I am sitting in a very cool place while outside is scorching hot. Well, not as hot as it was earlier, but pretty close. Actually, I’m in Penticton which is not nearly as hot as Osoyoos. Apparently the water was 22.5 degrees Celsius today, which is .5 degrees cooler than the cut-off for wearing a wetsuit. Whew! I have never done a triathlon without a wetsuit before. I guess there is a first time for everything!
This race is all about first-times for me. I have been really nervous about this race and was wondering what that was all about, but then it dawned on me: this is the first major race I have done that is completely self-directed. Most major races that I have done for the first time have been because a friend has suggested or coerced me into it, other than my very first one seven years ago. Also, usually I train with the particular race in mind for at least several months. So on top of all the health stuff, I am also figuring all this first-race stuff by myself… with the help of my great support-person, Tina.
We had a heck of a time trying to find where “68th street” was in Osoyoos. It turns out there is no 68th “street” and it is actually “68th Avenue!” We shook our prairie heads at these mountain folks. Once we figured out where to pick up the race package and made their map have north as the top, we were good to go.
Yesterday we drove the bike course. WOW! That is one tough freaking course. It is hot, steep, hilly, and everything else hard. I am excited for the heat, though. It has been a while since I’ve done a hot race and am hoping that it won’t kick my butt too much. A finish is all I’m looking for at this point. A PB isn’t even on the map, but I’m pretty sure it’s possible. I’m hoping to finish within 6.5 hours, which would be a PB and is very doable for me.
Anyway, I had better go walk the dogs and get ready to bed. The 4am wake-up is going to come very early. I hope tomorrow I will have a positive race report!
