Well today starts my 2 week taper for IMSG. It actually has sparked new life into me to know that the worst of the training is done. I had a great final weekend and came through feeling fit. I am glad it was a good weekend because I am feeling a little nervous about my fitness questioning whether I am ready or not. Most IM veterans that I talk to say this is normal that even if I had another 6 weeks to train I would feel undertrained. At this point I have to trust in my training plan and rest my body so that on race day everything falls into place.
Training for an Ironman has been a little of everything. Frustration, fear, joy, sacrifice, etc.. Not just for me either. Support is key to any successful endeavor like this. There is absolutely no way that I could do this without my family sacrificing everything and going through the same emotions. On race day it is not just me out there trying to beat another triathlete to the finish. It is vindication that all the pain, sweat and time invested by all was not wasted. By crossing that finish line, regardless of the time, my family will feel the joy and the accomplishment because they have been right there keeping the family going even though I have been in another world for the last 18 weeks.
As I rode this weekend I kept repeating to myself that this is just a journey not a race. The goal is to see the end and cross the finish. Don't worry about the other racers and trying to beat them. If you do this at an Ironman, especially your first, it could be a disaster. So I decided that I am going to keep myself in check by calling it a journey, and it truely is because this race, I mean journey, is not just about Saturday May 1. It is about the last 18 weeks, the ups, the downs, the cold, the rain, the heat, and even the permanent scars from the severe sunburn on my back. It's 150 days all rolled into one performance and I am starting to see now why people will do anything short of dying to reach that finish line.
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