Being the Influence

As a father to an almost 6 year old and a 2 year old I never knew what I was getting into. Before children I didn't know about late night feedings or your heart breaking for them being sick.  I knew love, but not this kind of love. The kind of love that you will do anything for and hold tight; tighter than you can imagine.  As I sit here writing this blog post. My two year old who has a cold and fever is snuggled up to me while my oldest is listening to country music dancing in our living room.  Being a parent has got to be the most enjoyably frustrating and loving experience possible.  

Triathlon has brought me to the best shape of my life.  I have gone from being an out of shape, out of ideas 30 something to an in shape 35 year old guy who  works hard and plays harder.  I take my kids everywhere and it shows.  They come to they gym with me so they can learn about the benefits of exercise. I have been their soccer coach so I can teach them about sports.  They watch what I eat, drink and try to get a taste of the protein shakes I make or the bananas I eat. I work hard at work picking up double shifts and working short days and it never goes unnoticed by the cherubs.  My wife though is their rock, she is literally super mom.  She does more with these young impressionable minds than I can possibly imagine. If you could put a picture of a woman in the dictionary of super mom I'm sure my wife would be the one.  We both have our strengths and weaknesses with our kids.

My oldest who turns 6 next month is in the stage of his life where he wants to be just like Daddy.  He wants to do everything that Dad does.  He wants to eat the same foods, play the same games and yes he wants to learn triathlon.  I have got to tell you this is pretty damn cool!  He has been in swimming classes the past summer and is again now until March.  I asked if he wanted to compete in the Kids triathlon in Sudbury, MA on May 17th and you should have seen his face light up. The kids tri isn't easy for a 6 year old.  It's a 50 yard swim, a 1 mile bike and then a 1/2 mile run.  I have come up of a training plan of sorts for him. Of course it's not serious, it's fun.  From now until May it will be my job to make sure that he not only finishes this triathlon but he has some great fun doing it! This is 100 percent his choice, I am just here to support his goal.  How cool is this though?  I wish I was interested in this sport when I was 5!  He already practices riding his bike almost every day up and down the hill in our neighborhood.  As soon as the weather gets better he will go on some "training rides" and "runs" with me.  Tomorrow, he will be hitting the pool with me. 

This is possible the best part of swimming, biking and running.  Your children developing a love of the sport at an early age.  I can't imagine ingraining this into him at such an early age. I can't wait to tell you all how he did. 

Until next time, Keep training!


Nate

It takes a village to raise an Ironman

This blog is written from the perspective of training for IMLP but you can substitute any race you like :-)

There is no other sport where one athlete can be in total seclusion and yet have the largest "family" any one can dream of.  This it the dichotomy of Triathlon, it's training and racing.  When I first started this journey swimming was my biggest fear. I would spend many solitude hours in the pool working on my form. When your actually swimming you can't see much around you. Total solitude right? Nope, there are life guards watching you, and other athletes ready to help out; all you have to do is ask.  One thing about us "a" type personalities is we aren't afraid to give an opinion.  The aquatics director will help you with form and so will swimming clubs.   Swimming is no longer a "fear" I have in triathlon. It takes a village.

There are many day's when you are training for an Ironman when no one is willing to get up at Zero God thirty to train with you on a random Monday in March in the rain.  This is where you battle yourself, your sanity, your reasons for training, your goals, your everything. Yeah, some damn random day in March this will happen.  The next long training run though you will have three people willing to sacrifice their Saturday or Sunday morning to make sure that you keep chugging along.  These friends are most likely just as crazy as you are. Their dedication has an overwhelming effect on your training.  It takes a village

In March we are now breaking our bikes out of the trainer which has got to be the most boring form of training along with the treadmill.  They are the necessary evils of the sport. So on some random day in March you will be doing a 60 mile bike ride and didn't expect their to be so many hills.  This reminds me of a training I had last year when training for a 70.3.  I was on a 50 mile training ride and at around mile 19 I was starting to get a bit tired.  I had pretty much climbed the entire ride from Leicester to Princeton and had 6 miles before I was to turn around. When I say six miles I mean, my goal was to get to the top of Mount Wachusett.  Right after the center of Town in Princeton I was really giving myself a 'gut check' when a random bicyclist coming the other way (down the hill) said; "good job, good job, keep going".  Those six words gave me the lift I needed to complete my first 50 mile ride.  Imagine that, six words of encouragement,  I didn't even know this woman, but all I could think of the rest of the ride were those six simple words.   It takes a village.

