Ironman Coeur d'Alene - 13th MPro

Story soon. I would like to quickly thank all my friends and family for the encouraging messages I got on the days leading up to last Sunday, and my awesome sponsors for their support.

Team Ramirez walks away with a positive experience, ready to ramp it up at Canada.

Meet & greet with fellow IM'ers and ~100kids....

Friday in beautiful and COLD Cd'A. First let me get the complaining out of the way- the water is very cold (to me) and the air temperature is comfortable... in my DOWN Jacket...

With that out of the way, and after the choppy cold 6AM swim, the social ride this AM was good, and we had a good showing.

The guys and gal seemed to have a good time, we discussed race course logistics and got a chance to see the harder of the hills we'll see on Sunday. There were a few that had not ridden the course before and felt relieved to have seen it ahead of time. Everyone sampled and walked away with a smattering of products and water bottles from First Endurance, and with pint glasses from Blue Cycles. Though I suggested using them after the race, more than a few people said they wouldn't wait until then for a beer.

My sponsors are awesome and I'm truly grateful for their support to do things like this. I know I definitely enjoyed the chance to talk to everyone that showed- at the end of the day, we are all the same, we've all trained hard, we're ready to complete this journey.

 Later in the afternoon, I was invited to speak at the Boys and Girls Club of Kootenai, in Post Falls. That was actually really cool, being able to hold the attention of some 100 kids ages 6-12  for about 45minutes.

So you see, all you do is swim, bike and run....

 They asked me all kinds of questions, wanted to know all sorts of things- Does your helmet make you fly? Is it true your shoes are glued to your pedals? Do you have to buy food when you are in the race? How much water do you drink? What is the fastest you've gone on your bike? Can I ride your bike? Is it true volunteers make sure you are ok when you finish? Are you going to win?

Can we touch the bike? Sure, you can....

 It's been a day full of activity. We are tired. Time to watch a movie and call it a night. Thanks for reading.

Dear Cd'A,

I wrote you this brief post last year.
Over the years on your course, I have completed and abandoned;
I have cried with joy, and with pain and frustration;
I have been hot, cold, dealt with stomach pain, even collapsed and been removed by medics;
I respect your choppy water, your sharp hills, and your heat and wind;
5 more days til we meet again. Can hardly wait...

jc

Ironman Coeur d'Alene--Bike Ride on Friday 06-24

For those of you attending Cd'A 2011, I've organized a bike ride on Friday June 24, departing at 9:30AM from Cyclemetrix. Jim Kozak (owner, Cyclemetrix) has graciously agreed to host the ride at his shop at Dalton Gardens (right off N 4th St. on the bike course).

First Endurance, and Blue Cycles will hook up attendees with samples and merchandise. This is a chance to meet people, shake off some pre-race jitters and walk away with some cool free stuff. The ride will last ~1hr. The pace is easy and social. Bring your friends and family.

Please feel free to contact me with questions or comments. I will post an update in case details change. There is a chance a couple other pros may join in as well.

Happy training, it's almost taper time....

JC

I am done with my homework.

The last big workouts in preparation for Ironman Cd'A got done this past week (well, the previous weeks as well). It was a block of 3 weeks, with several 85-100mi rides, 20mi fast runs, 3-4hr long-hard bricks, producing lots of fatigue, soreness and in 3week's time, hopefully, a fast race time.

The last big ride was 100mi, here's my trusty BLUE rocket with training wheels at Marymoor Park, halfway into the ride. It was a beautiful day, and a great confidence-building workout.

My family has been very supportive and understanding of the time I've spent away lately. We are gonna get it right this time at Cd'A. No more monkey wrenches...