Hey David, the ride sounds great. I love LP. I heard from my IM contacts there that the weather held up nicely for race day and it went very well.
So yesterday I took my tribike off the trainer and rode outside for the first time. I am now just under 8 weeks out. It was just a short 20 miler on some mild rolling terrain but it was GREAT! There are a couple of short but sharp climbs and it was heaven hammering up them without the deep bone pain in my left leg.
I was pretty much riding on one leg before the surgery so it seemed surprisingly easy to climb without that pain. You are going to LOVE that after you get your hip done. I had more fun riding yesterday than I have had in years.
You just don't realize how much the nagging pain and resulting weakness and imbalance affects your enjoyment of things until that pain is gone. I really didn't think it was so bad at the time but then I looked back after my ride yesterday and remembered that as time went on, I wasn't having much fun. In fact, during many, if not most, of the rides I just wanted it to be over so I could go home and bury myself in my computer work and not feel that physical pain and emotional frustration and disappointment.
I couldn't ride with my training buddies anymore, so it was over a year of slow and unpleasant pushing through rides I wasn't enjoying but kept telling myself it would be better next time. It was the classic illustration of Freud's definition of insanity: Doing the same thing over and over expecting a different outcome.
Even without the great results I have had thus far after the surgery, I will never regret breaking that pattern of insanity. I don't fear failure but I am terrified of stagnation. I would much rather move forward and risk failure than fear moving and guarantee it.
Look forward to seeing you on the Kohala Coast next June.