Soon after my marathon last year, I had the crazy idea to enter Ironman Arizona. I felt pretty beat up from the marathon and the couple of running events I did in the following months. I was a little fried on my running training and thought a new challenge was in order.
I still remember watching the Ironman on TV. I was always so amazed at guys like Dave Scott, Mark Allen and Scott Tinley. Who can forget the finishes of Julie Moss or Paula Newby-Fraser? In addition to the champions, each race would also feature “ordinary” people, and I, like many others, thought maybe someday…
Knowing the race filled up with in a day, I decided to volunteer at the 2014 race in order to get priority in registering for the 2015 race. So on Nov. 16 I stood at the corner of Rural and Rio Salado Parkway in Tempe keeping pedestrians from walking in front of racing bike riders for about 5 hours. I was thoroughly impressed by both athletes and the spectacle of an Ironman event. The next morning I joined hundreds of other volunteers at 5 am to line up for our chance to register. I had the opportunity to speak with several people in line. This was to be my first exposure to culture of triathlon. Just as I have rarely met a runner I didn’t like, I have found triathletes to be a very generous and fun group of people.
There were a few raised eyebrows from people when they heard I had never competed in a triathlon before. Already a little overwhelmed by the enormity of the task ahead I began to doubt the advisability of this endeavor. But for every raised eyebrow there was at least one person who said “Hey, go big or go home!”
The line moved quickly and before I knew it I was registered for Ironman AZ 2015. My training in the last 8 months has been sporadic at best. My first 3 races could be described best as The Good, the Bad, and The Ugly. I have no time goals except to get out of the water before the 2 hour 20 minute cutoff, get off the bike before the 5:30 cutoff, and be done by midnight. Like most new triathletes, the water scares me the most. I now have a very healthy respect for the open water swim. My 18 Week Training Program begins on July 13th.
theironpalm 