A Medley of Food Obsessions...at Mile 70

And it all began at the third rest stop and a cooler full of ice and cans of Coca-Cola Classic. It wasn't diet. It wasn't caffeine free. That cola was keepin' it real.

"I haven't had a coke in about a century." And I haven't. But that 1/4 can of ice cold, carbonated and fully caffeinated refreshment was the icing on the cake. And thankfully, Kelly indulged as well. It was just like the commercials said it would be. The food cravings didn't end there and we start rattling off many, many, many food needs. Kelly wanted everything to do with dips, specifically ranch. I want hummus and watermelon. And it continued with fresh veggies, black olives, bread and vinegar & oil, pizza, ice cream, donuts, UNCRUSTABLES!!!, and that list goes on and on. So with just ten miles to go, our desire for Einstein Bagels heightened.

But let us all remember, a frickin' ridiculously hilly 80 mile 2 loop adventure on the IM Madison course is nothing like cold coca-cola or a bowl of watermelon or ranch sauce for that matter. It is hot, dirty, disgusting and so HARD! And Kelly puts it best when she says, "we are two tiny dots and that sun is beating down all over us."

The ride down to Madison was as entertaining as ever. And in true teamdawnkelly fashion, we got lost, but thank the lord above we actually made it to Verona without driving 15 miles out of the way and turning around 17 times. Well, actually, we had to turn around once but that was due to our excitement and lack of attention span at the exit stop light. We made it in time and for me at the time the worst part was the apparent pre-ride WEIGH-IN (WTF???) and the fact that we were both going to pee our pants.

With Kelly being a math teacher, we spent a good amount of time calculating our average speed and how long it will take us to finish a loop and proudly, we finished loop #1 in 2:35 (13 minutes faster than our previous Madison adventure.) Rock on. But wait, it doesn't end there. Our first loop was accompanied by John, our training friend from Chicago-land, who noted a couple of our characteristics. Yes, keep reading.

Out in the hills, the wind and the open land, bikers come and go. They eat. They drink. They stretch their stiff necks while still in a silly comfortable seated position. teamdawnkelly does all of the same. BUT, what we add to the mix you ask? Conversation and laughter. John sits waiting at a small intersection and after packs travel past, teamdawnkelly rounds the corner. And at that moment the only way he can tell it is us is via sounds waves. "We may not be fast but we are fun."

What is not fun? Grumpy folks in big trucks who own the road. Because, as us bikers fail to remember, only people in vehicles pay taxes so they OWN that blacktop. Pardon me. They just hate people in spandex. Those grumps would eat off the backs of grandma and grandpa who are out for a leisure ride on their pink and blue basket adorned bikes. Lame.

But we don't let near-1st-degree-murderers bring us down. There are enough hills out there to do just that. And on that forever memorable loop #2, the hills were still up and in our faces. Hello hills, welcome to the party.

While the hills are the hostess with the mostest, Kelly is the honoree. She counts down, adds, subtracts and multiplies all to figure out time and even counts her pedal strokes up the hills. She also lets me draft when I feel like I may die. She is what anyone needs as a training partner and friend, especially when you feel like your legs are going to burn off. And let us tell you, we know intellectually, that our legs are not actually going to burn off. So we just keep pedaling.

With less than a handful of hills left to go in the ride, we came upon our kindred spirits - "two men in spandex." Nothing says keep your ass moving like a happy, insanely good biker man, say "you ladies look great. rockin' the smiles." Can we put him in our pockets and take him everywhere? The timing was impeccable and his words will never be replaceable.

The end of the 80 miles drew near and we could almost feel the water spewing from the shower heads (and the shower water wasn't an ounce of warm - actually quite refreshing.)

Finally, at our almost perfectly calculated departure time, we head to the trainwreck of a "restaurant"; the Einstein Bagel shop on Verona Road. Our first visit there was a disaster. We went back for a 2nd visit and it was quite pleasant. The 3rd visit was a trainwreck as it consisted of a 15 minute ordering process, followed by a 15 minute check-out process where I swear we got ripped off and came to find out I don't get the entire fruit container? WHAT? I always get the entire container.

A plethora of eggs and hummus and pickles and fruit and carbonated beverages later, we talked with our friend John about Ironman, tattoos, sleep, food and drink and of course, the two old men from the Muppet Show. teamdawnkelly represents those old men which is perfect in our world. And contrary to what you may think, we won't be sitting in the swim to bike transition area chit chatting about how the swim went over a cup of coffee. Although, now that I think about it, if that offers stands, I just may take it.

Bike ride and food time is over. But the drive home still hangs overhead. Kelly doesn't even remember where we are going or where my car is? Mixed into our confusion is more talk of Ironman. It makes us want to throw up everywhere.

And lickidy split...it is Sunday morning. And if there is anything that will get us through the 1 hour swim, it is the idea that when it is said and done, we get to enjoy some almond joy lattes and 1.5 days of NO TRAINING. I'll cash in my chips to that.

Tropical Storm Elkart Lake 2010 showed up for the swim today. We welcomed it to the party, thankfully, because it offered humor. If only we had brought our surf boards. Hang 10 my friends.

Peak week looms ahead meaning dooms day is getting closer...yikes.

Ironman Cash Box Update: $154.75