Four days to go - hope I know what I'm doing

I am done with work until after Ironman - woo hoo! It has been a tough 6 days with lots of deadlines, but I left with a clear conscience.

To thank my co-workers for being so supportive the last nine months, I organized a contest to be administered by our "Minister of Fun" in my absence. Participants of the contest guess my finish time (Price is Right rules) down to the second. The winner gets a souvenir that I bring back from LP. The catch was I didn't want to know what the guesses were and for the most part, I escaped that. I don't need that kind of pressure!

I went for my first run sans iPod or friends today. It was a quick 30-minute easy run in the rain. I got lost in my thoughts and actually enjoyed the run for a change. No HR monitor either - just me and perceived effort.

I thought about my first triathlon. I remember being so proud that I only walked three times during the 5k. That was only 5 years ago. I also thought about my two stand-alone marathons. I can't say I really enjoyed either of them. Matt tells me that the IM marathon is a completely different animal. I hope so. I think I'm trained well enough to not only complete the IM, but also run most of the IM marathon. Keeping my fingers crossed.

It will help that I get to see fellow blogger Courtney (SkiRough on my links section) for the first time ever at mile 6 of the run. That will rock!

I am also looking forward to seeing my in-laws, TriEric and his wife and Sam and her husband out on the course! Further, there are a ton of CTC members participating this year at LP, so it will be great to see them on the course. Finally, can't forget the LP camp participants. I probably won't be lonely for long.

Before I sign out for the week, I wanted to extend a thank you to the friends and family who have supported me throughout this craziness, especially my training partners (Sam J, Jodi, ESpeed, Stacy, Sam B, Carie, Debbie, Amy, Martha, JT, Janet, Sara, Suzi, Angie...) . Special thanks go to my LP training partner, Paula, who will be there with me on race day (I'll be chasing you down buddy, so keep moving), my wonderful coach, Angela, who got me to the starting line and of course, my husband for supporting me at all times.

The next time I post, I should be an Ironman!! Good times!