The Grind

Grit
Resolve
Intensity
Nerve
Detemination


It has been a hard week for the United States.  The bombing in Boston, ricin on letters to the president and a senator, and a factory explosion in Texas filled the news feeds to overflowing.  The only good news on the current events front is that I haven’t even thought a minute about North Korea this week.  Maybe that’s how we deal with this petulant child-man-leader.  If we ignore his tantrum, he goes away…  but this isn’t a blog about international politics or parenting.

There were some uplifting moments this week.  I headed down to Lake Eola Thursday night for the IOC Corporate 5K with some colleagues.  I could only walk, but it felt good to be down there with over 16,000 runners and walkers.  I am proud that so many were undeterred by the events in Boston, determined to run or walk without fear. The people of Boston were definitely in our thoughts, with many wearing Boston colors in support of the victims, runners, spectators, police, fire, FBI, and medical personnel.  It was inspiring and the fact that it ended with a beer didn’t hurt a bit.  My thanks to teammates and colleagues Sara and Jason Dowdy, Linell Ela, Jonathan and Sarah Gray, Catherine Hay, Nicole Kanouse, and Kyle McGimsey for their awesome support and excellent efforts.  One of these days I am going to remember to take a picture.

I am feeling pretty tired these days.  I am grateful for the fact that I am able to train more fully due to the new meds, but that puts me in full on training with a race only 4 weeks away on May 18.  I am trying out a 10 day cycle for this race, 9 days of training + 1 day of rest, 12 workouts per cycle.  I am in the middle of cycle #2 of 4 and I can definitely feel it starting to wear me down, but it’s supposed to.  I know that I don’t have near enough time to get anywhere near my peak, but I am going to give it my best shot.  It will give me a really good benchmark for what a mere 6 weeks of serious training feels like on race day when I have been doing 16-18 weeks for years.  What I miss is that slow ramp up, that feeling of gradually building to this point in the training.  It feels more like boot camp this time around.  I’ll get back to you on my thoughts on this after the race.

My friend, coach, and mentor Mark Oakes sent me a new website he and some friends have been working on.  The site’s purpose is two-fold.  First, it offers used tri-bikes and equipment.  Looking through the beautiful pictures had me wishing I had a few dollars to upgrade my bike.  More importantly, the site offers advice to triathletes for free.  Mark is an ironman and has been very effective in coaching me over the years, including a couple of moments where he talked me down from the crazy that strikes athletes at some point.  I so appreciate his expertise and patience and hope you will take advantage of this incredible resource.  If you have any questions, concerns, or ideas, please email them to his group through the website.  I know they will respond.  They are really eager to make this an excellent, free resource for the triathlon community.  Check it out!  http://www.mybikeshop.com/

Weeks like this one remind me that our time here is limited and that living without regret is one of our biggest challenges.  CBS Sunday Morning ran a story today about one woman’s efforts to help.  I wanted to take this opportunity to say thank you to all of the athletes in my life.  Your spirit, determination, and friendship mean more to me than you will ever know.

If you are interested in donating to the families affected by the Boston bombing, you can do so here.

If you would like to participate in the Orlando run/walk on Monday, April 22 in support of the city of Boston, you can get more information here. 

Here’s to having a better week.

The mill cannot grind with the water that is past. ~Daniel D. Palmer