Dambuster

So only 3 days to go before the start of the biggest race on my calender, the Dambuster!!! Held at Rutland Waters it's a 1500m open water swim, a 42km undulating bike followed by a flat (and flat out)10k run; all manageable distances in there own right but become a little more flurried when done together as fast as possible! Why is this race so big for me? Well, it's my first standard distance triathlon and secondly it's my chance to qualify for a place in my age group (30-34) for team GB at the ETU standard distance triathlon in Geneva 2015 (European Triathlon Union). The event is also a qualifying event for The ITUs (International Triathlon Union) however this would be held later this year and also in Canada. As an age group triathlete there isn't a lot of financial help from outside so it's a real struggle to afford to compete at such events and  unfortunately it's one step too far for me this year.

How do I feel? Well surprisingly calm and ready for it. I've recently become incredibly well organised leading up to a race; first I write out lists of everything I'll need to take with me on race day starting with the bare essentials (tri suit, bike shoes, run shoes, helmet, BTF licence, goggles etc) I then pack a separate 'emergency' bag with spare tri suit, goggles and helmet. I do this for piece of mind; say I start putting my tri suit on and a zip breaks?!?! No need to panic I've got my spare, it really helps keep me calm.

More lists! on top of that I plan an itinerary for every minute from waking up to race start. When to have breakfast, when to have a pre-race drink, when to warm up, when do I need to set up my transition. Basically, where I need to be, when and what I need to be doing and having everything pre-planned like this allows me to concentrate on the task in hand.

Whats going through my mind? I try and completely block out any negative thoughts leading up to the race; this sounds difficult but it really isn't when over the last year every meal I've ate, all the training hours I've put in, all the sacrifices I've made all come down to this! Have I done everything I can to ensure that I can perform to my very best ? Right now I feel that the answer is 100% yes.