Mini-Taper

Next week I start my 2 week taper leading into my first few triathlons of the year and I am more than ready to ease off of the throttle a little bit. I had the perfect excuse to cut down on the activity with the Holiday weekend but the Boss (read: Channie) decided that we were going to stay in Iowa this weekend rather than go see her and his family in Illinois. That means your truly is going to be on his bicycle for 3+ hours on Saturday. Despite being worn out/down my training has stayed pretty steady which is encouraging knowing that a little rest is just going to make me stronger during the race. My first race, the Pigman Sprint Tri should be a lot of fun. With all of the mileage I have been piling on, a sprint triathlon will be a nice, fun tune-up for my Half IM the following weekend. I am a little nervous about that one since that race will validate my spot in Kona. I have put in the time so I am not worried about finishing but I would like to have a strong performance to give me a bit of a boost through the rest of the summer. The very next weekend (yes, third triathlon weekend in a row) is the Hy-Vee triathlon which will be quite a spectacle as triathlons go for Des Moines and Iowa. Des Moines hosts some relatively big road race events during the year in which thousands upon thousands participate but a triathlon is a different animal. Until this event, all local triathlons have been limited to state parks and little rural communities near state parks so having one in Des Moines is going to be something. Not to mention the caliber of the field that will be participating and the prize money being offered. I am really looking forward to seeing Hunter Kemper and all of the other big name triathletes running through our fair city. That being said, I expect to be pretty wiped out by then.