The first day of Ironman I went into my sons' bedrooms and ask each of them, "Do you want to see me do an Ironman?"
"SURE! Sounds great!" while looking down at a game on their phone.
They are old enough to have heard my family and friends talk about my first Ironman in 2006 so they had a vague idea that it was a long distance triathlon. Key word: vague. But, both boys nodded and agreed they want to see it. I explained that it was a commitment on my part and that I might have to skip taking them fishing or go to the pool with them. They were still both on board or were maybe too busy with their phones to really contemplate the question. I knew they had heard me and they would remember the conversation, so I grab a quick "sure, sounds like a good idea!" from my supportive wife, walked over to the computer and did my registration.
Things just got real!!!
Went back to my youngest son's room and told him I signed up. He looked up from his phone, made eye contact with me for the first time during this whole event and asked, "how far is the swim?" If you've done Ironman you know where this conversation goes with most people. My son just started laughing. Got up gave me a huge high-five and started jumping around! It was soooo funny. My older son heard this came in and started asking more serious questions, like a reporter would: what, where, when, how much?" For a few minutes the family including my wife talked about how it was going to go down.
The Game Plan:
It would be in Madison, WI. My parents would go up to see their friends in Verona and I'd have my crew. The weather was going to be perfect. My oldest son was in charge of the mechanicals and my youngest was my nutrition coach. My wife was the team manager. My masters swim team and running club would be my rock. I'd use all the same equipment from my 2006 race (some updates with the bike.) Experience told me it wouldn't go perfect, so we talk about some possible hurdles to over come. A niggle here or a time a schedule conflict there. With flexible mindset the adventure was on! I'd race in the 45-49 age group, train like a mad man, turn the clock back 12 year years and beat my 11:44 time from 2006.
Here are some important notices from the next 12 months:
Missed zero baseball games
Missed a couple fishing trips and few outings to the recreational pool.
Sat through the holiday's without a glass of wine or beer.
Skipped out on numerous fast-food outings.
Sleeping in was non-existent.
My mantra at running club was "I'm not just training to finish"
on the flip side (read super fit)
My Garmin badges started piling up.
Co-workers would laugh when I would ride to work (26 miles gravel.)
Saturday breakfast usually served during a 100 mile ride.
Found memories of my ultra running years flashed before my eyes.
I'd wake up feeling super-fit. (read super-fit)
My oldest son's interest in mountain bike club and swimming was growing.
and my gear bag as filling up with some cool new stuff.
Through all of this, the boys would become more fascinated with each passing day.
5:30 alarm, "dad has to be in Madison to register at 11:00, get up!"
Culture shock is the only way to describe the boys reaction to Madison that weekend. The scale and magnitude of the event is on a level they were not prepared for, in a good way. Totally worth the investment in time and money, to see their reactions during the weekend and at the finish. Incredible memories for my wife and I just like Ironman is suppose to be. A perfect day.
Everything from the 5th paragraph happened according to plan, except, time is a funny thing. The wind on the bike made my bike split 15 min slower otherwise I was on point for a faster race. I placed better in my age group than in 2006 and had a much better day. But that stuff is all boring to you. The game plan worked and that is the important part. It's how you play the game of triathlon, ask yourself that. - Ego racing ludo idoneitatem.
They are old enough to have heard my family and friends talk about my first Ironman in 2006 so they had a vague idea that it was a long distance triathlon. Key word: vague. But, both boys nodded and agreed they want to see it. I explained that it was a commitment on my part and that I might have to skip taking them fishing or go to the pool with them. They were still both on board or were maybe too busy with their phones to really contemplate the question. I knew they had heard me and they would remember the conversation, so I grab a quick "sure, sounds like a good idea!" from my supportive wife, walked over to the computer and did my registration.
Things just got real!!!
Went back to my youngest son's room and told him I signed up. He looked up from his phone, made eye contact with me for the first time during this whole event and asked, "how far is the swim?" If you've done Ironman you know where this conversation goes with most people. My son just started laughing. Got up gave me a huge high-five and started jumping around! It was soooo funny. My older son heard this came in and started asking more serious questions, like a reporter would: what, where, when, how much?" For a few minutes the family including my wife talked about how it was going to go down.
The Game Plan:
It would be in Madison, WI. My parents would go up to see their friends in Verona and I'd have my crew. The weather was going to be perfect. My oldest son was in charge of the mechanicals and my youngest was my nutrition coach. My wife was the team manager. My masters swim team and running club would be my rock. I'd use all the same equipment from my 2006 race (some updates with the bike.) Experience told me it wouldn't go perfect, so we talk about some possible hurdles to over come. A niggle here or a time a schedule conflict there. With flexible mindset the adventure was on! I'd race in the 45-49 age group, train like a mad man, turn the clock back 12 year years and beat my 11:44 time from 2006.
Here are some important notices from the next 12 months:
Missed zero baseball games
Missed a couple fishing trips and few outings to the recreational pool.
Sat through the holiday's without a glass of wine or beer.
Skipped out on numerous fast-food outings.
Sleeping in was non-existent.
My mantra at running club was "I'm not just training to finish"
on the flip side (read super fit)
My Garmin badges started piling up.
Co-workers would laugh when I would ride to work (26 miles gravel.)
Saturday breakfast usually served during a 100 mile ride.
Found memories of my ultra running years flashed before my eyes.
I'd wake up feeling super-fit. (read super-fit)
My oldest son's interest in mountain bike club and swimming was growing.
and my gear bag as filling up with some cool new stuff.
Through all of this, the boys would become more fascinated with each passing day.
5:30 alarm, "dad has to be in Madison to register at 11:00, get up!"
Culture shock is the only way to describe the boys reaction to Madison that weekend. The scale and magnitude of the event is on a level they were not prepared for, in a good way. Totally worth the investment in time and money, to see their reactions during the weekend and at the finish. Incredible memories for my wife and I just like Ironman is suppose to be. A perfect day.
Everything from the 5th paragraph happened according to plan, except, time is a funny thing. The wind on the bike made my bike split 15 min slower otherwise I was on point for a faster race. I placed better in my age group than in 2006 and had a much better day. But that stuff is all boring to you. The game plan worked and that is the important part. It's how you play the game of triathlon, ask yourself that. - Ego racing ludo idoneitatem.
~M.
