Enjoying the journey

"It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end." —Ursula K. LeGuin

In 2007 I embarked on a new journey -- to train for and compete in my first sprint triathlon, which consisted of a half-mile swim, 12.4-mile bike ride and 3.1-mile run. Never did I think I would come to love to swim, bike and run so much -- especially since I wasn't extremely skilled in any of these sports.

To be honest, I was quite scared of the task ahead of me. The idea was presented to me by one of my editors at the newspaper where I work and after contemplating if this is something I could do, I accepted the challenge. I felt a lot of pressure -- self-inflicted, of course -- to do a good job. I would be writing a weekly report of my training for my 11 weeks leading up to the race and then write a final piece on participating in the event. We had a circulation of about 18,000 at the time and I was extremely hard on myself if I missed a workout. Not that all 18,000 readers would be awaiting my report each week; but I was held accountable for my training because I had to show what I had done in preparation for my race.

When I first accepted the challenge, I set a goal time for 1 hour, 30 minutes. About halfway through my training, I set a more realistic goal of 2 hours.

On race day, I was having extreme self-doubt. My then boyfriend (now fiance), Adam, said, "you don't have to do this if you don't want to." But I did want to! I had to put the training to the test and what I was capable of. These were just pre-race jitters and I just needed to dive in at the sound of the horn and have faith in myself and my abilities!

So that's exactly what I did. And at the end of the race, I had tears in my eyes -- but of course they were happy tears! I set a goal and though I finished 6 minutes past my goal, I had crossed that finish line. I was a triathlete!

After that, I was hooked on the sport and now have competed in three races.

Now, as I enter my third year in the sport, I want to start getting more serious about my training and partipate not just to cross that finish line, but to improve my times and fitness level. Though this blog will serve as a way for me to record workouts and write about my experiences in training, racing and life, I hope others will enjoy it and get something out of it -- whether it be a good laugh, something to do to pass the time or be inspired to try something new themselves!

Before I sign off for the night I do want to give a shout out to all my friends and family who have supported me in my training and races -- my parents, my brother Kyle, Aunt Mary, Adam and Katie for coming out and braving the cold at 5 a.m. on race day -- yes it is cold that early in the morning in July! Also, thank you to my former editor, Scott, for presenting this idea to me -- I may never have found a passion for this sport if he never gave me the idea to try it out!

Hope you all enjoy! Please leave comments/questions if you would like!