Philly Achilles

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Off to the races…

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It’s here! The time is here! I have my checklist for packing! I’ve got my logistics worked out!  I’m eating nutritious foods!  I’m getting good sleep!

Tomorrow morning I leave for Walt Disney World to test myself in the Dopey Challenge.

4 races, 4 days, 48.6 miles

I’m a little antsy, but that’s because I haven’t done any kind of workout since Saturday. After all these months of training with hours and miles logged, it feels very strange to not go to the gym or out on the roads.  They tell me that it means I will be revved and ready come race day.

I will try to post my bib numbers along with a link to the app if you want to follow me each day.  That won’t happen until tomorrow evening (Tuesday, January 6th).  Unfortunately, I won’t be able to send out a notification…so check back here!

Last training ride...
Last training ride…

Bon voyage, me!

And you can still sponsor me:  DONATE!!!

Travel, logistics and stress…oh my!

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It’s not far now until I head off to tackle the Dopey Challenge. As a matter of fact, I leave in just nine days. So I am starting to get tense about getting there and getting it done. I’m not worried about the actual races because I’ve done all the work.  The anticipation of possible complications ties my stomach in knots.

This is how it will all go down (hopefully):

Wednesday January 6:  Fly down to Orlando.  Check into the hotel.  Get over to the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex to pick up my bibs and maybe purchase myself a little swag with Dopey on it.  Get back.  Eat dinner.  Go to bed.  So that I’m ready for…

Thursday, January 7:  6:00 a.m. start time for the 5k.  I’ll probably have to leave the hotel by 4:30 to head on over to Epcot for the race.  My pit crew will be bright and sunshiny and ready to help*.  It will be a nice easy ride, barely time to get into and out of the bike.  The important thing is it will let me judge the travel time and complexity.  The 5k had approximately 12,000 participant last year.  I’ll get back to the hotel and lounge poolside.  I may try to get over to the parks but not for too long because I have to be all revved up for…

Friday, January 8:  5:30 a.m. start time for the 10k.  From what I could find, the participation in the 5k and 10k are pretty close so logistics (check out this site for more information on the best services available for this) should be pretty close to the previous day…aside from the extra half hour of lost sleep.  To see it here, I should have a pretty good plan on logistics. It will be another relatively easy ride, only twice as far as the day before.  It will give me a great opportunity to get used to the gears on the fancy loaner bike of the Moving Company.  Afterwards I’ll head back to the hotel for a nap and lounging.  As part of the Achilles entourage, I’ll be attending the dinner on Friday.  It really is amazing to meet other athletes who have decided that their challenges won’t stop them, either.  The majority of the team will be up early the next day for…

Saturday, January 9:  5:30 a.m. start time for the Disney Half Marathon with race sponsor Donald Duck!  13.1 miles through dark of night and the well lit parks of Disney.  Disney does an amazing job of keeping the runners motivated.  There are bands and choruses all along the route.  Disney characters show up for photo opportunities.  I’m torn.  Do I try for a personal record or for as many pictures with characters?  I guess I’ll decide that with approximately 25,000 other runners that day.  I’ll get back to the hotel, and take the manditory nap.  That night we have a Philly team dinner.  Hopefully the service will be as swift as the food is good because I will need one more good night’s sleep to prepare for…

Sunday, January 10:  5:30 a.m. start time for the Disney Marathon!  The culmination of a half year of training with endless hours spent planning, plotting and blogging comes about.  Doubling  the prior day’s distance once again, I’m not sure what to expect.  Will I feel good as I start out?  as i finish? during?  Someone should check their magic eightball and let me know.  I expect this to take between 3.5 and 4 hours which means i will be finishing before i normally get up on a Sunday morning.  After that, I have the whole day before me. A trip to the parks might be in order…particularly a nice dinner someplace in Epcot.  Plus it is my birthday!!!

Monday, January 11:  Head back to the real world.  I’ll have to see what picture I remembered to take and plan my final celebration blog for all of you who have travelled this road with me.  Forgive me if it is a day or two late, but I just rode 48.6 miles.

*This is a big fat lie.  My pit crew will be conscious.  I don’t ask for much more than that.

A great way to top of my training

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Too fast for photography
Too fast for photography

Like much of the country, Philadelphia is experiencing some unseasonably warm weather.  It makes me itch to be outside because soon I will want warm blankets, hot tea and a good book.  I know that I will curse at my first step outside the building.  Cold air will freeze my nostrils and make my skin ache.  Snow will drift down and get plowed into the curb cuts so it takes twice as long to get to work.

But not yet…I was particularly grateful for the temperatures in the high 60s because Saturday was my last long ride before Dopey.  I was up early and on the path long before my usual time.  The lingering fog made familiar sights look strange and forbidding.  The fog dampens sound so I felt oddly isolated…strangely melancholy. There were other early morning people out, doing what early morning people do.  They get up, get out and get productive*.  I’m sure some of them had had coffee and a healthy breakfast.

The sun rose higher and burned off the fog (and my melancholy).  The hour grew later and more people appeared on the path.  There could be no more of the smug camaraderie of the early riser, because it wasn’t early any more.  Achilles had met for their usual 9:00 a.m. start time so I started looking for those bright green shirts.

Lo and behold, they appeared!  One group, two groups…and I had timed it well.  I joined one of the groups as they headed back to 16th & Chestnut because it was our monthly social.  There was pizza.  It was delicious…and I earned my piece(s) with 20 miles done.

The next few weeks I will be tapering.  I’ll be doing less mileage each week leading up to the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend so I’ll be in tiptop shape.  (This is science. Trust the experts.)  I feel good.  I feel ready.  I’m sure I’ll have a moment of panic between then and now, but right now it feels good.

 

*I’m not sure they are to be trusted.

What’s it all about then?

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Seriously, what on earth posessed me to sign on for 48.6 miles in 4 days of riding in January. Training at this time of year is torture…it’s cold outside. It’s dark too early. I like to put my bike away after Thanksgiving so that I’m excited to take it out again in spring!

I decided to go back to basics: Athletes helping athletes. This is the video we made about Philly Achilles back when we were a brand new chapter. This is what we’re all about. This is why I’m riding to support Achilles. If you can take 8 minutes to meet people like Andrew, Matt and me, you’ll see what it’s all about*.

So, I’ll get up early…and ride with excellent people.

*aside from the Hokey Pokey.

There is still time to support my fundraising

 

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Philly Achilles meets at 9AM every Saturday at 1601 Chestnut Street.

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