April and May are going to come around and you will now being doing 3 to 4 century rides followed by long run days.  Although you will be pedaling your bike with your own power many athletes, volunteers and friends will be there to cheer you on.  On the organized rides there will be volunteers handing out water and bananas amongst other items.  A bike mechanic will give you a tune up for 10 dollars when it should have cost 60.  While out on the ride you will inevitably get a flat tire and some other rider who was going to get a PR (personal record) just sacrificed that so that you can get back up and riding.  It takes a village.

Many of us triathletes take up a cause and raise money for it.  You will see the generosity in people you really didn't know existed.  People you have never met will donate to your cause because they have been personally affected by your charity.  Other's will donate, companies will donate.  In my fund raising for a 70.3 I asked a bike shop for a "bike fitting". I told them why this cause was important to me and without hesitation I was scheduled for a donated bike fitting. The donation had a net worth of 300-500 dollars. This bike fitting helped me finish my 70.3 and we raised around 3k for a great cause. It takes a village.

Now, we are in mid June and a final tune up before the IMLP.  A tune up at this point is a 70.3.  You are pleasantly surprised about how many other athletes are using this race as their tune up as well.  Again, volunteers, coaches, spectators, mechanics, all help you finish this race.  Hopefully you trained hard and it gives you confidence for the Ironman you are about to embark on. It takes a village.

It is finally July. You have just spent the better part of a year training for this one race.  You are in full taper mode.  After enjoying those 3 taper weeks race day is upon us and for the next umpteen hours you will be swimming, bicycling and running this course. Your family is excited because after this race they will get their Dad/Mom/Son/Daughter/Friend etc.. back.  Your family has put up with your training. For me, my wife has made sure that my nutrition is ready to go after training.  She takes care of a lot of the non-race stuff and she keeps the house in order amongst a million other things.  Your family has given up another weekend so they can catch a glimpse of you as you swim, bike and run past them.  The volunteers will make sure you have enough to drink and eat to get you through this journey. The volunteers are always amazing.  They also gave up their day to help you (and every other athlete) have a chance at finishing.  After hours and hours of putting your body through torture you will see that finisher chute.  There will be crowd's of people cheering for you.  These people never even met you and they are giving you high 5's. The winners finished hours before you and these people are hanging out hoping to catch a glimpse of their loved one.   You are picking up the pace as much as you can to make the finish "look good".  As you cross that line you here Mike Reilly say those 6 sweet words "first name, last name, YOU ARE AN IRONMAN".   You know you couldn't have made it without the countless people who have helped you along the way. It took a village.

Until next time, keep training!

twitter: @1st_marathon
Facebook: Averageman to Ironman

From couch potato to Ironman training.

Geez, if you asked me a few 3 years ago at this time if I thought I could ever finish a marathon I would tell you; "take a hike".  If you asked, Hey I'm doing a 1/2 Ironman, want to do it with me, I'd say, "your an idiot".  If you said Hey, I bet you can't finish and Ironman, I'd say; "You are absolutely right"!  OK, I probably wouldn't be so crass but you get the idea. 

In the winter of 2010 I was going to the chiropractor 3 times a week for back pain which was the result of a on duty motor vehicle crash a year earlier.  I had gained some weight, and wasn't happy with what I was becoming.  It took a full year for me to do SOMETHING about it.  So, on Dec. 28th, 2011 I ran 1 single mile.  It took over 14 minutes.  Yeah you heard that right, 14 minutes.  Dec, 31st, 2011 I ran 3 WHOLE miles and it took an excruciation 40+ minutes.  That night I went to my buddies house for a New Year's Eve celebration.  4 of us all made a pact that we would run the Marine Corp Marathon on the last Sunday of October. 

The first 3+ months of training where the hardest for a number of reasons.  I had some extra weight to get rid of and I was still struggling with lingering back/neck pains from that 2009 crash.  By June I was off to the races. Times were improving even though I had no idea what I was doing. I was just following Hal Higdon's novice marathon training program.  Just getting out there was making me faster and stronger.  So, I completed the Marine Corp Marathon in 5 hours 10 minutes and 25 seconds.  The last 6 miles is what really ballooned my time but I didn't care, I finished.  

