The VOW

Today on my 10 mile run, I made a vow to myself that "I will do triathlons until the day I die".  When I got home and shared the news with my family, they shook their heads and said, "I KNEW IT!".  They made the assumption that I would be addicted to Ironman back when I signed up just less than I year ago and I reassured them that in my vow, there was no mention of the word Ironman.  They shook their heads again.  My son predicted that I would do 3 more Ironman races and we daydreamed together about places that would be on my list like IM Canada in Whistler or IM Lake Tahoe.  It is hard to think beyond an Ironman, but I did take the leap and sign up for the Vineman 70.3 in July of 2013 this week because the you have to sign up within a few minutes of registration opening up for many of the Ironman Events and Vineman is a popular half IM event in Sonoma County.  I decided this would be a nice first CA race which will soon be my home state and a chance to have a reunion with my Arizona teammates who love doing this race. 

Besides making this declaration to myself, It is truly hard to commit to any races in the near future and to imagine what your body and mind are going to feel like after completing Ironman.  So first things first as we are getting down to the wire with 2 weeks left until the big day.  This weekend we had a 4 hour bike and 4 mile run brick workout on Saturday and a 10 mile run and 4000 meter Open Water Swim on Sunday.  Everything went smoothly, but the body is tired and sore and ready for a smooth decent to the starting line!

Preparation is in order.  I got my bike tuned up this week and we had a meeting to learn more about what to expect and how to prepare for the big day.  Our coach talked a lot about visualizing the race from beginning to end.  We discussed check in, the welcome dinner and athlete's meeting, dropping off bike and transition bags, all the parts of the race from the swim, T1, bike, T2, run and the finish.  So this morning on my run, I packed all my bags and decided what I would wear for each discipline and I went through the race in my head.

Now the waiting game begins.  The days are going to move fast, yet slow and once again as I am in the present, soon I will be sitting here writing my blog about my race day.  I think about how I will want to make the moments last when I am feeling high and though some people are out there racing against other athletes, the clock or themselves, that I just want to enjoy the gift of movement and celebrate it all day long by swimming, biking and running.  I want to celebrate the ability that I have to overcome challenges that come my way and to have the mind that will allow me to adapt to the circumstances that present themselves during that day.  It might be wind, rain, cold, stomach aches, pain, raw skin, a flat tire, etc.  The thing I can imagine most is the Turtle going strong and steady and eventually budding wings that will carry her to the end.  What the end will mean for me after the many hours out there will evolve throughout the day.  I picture how I will need to lie down right away with my medal close to my heart.

I will appreciate friends and family that come out to the race to support myself or their loved ones or just out of curiosity and wonderment about why triathletes tri or what goals they might find to challenge themselves.  I will carry with me loved ones that have gone through struggles or angels that fly down to give me a lift.  It is going to be grande.  I might not be able to show my appreciation until I am fully recovered, but I know it is going to be spectacular to feel the energy around me.  Yes, I am visualizing, but soon I am going to be in the middle of it all.  I hope the real story is as great because once you make a vow there is no turning back.