They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. While I agree with that for the most part, I feel that sometimes you actually DO have to the same thing and expect a different result.
Last year I competed in one of the toughest triathlons in the world, the Ford Ironman World Championships in Kona Hawaii. I didn’t become an official finisher. I missed the cut-off by 3 minutes and 45 seconds. At the time I was happy to have crossed the finish line but as the months passed I looked back and I had some frustrations. I realized some things that could have changed the outcome.
I can’t go back and redo that race. Unfortunately, I will more than likely never have the opportunity to race that race again. The great thing is that there are other Ironmans around the country that I can compete in.
That is exactly what I am going to do. This year I will be competing in the Florida Ironman. Maybe I am insane, or maybe I want to finish what I started. I’m leaning toward the latter. It would be insane if I thought I could just show up and finish since I was so close last year.
That is not my approach. I am taking this very seriously and have changed everything this year in regards to training. I have a huge goal I want to reach as far as finish time is concerned. I will be doing videos to share my training and mindset and hope you will follow my journey this season.
Come with me as I work toward my goal of becoming an OFFICIAL IRONMAN!
#1 by MisFit Island - May 24th, 2010 at 11:12
I look forward to tracking your progress and am glad you are doing it again. I believe you are driven and will be successful this time around.
Personally, I feel athletes who meet the timing cutoff for the run portion at the midpoint of the race should be allowed to finish as an official Ironman. Seriously, if you’ve made it that far, you will persevere to finish. It really would not add an exceptional amount of time to the event.