Ironman Envy

Because I've spent this entire year chasing the (still very much elusive) perfect ironman race, I am in awe of what I saw on Saturday in Kona. For those athletes to execute what they did, in the most pressure packed race, not to mention the grueling conditions, is something I have yet to achieve, and something I am still only dreaming about. In fact, my quest for a Kona slot is going on 11 years now. How sweet will it taste next year *wink*. Thank you Hawaii competitors for stoking the fire and making my Sunday run that much easier to execute. Special props to my teammate Rachel Main, who smashed her PR by 20 minutes with a 10:08 to finish 8th in the world in her age group.

This weekend also saw the redemption of my six year-old nephew in his second triathlon. In his first race, he had a bit of a panic attack. But like all champions, he found a way to succeed. That meant some swim lessons with his uncle and a more focused mindset the second time around. You can see this focus in the picture of him on the bike. The little dude crossed the line in first place, but since he checked in with the wrong finish-line volunteer, he officially placed 2nd. No worries. His younger sister, all but four years-old, saw her brother do his first race and begged to do the next race. Not yet a swimmer, she improvised and kicked her way through the swim, and finished like a champ. Thank you knee-biters for giving your uncle a bit more motivation for his upcoming two ironman races.