Ironman... the long and winding road

"Your body will argue that there is no justifiable reason to continue. Your only recourse is to call on your spirit, which fortunately functions independently of logic." Tim Noakes

"Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go." T.S. Elliot

6.30.2006

To ride or not to ride, that is the question.

Today, I found out that a lot of the favorites for the Tour de France have been sent home by their teams. Last year (i think it was) everyone (the cyclists) was asked to sign a code of ethics and they (the cyclists) were to abide by them! Well, that is why today with the drug scandal coming out of Spain, approx 22 cyclists were sent a packin! They get paid to ride and to perform well!! So why not just ride??? It is a real bummer because what if these cyclists were just put on that list, there is no arbitration here, no questions asked, no full investigation yet, it is just go home :( !! So the answer for them is not to ride...

For me, I try and find the time to get out on my bike just to complete my Ironman again. Lately it has been really hectic and I have not been able to hit the pavement. When I do not have the time, now a days, I turn to the indoor trainer or rollers that can be sat on and I just ride to my hearts content. I pop in an awesome CD or movie and just pedal away. So the answer here is just ride!!

Sad day

It is a sad day in the sport of cyclying today!!

Tour de France

All I want to know is WHY? and did they really do it?

6.29.2006

Dude, that's my bike!

While riding my cycling trainer today, I thought about a ride that I did recently with my boyfriend, Shane and a good friend of ours, Jerry. It is a funny story and I thought that I would share with you all.

During one of our cycling rides we stopped to get a smoothie. While baskin in the shade since that is hot comodity in AZ, a guy rides by and just stares down our friends bike. He then comes back by and rides up to Jerry's bike and looks it over. We all just look at him and think this guy really admires vintage bikes!?? Then all of the sudden out of his mouth comes "Dude, that's my bike". He proceeds to tell us that this is his bike and that he bought it in Germany when he was stationed there. He then tells us that his bike was stolen on the south side and this is his bike. Jerry tells the guy that he bought this bike on ebay and it was shipped he thinks from CA or NY (hehehe I know that is a big difference on where it could have come from, but at that moment he was not 100% sure!) , but he is welcome to look it over. The guy tells Jerry "no, it is your bike now, but that is my bike". The guy proceeds to ride away and leaves us with our smoothies.

MMMMMMM... I love smoothies.

As we finish our smoothies and ride off we discuss the "Dude that's my bike" incident and my friend Jerry says "who knows someone could have stolen the bike and then shipped it to CA or NY and then sold it on ebay, where I bought it and now it is in my possession", ya think?? NOT.

Jerry then decides, hhhmmm maybe my next bike will be named "Dude, that's my bike". He is not kidding. Hahahahaha

The odd thing about this story is that this samething happened to me when I was in NM. I was riding my Gary Fisher Joshua XO and this guy comes out of a shop and said that he swore the bike that I had was his. I told him that this could not possibly be, for I bought this bike in AZ and I still had the receipt for it, but still somehow the bike is his... ride away and quick!

I guess there are no Vintage Super Competion or Gary Fisher bikes anywhere else in the world!! Ya think??? NOT

As for my cycling trainer, I rode for an 1:35:00. As I spun and thought of the story I was glad that I have the friends that I do and then boyfriend that I have, they are all very special, make my life an adventure and help me on my quest.

6.28.2006

The beginning

I have always longed to do an Ironman, since I was 12 years old it has been my dream. I remember watching Julie Moss and Paula Newby-Fraser as they struggled across the finish line in Kona. I remember marveling at their strength, perseverance, and sheer will to keep going, I said to myself "one day, that WILL be me". Then at an olympic distance race, I think that it was in 1996, maybe 1997, I had the pleasure of meeting Sister Madonna Buder, she is the oldest woman to complete an IM at the age of 75!! I say to myself, there is still hope for me!

In April of 2005, I decided that I would finally compete in my first Ironman. Since it was in my own back yard, how could I pass it up? Ironman Arizona was in its second year and I figured that some of the kinks that would have been there the first year would have been ironed out by now.

I geared up for this race slowly, due to some unforseen medical issues. My base of training was not really there, but I thought this is an extension of something that I used to loved to do (sprints, olympic, half), but lost my passion for. I need to find it again and I need to hurry. I figured that my muscles did not forget, they were just on hiatus and the memory was still there.

As my training progressed, slowly, but surely another bump in the road presented itself. On november 30th, 2005, I had my gall bladder removed. I no longer trained, no longer worked, no longer did anything! For 2 months, I was down for the count. I thought "this is just a glitch and I can do it". People that I knew kept asking me "do you think it wise to compete now? Should you still keep going? do you think you will make it?" I told them "push, pull, crawl or tow my body to that finish line, one way or another, I am getting there".

On April 9th, 2006 I crossed that line. 15 hours, 24 minutes, 16 seconds later. I had done it, my dream completed.

So why the blog you ask?

Well, the race was a fulfillment of my dream. However, it was not what I expected. I expected to really suffer, I expected the mental anguish, the diminish of my soul. It was not there. Please do not get me wrong, it was not easy, yet it was not as hard as I expected. There were some pot holes along the way in the race... being without water for 10 miles on the bike, worshiping the asphalt goddess 2 times (a.k.a. blowing chunks) on the ride and wondering in the small recesses of my mind on the run, will I make it. I had not a watch nor did I ask the time of anyone. I just knew that I had been preparing for this moment since I was 12, I was 36 now. (I was a year behind schedule, I wanted to complete this by the time I was 35. What is one year, when you have been preparing a lifetime?) And it was not as I expected. It was easier and I am thankful for this. I thank the powers that be, and decided since I made it, I had to do it again. This time I wanted to document the progress of my training at weEndure and the new blog spot that I created. I have a new goal and it will be a long and winding road. I want to finish in under 15 hours. Hopefully this time, no bumps in the road and no pot holes in the race will get me there.

For now, this is the beginning... the end, well we will see on April 15th, 2007.

Thanks for coming a long for the ride.