Jump to Saturday morning. My journey started with a flight up to Tokyo and a five-hour layover. I cleared all my e-mail and managed to get a little writing done.

Why do most airport lounges never have fresh fruit? The best lounge in the world is the BA Lounge at Heathrow - fresh fruit and Guinness. I have a can every time I am there out of fear that they will discontinue if not enough people drink it. I get a few looks at 7AM, but it is a price I am willing to pay for an assured supply.

Five hours is a fairly long time to kill in a waiting area. The food selection consisted of rice with MSG (I found out later when my head started to ring), peanuts and cheesecake. I tried them all. Probably the best part was the beer machine. You place your beer glass underneath the tap and press a button. The machine raises your glass, tilts it a precise 25 degrees, and pours the perfect beer. It then straightens the glass, and tops with exactly 3.5 centimeters of foam. I like watching the Americans' faces when it adds the foam to their perfectly poured beer. Not happy. As well, everybody thinks the glass is going to fall and tries to grab it when it is raised. Doesn't take much to amuse me.

It was evening when my flight to Honolulu took off, and I may have had a little too much red wine as I wasn't able to fall asleep. Still, I rested as we zoomed across the Pacific to the Sacred Shores. Arriving in Oahu, I asked entry permission (and a favour) from Madame Pele, and headed to the transfer desk to sign in for my flight to Kona. Checked my wheels, got the boarding pass and asked where I could find Continental Air Cargo. Nobody seemed too sure until one lady gave me directions.

I grabbed a baggage trolley and headed out of the airport. Time to get that bike! She said it was a 30-minute walk. I had the energy as well as 90 minutes to kill before my flight. I walked, and walked, and walked. Eventually I hit an airforce base and started to get a little worried that these directions might not have been 100% correct. I asked the guard at the gate about Continental. He shook his head and told me that it was on the FAR side of the airport. Bummer!

My spirits were hanging in as I headed over to the far side of the airport. Sixty minutes of walking brought me to Canadian Air Cargo, but no sign of Conti. I asked around and all were clueless. Even the taxi drivers were stumped. Time to resort to drastic action! Into the airport, find a telephone book and call them up. They confirmed that I had the right address and gave me some additional tips. Spoke to some airport security guards - they weren't 100% sure.

Walked out to the taxi rank and eventually found a

The ladies inside were extremely friendly, but had no idea about my bike. I was starting to notice a trend that was reminding me of Asia. Clueless but friendly - my days in Asia had prepared me for this situation. We slowly and methodically worked through all the options, but no dice. They even let me go to the warehouse and personally inspect every box that had arrived in the last three days. Bummer! I didn't have the airway bill number so they couldn't track it for me. I picked up the phone and dialed Lloyd. Thank God he was up at 5AM on a Sunday morning. Unfortunately, he was the only one awake in Cairns, so I would have to wait.

I realised that my early flight to Kona was a distant memory and headed over to rebook on a later flight. It was 10AM and I wasn't taking any chances. Booked myself on the 3:30 PM flight. More e-mail and some fruit juice. I was starting to get hungry, but wasn't going to partake in a Burgerworld fiesta. Back to the ladies at Conti.

Lloyd rang back around noon with the airway bill number. Tap, tap, tap... my shipment was in Guam. Actually it wasn't in Guam anymore, it was on a plane heading to Hawaii. Only one hitch, it was going to arrive after customs closed for the weekend. I remained calm. The head honcho said that we could try to pre-clear it. My Canadian Passport, the invoice and a supporting letter from Lloyd were required. A little creative word-processing and presto! They had what they needed. The customs lads stamped the airway bill and after a little bonus paperwork.... I was gone. The ladies even figured out a way to get my bike to Kona for free (and I'm not telling how!).

Continental is going to get a letter from me. Not complaining about the guy in Guam who sat on my bike for 48 hours, but for the outstanding service I received from the Honolulu office.

So here was my bike's itinerary over the last week. Cairns - Singapore (sit for a day) - Guam - Cairns (sit for a night) - Guam (sit for two days) - Honolulu - Kona. Hats off to Lloyd for paying a fortune in shipping to get it to me on time. For Kona 2002, we're planning better!

The wait was worth it. You guys will see the photos later, but we are talking one fine Ferrari Yellow machine. Lloyd had told me it was Kermit the Frog green and I was ready to ride my Muppet down the Queen K. Having seen the actual version - I have to agree that this will have a better resale value. I even lashed out with new tires. Corsa TT's - the last two yellow ones in Kona! I have my yellow helmet, but am not racing in yellow gear this year. I have a hunch that it is going to be a hot one and will be sporting a blue speedo.

By the way, that is a summary of five and a half hours of fun and games!

Off to Kona...

Driving into town, I pass the Energy Lab and a strong sense of well-being arrives as memories of last year's race are triggered. Kona is filled with tons of positive energy for me. IMH99 was a very special race and being back on the course returns all kinds of good feelings. It is overcast and looks like it might rain, but I am loving my cruise down the Queen K (they even played a little heavy metal on the radio). I decide to take the long way to the condo and drive "the scene" along Ali'i.

Hard bodies running up and down, a light breeze blowing and a cobalt blue sea breaking on the black rocks to my right. Man this town is cool! Just like last year, most of the trees and bushes are in bloom. I even notice two huge cacti that are about to flower. I wonder if their flowers will open on race day?

Just outside of Kona, I picked up Brad (also on Ali'i).

I am not swimming anywhere in particular. Just having fun and checking out the fish. Soon it is time to head back. Swimming in, I stop and listen to the coral. Did you know that coral can sing? I think you need to be in the right mood, but if you float under the surface you can listen to coral music, Kona Coral Music. Very relaxing.

Heading back in, I looked left and saw a sea turtle swimming alongside me. Too cool. In the water for 15 minutes and I'm swimming with turtles. The turtle hangs for about 100 meters and goes deep. The water is so clear that it is tough to tell whether the bottom is 20 or 40 feet away.

Shopping, bike pick up, dinner and off to bed.

A big bowl of cereal and off to Dig Me Beach for another swim. This time there are considerably more folks there. Before we even get in the water, we have seen Paula, Melissa, Sian and Julie. I must say, for some reason I tend to spot female pros quicker than male ones. Melissa and Sian look fantastic, and we overhear Sian talking about how happy she is to be spectating this year. I also learn the Lori has cut all her hair off. Sounds like she is serious about retaining that

It is early in the week and we arrived late. However, there was still a "scene" at the pier. Last year, I only swam in the afternoons so missed the circus. I'll have to check it out later this week. Must be a zoo! I shall report back.

You know what?
I'm glad I came.