Sunday was my last long ride before Ironman 70.3 Hawaii, known as Honu. I felt great. Lots of power. Comfortable on the bike. A moment's inattention and suddenly there was a parked car right in front of me. I thought I might hit it. I swerved, congratulating myself for missing it as I whizzed past, only to feel the bike go out from under me. TT bikes do not handle well in the aero position.
As spills go, this one was minor. No broken bones. Bike okay. The kind you see all the time in the Tour de France where the rider gets up and rides on with a stop at the medical car for some gauze. Another cyclist and a passing car stopped and helped. There are still plenty of good people out there.
As I assessed the situation I thought the worst impact would be on my swim. I put off swimming all week due to a cut on my left hand. All this road rash would keep me out of the water until race day. But, a few minutes into my ride home I discovered a bigger problem. I could not ride in aero position. My left arm had no skin where it rests on the pad. With twelve days remaining there is no way my arm will be healed enough for that not to be a problem. I also had some pain in my left thigh. Further inspection at home revealed a huge bruise where I hit the edge of the areobar pad cup.
Racing was beginning to be questionable. On top of all that, I have been feeling bad about dragging Pattie to another race when she doesn’t feel well. Two years ago we stayed at the hotel and just walking around was a challenge for her. Last year I rented a condo and she did much better. I was the one in bad shape after cancer treatment and struggled in the swim. The very next day I signed up for this year’s race believing that by then we would both be over our setbacks. I did okay until Sunday, but Pattie has been struggling all along, one thing after another. She is in no shape to travel and enjoy it.
You could say that I have been stubborn about going to Honu. Blinded by commitment. It is the one thing I have really wanted to accomplish for ten years. At first I just wasn’t ready. After that, our health issues and life issues kept getting in the way. Same for full distance. I signed up for Cozumel multiple times and never made it. Signed up for IM California last year, took a deferral to this year due to cancer. Won’t be going there, either.
I cannot deny that age is starting to be a factor. When I started this journey I would say that age is just a number. These days, my body does not agree. I train as much as I can, yet my performance declines. This is normal. I understand that. No amount of sloganizing can overcome it.
Two years ago when I booked us in the hotel to make it easier on Pattie, I could not race due to a hernia, but we went anyway. This year, any travel at all will be a struggle. I think we’ll both be better off with a staycation.