Question is it better to be an Ironman or a friend?
I would imagine most would friend of course. That being said someone who has been training for a long time for something that he has dreamed about for a long time that question poses a bigger problem.
Of course I chose friendship over Ironman, but it was not easy. After a hectic Friday for family reasons I was looking forward to attempting my first ever 100 mile bike ride. I was going to do this during the Ride George Ride event I have mentioned a few times on my post. As George attempts his 300 hour / 12.5 day World Record on a spin bike I thought I could use the opportunity to ride on the bike trainer for a simple 100. Well, needless to say it wasn’t in the cards. The intentions were good, in fact I was cruising and well into my first hour of 6, I had to jump off the bike to help a friend in need (don’t worry I was on my trainer.) So I am a bit sad, but I will get it in soon.
Well George is approaching the half way mark, closing in 150 hours on the bike. Let’s just say getting him to the required 12 mph becomes a bigger challenge every hour. My shift started at 7 am was suppose to go to 9 am, then jump on the bike until I was done. But as my 1st hour was nearing the end… (boy that has new meaning compared to 150 hours) George was falling way behind. As the crew struggle to do anything to get him back on pace, around George’s 45 minute mark in the hour, jumped off my bike and took over.
Before anyone says anything, George mentions that he finds me a calming figure and he looks to me as a mentor because of my Ironman training. I plugged in my Ironman playlist and together we were off and running, well cycling actually. The Ironman gods must have been shining down on us, because on the TV we had Universal Sports on and they were replaying the Ironman from 2004. So that gave me the strength to help push my friend through the fog. I told him how I picture my Ironman was going to go in Sept. I told him I know I will hit many walls during my day (again this sounds funny knowing he is attempting 12.5). Now I have these memories to help me through those difficult times. Well to make this a bit shorter George finished with 12 in 30 seconds to spare. A great accomplishment since he was 2.5 behind at 45 minutes. By helping picture the Ironman in his mind’s eye helped pull him through another hour.
Well I was scheduled 7 am to 9 am, I worked with him until 5 pm. I am drained, emotional and a stronger Ironman in training because of this experience. I had to step away, because there is point where this starts to feel a bit like torture for the both of us. We even had a long discussion about this before the event. Well I am about to go to bed, rest and be back there tomorrow 7 am. I am thinking of George and the crew tonight.
www.ridegeorgeride.org – Check it out if you haven’t yet.
Running totals:
Running miles treadmill: 191.53
Running hours treadmill: 29:05
Running miles outside: 69.40
Running hours outside: 10:40
Biking miles: 595.9
Biking hours: 30:10
Spinning hours: 5:30
Swimming laps (25 yard pool) : 2,242 lengths or 1,121 laps
Swimming distance: 59,050 yards or 33.6 miles
Swimming hours: 18:20
Weight lifting hours: 17:00
Stair Master miles: 77.97
Stair Master hours: 9:30
1 pathetic game of volleyball: 1 hour
TOTAL HOURS – 118 hours and 50 minutes
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1 Response
Your dedication to G is equally as commendable as his efforts. He is lucky to have you.