Last week I ran in the Vikingman in Burley, Idaho, which is a half-ironman (1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike ride, and 13.1 mile run).  When I signed up for BAM awhile ago, I thought that if I didn’t push very hard at Vikingman, then I would be just fine at BAM.  Well, during the run, I realized that Vikingman had taken it’s toll on me.  My legs had turned to jello toward the beginning of the run.  But the good news is that, unlike during all 13.1 miles of the Vikingman, my legs didn’t cramp until after the race was over.  Even after the race, my legs didn’t cramp too bad.  Plus, my time was better than any race I’ve done so far.

I absolutely love how I feel lately, because of training for and participating in triathlons.  Most importantly, I feel young and energetic again.  With Jack in my life now, triathlons have become even more important to me.  I want to be able to play ball with him during his active youth and teenage years.

Isn’t he just so CUTE!?!!

This is my 2nd year of doing triathlons, my 2nd triathlon of the year, and I placed 22nd in my age group (that’s a lot of 2’s). But most importantly, I successfully completed my first olympic distance triathlon (roughly double the length of a “sprint” triathlon). An olympic distance triathlon usually includes a 1500 meter swim (100 meters shy of a mile), 40k bike ride (just over 24 miles), and a 10k run (6.2 miles).

This triathlon was done down in St. George, UT. We swam in Sand Hollow Reservoir. Here’s what one Timp Tri Club member said about how bad the conditions were:

Just had to say a HUGE “GREAT JOB!!” to everyone that did the St. George Tri yesterday. Holy Schamoly, eh??! That wind was ridiculous! And I can personally testify to you that it was a BAAAAADDD year to stay in a tent. Freaking. Anyway… my hats off to all who attempted or completed any part of the race yesterday. And to all of you who swam in the Lake of the Titanic or the Lake of the Perfect Storm ………. all I have to say is I’M NOT WORTHY!! I’M NOT WORTHY!! You guys all ROCK!! Olympic distance or Sprint, Racers or non…. I am so proud and BLESSED to surround myself with such amazing people as you folks. Sincerely. Thanks for your examples and friendship. And…as we say in the races……. “GO TIMPTRI CLUB”!!!!! –Kelly

PS. And to Keena and Perry who said to me, “Wow that swim was FUN!!!” ….yeah….you need therapy.

I got a kick out of the part about me needing therapy. In fact, I’d say that most of my family agrees with Kelly (who wrote about the conditions).

Anyway, it was a blast and I’m looking forward to the next one.

I set Jack down to give him some “up” time (instead of on his back). It took a little while, but I finally noticed how he was sitting, so I just had to grab my wife’s camera (she’s a professional photographer with a really good camera) and take a picture. I just love how he looks like he’s just chilling, as if his new life isn’t too bad.

This should be a fun ride. I have never blogged before, although my wife has wanted me to for some time. She has actually been blogging for just over a year now. And her blog is going to be a tough act to follow.