T-minus four days until Ironman 70.3 Muncie! I am finally getting that pre-race feel and I can’t wait to be at an Ironman venue and feel the excitement of athlete village.

This was my third time training for the Half Ironman distance and I feel decent about my training. There was definitely more that I could have done, but I still feel like I had a life these past 16 weeks.

Here’s how I feel training went compared to past races:

• Ironman 70.3 Ohio, 2016 – 95%
• 70.3 Great Western Reserve, 2017 – 100% (because it was encompassed with Lake Placid training)
• Ironman Lake Placid, 2017 – 120%
• Ironman 70.3 Muncie, 2018 – 80%

This summer I was able to do trail runs, play in a volleyball league, take weekend trips, take more casual long rides, go camping, drink with friends, enjoy Memorial Day and 4th of July and in general enjoy life more than just being consumed with training and afraid of injury. So as I come out on the other side of  these past 16 weeks, I am feeling good about my training volume and still happy about how summer 2018 has gone so far! The true test will now be on race day 🙂

Week 13
Total Mileage: 83 miles
Total Time: 8:21
Calories Burned: 4,984

I ran the Hill Yeah Half Marathon in Week 13. I ran this race back in 2014, but I think I blacked out how tough the course was. A good chunk of the run is on trails and oh ya — it’s VERY hilly!

Week 14
Total Mileage: 59 miles
Total Time: 6:05
Calories Burned:3,589

I trained for 26 weeks for Ironman Lake Placid, biking well over 2,500 miles. Finally in Week 14 of training for my third Half Ironman…it finally happened. I finally got a flat tire.

I could feel something wrong with my back tire right after I had gone down a hill on my long ride that week. I pulled off to the side and discovered my entire back tire was flat. A small part of me was actually thinking “OK this is fine. I feel up to it and I can totally do this by myself. This will be great practice.” 45 minutes later my fingers were cramping and sore from trying to get the tire back on the rim, sweat was dripping down my back because it was 95 degrees out and I was covered in grease and grass. I thought I would be done and back on my ride in about 20 minutes, so it was much longer than anticipated. As the minutes ticked by I could feel myself getting more agitated. After I finally got the tire back on the rim, I attempted to inflate the tire with two CO2 cartridges, but to my horror, one malfunctioned and the second wouldn’t allow the air to go into the tire for some reason. (I later figured it was probably a pinched flat.)

Panic slowly began to seep in thinking about what would happen if this happened at Ironman 70.3 Muncie. At one point I felt tears starting to well up in my eyes. Finally after dropping the F-bomb quite a few times and tossing my bike in anger and it cutting my shin (oops) …I broke down and called my husband to come get me. 25 minutes later I sat in the passenger seat stewing in my anger. THANK GOODNESS for my God-sent husband who dropped everything he was doing to come pick me up and then let me lash out at anything and everything for the 15-minute drive back home. To put it lightly — I was PISSED. I was mad at my bike, mad at the CO2 cartridges, mad at the pinched flat tire, mad at myself, mad at how dirty and sweaty I was, mad at the wasted time, mad that I had only gotten in 16 miles in what should have been my last long ride…mad at the universe basically.

The next day I dropped my bike off at the shop for them to deal with the tire and for a tune up that I desperately needed. I re-bought cartridges and a new tube and will hope for the best this weekend! My plan for the race is basically to not get a flat tire *shrugs*

Week 15
Total Mileage: 62 miles
Total Time: 6:13
Calories Burned: 3,422

Last weekend we were able to do a quick camping trip and I still got in decent workouts both Saturday and Sunday. That’s the beauty of Half Ironman training and taper!

My last long ride was just 25 miles and I was happy to report no flat! My bike actually ran great because of the tune up. I think I’ll be just fine 🙂

It has been another great journey to 70.3. I am looking forward to spending the weekend with my husband, traveling to a new state, meeting new and old friends and having a great race and experience. These are the memories that last a lifetime and I am grateful and lucky to get to do this. I LOVE everything about Ironman!