continued

Although I must have looked like an absolute poser.... I suited up for yesterday's long ride in my team kit and set out for 4+ hours. I love my team kit, I love the way it feels. I love what it says. I am really proud to be a QT2 team member. The workout was straightforward.......... 3 hours of endurance, 67 minutes of tempo, transition run.

It's been a difficult week at work. I have seen an insurmountable amount of people die in car accidents this week. When I get on the roads for a long bike ride it's what I think about. I view cars as weapons. I get irritated when I see people on cell phones or texting. How many times when I am running do I see a car come straight at me and then jerk to the left as they have suddenly looked up.

Every time I get on my bike I pray for the gift of returning home.

I would prefer to do my long rides during week days, not on Saturday afternoons when the traffic population is different. However I don't get a choice in the day of the week I ride long. That's how the plan has to roll.

For the first time ever in my life I rode my two hour loop (twice) backwards. It gives me a straightaway and a giant shoulder to ride my tempo effort on.

Everything went fine, the paces the nutrition....... and the new gear. I transitioned to my run and held a pace at zone 1 that was my fastest zone 1 pace ever in the world.

This morning holds a great tempo workout again, embedded in a 56 min run / 30 min bike / 56 minute run. I am excited about it. There's been lots of running this week. There's been tempo and hills and breakthroughs. I know this is the beginning. I have a moderate week up next with a half ironman to finish it off with, then a few more 17 hour weeks that are full of tempo. I even heard the word TRACK in there. I have not run on a track since 2007 and that was for a run test.

I am so excited