Tuesday a.m.

The Prince of Bahrain's bike

Good morning! How are you on this mild morning? It's going to be a wall to wall day of activity for me, which is fine. I never get bored. There are some things starting to push me a bit, so I have to push back a little today. The Give Thanks 4 road race is one of them. It's a matter of making a list or two, and it should be back under control. This is a busy time of the year.

I am still reflecting some about the weekend at Ironman Florida. It was a blast! We left around 11 a.m., due to some appointments etc. Then we went through Evansville to pick up Steve B. This, coupled with strong winds and rain, led to a fairly long--13 hour--trip. We arrived around 1 a.m. our time, but Panama City Beach is on Central Time. That was a bit helpful.

Upon arrival we checked out our spacious condo, arranged by Smiling Jim. There are good deals in PCB at this time of the year. Next it was off to the beach. Yes, a beach excursion in the wee hours of the morning. The visit was brief, just like the sleep that followed. Friday morning we woke up to run.

We were going to swim in the Gulf but it was angry, double red flag angry. Looking at the water, I began wondering why I was here and what I was thinking in regarding to doing an Ironman. I can barely swim in a pool.

The rest of the day Friday was spent at the Expo, lunch at Pineapple Willy's and relaxing a bit before our big volunteer meeting. I think there were more than 3000 volunteers, so the meeting was a bit chaotic. We found our place and got a few instructions from the race director himself.

Following another meal and more walking around, Saturday morning rolled around. We left a little after 6 a.m. to go watch the start. Nearly 3000 athletes lined the shore waiting for the gun to fire. I can't imagine how much anxiety there was.

The Gulf had calmed considerably but was still choppy. It was cool, in the 50s. The water temp was 76, I think. The pro men start 10 minutes early, the pro women leave 5 minutes after them. Then the main event gets started. It was wild, watching all the men and women launch into the surf and the decent-sized waves.

After watching the start, we checked on our volunteer assignment, which was scheduled to start around 11 a.m. We walked back to the condo, which was a little over a mile away. It was time to get in the water.

Jim and Rand donned their wetsuits, as did I.  Mike and Steve came down to the water also. I made my way out into the water, carefully watched by 8 eyes. It took me a while but I did get out fairly far, farther by far than I have ever been.

After getting past the breakers, it got easier and I relaxed a little more. I'd be lying to say I was totally relaxed, but at the same time, I was not scared. I mostly bobbed around and did a few sets of strokes. It was a confidence builder in lots of ways and a reminder that I have lots and lots of work to do. I am determined.

After cleaning up, it was time to go do our work. We got there early and waited for the first bikes to come in. Our task was to receive the bikes from athletes who had just completed their 112 mile ride. We had to position ourselves in such a way to not trip the athlete and get a good grip on some very expensive bikes. With the bike in hand, we then either passed the bike off to someone else to place on the rack or racked it ourselves, depending on the location.

It was a lot of fun! The pros came in first and were focused. Most were grateful and kind; none were rude, at least I didn't experience that. We got to see some very amazing athletes, including the female winner of the championship in Kona. That was pretty cool.

The Prince of Bahrain was in the race, along with several of his countrymen. They put on quite a show all weekend. They had a huge entourage that included around 15 black SUVs prominently parked right at the finish line. I think I saw the race director rolls his eyes when he talked about the Prince participating.

Guess who got to handle the Prince's bike? That's right, me! ha ha I just happened to the be the next handler when he came in. He had a police escort, so I figured it was him. I had Jimmy snap a quick shot. The Prince is a really good athlete, by the way.

We saw lots of emotional things. We saw pictures on bikes, pictures of loved ones who served as inspiration on the ride. We saw personal notes and reminders to do well, to work hard, to give it all. Nearly all of the riders coming in were very kind. Some laughed, some cried, a lot just said, "Take this thing! I never want to see this bike again!"

We worked a long time, probably 6+ hours. It was tiring work but lots of fun. Wow, there are some really nice bikes out there! The bikes, along with their riders, came in all shapes and sizes. We liked the small women's bikes the best. They were light and easy to rack. Big and Tall, now that was a different story.

Saturday night, after eating, we went back to watch the finish for a while. That was really cool. I found emotion rising often as I watched people finish. Most had nothing left. They had given all they had. I imagined being there next year.

Sunday morning we got up early and got in line to register. I know it sounds crazy for most of you, but, yes, people lined up a couple hours (or more) early to sign up for next year's event. It was going to sell-out and it did. One local guy managed to get in online, but I think that was rare. The whole thing sold out in minutes. Six local guys are in for next year: Brent V, Rand H, Jim S, Roy R, Steve B, and me. It should be fun.

The ride home was great! Jim borrowed a neighbor's full size van, so we had plenty of room on the trip. It was a great weekend with a great bunch of guys.