Just for Fun

Several weeks ago, Brandon Marsh published an article in Runner Triathlete News that focused on thinking about why we do Triathlon. The article was in the March 2009 issue of RTN and was titled "Perspective". I would post a link to the article but RTN is a tough site to search old articles. Brandon did a great job of telling us to think about why we spend time on a sport (or anything). If we are at the point where we suffer through workouts or do not look forward to spending time on races, then maybe it is time to step back and rethink our passion. Brandon did a much better job at it than I can do. . My point in bringing this up is that I have had a few times when I did not look forward to a workout. There are many times when I wanted to skip track or sleep in. And there have been times when I dreaded a race. On the flip side, there are those moments in training and racing where it is just plain fun. This past weekend, was that, just plain fun. It was the CapTex Olympic Triathlon. I had the most fun that I have ever had in a race.

I had one freak out moment at the start of the swim. I went out way too fast and ended up getting exhausted within 200 meters. It was a stupid mistake. I calmed down and settled back into a smooth swim and everything came together. Once I got into the swim, It was a perfect balance of swimming strong and not going over the edge of exertion. As I neared the swim exit, I noticed I was passing other swimmers so I felt good knowing that I swam hard but not so hard that I ran out of gas. Once in transition, I noticed that there were a lot of bikes on the racks and that meant I was out of the water pretty quick compared to the others in my age group. The bike was where the fun started. We got to ride through downtown Austin on closed streets and as fast as we wanted. That was so much fun. It was like being a kid, just going fast for the sake of going fast. I stayed in the small gears on the first lap or 4. After that, I kicked it in and pushed myself. I got passed a few times by age groupers that were in the previous wave but for the most part, I held my own relative to my age group. Again, it was a balance of putting in the right amount of energy but not so much that I overdid it. Heading out on the run I had good legs and was able to get into a stride that felt good. Tiring but good. Here is the interesting (at least to me) part about the run. At about the 4 mile point, I came upon a guy in my age group. I was slowly overtaking him. As I started to pass him, I realized that once I passed, I was his rabbit. He could pace me and pass if he wanted. It was up to me to pass him and stay strong for the remainder of the run. So I committed myself and passed him. He was right behind me and I think he picked his pace up to stay with me. After about a quarter of a mile, my shoe came untied and I had to stop. As soon as I pulled over to tie my shoe, he passed me. Damn,, here I go again,, I not only have to catch him, but I have to pick up the pace to drop him. At this point I have no idea where I am in my age group but whether I was first or last,, I was racing like I was first. I eased back into a good running pace and caught him. Once I passed him (again), I picked it up. I kept in my imagination that he was right behind me and that he would pass me if I let up. That vision stayed with me the remainder of the run. At the end, I PRed the Olympic distance with a 2:35 finish time. The guy I passed came in 6 seconds behind me. He also came in 4^th place. I managed a podium finish. Out of 20 old farts, I got 3^rd. The podium finish was just icing on the cake. I had more fun racing that day than I ever had.

Goals, not mine but goals in general

I recently met someone and we found that we had running in common. She was running about 5K, three or four times a week. She mentioned that she was thinking about getting in a program to train for the San Antonio R&R Half-Marathon. She was not sure about it and was scared to take on that as a goal. At this point, she did not know anything about my training for IM-CDA, in fact she knew nothing about my running / training experience. I gave her a bunch of encouragement to take on the half-marathon. I told her about how much fun she would have and how she would really enjoy the sense of accomplishment that comes with goal seeking. We eventually got around to talking about my goals and I told her I was training for IM-CDA. She automatically started talking about her silly little 13.1 mile run compared to an IM. As much as my ego likes to be stroked, I was really taken back by this. My goal is not any different than hers. Her goal is just as daunting, just as challenging as mine. She has to overcome a lot of obstacles, she has to make a sacrifice in time and money, and she has to dedicate herself to achieving that goal. Just like me.

We talked about this and I am glad that we did. Regardless of what the goal is, they are all equal, as long as they are realistic, they move you forward and you work at them. It was a really good conversation. For me it was an IM, for her a half-marathon, for some it is learning to paint, lose weight, get active, writing that novel or whatever. So, the lesson we learned was, a goal is a goal and we should all have some.