I can’t believe this week is finally here. I have been looking forward to this week for an entire year. It’s time to go to the A-to-the-Rizona. This Sunday is Ironman Arizona, in Tempe..
Thanks for stopping by. As most of you know, I really love to compete in triathlons. I don’t really know what it is about it that just grabs me. I remember the first time I saw the Ironman championships in Hawaii on TV. I saw this guy competing with his son who has cerebral palsy. During the Ironman, the father pulls the son in a special boat as they swim, carries him in a special seat in the front of a bicycle, and pushes him in a special wheelchair as they run. All 140.6 miles like that…Are you kidding me!
It’s one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen, and I new I wanted to be a part of it. So, 13 years later, here I am looking forward and grateful to be starting my 3rd Ironman Triathlon. Every time I compete in a distance race like this I see someone out there racing with a disability that is hard for me to fathom. It’s amazing what some folks can endure.
If you’re new here, and don’t really know what an Ironman is:
An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC) consisting of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike and a marathon (26.2 mile run), raced in that order and without a break. Most Ironman events have a strict time limit of 17 hours to complete the race, where the Ironman race starts at 7 AM, the mandatory swim cut off for the 2.4 mile swim is 2 hours 20 minutes, the bike cut off time is 5:30 PM, and all finishers must complete their marathon by midnight.
My race/bib number is 1515. Ironman Arizona starts Sunday 11/20 at 7a.m._MST. If you’re interested, go to http://ironman.com/ . You’ll see a link for "Live Race Coverage" for Ironman Arizona. You can track me via bib# 1515 to see how I’m doing, or watch the live video feed of the race. The swim should take me about 1 hour, and the bike should take me about 6 hours. The run just takes as long as it takes. I never really hang my hat on a specific time. My main goal is always to finish before the midnight cutoff, and I will walk/crawl if I have to. But my main goal is to finish in under 12 hours(I even have some skin in the game to make sure I don’t get complacent).
People often make the assumption that training for an Ironman is the most excruciating thing you could ever go through, and that it just seems like torture. Not me…I LOVE IT! It is tough, but crossing the finish line is something you will never forget as you can see in the video above. I love the intense competition, and I love the challenge of trying something that you’re not sure you can do….until you do it. So don’t feel sorry for my poor tortured soul. I’m out there enjoying the moment and doing what makes my soul smile. You sign up 1 year in advance because the slots fill up wicked fast in about 45 minutes, which is ok because it takes about 1 year to get ready. Once you get entered in a race, really the biggest challenge is making it to the starting line in shape and ready to go.
Since signing up 1year ago, I’ve logged the following distances.
* Swim Totals: 180,862 yards(102+ miles)
* Bike Totals: 3649 miles
* Run Totals: 928 miles
When you add up all the mileage, there are just an infinite amount of things that can go wrong along the way. It’s the adversity you deal with during training that keeps you going on Race Day. By the time Race Day rolls around, you’ve likely wrecked your bike or just barely avoided it, been chased by a dog that was faster than you on a bike, or got bit by a dog, or just fallen in a hole while running and not paying attention. I’ve been caught in a hail storm while on the bike with nowhere to hide, chased by a rabid raccoon on the bike(sorry, no pic), and seen some incredibly large wild turkeys while out on the back roads. These are also some of the funniest moments after the fact, and all you can do is laugh. Life is too short to not get outside and get dirty.
Enough rambling from me, it’s go time…Check back late next week and I should have all the details from what is sure to be an interesting week.
Thanks for Reading!
