Third Time's A Charm

Missing two races in as many weeks, I am determined to race in Montana this upcoming weekend. Between cancelled flights and cancelled races for weather, Mother Nature has had a good time with my race schedule. But there is still plenty of racing season left and I will make the most of it. I am headed to the land of the "Big Sky" and will race in Missoula, Montana this weekend. Especially exciting is that my friend Ann, who got me into this sport to begin with, is meeting me and spending the weekend with me. We've even carved out some time to do some white water rafting. I am not usually able to take the extra time but since both Ann and I are traveling so far, I decided to go for it. Not to mention the fact that it is Labor Day weekend and I am clamoring for the last little piece of summer. Is it just me? Or did this summer go faster than any other?
I know some of you may be wondering about Irene too. We faired very well and although the waves were literally crashing in our backyard (I live on the south shore of Long Island), the water level never got to our house. Our front yard saw four feet but again, the house stayed safe. We dodged a bullet for sure. I hope everyone who was impacted by Irene is safe and dry and that the damage was minimal.

The End Of The World

With the monsoons of the past weekend, an earthquake on Tuesday and a hurricane planned for this weekend, Mother Nature appears to be having a grand 'ol time of it. Is it the end of the world, global warming or just an unusual weather pattern? Well whatever it is, it is messing with my race schedule.
Word on the street is that this weekend's race on Long Island may be cancelled. It is my club race with Team Total Training and although I don't need to add NY to my race list, I like racing this particular event. Tobay is a fun race and I get to wear my team colors and see friends that I don't see otherwise. I look forward to it every year.
Added to the fun this year, my friend Kari from Texas was coming to race as well. But with unpredictable weather, she has decided to skip the trip. Disappointed is an understatement.
So stay tuned and we'll just have to wait and see if there is an event on Sunday. Only Mother Nature knows at this point.

The Race That Wasn't

These are not the words used to describe my travel experience this weekend. For the first time since the beginning of my campaign, I had to miss a race.
Portland, Oregon was going to represent state #30 today but on Saturday at 2 am, my flight was finally cancelled. It was originally supposed to depart on Friday at 8 pm but with the storms, got pushed. Delta was optimistic it would ultimately leave so although it was getting later and later, I would at least arrive in Oregon by sunrise....in plenty of time for the race. 8 pm turned into 9, then 10, 11, midnight, 1 am... only to be told that although the storms were over and traffic finally cleared, there was no pilot available. Delta was trying to find one. At 2 am, no pilot could be found and the clearance tower couldn't arrange for paperwork (whatever that means) and my flight was finally cancelled. The next flight I could get on was from Newark, through Detroit, through Salt Lake City, arriving in Portland at 8 pm on Saturday night. With a bike and race package to pick up on Saturday, that just wasn't enough time. So the race had to be scrapped.
I guess it's a numbers game. With approximately 60 triathlons under my belt in 29 states, and 4 cancelled flights this summer alone, this is the first race I had to miss due to logistics. I've said it before. The training and the racing isn't the hardest part of my campaign. It's the travel.

Next Stop PDX

This weekend is state #30 and the destination is Oregon for the Portland Triathlon. It feels like I have been counting the states in the 20s for quite some time (well, 10 times actually) so this change to state #30 feels like a big deal. After this weekend I will be 60% complete with my competing goal but only 52% complete with my fundraising goal. If you know me, you know I am a numbers geek. With a degree in math and several number crunching jobs, I eat, sleep and breathe numbers. Truth to tell, my secret shame is doing math problems while racing. That being said, my fundraising is running at an 8% deficit. I am not nervous; just merely pointing out that now is the time to dig deep. If you have already donated $5, consider donating $5 more. If you can't afford to do so, perhaps forward this blog to a friend and ask them to donate $5. For those of you who have contributed several times (and will do so again), thank you from the bottom of my heart. I would not be where I am now without you.
So if you see me out of the course or notice a photo where my brain looks like it hurts, I am probably crunching some numbers or solving some mathematical equation. Crazy, I know but it's my little version of sanity.

NBC in New York Interviews Me

Thanks to my friend Joann and some persistence, I was able to get an on camera, live interview with Today in New York at NBC. The message is getting out there and hopefully today's show saved a life. In the meantime, tell everyone you know what you learned today and oh yeah, $5 donations.... LOTS of them please. Click here or on the NBC logo to view the video.