It Begins Again...

As I mentioned, I really enjoyed my day in Florida.  When Derek asked me, just minutes after I finished, if I was going to do it again, I think I said, "Yeah... probably!"  Originally, I thought I'd only do one, but I enjoyed it so much, I didn't want that to be it!

But we had also talked about trying to start making babies next year, so I thought I'd at least take some time off.  Till two days after IMFL, on the way home, when Derek started talking about how HE wanted to try one.  And then I got excited to start another Ironman journey, especially if I could do it WITH him this time.

Unfortunately, we were a day too late to sign up for Florida, so we started brainstorming other options.  We knew Ironman Arizona was just two weeks away and that we could sign up the day after for next year's event.  So that became our plan.  Of course, these things sell out FAST, so we knew there was no guarantee we'd get in.  But it was still Plan A.  (Plan B was to pay extra for Ironman Foundation entries into next year's IMFL.)

Well, today was the day.  At noon mountain time, online registration would open for general entry.  Of course, hundred of athletes had already registered at the event this weekend, so who knows how many spots were even left when registration opened?  But we were poised and ready.

AND WE BOTH GOT IN!!!

It worked for me last year for Florida, and we both got in this time, too.  But there were plenty of people complaining on Facebook because they couldn't get in.  And ironman.com announced that it was sold out in less than 10 minutes.  So I guess we were pretty lucky!

I've already booked a room at the host hotel, too, since they expected to be booked within a day or two.  I'll keep looking for other options, though, since the host hotel is expensive and the rooms don't even have kitchenettes or anything.  We'll see!  But we're committed to the race anyway.

And so, training begins again!  I've taken the last two weeks off completely, though not necessarily by choice; I've had a cold almost since IMFL was over.  But tonight I went to the gym for a spin class, and we're getting ready to go back for Derek's first swim lesson.  That will be his biggest challenge.  Our other big priority right now is to lose some of this extra weight.  We probably both have 30-40 pounds to drop, which won't be easy.  But we're going to do this together, every step of the way!