I recently spent some time in Hessen with Biomechanic Marcus Blenke, perfecting my bike fit for Hawaii.

Here is a quick clip to show you guys what my afternoon entailed.  Lots of running around for Marcus, and lots of pedaling for me.  My position is now perfect for a really fast bike split in Hawaii in a couple of weeks.

My training partners used to make fun of me for overpacking my bags and bringing way too much with me to races all the time. It was a real pain in the neck (and back, and arms, etc) to carry that huge bike box (or sometimes two!), a really big travel bag (or sometimes two!), and a backpack. Mass transportation was a hassle and I used to get into loads of trouble with airline companies because I would get angry when they charged me for extra luggage. On top of that, I would oftentimes experience airlines losing my bags and/or bikes which is a HUGE pain before a race. I can tell you that I have definitely had my fair share of arguments about lost bags with airline personnel–which is not a great way to get into the right mindset a couple of days before a race!

The adrenaline is pumping and I am very excited to step up and race my first Ironman tomorrow: All is well and i am feeling really good and relaxed at the moment. There are quite some changes compared to ITU racing but it should be no problem to adapt here. Some rules are strange-but its the same for everyone.

The past days went by fast and the training effort has been on recovery mode for some time. We just changed our accommodation in a more quiet place and that will give me the necessary space I need before the competition. My friends Chris and Natasha came all the way from Germany/Luxembourg to support me and give me a hand in the days leading up to the race. Alicia is doing all the organization and planing every day, which turns out to be quite a bit of work.