Ironman Melbourne: 5 Sleeps - Making a List & Checking it Twice

Packed yet? Are you organised or not so? Do you pack last minute or make a list and check it twice (or three times) ?

I have to admit that Ironman is looking more organised than me this time around - maybe because I'm thinking it's only Melbourne and I only have one child in tow...

However, I need to remind myself I ended up buying warm clothes last time so maybe I need to be bit more prepared (I should really be packing not writing) - then again Melbourne is the shopping capital!

But, it's not about me... and the most important luggage is the bike and the kit of course!

To help you in your packing endeavours, here are a few tips to avoid suitcase and travel disasters when travelling by plane to a Triathlon:

• Don't pack C02 cartridges (and don't forget to buy at other end!)
• Make sure you double seal the electrolyte powder (pretty sticky stuff if it leaks!) Ditto with gels. I use snap lock bags then plastic Decor container to double seal.
• Lots of plastic shopping bags are useful to pack dirty shoes and smelly lycra
• Don't pack too many t-shirts - you usually add 2-3 new Tri ones to your collection each race.
• Use a Decor  container to store all the little stuff like bike tools and salt containers.
• Take race kit for all weather conditions.
• Pack the expensive stuff like watch, SRM and iPod in your carry on.
• Take wet weather gear for supporters - and a good back pack (you will be walking far)
• Don't forget the camera, charger and connector cords. Video camera?
• Triathlon ID required for check in

All I can think of for  now. Very useful that we are heading to Melbourne since you can get most things there if you forget :-)

Any more tips you can add?

For some more packing and travel tips - check our PJ's suggestions here.

IRONMAN CHALLENGE DAY 10/11: Essentials B4 you leave

Now we are entering the final two weeks before Ironman Melbourne - the lists need to be made. 

Here's a simple check list of mine for this week to make sure bookings are in place and we don't miss out.  Hope its a good little reminder for you too!

• Flights and extra baggage
• Accommodation 
• Transport to accommodation and back and/or car hire
• Bus tickets for travel to and from Frankston
• Bike transport for Ironman's bike to check in
• Bike hire (in St Kilda)
• Welcome and Awards dinner tickets (for partners/family/friends)

Did I forget anything?

Packing lists is a whole other ball game - will leave another post for that one!

A Weighty Issue

I bought a great little gadget this week - and very cheap compared to most gadgets in our house! It's a bag weigher....

This is not so I can cram as many clothes as possible into our suitcases (or to take with us so I can keep track of all the things I can buy while away) but to make sure our bags are not over weight and we don't get slammed with a huge excess baggage bill - like we did going to China Ironman earlier this year!

Big lesson to be learned from China trip was to ALWAYS check and double check with travel agent and airline about their polices on baggage allowance, excess and oversized items like bikes! Seems all airlines handle this slightly differently...

We are flying Hawaiian Airlines and they charge for an oversized item but then it has it's own weight allowance and does not need to be considered when packing our bags - and their bag allowance per person is huge! On the other hand, I know when we went to NZ the weight of bike in box was part of our baggage allowances with QANTAS  - which works alright if you have kids but tips you over if there is just one or two of you. Result is bags being filled with all the tri kit and gadgets and very little of anything else - who needs extra undies or high heels or toiletries?!?

This is the frustrating thing travelling with a triathlete - there is so much kit to be considered with it's own list required, that competitor concentrates on this and the other half (ie; wife/me) thinks about the rest!

My lists are currently out of control, as is our bedroom floor that has last years summer clothes spread across it for contemplation. A holiday in Hawaii does require some thought re.clothes, kids and r & r  - not just the race!

Back to packing and weighing bags. Best to weigh at home so you don't have to juggle between bags in check out or pay a huge excess. Make sure competitor has list to go by for all the race essentials - and suggest you double check them as all you all need is a melt down about forgotten items when on the other side of the country or world! I have put together a support list for cheer squad items and supporter gear you may need on the day.

Today is our packing day - I am almost done but IM just starting! Below are a few useful things I mustn't forget when travelling OS and a few tips when packing competitors bag - will help me today also :-)

Don't forget:
Passports!
Documents relating to all bookings.
Web addresses and passwords to access email,etc
Electricity converter for country you are visiting
All charger cords for all the gadgets.
Bike :-)
Kids :-)

Remember when packing Tri Gear:
Don't overpack bike bag.
Put all gels, powder and creams in sealed plastic bags.
You can buy some things over there!!

Have a few funny stories to tell about travelling with bikes and kids but that's another post one day - would love to hear your stories or tips too.

Must sign out - and get packing!

Preparing for the Unexpected

IM packed his bags and headed up North for a Half IM over the weekend. Good preparation leading into Hawaii I was told....also good to practise the bag packing and weighing. (will dedicate other posts to packing lists and the weight issue!)

What I want to focus on now is preparing for the unexpected. Or really, the question of whether you can prepare yourself for something that happens which is out of your control?

Our household had some nasty tummy bug doing the rounds last week and IM stayed as far away as possible. A few days before he felt like he had something but it didn't seem to take hold. Training kept going and the excitement built as it always does in the lead up to a race.

The support crew did not have tickets to this race (can't always be there) but there were other friends attending and we were there in spirit.  In fact, maybe we were not meant to go, as the weekend may have been even less manageable if there were kids around.

In a nutshell, IM came down sick with gastro type bug night before race, attempted to race next day and ended up not finishing as was so ill. Then he proceeded to be stuck in bathroom of hotel room for next 24hrs and only just managed to make it home in bus/plane/car. (really felt for his room mate!)

Still not feeling well three days later, IM has been fairly accepting of the situation and is now just focusing on feeling better and getting back on track with the training plan.

What else can you really do? It is something you cannot prepare for and you cannot dwell on too much.

You can have a healthy diet and lifestyle and take all precautions to not getting sick, and you can pack in your bags all sorts of medication, but really when something like that hits it is just the unluckiness of it that it happens to be on race day.

It reminded us both about our China IM experience - well the fact that we were lucky not to get food poisoning in China when so many did (and many attempted to race or managed to race through it but it was not pretty!).

This was a first time experience of this sort for IM. Was there lessons to be learned?

Maybe he shouldn't have raced and it just made the sickness and dehydration worse but thats a hard decision when you have paid money, made the journey and planned so much for that day.

Maybe a few more medications could have been packed - we have since discovered that Gastro-Stop  is a great one to have in the medical kit (think Imodium is similar).....but actually the one most important thing you need is rehydration and most triathletes will have some sort of hydration drink or powder in their kit - perfect! I think a few satchels of hydralyte is also a must for a travel medical kit.

I did find a good rundown on what to do for diarrhea on a US website which talks about natural remedies and diet  (www.health911.com) and I learned a very useful acronym everyone should remember: BRAT - only eat Banana, Rice, Apple and Toast (lots of other useful stuff on this website!)

Back to the point of this post...

There are a number of things that can happen (not just sickness) that may result in not racing to your full potential or not even making it to race day. You can not be prepared for all scenarios. 

However, what you can do (this is not just for the competitor but his supporters too) is to accept the outcome, try to look at the positives of maybe not such an enjoyable journey and try not to dwell on it too much post-race day.

There will be another race. We all know that the most important thing in life is our health and that of  our families, so we need to remind ourselves of this, be thankful when health returns and all is well again, and just look ahead and plan for the next challenge.

In signing off,  I just have to say, that although we may now be slightly more prepared for the unexpected, I really hope we don't have a repeat performance in Hawaii :-)

Here's to our health!