Land of the Kiwis A runner in New Zealand

Kiwi Nationals 2010 Prelude

Prelude...

Look at me being proactive about my writeup! Well today, for the first time in many moons, I was forced to see the unholy hour of 7AM. My flight to Christchurch is scheduled to leave at 9:15 (in about 9 minutes) and so far so good. One incredibly suprising characteristic of Kiwi airports is that the flights are easy to find, easy to board, and easy to ride. The security is lax (to the extent that officers would probably be taken out and shot if they were executing with the same level of friendliness in the States). But then again, I suppose that in NZ, you have a high chance being remembered when you inevidably meet again on this island nation. But get this, they're playing light rock/pop music videos as we're finding our seats. The experience is similar to what I would expect a private jet to be like. You can just walk up, hop on, and be on your way with less than 20min of waiting. The difference between this and a private jet? Here you only pay $35USD but no hot air hostess flirting with you.

Buildup to this ultimate NZ event has been lackluster. I've done significantly more mileage that I did pre-ITM but it's a far cry from what Mitch would have me doing if all was well. I also didn't meet his expectations for my Tuesday workout. However, I have begun to feel a little more powerful again (though only for up to 25 minutes at a time). With 4 races ahead of me, I have no idea how well or poorly I may fair. The really important thing though: I'm excited about racing right now. I believe in my abillity to race well, even if I'm completely lacking the fitness to finish a tempo at the moment. We'll see how it goes...