Experience. 1. Holy smokes was I ever nervous leading up to the event. Ryan and I chatted back and forth, as my anxiety of my biggest / most formal event was upcoming. I had entered arenas in the past, but nothing comes at you as much as an IRONMAN. The name in itself is intimidating. It got to me, don’t kid yourself. 2. The day before the event I got in the truck and travelled 3 hrs to the location. Vibing to some good music, I pass by a house of my good buddy Sean who recently passed away from cancer. I take a mental visual of his house as I drive by and appreciate what we have to still be able to do these things. 3. I show up to the event. Park my truck through half an hour of chaos, to finally put my feet on grass. Alright, we’re here. I grab my shit, pump up my tires to 90 psi (20 above recommended amount) because I want no rolling resistance. Grab the bike, lets go. 4. Walk for about 15 minutes and I’m into the chaos of people and organizers shouting rules, requirements, etc. Holy F! This is a legit race I tell myself. I pass by the organizers and bystanders, anxiously place my bike on the side of a wall (no lock) and head into the registration check in. 5. Walk into the arena, there are vendors everywhere, and anxious people around looking at the board to find their registration number. I knew mine because I’m a prepper and knew it was #281 from weeks ago when they released them. Checked in, got my shit, time to head back outside and place my bike. 6. Grabbed the TREK, moved to a corral like a bunch of cattle and found 3 aisles that said M40-M44. Found one and placed my bike. Looked around and for some reason found comfort in the chaos. I’m not alone in being anxious. Whispers around me about “this is the worst part” neighbouring racers mentioned to each other. 7. I placed my bike, took a mental picture and some deep breaths, and headed back to my truck. Before leaving there is panic in the volunteers screaming at everyone to release tire pressures due to the heat. No idea what this meant I asked what looked like a seasoned pro (he was – didn’t catch his name though). He coached me through tire pressure distribution and suggested I release tire pressure for the day to ensure they don’t pop from the heat. Took his advice, went back and released pressure on the tires for the day. Pump them up in the morning – okay/