A challenge that grew into something much bigger.

Two years ago my best friend Tommy challenged me to an Olympic distance triathlon(1500m swim, 24.9 mile bike, 6.2 mile run). Not being one to back down I accepted it, and that's how it all started. In 2009 I bought my first bike (Trek Madone 5.1) not counting the one I had when I was 12 years old, and a punch card to the local pool. Like any athlete crossing from one sport to another, I thought I would pick it up without a problem. I had never swam laps before, biked farther than 6 miles, or run more than 5 miles. But heck, I'm a decathlete, how hard can it be :) I won't bother you with all the time I spent in the pool, or miles on the bike and on the road running. After 2 sprint triathlons I finally did my first Olympic distance triathlon with lots of cramping along the way in 2 hrs. 41 min..

After I had finished the challenge, and beaten Tommy's time by 2 min., I thought the madness was over. On the contrary, it had just begun. Tommy responded by crushing me with 2 hrs. 30 min. time of his own, and the race was back on. A knee problem set me back a bit, but I was able to get back in the saddle again and continued the hunt. Many hrs. in the pool and hrs. on the road later, I finished a very painful half IronMan in 5 hrs. 55 min. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alRp5WzrLkY

One of the most amazing abilities that we humans possess is the ability to suppress painful things. It took me 4 months to forget about how painful that half IM was (and how I was literally a wreck for 2 weeks after), but I did. So, how do you know when you have truly suppressed something? When you sign up for double the dose! Oh yes, I did...on July 30th I will do a full IronMan (2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 mile run).

Follow me in my quest of finishing one of the biggest challenges known to man - becoming an IronMan!

For laughs (and to give you an idea of how most conversations go when people find out I am embarking on this challenge, here is great clip for you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B03dFMG8nR4&feature=player_embedded