Inspiration: Why I Tri ...

(This is a re-post of my blog from early July. It is still pertinent.)


I got into racing triathlons for two reasons.

First, I saw an article about Robert McKeague, a 77-year-old man who finished the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii (he just finished last years at 80.) I thought, man, if he can do it at 77, I should be able to do it now. There's really no excuse.

Second, my boys, then 4, 2 and 1 were already starting to run circles around me and I wanted to be in good shape to keep up with them.

So, my journey started.

My inspiration for doing triathlons continued as did my quest.

Ed, my friend who is doing the Ironman with me in November (his blog is HERE), and myself signed up for the "Fat Tire Off-Road" Triathlon. We only had three months to train but we made the effort. While in line to pick up our race packets three days before the triathlon, we were behind this forty-ish looking gentleman. We started talking to him and found out he was in his mid-fifties. He was solid like a rock and the coolest, chillin' dude you'd ever want to meet. I made a vow to myself right then and there that this is how I wanted to age. That was inspiration number three.

Inspiration number four came to me about 12 weeks into training for my first Ironman. If you've never heard of Dick and Rick Hoyt, you need to watch this. Then this. Then go here. If you can watch these without crying, you're not human. Or, you lie. Whenever I don't want to train or am feeling sorry for myself, I watch those video clips. Works every time. That first video got me through 18 weeks of insane training and scheduling nightmares. No excuses.

Inspiration number five came about 18 miles into the marathon of my first Ironman. As I was crossing the Mill avenue bridge en route to the third and final loop of the marathon, I noticed a man in a wheelchair cheering like crazy. It hit me like a load of bricks, "I bet that man would love to feel the pain I am feeling in my legs right now." I could just tell that he yearned to be out there with the rest of us pushing our limits. Instantly the pain in my legs dissipated and I picked up my pace. I started to feel really good. If you look at my run splits you'll see that I ran the last loop almost as fast as the first loop. Inspiration.

As I enter the 11th week (Now 30th week!!!) of training for Ironman Arizona on November 23rd, I continue to be inspired by all the stories in the world about people overcoming to realize their dreams. Each one helps me move closer to my dreams and helps me realize that you truly can do whatever you dream if you work hard for it.

With that, I challenge you to examine your own dreams. What can you do today, right now, to further yourself along the path to your dreams? If your not chasing your dreams, why not? As I wrote in my first blog, were all running with the dead. Our time here is so minimal. What are you waiting for? Who can you inspire? Go, Now ...

Be well,

E

Again, my friend Ed is running the Ironman with me and is raising money for a local charity called the Tempe Community Action Agency. If you can help in anyway, that would be awesome. Here is the link:

http://edtheironman.blogspot.com/

A Bodhisattva mask for the dance

"What man actually needs is not a tensionless state but rather the striving and struggling for some goal worthy of him. What he needs is not the discharge of tension at any cost, but the call of a potential meaning waiting to be fulfilled by him."

~ Viktor Frankl from Man's Search for Meaning

Wow.

Too often, we want to live in the “tensionless” state we can find watching television or, for some of us , in the state of meditation in meditation—transcending the throes of our daily challenges.

But that’s not the point of life.

The point?

To find a goal worthy of us and to spend our lives “striving and struggling” to fulfill the potentiality within us.

As we truly engage in this passionate pursuit of our potential, an effortless effort comes in that beats any idea of benign “tensionless-ness.”

Our potential is calling.

Let’s answer.

__________________

Interesting Thoughts ...

My friend Ed is running the Ironman with me and is raising money for a local charity called the Tempe Community Action Agency. If you can help in anyway, that would be awesome. Here is the link:

http://edtheironman.blogspot.com/

Inspiration: Why I Tri

I got into racing triathlons for two reasons.

First, I saw an article about Robert McKeague, a 77-year-old man who finished the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii (he just finished last years at 80.) I thought, man, if he can do it at 77, I should be able to do it now. There's really no excuse.

Second, my boys, then 4, 2 and 1 were already starting to run circles around me and I wanted to be in good shape to keep up with them. 

So, my journey started. 

My inspiration for doing triathlons continued as did my quest.

