T-Minus 23 Days...

Ironman Louisville is a mere 23 days from today. It's hard for me to believe that the day is almost here! Although my training has been derailed by ITBS, I'm still really excited about competing in my first Ironman and I'm anxious to see how my knee responds once I start the marathon. I've been logging some extra time in the pool this week and doing lots of strength work, foam rolling, stretching and icing.

Pre-race meetings with event planners have begun and some interesting info has leaked out of their most recent meeting:

The 2011 edition of Ironman Louisville will have more first time Ironman racers than any other IM race in North America! Somewhere between 40-50% of the athletes (including yours truly) will be attempting their first 140.6 mile race.

The race was capped at 3,000 athletes. At present, with some early withdraws, there are around 2,850 registered.

I can't imagine what being in the water and on the road with over 2,800 other people is going to be like...should make for an interesting day!

RECENT WORKOUTS: 

7/21/11: Brick - Bike (3.50 miles in 12:00), Run (0.76 miles in 5:47), Bike (5.00 miles in 15:05) 
7/22/11: Swim - Endurance Swim (3200m in 1:04:50) 
7/24/11: Bike - Progression Ride (67.57 miles in 3:27:21) 
7/25/11 Aqua Jog - Intervals (3.5 miles in 37:11) 
7/25/11: Swim - 100-75-25 (1800yd in 34:48) 
7/26/11: Bike - Mile Repeats (18.00 miles in 55:00) 
7/26/11: Weights - Extreme Core I - 4 sets 
7/27/11 Aqua Jog - Sprint Intervals (4.5 miles in 43:28) 
7/27/11: Swim - Train Smart Group Swim (3300m in 1:20:53) 
7/28/11: Bike - Skills (19.00 miles in 1:00:00) 
7/28/11: Elliptical - Easy (2.50 miles in 20:00) 
7/29/11: Elliptical - Distance (6.20 miles in 1:00:00) 
7/29/11: Swim - Short Intervals (1100yd in 20:13) 
7/30/11: Bike - Long Ride (112.21 miles in 5:55:20) 
8/1/11 Aqua Jog - Sprint Intervals (5.00 miles in 45:00) 
8/1/11: Weights - Body Blaster - 4 sets 
8/2/11: Swim - Open Water Swim - Ohio River (2464yd in 48:30) 
8/3/11: Swim - Train Smart Group Swim (3600m in 1:18:58) 
8/4/11: Swim - Speed Sets (2800yd in 47:37) 
8/4/11: Weights - Extreme Core II - 3 sets