Ironman: The Travel

I am definitely one of those "nervous flyers". (No surprise there.) But even I have to admit the trip to Wisconsin was rather uneventful.

You would think I would be one of those people who has to get to the airport early. Nope. I had a 6:50 flight out of LAX. I left my home a little after 5, checked my bag a little after 6 and was on the plane at 6:30. I was a little annoyed that the "breakfast snack" on the plane was basically cheese and crackers FOR NINE DOLLARS but they only charged me 3 bucks. Outstanding. And the flight was 99% turbulence-free.

I had to connect through Chicago, so on the flight from Chicago to Madison it was pretty obvious who was going to Ironman. Some people were wearing Ironman shirts, others were wearing shorts with no hair on their legs. And others... well they just LOOKED like triathletes. The guy next to me was in that 3rd group, but apparently he didn't feel the same way about me: during the flight he asked me if I was going to Madison on business. I guess "corporate stooge" is just the kind of vibe I give off.

We made our plans through Endurance Sports Travel and Ken and Stacey picked me up from the airport. Ken Glah, veteran Ironman finisher/winner and the guy behind EST, was holding a bottle of Mountain Dew in his hand when I met him so I instantly liked him.

We're staying in the Official Race Hotel, or at least one of them, and the hotel has an amazing view of the Wisconsin capitol building:



Unfortunately, our rooms our on the opposite side of the hotel so this is our view:



Still, it's about 3 blocks from the race area (or as I call it, "The Olympic Village") and it's all about location, location, location.