Ever notice that the word "intimidated" includes the word "TIMID"?

Most people would be peaking last week and tapering this week for St. Anthony's - possibly THE premiere national Oly. But I don't feel like I've really been peaking. I don't even feel like I'm peeking. I feel like I'm full-on gawking, eyes agape, shoestrings of drool dangling from the sides of my mouth.

That's because, with both of my bigger races looming ahead of me, I've started feeling pretty intimidated. This weekend is St. Anthony's; 3 weeks after that is my first 70.3; I just started getting over ANOTHER illness; and I'm behind on my training. St. Anthony's will help me to gauge my preparedness for Florida 70.3 - and I've got the 70.3 course maps downloaded so I can go do them over the next few weeks - so I think the nerves are just because of the big step in distance coming up in May. At the risk of sounding like a billy-freakin'-badass, I'm not terribly intimidated by St. A's, although I know I'll get an ass-beatin' and probably want to kill someone about halfway through. I've done an Oly now and I know what to expect, and I've finally taught myself how to have fun at a race. (New York in July is a river swim, which I've never done, more than a month after the 70.3, so that's another story altogether . . . .)

Tonight, while I was doing my 30-minute TT run (why do I not warm up and start to feel great till right before the run's over?!?!? Good thing it's a 10k!) and my 45-minute swim (breathe when you roll - you'll be out of the water way before this at the race this weekend) failing to start the grill for dinner (why does the "pyramid method" not work for me?), and trying to get Kona to pee outside and run with me (come on, man, you're named after the toughest endurance race in the WORLD!), I kept telling myself: this is no big deal, you're a billy-freakin'-badass, you can do this, NO VACANCY, old hat, NO VACANCY, next year you won't have to step up so big - it will be the same routine: maybe a du and then sprint-Oly-HIM-Oly-Rest-Half Marathon-Marathon-Rest . . .

NO VACANCY.

NO VACANCY.

NO VACANCY.

This is not rocket science. This is just a race. You get out there, you get it done, and then you feel high as a kite on endorphins for a couple hours. (And then some times you need a nap after that.) So, what do I find posted by my one of my bestest buds Nate on MySpace tonight but this:

"How does one classify a Half Iron Man?

height?
weight?
density?
tensile strength?
Young's Modulus?
electrical resistance?
porosity?
malleability?
relationship to Tony Stark?
selecting only two of the members of Black Sabbath?"

Here's what I find amusing: Nate is a mechanical engineer. He's spent most of his young life working in military and aerospace environments and he has a Master's in Mechanical Engineering. In other words, when your dad would tell you it didn't take a rocket scientist to do something (like an Olympic- or even Iron-distance triathlon?), Nate was the guy Dad said you didn't need. But the world does need more Nates. His comment was both thought-provoking and humorous.

First for the funny. I've decided that I'm going to download the Black Sabbath tune he's referencing, slap it on my "Pre-Race" playlist, and only allow myself to listen to half of it on the morning of Florida Half Ironman. I think it would be fitting and hysterical at the same time. I can't go into any race thinking too seriously - I'm one of those - so I figure that'll give me just the giggle and boost I need. And I CERTAINLY won't be the first or last person to listen to half of Ironman on the day of a Half Ironman or all of it on the day of a 140.6.

Now for the serious (oh, for Pete's (Nate's) sake - you knew it was coming soonerorlater - and yes, I just made that into one word): How does one classify a Half Iron Man?

Well, don't know about you, but I classify a Half Ironman this way (and this list is by no means exhaustive):

• Tough
• Tenacious
• Determined
• Strong
• Focused
• Disciplined
• Curious
• Patient
• Multi-task-oriented
• Athletic
• And finally . . . either 1)completely at one with their physical and mental nature and abilities and therefore not interested in or capable of 140.6, 2)on their way to a greater journey, perhaps 140.6, and 3)not intimidated.

So, if I satisfy all Nate's conditions (and we could come up with a million ways in which I could/would), and I satisfy all my own (let's not go into what my conditions are right now - I just dropped in to see what condition my condition was in), then it somewhat logically follows that I cannot be intimidated, if for no other reason than this: the word "timid" is sandwiched in the middle of the word "intimidated." And timid is pretty much the opposite of tough, tenacious and determined. And if I'm doing a Half Ironman, I must be pretty tough, tenacious or determined.

Which is exactly what my one and only tattoo means.

But timid? That's a word I don't have tattooed anywhere on me.