Sout Carolina - here I come!

Deep breath.

Pause....

HOLYCOWTOMORROWILEAVEANDI'MSOEXCITEDANDNERVOUSANDEXCITEDANDSCAREDANDEXCITED.

And oh yeah, I'm forgetting something...

Hhhmmmmm.

Oops - I still have to pack.

Simple enough:

1) HTFU suit, goggles, cap - check
2) Bike - check
3) Run shoes - check

Great - I'm all set. (Of course, I plan on wearing clothes... no, there won't be any naked women swimming/biking/running in South Carolina. If you do see one, kindly look away. Hopefully the other members of our group will realize that one of us has cracked, and will shortly be to her rescue).

After they climb Paris Mountain. Or whatever its called. I just know that its big, its steep, and I had to get a new rear cog for my bike. Before this week I didn't even know the difference between an 11-23, 12-25, and 12-27.

That's what living in the Florida Panhandle will do.

Nice views of the Gulf. Warm winters. But no hills. Well - maybe a few "rollers" - but let's get real. "Climbing" a hill for :45 doesen't exactly count now, does it?

Its rumored that some of the climbs will take upwards of half an hour. Wow. That means for an entire episode of Fawlty Towers, I could be climbing a mountain in Greenville, SC. Wow. Next time I see John Cleese, I'll think of biking. Go figure.

So yeah - warm winters, clear (shark-filled) waters, and lots of flat lands for biking. Thank goodness the subject of gearing and tt bikes vs road bikes came up before we converged on Greenville. FYI: we settled on the TT bikes with appropriate cog setting.

No 11-23s for me. That, my friends, would have been really ugly!

So technically, with my new set of 12-25s and 650 wheels, I should be able to climb the hills. That's the theory, anyway. I'll be sure to let you know how it goes.

In all honesty, I can't wait. I'm so excited - I'm jumping out of my skin. My goal isn't to conquor the moutain or beat it into submission. No - I want to work with the mountain, enjoy her for her splendor, tackle the challenges that she provides, use whatever she offers, and challenge myself to the best of my ability.

Will I learn? I plan on it.

Will it be painful? Probably.

Will I crack? Hopefully not.

Will I have a shit-tonne of fun with my friends? You betcha!

So with that, I'm off to bed. The laundry is in the dryer, my trainer is set up for tomorrow's early morning spin, and the living room has been taken over by an odd assortment of powders, gels, drink mixes, and Margarita Cliff Blocks. It looks like my gear closet threw up.

In a few short hours, I'll be packed up, bumping along the road, heading North to Greenville, South Carolina. And I can't wait!

To the Mountains - Hurrah!