Ground Control To Major Tom: Countdown to Rev 3 Cedar Point

T-Minus 10 9 days and COUNTING.

I've realized a some things:

1) With ten days left to go, I should probably book my hotel for Rev3Full Cedar Point. I am NOT kidding. This is just how I have to roll. I know... I know... how long does it take to book a hotel room? Look guys, I have FIVE kids. I might be sleeping in a tent outside on the beach before the race. The good news? The walk to the swim start will not be far.

2) I am nervous— way more nervous than I was before my first attempt at this distance. Why is that? I think it is a combination of having some sort of expectation of how I should do now after having one iron distance race under my belt, and being scared to death of how much pain I will be in at mile 15 of the run.

3) There is no substitute for sleep.

4) I have little time for sleep between now and Rev3

5) I will sleep when I'm dead. It's overrated anyway.

6) I have got the best job on the planet. Really. I came in to work the other day with this name plate on my door.

7) Blog posts tend to get less long and less funny the closer it gets to Rev3 Full Cedar Point. Some inverse relationship thing. I am not a mathematician. I don't know.

8) There are only 10 kinds of people in the world. Those that understand binary, and those who do not.

9) I received a new t-shirt in the mail the other day. None of my friends really understood it. Even those who have raced the distance. Do they teach periodic tables in school anymore? Is it just me or is my head a little fuzzy? Must be taper week.

10) David Bowie, although very cool, androdgynous, and quite svelte in leather, has absolutely nothing to do with this blog post.

Oh, one last thing.... my CRAZY friend Alexa just wrote  a HYSTERICAL post about our Iron distance  showdown here. I have some serious reservations concerning some of the rhetoric in her post though. Allow me to unpack a little:

#1) Alexa claims that as a full-time professor I have my summers off. That could not be further from the truth. First of all, five kids does not allow you to ever have your summers off. In fact, going to work at the end of the summer is like going on vacation. Don't judge me, those of you with children know what I'm talking about.

#2) Alexa wrote a list of advantage/disadvantages to handicap our showdown. What was interesting is that she said because I am a man, I have an advantage. Her argument for this was that no matter how fast Chrissie Wellington is, she will never beat a male pro. I am not sure I buy this argument. No... no, in fact I know I do not buy this argument. First off, you can not compare elite, pro triathletes to a couple of age-groupers with real jobs and responsibilities outside the world of triathlon. Secondly, I think the REAL comparison should be AGE, which is completely ignored in Ms. Harding's post. Alexa is a at least a decade younger. Sure, you could point at kick-ass age-groupers in their 50's and 60's and say age does not matter, but it does. Not to mention, that most of them (old fast men and women) have been going faster for longer than either one of us.

#3) Alexa has got one thing right. We both can be loud, but if it were a competition, she has me beat by a long shot. We both have decent abs and we are not embarrassed to wear as little clothing as possible to let people know that we've suffered long, hard hours for our statuesque ancient Greek-like physiques.

#4) If I win, it will be the upset of the millennium. It would be like Frazier beating Ali, the Buffalo Bills winning at least one Superbowl against a superior opponent, or the coyote finally catching that ever-elusive Roadrunner. Whatever the case, I am going out there to kick-ass and have the time of my life, again!

Today is my anniversary, I am going to celebrate with wifey tonight. I've been together eleven years with my best friend. You are awesome wifey. Thanks for all of your support this year!

More from Rev3 soon!

Train Smart!