Aloha

So at first Gabe was all "OMG! I did Ironman 70.3 Hawaii and we all hafta do it next year!" And I was like "nuh-huh... I'm tired of these long races and Hawaii's gonna be long and hot and humid." Then Heather was like "OMG! Hawaii 70.3 is on my birthday and we all hafta do it next year!" And I was like "nuh-huh... Hawaii is far and expensive and a logistical nightmare." So then like Jen and Robert were all "OMG! We're gonna do it!" OK, OK, I get it... I'm going to Hawaii.

I'm actually pretty excited about it, mostly for the vacation aspect. Growing up in New Jersey, Hawaii seemed to be on the other side of the world - and it was. But living in Los Angeles, it's often cheaper to book a flight to Hawaii than it is for me to fly back East. And yet I've flown to Newark a dozen times but never Hawaii. Go figure.

Part of me thinks this is the WORST possible way to visit Hawaii.
You're supposed to relax and take it easy during the days before a race, and I am TERRIBLE at relaxing. Especially if I'm in Hawaii where I'm going to want to run around and see everything I can. But my plan is that I'm going to train for the race just enough that I don't embarrass myself, and not turn it into a high-pressure "important" race.

Speaking of embarrassing myself, I'm more excited about Hawaii in 10 months than I am about Ironman Wisconsin in 6 weeks. I dunno... Wisconsin just isn't gelling for me. So I'm going to think of Wisconsin as a training race for Hawaii. OK, so it's 9 months out and twice as long as Hawaii, but at least it gives me some sort of excuse to pick up the training.

And the BEST thing of all? There are no snakes in Hawaii. (That's actually mostly a myth, but it's one I am willing to cling to.)