As you can see from the picture above the weather was great all weekend, which was handy as we camped next to the venue.....all was going wonderfully...me and John got our tent up without a crossed word. We always joke that the only time we ever fall out is when we put our tent up! Whilst driving down to Nottingham the evening before I was looking at some of the supporters signs that people use at ironman events....one said" if your relationship is still working you're not training hard enough!" That's reference to the amount of time and pre-occupation with equipment and training you find yourselves having during ironman training.....I'm very lucky to have good strong relationships with my nearest and dearest. I did sit them all down in January and explain what it all involves....they told me to go for it....maybe they just looking forward to having what they wanted on TV for 6 months!
Registration for the event came, I queued up patiently with my BFT card, minus picture.......arrrrgh!!!! Passport, I've forgotten my passport with my picture on for ID....Tri's are very strict with ID, my head was ticking " right I will blag it with this woman, she'll take my card and let me in the gig"....... Would she hell! I had to get a passport photo for my BTF card...in the next 30 mins in order to make the race briefing! Off we ran into the car and raced to the next town.....John dropped me off on the Main Street....I started running around like Anika Rice on red bull trying to find a photo booth....into boots...no sorry.....I felt like JR Hartley for a while....the kind lady in the post office directed me to the photo shop round the corner...in I dashed ( imagine the count down clock in the background now)....do you do passport photos? Bingo! They did......they promptly ushered me into their studio....there I was expecting a booth, with a stool and a curtain....no in I walk to a full on photographic studio, all white, with them big lights and umbrella things. "Just sit there" the photographer said and began snapping away....I think I was hysterical now as I was getting really childish urges to "work it" like they do on Americas next top model and pull my best pouts! I resisted and re-focused on the race.....I paced around like a first time father in the maternity wing, waiting for the safe delivery of my keys to the race.....I sneaked into the race briefing about 10 mins
late....and breathe.....
The race was good, I learnt several thing that I am going to change for the main event....mainly not to get my race number emblazoned in my sun tan on both arms for the following several weeks!
The next 3 weeks are big ones....really big ones...highest training volume yet.....I'm starting to crave lying in bed until...ooo...8am at a weekend!
