Year 5... Here We Go!!!

4 years ago, I was suffering from severe FOMO and had this crazy idea... With no training, no equipment and no knowledge of what it took to do this thing called a "triathlon," I was athletic enough to just "show up" and do it because a bunch of my friends were doing it.

(photo credit: https://www.mememaker.net/meme/chill-bro-i-got-this/)

Now granted, a bunch of my other friends were in the same predicament. And really, only 1 of them knew what they were doing and the other two had experience before. The rest... well we were a bunch of crazy n00bs!

I mean that day I showed up with the following gear:
-Surf wetsuit, something thicker and much less suited for speed like a tri wetsuit
-Tri top and bottoms purchased LITERALLY the day before from REI
-Mountain bike borrowed from a friend (with suspension unlocked for added hilarity to spectators)
-Mountain bike helmet
-No clip ins
-An extra shirt to change into which also had my bib pinned to it

I mean I really need to find my external hard drive. It has the series of photos from that day that was both a spectacle of sheer will and also amazing bouts of ridiculousness. What a day it was! Naturally, I only posted the following 2 pics to Instagram:

Flexing, because of course the uber bro has to flex! And a snapshot of my borrowed mountain bike. No clips, suspension unlocked and wide tires optimal for downhills. I mean this was me 4 years ago!

But oh how far I've come!

In that time since, I've gotten quite a bit healthier. I've done an Ironman and several 70.3s. I've done marathons and half marathons galore. I mean I have more bling than I can even find space for. And really, this whole obsession has changed my life. I'm on a path to longer term health and a much higher activity and fitness level. I'm hoping to buck any hereditary diseases or at least put them off longer than those in my family have. But just generally having a much healthier life, more confidence and a different outlook that is much more positive has contributed to a better life.




And so here I embark on Year 5. The journey keeps going exactly where it began. The Redondo Beach Sprint Triathlon will always have a special place in my heart. It'll be the day I started it all. The first day I really pushed myself and came out ahead. The day I really began striving for more. The day that I truly realized that you can go through a journey, stumble a bunch of times, push beyond your limits, do hilarious things and... by the very end... you'll have crossed the line. You'll have completed the journey. And while the results matter, what matters is that you got there and the real story is in every little detail, both good and bad, that helped you get there!


And just because I love gear (and swag), here's what I'm showing up to the race with this year:
-Tri wetsuit, designed for speed!
-Proper road bike with aero bars and Zipp wheels (not pictured, but also designed for speed!)
-My favorite helmet (aka the Robocop helmet because of the visor)
-Clip in triathlon bike shoes, because clips give you speed!
-Newton running shoes, lightweight with arch supports
-Honey Stinger waffles and gels and hat, because being sponsored is awesome!
-Nuun tablets, because being sponsored is awesome!
-And all packed up in my Ironman bag (which has the awesome, colorful block pattern btw!)