Almost Go Time!!

Well, I've got a just a few days until the big race!   Apologies for the lack of posts lately.  I've been busy training and fundraising.  My biggest news is that I met my fundraising goal of $4,200!   Wow!  That's a lot of money.  Thanks to everyone who contributed.  Also, it's not too late to make a donation if you still wish to do so (http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/anttry09/kdeason)

My team has been through a lot these past weeks - we had a "practice triathlon" a few weeks back, although we didn't swim because the water was waaaaay too cold.  Instead, we practiced putting our wetsuits on and off (harder than you think!), and then battled huge hills and hurricane-force winds (it felt like it anyway) on the bike.  Several times I felt like I was going to blown over.  

Trying on our new wetsuits in the pre-dawn light (did I mention this practice tri was at 7 am?? Somehow I managed to drag myself out of bed for it)

The next weekend we biked for 2 hours in the pouring rain at Prince William Forest Park in Virginia.  Brrrr.....  Luckily this past Saturday we were rewarded with some nice spring weather and sunshine for our last group workout.     We also had a team "Bon Voyage" picnic, where we got our new Team in Training uniforms (see below, don't we look sharp??)

I am leaving for Florida tomorrow morning, and then have two days to relax and prepare for the race before the big day on  Sunday.   Wish me luck!!!

Beer Pong Party Raises over $1000!

Wow!!!  The Post-Inaugural Beer Pong Ball was a rousing success!    We raised over $1000 for curing blood cancers - way to go!  Thanks to everyone who showed up and contributed.

The beer pong tournament somehow morphed into a flip cup competition during the course of the evening, and I would like to congratulate winner Paul and runner-up Eric.   You guys have obviously spent way too much time at Kick Ball after parties.

For more pictures from the party, click here:  http://dac.smugmug.com/gallery/7183026_hhu4p#P-1-15

Outfitted for a Tri!

So one of the first steps in my training was to start getting all the equipment I'm going to need!   I got new running shoes, bike helmet, bike pumps, several different brands of electrolyte "goo" to try out, a pair of bike shorts and more.  I have found that the bike shorts really make a difference in terms of comfort on the bike.  Not sure why I found that so surprising, but it's true.  I even got a pair of new aerobars for my bike (the things in the picture below that are attached to the handle bars) and managed to install them myself.

The aerobars let you get in a more aerodynamic position on the bike, as shown below.  I find it is also nice to have another arm position on long rides.

However, my favorite new piece of triathlon gear has to be the custom swimsuit my sister got me for Christmas - 

It even has my name on the back!