Ed, my friend who is doing the Ironman with me in November (his blog is HERE), and myself signed up for the "Fat Tire Off-Road" Triathlon. We only had three months to train but we made the effort. While in line to pick up our race packets three days before the triathlon, we were behind this forty-ish looking gentleman. We started talking to him and found out he was in his mid-fifties. He was solid like a rock and the coolest, chillin' dude you'd ever want to meet. I made a vow to myself right then and there that this is how I wanted to age. That was inspiration number three.

Inspiration number four came to me about 12 weeks into training for my first Ironman. If you've never heard of Dick and Rick Hoyt, you need to watch this.  Then this. Then go here. If you can watch these without crying, you're not human. Or, you lie. Whenever I don't want to train or am feeling sorry for myself, I watch those video clips. Works every time. That first video got me through 18 weeks of insane training and scheduling nightmares. No excuses.

Inspiration number five came about 18 miles into the marathon of my first Ironman. As I was crossing the Mill avenue bridge en route to the third and final loop of the marathon, I noticed a man in a wheelchair cheering like crazy. It hit me like a load of bricks, "I bet that man would love to feel the pain I am feeling in my legs right now." I could just tell that he yearned to be out there with the rest of us pushing our limits. Instantly the pain in my legs dissipated and I picked up my pace. I started to feel really good. If you look at my run splits you'll see that I ran the last loop almost as fast as the first loop. Inspiration. 

As I enter the 11th week of training for Ironman Arizona on November 23rd, I continue to be inspired by all the stories in the world about people overcoming to realize their dreams. Each one helps me move closer to my dreams and helps me realize that you truly can do whatever you dream if you work hard for it.

With that, I challenge you to examine your own dreams. What can you do today, right now, to further yourself along the path to your dreams? If your not chasing your dreams, why not? As I wrote in my first blog, were all running with the dead. Our time here is so minimal. What are you waiting for? Who can you inspire? Go, Now ...

Be well,

E

Again, my friend Ed is running the Ironman with me and is raising money for a local charity called the Tempe Community Action Agency. If you can help in anyway, that would be awesome. Here is the link:

http://edtheironman.blogspot.com/

Running with the Dead

So this is my first blog post, ever.

I don't think of myself as an overly interesting person so I never thought anyone would want to read about what I do. But, apparently a few of my acquaintances disagree.

Hence, here I am, writing for you.
So here we go ...

One of my hobbies is training for Ironman distance triathlons.
An Ironman is a race that has a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike ride and a 26.2 mile run. All to be completed in 17 hours or less. Training for an Ironman takes a lot of time. Most of my free time, actually. That means I swim, ride my bike and run alot.
On my training swims, rides and runs I usually have some unusual social interactions and/or internal psychedelic or synchronistic experiences. The following is one I had today.

I had an 7-8 mile run to do today which, since I live in Phoenix, Arizona, I usually do at night because during the day it is 113 degrees. My parents were coming into town today so I did my run before work at 5:00 a.m.

I must have ran the first half pretty slow, or had some rocking music on the second half because I did the second half 10 minutes faster than the first. So to eat up the last ten minutes of my run I decided to run through the cemetery right next to my work. I love running through the cemetery because it gives me some mental clarity as I am reminded that I will die someday and to make the most of my time here.

Anyway, the second my foot leaves the sidewalk and hits the cemetery pavement my iPod switches songs and "The Coming Back to Life" by Pink Floyd starts playing. So this instantaneously sends my mind spiraling as I feel the full effects of my "runner's high" and really puts me in a good place. So I am cruising around the cemetery just jazzed as I am listening to this song and enjoying the crisp, serene moment. Then my iPod switches songs again to "Shiny Happy People" by R.E.M. As the chorus begins to play, I have a visualization of all the dead people in the cemetery watching me and cheering for me.

The feeling I am attuned to is that they are happy because I am actively pursuing my dream of being healthy, doing Ironman triathlons and eventually going to Kona for the Ironman World Championships. Even my Grandparents are there (though they are not buried in this cemetery) just cheering me on. It was a surreal and inspiring moment.

But, alas, as with all my other surreal moments running, once I started my cooldown, the feeling went away and I came back to the world. I'll write about those in another blog.

FYI - my friend Ed is running the Ironman with me and is raising money for a local charity called the Tempe Community Action Agency. If you can help in anyway, that would be awesome. here is the link:

http://edtheironman.blogspot.com/

Thanks.

May all your adventures be mighty.

Eric

P.S. > I m not a "on schedule" personality, so this blog will, in all likelihood, be published sporadically and in an untimely fashion.