While You Were Out

Time has a way of rolling by while we are occupied with our lives. And things of note have a way of just continuing to happen whether or not we are paying attention.

At some point in the very near past my site clock climbed over 10,000. I am grateful to everyone who visited and made that happen. For those who return often, thank you for taking part in this journey. I might be able to do this without you, but it would be so much less enjoyable, and so much more difficult. I appreciate your words of advice, wisdom, motivation, and encouragement. For those just passing through, thanks for visiting and leave a comment so I know you were here.

Just as the site clock continues to count up, the race clock continues to count down. And it seems to be a bit more predictable. It seems to go down by one every single day. If this continues, 10 weeks from tonight I will be in Louisville, Kentucky trying to sleep despite pre-race nerves.

Another constant in any Ironman's life is training. Today was no different, and the training did much to improve my confidence. Instead of being a 5000 yard swim, or a 6-hour bike, a simple 30-minute swim gave me a boost. It was 30 minutes in the lake, with a wetsuit, essentially alone. There were a few other tri-club members around, but for the most part, I had the swim area to myself. While 30 minutes is far from sufficient to complete an Ironman swim (or my upcoming 70.3 race, for that matter), it was enough to make a small, but very important, deposit into my IM Louisville account. Thirty minutes with my face in the water, with nothing to see but algae and nothing to focus on but form. Thirty minutes of allowing the wetsuit to provide added comfort in the water. Thirty minutes to prepare for much longer swims that are on the horizon.

Time will continue to pass. Other notable things will happen. Each is simply a stop along the way to something else. 10,000 hits is a milestone on the journey to 100,000. Thirty minutes in the water is a part of the process to reach two hours (or whatever it takes to complete 2.4 miles). High Cliff is one race on the road to Louisville. And this is only one journey in one season. We all have our own lives to lead. Others are pursuing different races at different distances. Each is just as important as the next. And every journey completed is simply the start of the next.

And while we're focused on our lives, time just keeps rolling by. And things of note have a way of just continuing to happen whether or not we are paying attention.