Tomorrow I should be able to finalize the Lost Dutchman half marathon travel plans in Apache Junction, AZ. I am always on the lookout for the best deals, so like to wait a while to finalize things, but I also hate to wait until the last minute. Ellie, stay tuned for details.

Last night the workout got done but not necessarily the one I would have liked to do. My own fault for not going to the Y in the morning, but there is a limit to the number of mornings I can stand going to the gym. Not working out, just going to the gym. Hauling all that stuff. Needing to plan the whole day out the night before. I did that for years with myself and 4 kids. Now its just me and I have gotten lazy, I confess.

So I hit the Y at 4 pm instead of the usual 6:30 am. Crowded. I knew it would be. The facilities are fantastic but I’m telling you, I have never seen this place not busy. Probably the best time to go is Sunday mornings when they open. Then you have the place to yourself and only about maybe 200 others instead of the usual thousand or so. Every single cardio machine was busy. I was a little annoyed because there was a young kid on the treadmill and I don’t feel kids that young need to go on treadmills or ellipticals or bikes. They can run around the basketball court for all I care. So I decided to get on a Schwinn Airdyne (the only kind of bikes the gym used to have--most gyms for that matter I think). I figured I might as well since I am signed up to do an indoor tri next week. And this is what I assume they will use for the bike segment.

The indoor tris I have done, the organized ones that is, consist of a 15 min. swim, bike & run, with a 5 min. transition time between each segment. The swim is obviously in a pool, the bike on the Airdyne, and the run on a track of some sort. Then they total up your total yardage and see who wins or where you place. The last one I did was actually with Kona Shelley when she came to visit. That was probably back in early 2001, before her debut Ironman event, so she's WAAAAY past that now.

So the Airdyne thing. They are beasts. So uncomfortable too. On a whim I decided to time myself for 15 min. to see how I might do in preparation for the indoor tri. The first min. I don't think I was recording any distance because I didn't have the settings correct. So I just set my watch for 14 min. instead. Those things are harder than I had remembered. Moving your arms and your legs at the same time gets you so out of breath fast. Using just my legs alone helped me catch my breath and surprisingly I pedaled harder, but I doubt I could keep that up for 15 min. In the past, my average 15 min. time during the tris was about 4.3 miles. My best was 4.8. Last night I did 4.3. So I guess I haven't lost it.

I've listened to most of Iron Wil's podcast this morning. Way cool!

Tomorrow's workout is going to be challenging, not only for distance (hopefully 8.25-8.50), but weatherwise. We are expected to get 4-8 inches of snow overnight. Yipee (not!). One thing I don't think I would ever miss would be cold and snow. I hate it and can't wait to get to Arizona for a respite. This year hasn't been bad, I have to admit. And thankfully the temps have been warmer to keep heating bills lower (see yesterday's rant if you must). I really wanted to get outside and run since most of my half marathon training has been on the treadmill (actually all). My right heel is getting a little touchy with all that treadmilling, so I thought I should get outside for a long run tomorrow. I guess I will have to wait to see what the weather gods have in store for us. I see Colorado got a bunch today and some of the midwest as well, so it is coming.