Good Luck at CDA!

This weekend is Ironman Coeur d'Alene. There are 85 participants signed up from Austin TX and over the years I've met a lot of them.



CDA was my first Ironman, in 2004, so I hold some fond memories from that race and also know how nervous some of my friends might be as they head up north to race.


By now everyone has heard they've done the training and rest is all that's left. But seriously, even with the best preparation everyone gets nervous before an Ironman race. Michael always tells me not to worry, I always worry.


Here I am trying to get my wetsuit on before the race. He took the picture so he could show me the look of panic later on. I had no idea I looked so worried before the race. I have now learned, I look this paniced before EVERY race.

Thankfully, too Michael's surprise I was very happy during the race. For those of you who may have seen me racing before, you might think I tend to look pretty serious, but this was not the case at CDA. Instead, I was just out to enjoy the day and keep a smile on as long as I could.

That's the best advice I can give, keep a smile on your face. No matter what happens, enjoy it, you've worked hard for the race. When it hurts, smile more.

I've had some good races and some bad ones and I can tell you for sure, the best ones always unfold on the days when I take the cards I'm dealt and go with flow.

But, just incase that advice doesn't seem useful enough I've got one more key to a good race, don't forget to eat! Before the race, eat. If you are hungry, eat. When your mood changes, eat. If you pass a guy who's watch is going off, eat. As you pass an aid station, eat. When you cross the finish line, eat! And when you've eaten so much that you have to go to the bathroom, visit the porta-pottie and do the math later to calculate how much time you lost in there.

Have fun in CDA.

PS To the Sherpas - Although you might feel a bit under appreciated at times, you are the key to a great race. It will be a long day but well worth the efforts. Don't forget to eat!