Ironman

I should not be allowed to watch things like the Ironman: Kona on tv. I just shouldn't. I see these phenominal athletes on tv and I want to be one of them. I long to be one of them. I want to cross the finish line, have the medal put around my neck (seriously I love race medals, they even hang in my living room because I am this vain) and share in the high that these folks have, the feeling of complete exhaustion and the feeling of knowing you just did something huge in combination with 10 billion endorphins running surging through your body. I want to know that I just did something that I once thought was impossible.

Growing up I was a good athlete, I went to college on a basketball scholarship, but I never was great, I never was the top athlete (nor do I ever think I will be) however, since then I have always wanted to push a little harder to do that which I thought impossible. To prove myself wrong. To do that which many can't and don't do. It is an honor to run. It is an honor to have the time to train, to push my body to do more than it could the day before. I remember my first 5k (I seriously despised running all through high school and college and was upset with my coaches when we had to run a mile or two for practice) I was sooooo nervous, 3.1 miles was sooooo far. Now I run that several times a week. It is funny the way training works and you become accustom to this or that and what you long for changes.

I have to admit that I think I am beginning to love the half marathon distance because:

• it is a challenge
• I have to train
• I don't feel like death when it is finished
• I get a sweet medal at the end of the race
• I have friends who also run half marathons
• there are plenty of them around that it makes it possible to find lots of races

The triathlon has recently sparked my interest and I think I need to try one (a short one, not an ironman). I want to try one because:

• I do love swimming (I still teach swimming lessons at the local YMCA here in town) - I have always loved swimming and swim to workout at least once a week
• I do love running
• I enjoy biking (although leisurely - this would seriously be my weakness in the three sport event) - I think I could learn to bike competitively

I don't think I'll ever be an ironman, however there is a piece of me that now dreams of it and since watching the Ironman: Kona (which I realize is the elite of the elite) I sort of want to be an Ironman.

• 2.4 mile swim (I could probably swim this today if I needed to, although I would be EXHAUSTED when I finished)
• 112 mile bike (this could be the death of me, I have ridden 25 or so with Marc on a few Saturdays, but the idea of 112 scares the living daylights out of me)
• 26.2 mile run (no way! Seriously 13.1 is plenty in any given day and to double this would be frightening) - I have sworn never to run a full marathon particularly in combination with the other two events.

Truth be told currently I am daydreaming about maybe the Ironman 70.3 - it is half the distances of the full Ironman. Dreaming for sure. We'll see what comes of this crazy idea, I don't think I really have time to train for a triathalon but we'll see, I have done crazier.