Friday, February 19, 2010

Double vision


Reminder! There's a Trizophrenia book-signing event at Schuler Books and Music in Grand Rapids this Tuesday, Feb. 23, 7 p.m. at their 28th Street location. I'd love to see you there. (Great article in Rapid Growth, 4th item)

But first, let's get this Year of the Double theme going.

While my 2010 triathlon season is not yet fully formed, I have committed to five events that have taken on their own theme. To review, I go to San Francisco in April to swim Alcatraz to San Francisco on Saturday and across the Golden Gate on Sunday. In June, I race in Lansing's own Hawk Island Tri on Sunday and help put the thing on all spring, culminating of course on Sunday. In July, I go to Geneva, NY, to race the Musselman and do the mini-Mussel on Saturday and the full Musselman half-ironman on Sunday. In August, it's off to Luray, Va., for their Olympic-distance triathlon on Saturday and sprint on Sunday; and in September, to the mountains of western Maryland and the Savageman, where I'll race an Olympic-distance tri on Saturday and the full Savageman half-iron on Sunday.

So, yeah. The Year of the Double.

So, like I said, let's get down to it. Tomorrow is the Mid-Michigan Track Club's annual Tombstone 10. It's a training run that feels like an A-priority race, and is a terrific gauge of your readiness to transition from your winter miles into the heavy training and racing spring is (really, we're promised) about to bring. What it isn't is easy. It's ten 1-mile laps of a very hilly cemetery. I'll sleep well that night, after Patty and I have dinner at the home of some good friends who probably have no idea what they're in for.

And then Sunday I'm off to Grand Haven for another Masters swim meet. I'd like to say I planned this weekend as a double-whammy test to gauge my readiness for all these two-fer weekends coming up. But in truth, I caved to a tiny amount of pressure from friend, coach, adviser and much better swimmer Tom to carpool to the race with him and a number of other, equally superior, swimmers. And appealing as the race is, I'm really looking forward to the trip home, an hour-and-a-half autopsy of my morning's efforts and my past half-year's improvements.

I should be recovered just fine for Tuesday's book signing. But if I can't lift my arms to draw, I'll just use (here it comes) lighter ink.


5 comments:

Unknown said...

Perfect. You ARE the Creature from the Grand Rapids Lagoon. Better block the canals, because you might escape into the Mighty Muskegon! Be very afraid, Big Rapids. Be VERY afraid. garth

Noel said...

Dude,
I'm buying you a hammock for your birthday.
You're starting to make "weekend" into a four letter word.
Enjoy all your double whammies, but a nap on the couch once and a while wouldn't kill ya.

Kat said...

I'd meant to leave the comment on this post, not the one from the 10th! I used to swimm and bike fairly regularly, and a friend wanted me to train for a Tri, but I got a job that basically made it impossible (10 hour work days + 4 hour daily commute). Just started reading Trizophrenia and now I want really start training. One question: How do you essentially get started?!

Anonymous said...

Grrrrrrooowwwwwllll! SWAMP THING HATE CHLORINE! SWAMP THING LIKE CHLOROPHYLL!

Unknown said...

Cousin,
This is the first time I've seen this blog. Very cool. Glad to see you're keeping up with the training and competing.