My Kind of Crazy

It seems to me that being able to laugh at myself is a good quality. This disposition does not always come easy for me, but I try to recruit it when I can, because it sure beats the alternative, which is stressing out about how ridiculous or out of line I might be, or if I simply find myself taking myself too seriously. I'm laughing at myself right now, but I'm rather serious. You see, it's July 4th today...happy independence by the way. The other significance of this date is that it marks roughly eight weeks before I head to Louisville, Kentucky where I will take on arguably the most challenging, one day sporting events on the planet, in the form of an Ironman Triathlon. I'll be called to swim 2.4 miles, cycle 112 miles, and then run 26.2 miles. You probably knew this because you are reading my blog which is The Road to Ironman Louisville, 2011. You also probably also know that I've been struggling with my Achilles tendon, to the point that my run training has been, well, non-existant. In fact, I'm icing right now, I hope to aqua-jog later, and I will be attending my first session of Active Release Treatment tomorrow. In short, I won't be powered by my full potential, as an athlete who is well trained for such an event. This is something I'm laughing at myself about...but believe me, it's not funny. It's comical, but it's not funny.
My kind of crazy doesn't stop with a set-back like this. Oh no, my kind of crazy looks forward to the next Ironman I will do. Which one will I do? What will my time goal be?
The funny thing about all this Ironman stuff, is that it is the distance I am least suited for. I fair better relative to my triathlon peers at sprint and Olympic distance events, and I do a respectable job at the half Ironman distance, but here I am looking at which Ironman will be my fourth...before I even start my third! My kind of crazy is looking at doing another Ironman in 2013 while I'm icing my Achilles.
My kind of crazy doesn't just look at when I'll do my next Ironman, which I'm not really suited for, but it looks with wild eyes at the 2012 season. My 2012 triathlon season is in rough draft form right now. It mostly consists of sprint and Olympic distance events, but has one half Ironman distance sprinkled in the mix.
My kind of crazy is looking at taking on the Life Time, Toyota Cup, Olympic Distance Series, with it's championship in Dallas.
I'm not trying to wish my life away by looking forward to future events. I'm not trying to ignore my goal of completing Ironman Louisville this summer. Don't get me wrong, my eye is still on the prize. My focus is still lazar sharp, and my energy is in the right place, which is to get myself to the starting line of Ironman Louisville as fit and healthy as possible, to allow myself the best chance of reaching the finish line. However, in moments of time, I look forward with excitement and anticipation of what might be. The Road to Ironman Louisville is still being traveled, but that doesn't keep me from looking at the sights as I go. That's just my kind of crazy.

Peace.