Well, at least I won’t get sunburned.  I like to play in the mud.  And I’ve had earlier race start times.  And I’ve dealt with rain.  And survived Dipsea in the rain and the dark.  I can handle this….at least that’s what I keep telling myself, as I seem to have gotten the pre-race jitters pretty early with this one.

I mean, I didn’t finish any of the races I started in 2015.  And there was that bout with near-hypothermia.  And the busted knee.  And the busted ankles.  So, I get where the jitters are coming from.

And, they seem to increase every time I check the weather.  Not looking at it seems like it would be the obvious choice, but I do actually need to be prepared for whatever is heading my way. Last I checked, it’s looking like a temperature between 40 and 60 degrees.  Not too bad.  Oh wait…there’s also that inch of rain.  And the 20-30 mph winds in the afternoon.  It sounds like the rain-pocolypse I volunteered in at last year’s Golden Gate race.  Except there I could wear Gore-Tex…and water-proof hiking boots.  Here I can wear….running clothes.  And whatever rain gear Brian brings home from Sports Basement tonight.  All joking aside, hopefully I can find something that will at least keep me warm.  After the North Face debacle, I am concerned about hypothermia.

All of that being said, I’m still holding out some hope that this will be fun.  Because, while there’s been (and it looks like will continue to be) a lot of crazy, there’s been a lot of work too.  There’s been Orange Theory, faster training runs, more miles each week, and several rainy sweeps.  I mean, after Steep Ravine and Crystal Springs, I should be an old pro at getting soaked in the rain and mud.  And race induced hypothermia…that’s gotta be like lightening.  It won’t strike twice.  Who knows, maybe the rain will make me run faster.  I’ve got this.  At least, that’s what I tell myself.

I had a final tune up with the chiropractor and PT yesterday.  Good news, I’ve graduated PT.  Yay!  And my back is all nice and lose and ready.  And, Dr. Hal had some good advice around the race and what I could and could not control.  Not much I can do about the time I leave work, the traffic, or the rain.  Just how I handle it.  He’s also run the race before, so he gave me the lowdown on the course….very similar to what I’ve read about and was anticipating.  And thankfully, no more technical than the terrain in the headlands.  In many places, much less.

So, here’s to an adventure on the trails (and hopefully not in traffic).  Here’s to all the work I’ve put in paying off.  And just keeping one foot in front of the other…or maybe in this case, just keep swimming will be the better mantra.  And, most importantly, here’s to finally finishing a race.