Well, the day has finally arrived, reluctantly of course. After 20 years of talking, it’s time to put up or shut up….
Let’s take this back a step, to the eighties, a sports fan enjoys the annual made-for-television spectacle that is Ironman Hawaii, sand-whiched in-between the Dallas Cowboys and Hockey Night in Canada. “Wow, now that would be something to compete in”… Dreamer….
Fast-forward to 1986, 2nd year at York University, and in November with the snow falling I find myself trying to impress a girl so I enter this Tin-Man triathlon, as I exited the swim DEAD LAST I’m on the deck getting my clothes on for the bike ride outside, and it’s snowing uncontrollably outside. Crap, what a lousy day, it must be easier to do this in the summer I imagine. I did manage to finish, and even beat some world-class triathlete who had recently returned from Hawaii (he did have a flat…
Now it’s 1994, and I’ve just watched the Ironman on t.v. again, and start to seriously give thought to this now “obsession”. In the spring, I ran into a friend downtown who was working for the 1994 Toronto Marathon. It was Saturday night, I was off to a bar, he was about to pull an all-nighter, getting the finish line ready and stuff like that. I was going to get up early the next morning to watch. Of course, it rained liked cats and dogs that day, so I stayed in bed. “Suckers” I thought, having to run in this flood…
I had a great summer of competitive tennis, and started to make a name for myself in the Adult Class “A” Men’s Tennis circuit, GTA only of course, but I was enjoying the competition and figured I needed some physical improvements (read – training) to take my decent game another level higher, as I could still not win a title, always close….
I joined the Fitness Institute that fall / winter, as they had a deal – join the tennis bubble and get free access to the gym, which is exactly what I needed. My first day the Trainer introduces me to a stress test, to see “where I’m at” and what type of exercise program I should follow. “Your cardio sucks” was the feedback (delivered of course in a politically correct way naturally). “You need to hit the stationary bike and treadmills before you hit the courts”. Okay I thought – I can deal with this, after all, I was a pretty good runner in grade school, played soccer, I can manage this. So, I’m on the treadmill, in my tennis shoes and clothes, and I have to run 1-mile, do some weights, then I can play tennis.
You can see where this is going….
Within 45 days, I am introduced to the idea of a marathon clinic, starting in January, 2005, with a new outfit called Marathon Dynamics. Neat, that’s what I need, isn’t that what they do at the end of the Ironman, a full marathon, 26.2 miles…? I guess the timing is perfect, after all, I am running now. So, with tennis still on my mind, I decide to mail-in my application for the Shopper’s Drug Mart Toronto Marathon, May 2005, and with a couple of miles here and there on the treadmill, in my tennis shoes, I consider myself “a runner”.
Fast-forward to the marathon, a 3:01 debut, top 100, and the running bug has really got me – New York, Boston, sub-3, sub2:50, no time for Triathlon…
Over 200 races later, 5 Boston Marathons, Rome, Iceland, 5-10km’s almost every weekend it would seem, a high-end of 75 miles per week, 33:20 10km p.b., 1:16 ½, 2:49 marathon, Adventure Races, Mountain Bike Events, a couple of Duathlons and Tri-relays here and there, now it comes to this. My first triathlon in 20 years, finally I can hear the waves of Hawaii…
To be Continued…
