Waiting. Ready.

My taper week is going pretty great now.

This morning I had a sports massage, which was really nice. Last time I had one, I found I was somewhat sluggish for a day or two afterward, so I wanted to make sure I didn't do the second one too close to race day.

Later, after the kids were up, we went to the Gahanna YMCA and I had a good swim.
Being off work this week is giving me time to think. It also means I had the chance to take Nora to afternoon kindergarten today, which was a first for me.

Saturday night and Sunday night we camped out in the backyard in a tent, which was awesome. Monday morning, Doc came by to run with me, which was terrific. We did an hour on the bike path at a 9 min/mile pace.

The leaves are starting to turn already. It's hard to believe a whole summer has gone.

I've been visualizing my race and making notes about transition.

Last night I spent an hour cleaning every last bug off the bike and trying to smooth out any rough spots from my crash. I remember reading some short story in high school literature class about a sailboat race. The narrator didn't have the fastest boat or the best skills, but he spent hours cleaning all the barnacles off the bottom of the boat, and ended up winning. That's what I was thinking about when I was detailing the bike. Not about winning, of course, but about the impact of proper preparation.

My race wheels are on the bike, and I have one more ride tomorrow to make sure everything is in top shape, and that I didn't screw anything up by taking the bike apart and cleaning it.

I feel like a lioness up on high ground. Waiting. Ready.