I'm gonna beat your butt!

No your not!

Yes I am!

I set my cell phone alarm for 3:45 AM on race day. When the alarm went off... I shot into action: I first poked my head out of the tent for an emergency weather check (COOL! No rain... clear skies... and ~ 60 degrees!), donned my prepackaged race attire; deflated and rolled-up my air mattress and stowed my sleeping bag; gave Fast John and his brother a wake-up at 4:00 AM; heated water to shave and make Dinner Coffee; toasted a bagel with soy nut butter; hit the latrine twice... and met everyone at the bus on the far side of the Wakely Dam... at 4:30 AM - SHARP!

Once on the bus, it was clear the seats were designed for 1st graders. Sitting in the last row of the bus was no picnic either - 1+ hours of cramped legs and bumps that left me feeling pretty car sick by race time. By the time we arrived at the Start Line the sun was warm/cool. And, then there was the infamous pre-race photo for the Wakely web site and the race sponsor.