A few weeks after the marathon I started to run again and stay active.  After seeing the Ironman World Championships I thought it would be a good idea for me to take up triathlon. I signed up for a 1/2 Ironman.  That's right nothing like going in head first!  Problem is, I can only swim to save my life, not to be competitive.  I spent 3+ days a week from November through April learning how to swim.  I had some people give me tips and pointers and of course watching youtube helped too.  As soon as the weather got warm I was out on the bike and running again.  the bike I borrowed from a good friend of mine.  After competing in my first sprint tri I was hooked.  

I did a few more and it was time for the big one.  A 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike ride and then a half marathon.  70.3 miles to glory, or something like that.   I have never felt better or worse during an event than at Timberman 70.3 . Even when I felt terrible I knew I was going to finish,   it was awesome.  So, after Timberman I said, if I can do a half Ironman why not do the real thing!  So, I signed up for Ironman Lake Placid (IMLP).  IMLP is the second greatest Ironman event in North America behind only the Holy Grail; Kona.  Actually, I was quite lucky to get in as I hadn't volunteered for IMLP 2013.   I was able to secure one of the few spots that were released on Active.com.

One thing I had learned from the 70.3 was that I couldn't do this by myself.  I really am to "green" to figure out the schedule, nutrition and all the other stuff.  I can follow a plan though. So I hired a triathlon coach and this was probably my best move yet.  Now training for IMLP is going to require a lot of time and sacrifice as well as patience and understanding by my family.  Can't wait to see how this journey progresses, especially with the great people I'll meet along the way!  Although triathlon is really popular the communities are relatively small.  You often see the same competitors on race day from other races. 

What a difference a few healthy years makes.  Until next, time, Keep training

on twitter at @1st_marathon
on Facebook at Averageman to Ironman.

Volunteering as a Swim Buddy

A few weeks back I was asked by a fellow triathlete if I could be a “swim buddy” for  the Title 9 sprintTriathlon that was coming up in Hopkinton, Mass.  I really never heard of this but I looked at my schedule and it fit so I said sure.  Now, I was going to compete in the FirmMan Half Ironman, BUT, I had recently completed Timberman 70.3 and wasn’t sure If I could get enough workouts in to be ready for FirmMan. When my friend Laura asked I thought  1) It was a great excuse NOT to compete in FirmMan and 2) I kinda wanted to see a triathlon from the “other side”.  I told Laura (who was the swim buddy coordinator that I was “in”. 

I received an email a few days prior to the event to make sure I was there for the “swim buddy meeting” by 7:15am.  I thought that it was awesome that I could “sleep in” while going to a triathlon. By sleeping in, I mean that I set my alarm for 5:50am.  Prior to training and competing in these events that would be early but now this is definitely, sleeping in. 

I got up and got ready.  I really hadn’t volunteered before and wasn’t sure what to expect.  I got in my car and took the 40 minute drive to Hopkinton State Park. I did make a stop at Dunkin Donuts to pick up some coffee and food.  I checked in at the volunteer booth, got my free T shirt  and headed to the Swim start where the meeting would be.  

I walked down and changed into my wet suit. I saw Laura and made some small talk with her and some of the other swim buddies.  I later learned that Chrisann from TeamRefuel was a swim buddy.  How cool was that?  She was selected by Team Refuel to train alongside Hines Ward for Ironman Kona.  Now, if you aren’t too familiar with Kona.  It is the Holy Grail for triathletes.  It’s where we all want to compete and very few of us will ever get the opportunity to be there. 

So 7:15am came and Laura gave the 8-12 of us the instructions for the day.  Laura is also an aspiring Ironman.  She is slated to compete in Ironman Florida and has her own blog titled a “Fat Girl’s IronmanJourney”.  She is truly and inspiration to many fellow current and aspiring triathletes. By her own admission she is not fast.  I asked her “so how long do you think it will take you?”. Laura told me that she wanted to finish in 16:59:59.  You have 17 hours to finish an Ironman and be considered an “Ironman”.  Every perspective Ironman wants to hear Mike Reilly say your name at the Finish line followed by “You are an Ironman”.    Laura told us all what we should be doing, where we should be in the water and what to look for in distressed swimmers.  The Newbie swimmers would be in the last three waves.  We all grabbed guard buoys or swim rings.  I grabbed a guard buoy.  The swim buddies also where a distinctive blue swim cap.

