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I'm writing this post while sitting under a glass table to protect me from any thing that may fall on me.

Yes, we all survived here in Kona. I do not want to understate the quake, because it was pretty scary. We woke up to the entire room shaking. It honestly felt like there was a bulldozer trying to push the place over. Then it came to me what was really happening. Being from Spokane, I wasn't too sure of what I was supposed to do... stop, drop, and roll... play dead... act big, run downhill...dig a hole... what do I do? I ran out of the room to see Mark was just getting out of the shower and said, "That was a big one." We were a little concerned because we were on the 2nd floor in the condos, but then I thought that would be better than being on the 1st floor. We had water spraying out of the hot water tank and pictures fell off the wall.

There was an aftershock that was pretty big too. Fortunately we were outside and watched the windows of the buildings near us flex around. I don't know how they did not break.

We went up to a coffee shop to see if we could get some breakfast or something since we did not have anything to eat in the morning since we had just arrived the night before. For some reason, we thought that a coffee show should be immune to power outages and the earthquake in general. I don't know why. It's kind of like know that the power is out in your house, but you still turn on the light switch when walking into a room. You know... but you act like you don't. I think those behavior are housed in the 'idiot' portion of the brain. Somewhere near the 'asking for directions' portion I would imagine or the 'remembering anniversaries.' Regardless, we were there with a bunch of other locals who had their theory on what was happening. The biggest fear was that the volcano was erupting. The other fear was that a Tsunami was well on its way. Both theories were dismissed shortly by the news that someone was able to obtain. Don't know how since all the radio stations were down as well as television. After we had some coffee, donuts, and orange juice, we were able to start thinking more rationally. So most of the group headed for the pool. I, however, unpacked my bike and went for a 2.5 hour ride.

The ride went well. The moment I got out the door, I think my body started sweating. I headed down the infamous Alii Drive where the marathon in the race goes and just about everybody seems to run or ride at least once a day. The road, that follows the ocean, is packed with people doing some form of exercise. It's even worse during the weeks leading up to the race because you have all of the obsessive personalities in one city who all feel like then need to be training all the time since it looks like everyone else is. I headed out Alii drive and then to the Queen K highway. This is he stretch of road that the bike is on. It travels to the town of Havi (pronounced ha-vee) through the lava fields. Now, when I think of a 'field' I think of a place that you could play a softball game, have a picnic, walk a dog. There is not way you could do any of that in these 'fields.' These fields are all about rock... one continuous rock that is black and absorbing all the heat from the sun it possibly can. Then the 30+ mph winds come blowing through and blow the heat right into you. There is not escaping this hair drier effect since there is not any shade either since most vegetation does not grow too well in rock. I headed out the Queen K for about 1 hour and then spun it around. I don't know how it is possible to have a headwind on the way out, and then a headwind AGAIN on he way back, but it happened.

I started to feel the sun a bit and did a quick 'tan line' check. Yup, I was darker. But being from Spokane, I knew that my body was immune from the high UV rays here in Hawaii. I was actually getting a little concerned about getting burned too badly, so I picked it up a bit. I ran into some other riders out there and chatted with them for a bit. Everyone had the same story about the race...how they have done it before... how you have to drink a lot... how they had all of the answers.. blah, blah, blah. I don't want to sounds like I know everything, because I really know I don't, but come on. It's hot, I'm working hard, and you are telling me to drink fluids? No kidding. I never thought about that. Good idea. Duh! Kind of reminds of the old Snicker bar commercial that started off with the person saying that they were hungry, then they ate a Snicker bar, and then their hunger went away. I also have that same feeling when I do that... it's called eating. Anyway, I eventually made it home and relaxed.

Most of the people that are here with us were spending time down at the pool and eventually made their way back. We all took a short nap, had lunch, and headed back to the pool for a short bit.

Tim and Kris Seppa made dinner for everyone and we also invited over Tomppa, Tulla, and Severi Soderdahl for dinner. Tomppa was the professional that stayed with us during IM Cda in 2005 who got 2nd. He is back again here in Hawaii to race this year and is looking very strong. It was great to connect with them and hear all about how their year has been going. The life of a professional triathlete is pretty tough one. They are amazing athletes that work very hard and only have a few opportunities to really 'test' themselves and make the big $$. Here in Hawaii, this is the Superbowl, the World Series, The Olympics... this is the one. So people come out here and pull out all of the stops. It was great to talk with Tomppa about his race, the course, and what he was doing before. Pretty cool. That is one thing about professional triathletes, or at least most of them, they are pretty down to earth and friendly. Jessi went out on a run today and Faris Al-Sutan (winner last year) ran up next to her and they chatted for a little bit. Crazy! Here you have the winner of the race last year, chit-chatting with the locals... and enjoying it. I think this is one of the things that draws people to this sport. If you are a pro, and arrogant, you probably have had only one good race in your career. Those guys are far a few. It seems like in triathlon, the more successful you are as a pro, the kinder and more approachable you are. Just a quick observation.

That's it for now. I'll attempt to load up some photos soon.