 pm the night before a race! I'll stick with the usual pasta or uber-thin all-natural pizza. For this distance I don't think I need to go overboard on the carbs. I've found I race better if I'm at a slight deficit.

Sunday is the big day and I'm excited. The race is sold out, so it should be a lot of fun. Although looking at last year's times, I really hope I'm not in last place in my age group. That would be a mental blow and it's a definite possibility. I just wish they had more race info on the website, like number/size of waves, beach start or standing water start, if transition areas are assigned or first-come, stuff like that. I like to have all the information beforehand. I'm such an engineer.

Here's to another race weekend!