Tuesday, September 1, 2009

#2363 - Final Thoughts

Taken by my wife at the finish line.

Final thoughts on Ironman. I completed the event in the top third of the field, and am happy with that. It was a long and painful day, especially running the marathon after putting out so much effort on the 112-mile bike route. I struggled with every mile, and they seemed to get longer and longer as the race wore on. In the end, I was happy to cross the finish line, to see my wife and five-year old son waiting for me, along with a few thousand other people.

The best part for me is that my triathlon season is finally over. My next scheduled work out is some time in... January. I've spent countless hours training for this season, lately putting in 4-6 hours a day. I'm burnt out and need a break. I hear a set of bagpipes calling me along with their friend, a pint of Guinness.

On a side note:

Jeff posted a comment about Ironman saying, "That's crazy, I could never do that". Sorry buddy but I have to disagree with you. With a certain amount of training anyone can complete the event. Sure you may not win the race, but winning is really a relative thing anyways. Your only opponent is not the girl or guy ahead of you on the bike course, but rather it's the little, nagging voice in your head that is telling you, "This is crazy, I can never do this".

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Eric,

I haen't said this in awhile, but you SO ROCK!!!

In the photo, you look a little burnt...but it's a good clean pain, isn't it?

Have a Guinness, and take a well-deserved break; just know that you are an inspiration for a lot of us.
<3<3<3

---Teri Seago, ITG3

said...

I COMPLETELY agree with you.

I remember the first time my ex-bf told me that he did Ironman competitions. I said to him, "Have fun with that."

Then I watched him compete in an Olympic tri. I also watched people of different ages, weights, sizes and shapes - and even missing limbs - finish the event as well. It was very inspirational but I still didn't think that I, a single mom, would be able to have the time to train for a triathlon.

My bf looked at me when I said this and said, "If it means something to you, you will make time for it."

And I did. And I completed 3 Sprint Tri's this year.

Onward and upward! :)

Anonymous said...

You did it.
I'm proud of you.

EdaMommy said...

Congratulations on finishing your triathlon season and enjoy your break! ^_^