One down......15 to go!

Well, its Saturday night and we are back in San Diego...having just filled our faces with well deserved sushi after a long day in Oceanside.

Yesterday, we went for a ride to check out the bikes after unpacking them. All went well until we were climbing the hill just outside of transition when the odd sound I had been getting from my ride finaly came to a climax. My chain snapped in two while we were climbing!!! Nothing like a good chunk of roadrash to start the year.
We went to the local bike shop for a quick repair, and back to the hill to ride it again....to shake away any of the bad vibes I would feel on race day.
We went to get registered and all went well with no hiccups. Registration was right on the beach....it was pretty neat to feel the breeze and see the surfers out in the water.
After a nice pre-race meal, it was lights out for the night.

5am, the alarms go off and its time to pack the car (we were checking out, and there was NO allowance for late check outs). We rode to the start line and went to our respective zone areas to set up our spots.
Brian was first in the frigid water....followed by Heather 21 min later. We both found it COLD and past the barriers, it was quite wavy.
Heather reeled Brian in with 8 km to go on the bike. We BOTH looked at each other in shock when we reminised about the MONSTER hills we just rode. Honestly, in all my years riding, I have never ridden hills as long and as steep as these!!!!
We rode in together and left transition as a team....which I thought was awesome. Heather quickly picked up the pace and off she went. She finished her run strong and ran a smart 1/2 Marathon. I was happy with my run......enjoying the sights and the sounds, taking it ALL in.
Heather was kind enough to sign us up for massages....which did wonders.
Back at the hotel parking lot, we packed the bags and drove down the road to San Diego for the night, as we leave back home in the AM.

Our story is getting out there.....we sat in the massage tent and spoke to a guy from Calgary....who said, out of the blue...."HEY....I heard about you guys!!!". I also had the opportunity to meet Paula Newby-Fraser (8 time IM Champion).......she thought we were nuts. I am sure we will see her again.....she is a broadcaster for IMLive.

All in all, we are STOKED about race number one. The word is spreading....and thats why we are here.!!!!
We head back to Ottawa tomorrow AM........see y'all there!!

Brian

Oceanside - The Morning before Race Day

We arrived safe and sound last night, and more importantly, our bikes did too! Our trip was not without it's hiccups though. The last leg of our flight (Denver-San Diego) was delayed by 2 hours so a 3 hour lay-over turned into a 5 hour lay-over....which made us think that VIP membership Air Canada offers would probably be a wise investment. Whoever thought training was hard on the body never sat in an airport for hours on end. We're sorer today than after any long ride or run!

But, before our coach gives us heck, we've stretched it out well and we're almost ready to go out for our test ride. The bikes have successfully been put back together, and it's time to get them out on the road for the first time in 2008 and remember what it's like to have to actually steer while you pedal! We've already seen a lot of other athletes riding the roads - we even think we saw Michellie Jones out riding - it was all a pink blur.

Check-in is from noon to 8:00 PM, and we're anxious to get there, get our kits and maybe actually put our toes in the water so that we're not completely surprised tomorrow.

Things we've learned so far -

1. We need to think about more than just our race clothes! Both of us forgot warm-up gear and shoes for walking.
2. If you're going to charge things at home, make sure you unplug them and pack them the morning you leave - Heather has everything for her garmin, except the garmin itself.
3. Magazines are not enough entertainment for a 12 hour trip...good thing we had our travel scrabble (thanks Trish and Ian!!!)

One more sleep!!!

Brian & Heather

...do we have everything?

Well, we THINK we have everything we will need. Good thing we have resigned ourselves to the fact that the 1st of 16 should be used as a "dress rehearsal" for the rest of them.
We loaded the T14's in our bike bags last night with some difficulty. Looking at them today, it seems its a good idea to let them "settle", as they seem to fit much better today.
Just in case, we went NUTS on bubble wrap as an extra level of protection.

No doubt, we (read: Brian) have over packed...but it looks like we will have bike bags, carry-on and only one other bag to check.

Our flight is at 11am out of Ottawa and will bring us to the cities of Toronto, Denver and finally San Diego, California. We plan on a 7am swim on Friday and then we'll head to the venue to sign in.
We'll drop a note once we are there and settled.

EVERYONE cross your fingers, that EVERYTHING arrives and on time!!

Cheers!

Brian and Heather