Monday, November 01, 2010

Volunteer Duty

Most of you will know that I'm spending this week volunteering as a "Spectator Services Ambassador" at the World Rowing Champs at Lake Karapiro (which is also the home of the swim in my first half ironman of the season... 12 sleeps to go!)

It's going to be a full on week (plus two weekends), with 7:30 reporting times every morning, and finish times that will vary from 5ish to 7:30ish (with very little advance notice). I have to be honest- it's a bit more than I anticipated when I signed up (and, indeed, until last weekend!)

This, combined with (sometimes) long days on my feet, makes training hard, but I've figured out a few ways to manage it:

  • Bike commuting. The venue is about 9km away, so I've ridden there and back on my MTB every day so far. I won't have time for the commute (with headwinds, and some changing/bike storage time, it means leaving at around 6:30) if I want to swim, but it can be a great start and end to a long day, so I think I'll be able to keep it up.
  • (One way) run commuting: There's no showers at the race venue for volunteers, so a two-way run commute is out of the question, but if I pack VERY very carefully, I can catch the bus out and run back in. After a tough day, and a bit of a strop, today, I'm thinking of trying this out tomorrow.
  • Short'n' early swim: I was hoping to have time for a half hour swim in Cambridge every morning, but the bike commute takes a bit longer than I'd hoped, so I'll only be able to do it (a) with the love and support and company of Phil, and (b) if I catch the bus. A quick swim was the plan this morning, but someone who remains nameless and lives in the same bedroom as me was less than enthusiastic about getting up with me at 5:30, so a bike commute it was.
By taking care of myself, trying to stick with these workout solutions, and exercising a little self restraint at the volunteers' slice table, I think I should be OK. And even if I'm not, this is one of those neat "once in a lifetime" things- and this is a bloody good way to start the morning!

1 comment:

Lisa (bakebikeblog) said...

Your 'training' plans while you are away sound wonderful!! And I cant believe your HIM is only 12 days away - I am super excited for you!!!