the key

If you have followed my race performance through the past few years it's been hit or miss. I am not a 5:25 70.3 girl. I am a sub five hour girl. Time and time again something.... insert that here..... seems to happen. I was beginning to believe I had a really bad case of bad luck.

The training is there. I have the power files and garmin data to prove that I am hitting what I need to hit in training. We all know that training does matter on race day. It's about being able to pull it together.

And for whatever reason.... whatever flavor of the day..... something happens to prevent me from pulling it together. There are things in my control, and some things out of my control.

It's not a total surprise that when I take a little down time I get sick. I am still sick. You can say that a bad case of G.I. -itis isn't under my control. But it likely actually was more within my control than you can imagine.

My husband gave it to me straight the other night. He told me that he was tired of watching me miss, when he knows that I am prepared. He gave me his thoughts on why he believed this to be the case.

It came down to one word. One very simple word. A word that I can not get out of my head.

He is right.

And it has nothing to do with swimming, biking or running. And the word is not believe (though that is important).

The other night we listened to Chris McCormack speak. He was excellent, not what you might expect him to be. He began to speak about Craig Alexander. He told the story of how Crowie used to finish dead last in World Cup races. He talked about how Crowie just seemed to really suck. No one believed in him, but he believed in himself.

Today he's the Ironman World Champion.

One word. Again it isn't believe. (but that's a KEY!).

Lucky for me it is April and there is a fresh layer of snow on the ground. As I review my power and garmin files from this race I am where I should be for April training wise. It's a long season and I have some new.... actually old ammunition under my wing.

Had I had this happen in a race in May I'd be playing some quick catch up.

That's what you do with races. You take a good detailed look at what worked, what didn't. You have to take a look at how things are running on and off the field. It's off the field "stuff" that can be the biggest hindrance to our performances even though we can hit the numbers in training.

Monday the next block begins. The block for the Musselman. I am the first winner of the Musselman 1/2 Ironman and I still hold the amateur record (damn you Kim Loffler :-). I am capable of faster.

Thank you husband for taking me by the shoulders and turning me 180 degrees to the left. The street I have been looking down..... is not the street I should be looking down.

I certainly believe in myself, else I wouldn't still be at this. My day will come. That race is on the horizon. It isn't something I need to do that involves swimming, biking in running.

It's so much easier.