by Amber K
First things first, there is this whole thing about actually registering for the race. Half the battle is actually finding the registration site. Mind you this is not a small task. First, it doesn’t come up on a Google search very well. Second, you have to find it in French. (Et, je ne parle pas francais! – ok, so I had it in Second Grade…but that doesn’t count when you are ..er… over 29.) Third, you have to be patient. The race announcements don’t actually start showing up on the web site until early in the year (January-ish). The only way I actually found the race dates last fall was by poking around in previous year’s race newsletter and they had a “We’ll see you next year on May 8th!” sort of announcement. Which I was lucky to find.
Not wanting to dally my boss was duly notified and a leave request was submitted in October for the dates. (oh, and then I slipped in the BABA Spring trip leave request a few weeks later when he had forgotten about already having approved the Defi leave.) Risky! Considering, they were back to back, but I learned a thing or two in Air War College about “Strategic Planning”. At least I finally got to put some of that mind numbing reading to use!
By early January I finally had the announcement firm in hand. In early February on-line registration would open, and at that time I would need to actually register, pay, and provide a copy of my doctor’s note. (Yes, Johnny, a doctor’s note saying I should, under ideal conditions, actually survive the event in good health.) Again Strategic Planning comes into play. I visited my GP in early January for my yearly check up. Blood work? Dandy. Heart? Still pumping. Knee hit with a hammer? Still bounces. Shoulder function?…er… How about those Nats?!!!Can you sign this for me?Ohh look at the time, gotta rush now!Thanks!See you next year!Bye!
Anyway, after I got the “A-OK” from Doc “GP”, I then schedule appointment with Doc “Ortho”. The conversation went something like this with Doc Ortho. “I’m going snowboarding for a week at the end of February and then there is this windsurfing race I’m doing in early May. Since my shoulder has been busted since 1991, it really only kind of hurts a bit more then it has since then. What do you say?” Doc Ortho, “MRI looks like a bit of tendonitis and calcium. I’ll see you March 12th for surgery!” …er… “ok..?…” Followed up by a post surgery conversation. Doc Ortho, “Man what a mess in there!! Had to pull out the Hoover to get those bits of labrum out. They were gunkiing up the works! Half of your labrum is gone you know? So, how was that race in France by the way?” …er… Me, “You mean the one coming up in May?”… crickets… Doc Ortho, “May??!!!”… crickets… “Sooooo, if I told you that perhaps I’m concerned about you ripping out those stitches I put in to hold your
deltoid back in place, it probably wouldn’t matter would it?…” …silence… “How about duct tape?”
Again, the benefits of Strategic Planning, with doctor’s note giving me the “A-OK” in January, I registered the first day the site was opened in early February and THEN did the surgery. (Now you know why the enlisted troops always grumble about their officers, heck if only they could take Air War College they would understand!…er…) OK, back to the race. The registration is rather confusing. It actually brought me to a third party web site that looks like its out of Japan. Anyway, throwing internet caution to the wind, I followed the link and the instructions. There I paid the race fee (180 euros… I think…) and uploaded a scanned copy of my, now infamous, doctor’s note and Wallah! I was now officially registered!! And then reality hit …oh dear god help me…. How am I going to get there??!!!!
