What to do what to do....

Here I am tapering and thinking I am going to have all this free time.....Well taper is all relative when it come to Ironman. Taper means a 12 hour week vs 19 so I guess I did have an extra 7 hours this week. I think I spent a lot of them sleeping. It took me until Thursday to start to feel normal again. I slogged through some swim workouts and slow bike rides and finally my run Friday was feeling good. Had some power in my legs going up the hills. Saturday was a short run and ride and tomorrow is my "long" ride. 3.5 hours- seems like nothing and I am looking forward to that.

Should be an interesting ride. There is a very cool event call the Qualcomm Million Dollar Challenge. http://www.challengedathletes.org/compete/MDC_2006.htm It is an awesome ride from San Francisco to San Diego to raise money for the Challenge Athletes Foundation.

Participation includes a fully supported ride, including hotel accommodations for seven nights, daily breakfast, lunch and dinner, tour leaders, sag wagons, mechanical support, first aid, massage, and bike transport from Southern California to San Francisco prior to the start of the ride.

I know people who have done it and have just raved about it. Well here is the kicker, you have to raise $10,000! That is a lot of $ and I just don't have the time for that right now. But there is a very cool other option.

Radio Station XX1090 (local Sport Radio I think) DJ Scott Kaplan has a contest and the winner gets to go on the Qualcomm Million Dollar Challenge. There was an online application, so I of course filled it out and to my shock received an email that I am finalist. All this info was emailed and instructions to show up Sunday June 7 for the 1st training ride. There are rides each Sunday and starting July 14 the eliminations begin.....is this like Survivor? NO CLUE

I get the email all excited and begin to process what this means....Weekly training rides beginning Sunday, every Sunday from now until October. Oops, I have a big rice coming up, Ironman, I am tapering and then racing and then oh yeah that little trip to Spain/France where I am gone for 3 weeks. And my family, right a week away for a bike ride. Where are my priorities.... So I miss a month of rides.... they won't have to eliminate me, they wont even know who I am. And, and the ride is October 17-23. If all goes well and I go to Kona...I am sure a 620 mile ride is the perfect recovery plan 1 week after Kona. Oh boy....so I email the nice person with all my enthusiasm and all the issues....she writes back CONGRATULATIONS (I still have no idea how many entered, how many finalists there are) " ...missing some rides will not eliminate me...winner is based on attitude, team spirit, dedication and interest in the CAF Cause..." maybe I can pull this off...but missing a month, just not sure about that- Oh well, tomorrows ride is 40 miles and I need to do about 60 so I will do the ride and add on a bit and learn a lot more about the crew, process etc. Maybe I need to rent Survivor (since we don't have a TV and I have never seen the show but have heard a lot about it) and learn how to make alliances and all..... Stay tuned, will learn more tomorrow.

School is out on Thursday.... kids are ready to be done. Riley has turned in all her books, why are we paying for another week of school? Go ahead and shorten the school year, save CA some money, our taxes are basically paying for 4 days of parties, field trips and fun! (okay off my soap box) Whereas JD....welcome to HS and he has finals next week. He learned his lesson with mid-terms, or so we hope, and has been studying all week and has committed to this weekend. The backpacks looks untouched but he reminded me today is only Saturday.