Good Reason I've Been Away . . .

It has been a little bit of a rough year, but so rewarding at the same time.

I have finished my first 70.3 IM that consists of a 1.2 mile swim followed by a 56 mile bike finished with a 13.1 mile run. This was IM New Orleans, where I cam from that race with a broken foot.

Then in the last week of June when I was allowed to cycle, I was run off the road and as a result I have a slightly torn rotator cuff and something else going on in there that I don’t really understand – Surgery to follow at some point.

Needless to say my lead up to Ironman Florida has had its hurdles but, I can’t imagine anyone who hasn’t had issues leading up to their own Ironman?

Then came July.

In July we had our beautiful baby girl on the 13^th and I may be the most blessed man ever. WARNING: Cheezyness to follow . . . I have a perfect marriage (as perfect as they can be) I have the most awesomeness wife a person could imagine. I have a job that I feel satisfies my desire to help people and it happens to provide well for my family, and finally . . . I have the most beautiful child who I have come to find is already a genius (Harvard . . . We are accepting invitations now).

My little girls takes a WEEEEE bit of my time . . . She doesn’t demand it since she is a wonderful baby who cries little and smiles greatly which makes me only want to be around her more. That is not a big help when it comes to IM training!!!

But she is a real motivator since I have so many new and improved goals to assure my daughter the best that is possible and the first thing I can do is succeed in my fight with obesity.

I was given permission to begin running again in August. I began a 13 week IM training program and I have stuck to it and I feel as though I will finish come November 7^th, but it won’t be pretty. I have decoded I will take this experience and enjoy it and (I know this is IM taboo) but I will enjoy it and when then end of that day comes I will smile and hold my wife and my daughter knowing they are what matters to me and my life and I will become emotional and I will squeeze them till I can’t.

I will be more consistent in posting from this point forward since I believe it is a constructive part of my mental training and preparation for the race.

Ironman Florida – November 7^th 2009. Panama City Beach Florida. Be there!