So, I was in the water about 150-300 yards from the start.  It is supposed to be a .25 mile swim but I think it is actually much further than that!  The first 5 waves of swimmers went past me with 5 minutes in between starts and no one needed or requested any assistance.  Normally, many new swimmers will have trouble shortly after the start.  It’s the intimidation of the water coupled with the nerves and adrenalin with can make the swim start challenging.   The 6^th or 7^th wave of swimmers came and “Michelle” was in that wave.    Michelle had swum about 150 or so yards and she was having some trouble in the water. She spotted me in my blue cap and life guard buoy and waved at me telling me she needed some help.  I swam over and she grabbed the red guard buoy.  I asked if she was ok which she said yes but she was out of breath and seemed nervous.  I told her not to worry that she was going to get through the swim.  I asked if she wanted me to swim with her and she said yes. 

In triathlon’s you can hold on to a swim buoy or a kayak or whatever else you want to as long as you don’t advance your position.  So Michelle and I had to make it past 4 marker bouy’s before turning for shore.  At first I let her try to compose herself and figure it out.  She got to the first buoy by a combination of swimming on her back as well as free style.   Michelle was not the “quitting” type and kept moving forward.  Midway between the first two buoys Michelle saw that the next wave of swimmers was beginning to overtake her. This was probably her “low point” in the water.  I saw it in her face.  I told her not to worry, and that it was very common for the faster swimmers in the later waves to overtake swimmers in the previous waves.    In order to try to get her in a rhythm and get her mind off of the fear of not finishing I told her;  “OK, this is what your gonna do, You are going to take a stroke and count 1 take another stroke count 2 and then breath.  Your going to do this at least 20 times before we stop again.  Don’t go to fast, don’t crush it. Got 1,2,breath, 1,2,breath.  You are gonna get there. Ready?”

Michelle was off.  I watched her swimming and she was SO MUCH smoother.   We made it past bouy two, then three.  I think it was here where she started to gain more confidence.  At the last buoy she started to make the turn toward shore and stopped.  She said “is it Tim”.  I said “no Its Nate”.  She thanked me and went on her way. 

I am sure she finished her first Triathlon and to tell you the truth I was really “Proud” of her as weird as that may seem.  This was such a rewarding experience to help a fellow triathlete.  If you ever get the chance to be a swim buddy I say go for it.  I also got a great swim workout in too!  Until next time,  Keep Training!

 Nate

First Timer's 70.3 recap for the Timberman Half Ironman

First Timer’s Timberman 70.3 race recap

Grab a cup of coffee or put aside a few minutes because this is going to take a while.

We had been staying at the Gunstock Mountain Campground for the past few days in our travel trailer. The mattresses that these Campers come with were NOT built for comfort.  Anyway, the day started even earlier than most training days. I got to admit, I enjoy those long training sessions.  So, the alarm was set for 4:41am but I didn’t need either of the two that I set.  I was wide awake by 3:00am.  I stayed in bed a while thinking about how today was going to go.  I knew what my goals where and how to accomplish this.  Hell, I’ve been training since last November when I registered for Timberman 70.3.   My goals for swim/bike/run where 40ish/3:45ish/2:20ish.  I was really hoping to finish in less than 7 hours.  More on that later, lets not get ahead of ourselves.  I got out of bed around 4:15am and started to get ready.  My transition bag was carefully packed the night before and I am certain that I hadn’t forgotten anything.

In my bag in addition to all my gear, I packed 3 packs of GU chomps, 2 GU’s, 2 bananas and 2 Power Bars.  This is the stuff I trained with so I was really confident that I would be ‘good to go’ for the race. 

Around 4:45am I had already had my coffee.  I grabbed the bagel I set out the night before, put some peanut butter on it, grabbed my gear bag and off I went to grab the shuttle at the top of Gunstock Mountain.    It is still dark out this time of year and I enjoyed the solitude of the walk.  For a minute I thought perhaps I’m heading out a bit too early but my doubts were quickly reversed as I saw car load after car load pouring into the lot.  It reminded me of the movie Field of Dreams; appropriately so.  I boarded the bus and the driver took a wrong turn into a parking lot.  OK, no big deal, she turned around and off we went. 

It was about a 15 minute bus ride to the transition area which this time was passed with some nervous conversation with a few athletes adjacent to me.  I couldn’t believe that this day had finally come.  Had I trained hard enough? Can I do this?  And I got this! NO matter what, I am going to finish, I don’t care if I have to crawl over that finish line!  It seemed like a healthy bit of doubt, and confidence. 

