If I'm not really racing..

..can I still call it a "race preview"?

In the name of trying new things in 2016, I signed up some ridiculously long while ago for the Seaton Soaker 25k. It's one of the many races in the fantastic OUTRace Series that I have yet to experience, and I figured the 25k distance would let me get through the first spring in a couple of years without any pressure to put in big mileage prior to a long early-season race.

Heh, yeah - I'm a master at sabotaging my own plans.

Not again..

With the introduction of the Dirty Girls 12hr and consequent transfer to the 50k at Conquer the Canuck, tomorrow's race was unceremoniously downgraded to a fully supported training day.

I'm in a weird place about racing tomorrow. No nerves have hit so far (they're entirely reserved for what's happening later in the season - eek!), and it feels a bit late to be starting race season...yet at the same time I know that the weeks will now start to fly by, and the next thing I know it'll be time to go trudge around in circles for a dozen hours. 

My "taper" for this race has consisted of:

1) Doing bodyweight-only strength work on Monday & Tuesday (instead of weighted lower-body work), foam rolling Wednesday morning (instead of upper-body weightlifting) and a bit of yoga & stretching on Thursday morning (instead of my usual 20mins of pilates core work).

2) I ran on my lunch break (6.6km instead of 7+km, due to lack of time) on Wednesday instead of cycling at lunch & after work, then running when I get home from visiting my mom. The idea was to get to bed earlier. Midnight qualified as "earlier than usual" for a Wednesday.

3) I skived off swimming last night to get to bed earlier. 11:30pm was an improvement.

Now, I'm pretty confident I'll make it through, considering I've run 3+hrs and between 24-26km each of the last two Saturdays, with more elevation change than this course is purported to have. I'm just not sure how well I'll perform, given that I don't feel very rested and my legs were pretty trashed last night.

The weather doesn't look to be super helpful, either.

May the 14th. Seriously.

Between the "liquid sunshine" and the river crossing that apparently rears its head with 2.5k left to go on the more-or-less out-and-back course, I'm really just hoping not to fall on my face due to mud, do a nosedive into the river, or end up catching a cold in what will undoubtedly be a chilly wind.

Apparently there's a rope to help keep you on your feet through the water crossing..

The biggest challenge of all, though, will actually be kicking my butt out the door for another 12-15k run on Sunday on legs that I'll undoubtedly have pushed harder than I really intend tomorrow. There's just something about a starting line and a gun that flips a switch in my head..

Really, all I wanted out of this event was to try something new and see some nice trail. I should probably be thankful that I have this on tap, because otherwise it would be far more difficult to get my lazy arse to trot 'round the woods in the rain for a few hours...not to mention I'll have much better company than just the voices in my head.

And really, it's not like it could be as cold as the last time I raced..