I've been thinking about blogging my workouts recently now that the ice hockey season is almost over. There are events that I'm planning to participate in over the next few months that require on-going serious training, so there should be plenty to talk about. The events I'm training this year include:

• The Chicago Showcase Hockey Tournament, April 13 to 17: This is a national high school-level ice hockey all star tournament put on by Amateur Hockey Association of Illinois. I am one of eight male officials chosen by the USA Hockey Officiating Program to represent the local hockey officiating communities around the country.
• The Bristol-Myers Squibb Tour of Hope, September 29 to October 8: This event needs no introduction for Operation Gadget readers. I am applying for one of 20 spots on the team that will ride from coast-to-coast. The application says that the riders will each ride 100 miles per day for the duration of the Tour.
• (I'm also planning to do at least one duathlon and a few 5k or 10k road races this summer, but I haven't chosen those events yet.)

I've said repeatedly that it's unlikely that I'll be chosen for The Tour of Hope National Team, but I think I have to ramp up my training over the next month in case I am chosen. If I don't get chosen, I will probably do the Washington, DC Fundraising Ride again this year, and I will probably try to choose a different major fitness goal for the summer / fall.

The Chicago Showcase will be a challenge for me because I will have to officiate two very competitive games per day, and there are few competitive hockey games left to do in my area between now and then. I managed to officiate a game earlier this week between two 18 & Under boys' teams going to the USA Hockey National Tournament at their level. That was helpful, but I need to work more games.