I arrived in transition a little after 5am and saw that my bike was on the rack the opposite way from which I put it on there.  I must have put it on backwards and the volunteers probably fixed it.  I got my transition area ready and headed out to watch the sun rise over Lake Winnipesauke.

  It was a perfect day for a race.  The air temperature was about 56 degrees and I was taking everything in.  I went back to transition and walked around a bit. I ate a banana and I walked to see if the Pro’s had arrived yet.  I saw the only pro I recognized as Andy Potts.  He was putting together his transition area.  He had an air of confidence about him.  He just looked relaxed and ready to go.

I milled about for a while then at around 6:20am I went back to transition to grab my wetsuit, cap and goggles.  I had my cell phone on me and got a text from my wife telling me that she would be there as soon as she could with our 2 rambunctious boys (ages 2 and 5).  I knew she wouldn’t be there for the start but that was not a big deal.  She was having her own race trying to get the boys ready.  Transition would close for all athletes at 6:45am and I didn’t want to push the time.  I put my phone on airplane mode and put it in my bag underneath my bike seat.  I always carry my phone with me; so I figured why change today?  I also took off my sweats, put them in my “morning bag” which was given to us at registration and brought it to the nice volunteers who placed it with all the others at the morning bag tent. 

I watched the Pro’s start at 7am and I was getting pretty amped up.  I knew my parents were coming up from the Worcester, MA area and I started looking for them.  Their day started about the same time as mine and they had a 2 ½ hour drive ahead of them.  My parents have always supported me in my endeavors and I already knew that they weren’t going to miss this.

My race started at 07:45am.  About 4 minutes before our start we made our way into the water to the first Buoys.    My goal for the swim was to be somewhere around 40 minutes.  I had just bought new Swim goggles and used them once.  I always have problems with sighting usually due to my goggles fogging up.  The horn went off and I started.  I swam well.  I was really happy with my breathing and sighting and my swim goggles were awesome.  I stayed a bit more reserved because I knew I was in for a long day.  I made the first turn. The water was 69 degrees which was perfect for this event.  The lake was also awesomely clear.  It is by far the best lake I have swam in.  I continued the swim and looked at my watch a few times.  I stuck to the buoys and didn’t really get pushed around much by the other athletes.   I got to the point where I could exit the water and looked at my watch.  I was at 46 ish minutes.   I said to myself; “Good job, nice swim, now keep it going”. I ran to the wetsuit strippers and they were awesome.  I also got to see my parents for the first time at this point and was so happy that they were at my race.

 

I went into transition (T1) and got ready for the bike.  I was feeling fantastic.  I knew everything was going as I had planned.

  I ran to bike out with a lot of energy and hopped on the bike. As I biked out of the shoot I got to see my wife and kids and it gave me an extra boost.  My kids looked so happy to see me.  

Now, Timberman’s bike course is really hard.  Right out of the gate you start climbing elevation.  The first climb lasts about a mile and I averaged about 12mph.  I was happy with the climb.  I continued on, and my plan was to eat my GU Chomps every 15 minutes.   I would alternate water and Gatorade.  Initially, I told myself to take it easy for the first 15 miles because these are the toughest miles on the course.  That being said I know I averaged better than 20mph which is by far the best I have ever biked.  Mile 14 was a long and big hill.   I saw several bikers actually get off of their bikes and walk up the hill.  Just after that  is the 1st aid station.  I skipped it as I had plenty of water.  I was still eating my chomps on schedule and was feeling really well.  I made it to mile 28 and the turnaround point.  This is the strongest and best I have felt all morning. 

I was on the return trip and I didn’t know it yet but my body was starting to break down.  I wasn’t following my nutrition plan.  I was so into the race I forgot to eat my bananas and Power bars.  This stuff is essential in this type of race. This is a rookie mistake which I will pay dearly for in the hours to come.  For now, my mind is realizing what my body is not telling me but I need more food. 

I start to fatigue around mile 33 ish.   I notice that all the people I was passing (I had to have passed at least three or four hundred riders)  where starting to leap in front of me.  Before the only athletes that were passing me were the strongest age groupers that started after me.   I continued on until I hit mile 50.  When I saw that mile marker sign I was instantly refreshed.  I pedaled hard the last 6 miles and back into the transition area.  My first 30 miles I averaged almost 20MPH and on the last 26 miles I only averaged 15MPH. 

