Deca Ironman?!

So, I'm reading an article in the latest issue of Inside Triathlon, which describes the subculture world of multi-IM racing. Yes, I said *multi* IM racing. Apparently, there is a growing interest in taking IM to another level, with double, triple, quadruple, and, yes, deca (10) IM-distance racing. These races can take days, or even weeks, to complete and are typically performed in a pool, a short bike circuit, and a track.

Yikes.

Now I can understand the urge to push yourself further, and if you've done a number of IM-distance races, perhaps the lure of a greater challenge starts to loom large. But I can't imagine ever wanting to do something like that. I just don't see the point. There are other challenges in life besides multi-sport racing. If IM gets boring, just try something else. Climb a mountain. Skydive. Maybe an adventure race. But 10 IMs in a row? Over the course of two weeks? Really?

No.

Personally, I'm just looking forward to IM Wisconsin - although it's just a single IM, it's plenty enough challenge for me.

Training-wise, the week so far has been good: Tuesday I swam 2800 yards (4 x 600; 1 x 200 pull; 1 x 200 CD) and ran an hour on the treadmill. Wednesday I rode der Keiser for an hour, with a bunch of painful intervals thrown in (5 x 2 minutes and 5 x 1 minute, with comparable CDs) and then ran for 15 minutes. I've been sitting on a tennis ball at work for my hamstring, and trying to stretch more after training sessions, and, so far, so good. Nothing seems to be getting any worse. * Fingers crossed *

Tonight I'm doing an easy 75-minute ride, and tomorrow Cath and I are hitting the lake for an open water swim! I'm excited to hit the lake again - it's so much more fun than lane swimming, and I'm excited to try the new suit. It's an XTerra Vextor Pro X2. We recently got Cath an XTerra full-suit, and she really likes it, so I'm hopeful this guy will feel good out there.

Hope everyone's having a good week.