May 13, 2006 (otherwise known as the day before race day!!!)

We are here! Made it safely to Honolulu and now just counting down the hours until the race starts. Got here Thursday, 5/11, and settled in with the in-laws, and have already had the chance to swim the course twice and do a portion of the run course. I didn't realize what a huge event this is, until we were out at the race site yesterday and saw what an elaborate set-up there will be. Yesterday, 5/12, the rest of the team arrived and we went to our race check-in and race briefing. During the race briefing, which was half in Japanese and half in English, we learned that this is an international event for the ITU (International Triathlon Union) which means the elite athletes are competing not only for the prize money (a couple thousand I think) but for points towards an overall score. And I believe the person with the highest points total is the annual ITU winner....apparently a very big deal. They're even going to have a complete medals ceremony, similar to what you'd see in the Olympics, with banners from the winners' countries being raised and respective national anthems to be played....for both men and women. Now, talk about exciting!

I must say also, that compared to last year's race in Maui, the weather is quite nice. It was stifling hot last June, such that I didn't even want to go outside at all, but here it's nice. Probably low to mid 80s with some winds and some occasional sprinkles. It's so weird how in Hawaii it totally sprinkles when the sky is clear blue. Then it only lasts for a few seconds....then back to normal.

The bike made it to Hawaii in one piece, thank goodness. I put it back together yesterday and made a few tweaks, and I think we're good to go. Tested it out this morning on some local neighborhood roads and it was riding pretty well. The bike course for this race appears to be flatter than Maui last year which is great...hills are always tough, especially when you have to run after you finish the hills on the bike. The bike is my weakest event and the one I'm always a little hesitant about (having crashed a couple of times during training...never fun) but I will stay positive and hope for good outcomes.

They start the athletes off in "waves" according to your age. My "wave" goes off at 6:09 am! Yikes! But, that means that if I calculated my time right, I should be finished before 9:30am, meaning it won't be as hot at that time, meaning I might not want to die at the finish line like I did last year. I can't get sick, though, because many of my family and friends have sacrificed their early morning hours to come cheer me on. =0). Overall I'm definitely not as nervous as last year, but there's still some butterflies in the stomach. I admit it. Mostly, I just don't want myself or anyone else hurt out on the course, and I don't want to end up with pneumonia like last year. But, God has brought me here safely, we did this to save lives, and I know it will be such a blast, and I know I can't wait to cross that finish line!

So, keep us all in your prayers...and GO TEAM!

-e.m.y
OCIE TEAM IN TRAINING TRI TEAM 2006