I biked into transition and looked at my watch and knew I was having an awesome race.  I was in at 4:04 ish.  I racked my bike, changed my shoes, hit the head and off on the run I went.  I again skipped my power bars and banana’s that I had so carefully packed the night before.  My plan was to eat a GU then drink some water which I did at the 1st aid station (which is in the initial run shoot).  I looked at my watch and saw that I was at about an 11:18 mile. I wasn’t concerned yet.  I wanted to average a 9:30 mile.  This would put me at the finish line in about 2:20 and I would finish well under 6 ½ hours.  Seriously, this was awesome!

I was just shy of ¾ of a mile into my run when I realized my mistake.  I hadn’t taken in any banana’s or power bars.  I became EXTREMELY nauseous.  I can’t tell you how disappointed I was that I made such a dumb mistake.  NOW, I couldn’t eat ANYTHING.  The 1st aid station was ¾ of a mile into the run.  I just passed it and couldn’t take anything.  I got to see a High School Friend of mine (Lindsey Knox Lerit) who I visited the day before. Lindsey was just finishing her first lap.  If you know Lindsey you KNOW she is an infectiously positive person.  She came over to me, told me I looked great and that she would see me on the next lap.  I knew she was just trying to keep my mind in a good place because I looked and felt like hell.  I looked at my watch and realized I was “jogging” a plus 13 minute mile.  I went through the next aid station and tried to eat some pretzels, drink some water and took two sponges.  At these events they hand out water soaked sponges to help keep your cool.  The temperature was about 80 degrees and it was also pretty humid. Those sponges were like a little piece of heaven.

I knew at this point that it was now about SURVIVING the run.  I knew that my half marathon would be my worst time ever. My legs were starting to hurt.  I was not winded at all but my body wouldn’t do what I was asking it to do.   The volunteers were simply amazing.  They were full of energy and cheering us through.  The other athletes were also trying to cheer each other on. All the athletes I passed on the bike were now passing me like I wasn’t even moving.   I said just “keep going”. You need to make it to the turn around.   At the turn around I said make it to the second lap.  This was probably the most difficult part of my race.  These 3.3 ish miles back to the second turn around.  It was demoralizing knowing that other athletes were on their second lap and going much faster than I.  As I was finishing my first lap I saw Lindsey again. She gave me a high five and AGAIN told me “you look great” keep going.

I made the turn for the second lap and one of the volunteers told me “I'd say that you look good but I’d be lying”.  That made me chuckle.  We all have our names below our numbers on our BIB and I was receiving a lot of support from the onlookers, other racers and volunteers.  I saw a woman named Kelly.  I jogged and walked with her for a bit.  I wasn’t sure if my nausea was getting better or if I was just getting used to it.  I could see that the field of athletes on the run was much thinner than when I started.  I kept saying “just keep going” “you can do it”.  I wouldn’t allow any negative thought to enter my brain.  I remembered seeing a sign on the bike course that said “If your brain can believe it your body can achieve it”.   This would be my motto to the end of the race.  I made the turn and knew that I only had about a 5k left.  I ran with another age grouper that I had met in the starting area(I think his name was Kyung).  We chatted a bit as we walked.  Before I knew it I was at mile 12.  I felt a renewed energy because I knew I was almost done.  The battery on my Garmin finally died. I made the final left turn towards the finishers shoot.   I can’t tell you how happy I was!  I saw my Dad again and my mom (whom I didn’t see) was able to snap a picture with her smart phone. 

Just before I crossed the finish line I heard the announcers’ voice say my name. He said that I was completing my first half Ironman.  I raised up my arms as if I was Andy Potts who won the race.  The feeling of finishing this race was absolutely amazing!

I have learned a lot from this.  I am no longer a 70.3 virgin.  I will make smarter nutrition decisions in order to help me finish at a better time and so I don’t “bonk” on the run.  I have learned that you can finish anything with the proper mind set.  Although I set this goal it was never about me.  If it wasn’t for my friend Stu I would have never have had a bike to train on.  If it wasn’t for John at the Fairbanks Center and the WAM (Worcester Area Masters) coaches, I wouldn’t have had the skills to finish the swim.  Of course all the support from my friends and family is overwhelming.  Finally, we raised a lot of money for the Myocarditis Foundation in the memory of Devin Kravitz.  Thank you all for being a part of this journey.

BTW. My final time was 7 hours 23 minutes 12 seconds.

Nathan