Peaches are coming.

Prepare to prepare.

First we decide what kind and just how big this fire will be. Will it be the warming sort, or perhaps the cooking type? Maybe this fire will be just the perfect watching kind.

As always, safety first. We need to learn how to light a match. Can we make this a one match fire?

Practice with a few smaller fires. We can light them in the sun. We have lit countless in the rain, and as the occasion calls, we have even lit fires in the snow.

With each fire we gain experience, learning just how to manipulate the required elements: air, fuel, and heat.

A few successful warming watching fires, and we have just finished gathering wood. Prepared to prepare for the cooking type, perhaps even a no match fire.

***

Wander down the side walk

Crack! A flame shoots up through the air, penetrating the still summer night. What was once knotted oak, joins in perfect union with the neighboring air, and a long past origin, or spark. It's perfection of non-violent synergy.

Pounce! A tiger leaps out of the bushes, completely void of thought. Within exists only instinct, a purity of non-violent confidence.

Same soft ground, same shady trees, and the same calm seas.

Rest well.

next go

"Make yourself comfortable."

I heard this from the sidelines last year while in transition at the 1st 1/2 and thought, "Are you kidding me? This is a race! There's no time to be comfortable!" Ahhh . . . yet still a young grasshopper.

This weekend, as we came down the Spanish Banks hill, each of us mentally preparing for our seaside stroll I thought to myself, "Make yourself comfortable."

Although Kelly mentioned bringing a toothbrush into transition, (I always feel more comfortable after brushing my teeth), this weekend "Make yourself comfortable," was about mindset and rewards.

We're driving through the Okanogan and it's a blistering 33 degrees. Shirts off, sweat slides through every crevasse, collecting in a puddle at the back of the seat. Face is warm, feet a little puffy, and skin is sticky. Mouth becomes a little dry, and then the baked post race feeling . . .

"Dude, this is awesome! I love the summer. Windows down, wind in the face, fresh Okanogan nectarines cleans the palate . . . "I would walk 500 miles . . . da dada lada!"

Our reward is a stop in the Similkameen river. Drive on.

Riding around UBC, seat on the seat, feet on the pedals, legs roll'n round, it looks like the race is taking place up ahead. Ok, hatch a plan. . .

Make yourself comfortable, then dig in for 5 - 10.

And the reward, a cool drink from the bottle. Ride on.

Great racing this weekend. Shout out to LifeSport crew for hosting the event, Steve King for the everpresent "getchago'n" broadcast, and perhaps the most important contributor, Spanish Banks.

Next go . . . 2nd full.

Rest well.

Q & A

What is the best way to do this? What's the most efficient? How can I maximize this time? What else can I be doing right now? Wander in circles . . .

Even during recovery . . . What else could I be doing? I could massage the legs? Wait, maybe legs up the wall. Do I make some tea? Do I watch some TV? Do I epsome the legs? Or, maybe I could ice?

And sometimes during training sessions . . . How will I descend this swim set? What's my strategy on these bike intervals? If I'm running this hard, when do I pick it up?

These are all great questions, that is, if we allow ourselves to hear the answer. In fact, if for just one moment we slow down enough to listen, the answer is ready and waiting.

Sometimes these questions, like most other things of a reasoning nature, grow an essence of their own. They speed up, and before long start whirling out of control. As this happens, a change in focus occurs.

We begin to focus on the questions themselves instead of just simply knowing the answer.

Hear the question, acknowledge the question, pause, listen to the answer, gently return to biking and breathing.

Ride the set. Ride the set on the roads.

Set complete. Cool down. Return to the world of talking. Return home for recovery where the easiest & perhaps most effective method is simply becoming quiet.

Quiet body allows the physical to recover. Quiet mind allows the mental to recover.

Thanks for a great transition weekend to the long stuff.

Rest well.