Post by robreddy on Apr 14, 2005 13:58:59 GMT -5
Well IMAZ almost ended before it began. On Tuesday the 5th I was hitting tennis balls with my daughter (OK YES dumb ass move) and stepped on another ball. My foot swelled to a small pumpkin and was all black and blue. I did not want to go to the ER as I knew I did some real damage and it would be in a cast. Better to rehab quick and see how the rest of the week would go.
I was really upset as I felt quite good going into this race. Though the training in NE OH has been difficult I put in a very good 26 week plan. I was ready both physically and mentally when I landed in AZ. Over the past couple years I have read a lot about the mental side of sports, and in particular agree with folks like Gordo Bryn and Dick Joucomes (sp? - swim coach) that every time you step up to train or race it is a chance to test and build your character no matter the adversity or circumstances. Thus I pretty quickly decided to move forward with a positive out look. No looking back, no what ifs, no remorse. The goals would move from racing and improving to competing and building for the future.
By Friday I knew I could swim well and I was preparing my self to be very solid on the bike provided the foot held. The run was the big question. At this point all I could do was shuffle and sorta limp. I knew no matter how well things went that there would be no running. Still I wanted to give it a tri, dig deep, and see what I was really made of out on the roads of Tempe. The goal became finishing and not doing permanent damage.
Hopped into the lake/rive and it was a bit cool and very murky. I liked the temp but would have much rathered clearer water. This was an in the water start so I moved to the front of the pack far right side (all left turns so I was very wide of the buoys). It was soo cool looking up at the fans standing along the shore way. We were actually positioned just beyond (100 feet) two bridges. More fans were lined up there above us. As with all IM starts there was a ton of excitement in the air, screaming and yelling and huge amounts of anticipation. I love this – it is one of the best parts of the day – waiting for the cannon to go off. Just puts an apple sized lump in my throat and gets my heart rate up above 100 bpm for a few minutes.
Finally the horn (no cannon bummer) went off. I took the first couple 100 meters hard and then tried to get into a groove. Though I ditched the swimmers around me quickly I had a hard time finding my stroke and relaxing. Every once and awhile I would breath to the inside and could see the masses slugging it out. Though I knew I’d be swimming a bit further than the 2.4 miles I was glad to not be in that mess.
Made it to the short turn at the ½ way point and still was not in a good groove. On the swim back the chop picked up quite a bit. No three foot swells but more than enough wave action to alter your stroke. I was swimming with a pack of 5 or 6 others and there was a bit of bumping going on. As we neared the final turn for home we swam under the bridges that we started at and I flipped over on my back and waved to the crowd. Not sure if anyone saw me but that was kinda cool.
I was really upset as I felt quite good going into this race. Though the training in NE OH has been difficult I put in a very good 26 week plan. I was ready both physically and mentally when I landed in AZ. Over the past couple years I have read a lot about the mental side of sports, and in particular agree with folks like Gordo Bryn and Dick Joucomes (sp? - swim coach) that every time you step up to train or race it is a chance to test and build your character no matter the adversity or circumstances. Thus I pretty quickly decided to move forward with a positive out look. No looking back, no what ifs, no remorse. The goals would move from racing and improving to competing and building for the future.
By Friday I knew I could swim well and I was preparing my self to be very solid on the bike provided the foot held. The run was the big question. At this point all I could do was shuffle and sorta limp. I knew no matter how well things went that there would be no running. Still I wanted to give it a tri, dig deep, and see what I was really made of out on the roads of Tempe. The goal became finishing and not doing permanent damage.
Hopped into the lake/rive and it was a bit cool and very murky. I liked the temp but would have much rathered clearer water. This was an in the water start so I moved to the front of the pack far right side (all left turns so I was very wide of the buoys). It was soo cool looking up at the fans standing along the shore way. We were actually positioned just beyond (100 feet) two bridges. More fans were lined up there above us. As with all IM starts there was a ton of excitement in the air, screaming and yelling and huge amounts of anticipation. I love this – it is one of the best parts of the day – waiting for the cannon to go off. Just puts an apple sized lump in my throat and gets my heart rate up above 100 bpm for a few minutes.
Finally the horn (no cannon bummer) went off. I took the first couple 100 meters hard and then tried to get into a groove. Though I ditched the swimmers around me quickly I had a hard time finding my stroke and relaxing. Every once and awhile I would breath to the inside and could see the masses slugging it out. Though I knew I’d be swimming a bit further than the 2.4 miles I was glad to not be in that mess.
Made it to the short turn at the ½ way point and still was not in a good groove. On the swim back the chop picked up quite a bit. No three foot swells but more than enough wave action to alter your stroke. I was swimming with a pack of 5 or 6 others and there was a bit of bumping going on. As we neared the final turn for home we swam under the bridges that we started at and I flipped over on my back and waved to the crowd. Not sure if anyone saw me but that was kinda cool.