Wow!
That was interesting. That first race can be a dooooozy! This weekend we headed to a suburb of Phoenix for the Desert Classic Duathlon.....a race steeped in nine years of tradition and gun slinging. I've often had nightmares about this kind of day where everything you can imagine going awry does. So much so in fact that I could do nothing more than see the comedy in it and have a great laugh. Despite all the mishaps, I raced well...first race back since the stress fracture so it was good to get in the mix again. I finished 5th in a close race. Definitely really pleased with my fitness at this stage of the season....running felt great and riding is coming.
We started the morning well on the wrong foot, a 45 minute drive starting at 5:30am was actually a 90 minute drive. We arrived 10 minutes before the start of the race...yes, quite literally 10 minutes before the start. Adam the legend and Prof. Brian had to run down and put our bikes in transition for us with shoes and helmets attached....I didn't even see transition prior to the start. After a make shift warm up, we were underway. If you want to take pressure off a situation, this is a great way to do it.....There is literally no time to think about anything which in my case can often be a good thing.
Fast-forward to the end of the race, I was actually really pleased with the effort and my level of fitness and simply how great it was to be back racing. The course was dyno-mite....running through trails in a national park full of cacti....I have many cacti wounds on my arms and legs. I finished 5th and won some prize money which is a nice treat because dinner out afterwards doesn't seem quite as expensive. Simon and I received penalties for being told where our bikes were in transition which added to the comedy of the day.
The day was highlighted by a high-speed chase through the streets of Scottsdale after someone stole Jordans bike off the back of Simons truck. We were a highly efficient crime fighting unit...Jordan and Adam on foot, myself on the bike and Simon in the truck. We chased hard and the thief ditched the bike about a block away. This is no joke!! I think the adrenaline levels were very high, we kept chasing the guy and Adam confronted him but he was slick, produced a convincing story that caught us off guard and made us momentarily question whether he was the person we were looking for.....Bizarre!! Needless to say, the remainder of the day consisted of constant re-caps and "what we should have done differently" and "what would have happened if"........
So, in a nutshell, this might have been the craziest day I have spent in a long time. The number of highs and lows in the adrenaline department must have been a record.
I've attached a picture of the Phoenix suns game we attended....Did a I mention that part of the trip?....Perhaps another story but Steve Nash is one rad dude!
