I officially have a training partner, my little brother, John. When I say little, he's actually 31 years old, but I do outweigh him by a good 50lbs. Mostly because he still has the metabolism of a 20 year old and I still enjoy eating nachos, pizza, and beer… like a 20 year old. Oh yeah, he’s also in phenomenal shape and has already competed in several Ironman 70.3s, half the distance of a full Ironman (which is crazy long in itself).
John’s experience with the halves will be a huge benefit for my training. Unfortunately, we live about six hours from each other, so we can’t work out together. However, we can hold each other accountable for work outs and motivate one another, which is a big bonus.
The commitment to an Ironman is pretty extreme and I don’t know how any athlete could do it without the support of friends and family. Luckily, I have that support and I appreciate every bit of the encouragement I am receiving. Especially since this is only the third day of my training… I’ll need a whole lot more when I’m on a bike for five hours on a cold, rainy Saturday morning. So, keep those positive comments coming! Negative works too… “Get your lazy butt out of bed and hit the road!!!”
Needless to say, I’m pretty stoked about John and I working together as virtual training partners; however, I’m even more excited about both of us finishing the race on May 17h. Now, by the time I finish, he will have probably cooled down, changed clothes, had a couple of beers, and taken a nap, but that’s OK. I’m just looking forward to that big brotherly hug at the finish line… and I’m sure if there are tears, it’ll be due to the sweat in my eyes.
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