CAl.E., Lucia, the puppy, and the warden all made it back to Houston safely. Cal.E. seems to be "down in the dumps" today, though. I will see why she is so sad.d.: Hi Cal.E. HOw are you doing? C.: Not so good, d.c. I am depressed because all of my favorite teams lost this weekend. The Texans might have won that game if they had not traded the G.O.A.T., David Carr. d.: I told you Cal.E., the Texans traded him, then he retired from playing professional football. He would not have helped the defense or offensive line to play better, I don't think. C.: I guess not, d.c. I miss the old days when the Cowboys were so good that everyone outside of Texas hated them. Now, they are just a bunch of nice guys who only win when they feel they must. It is depressing for an avid football fan like me. d.: So, you like the Cowboys, too. Isn't that unusual for a Texans fan? C.: I suppose so, d.c. I just wanted to see one of my favorite teams win. Maybe we should just read a chapter from your inspiration book, "Beyond the Thirteenth Mile; The Iron Man Chronicles. Maybe that will cheer me up. d.: Okay, CAl.E. sure.
CHAPTER 23:
THE IDEAL RACE
Run Course, Mile twenty-two: Well, I am almost there. If I give it everything I have left, I can finish in less than fifteen hours, a very respectable (but not spectacular) time. I just want to be able to say, truthfully, that I finished an IronMan distance triathlon. I DO wish, though, that I had saved my ideal race for this course, although I have never heard anyone say that he or she has ever raced the “ideal race”......
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Any athlete to whom you speak, be it a rank amateur or a seasoned professional, will give you the same answer about doing the 'ideal race"-he or she hasn't done it yet. The reason for this is that no matter how fast one swims, cycles, or runs, or how well one plays an individual or team sport, there is always at least one aspect of the sport that all athletes believe that s/he could improve upon. The reason is, there is a force that drives a competitor that most people don't feel. Some athletes respond better to pressure than others, just as some businessmen and women do.
At one time, Michael Jordan ran a commercial for Nike in which he told how many times he had been asked to take the game-winning shot - and missed. Truth to tell, Jordan had no idea how many times he had missed that shot (or made it, either; one reliable source put the made percentage of his last-second shots at a mere 48%, a virtual coin flip. This fact would indicate that “His Airness” may be human after all). All M.J. knew was that when the chips were down, he wanted the ball. (Michael Jordan led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships- with no losses in the NBA championship series- in his on-again, off-again career.)
Two of the top twenty career home run hitters in Major League history, Babe Ruth, and Reggie Jackson, both Hall-of-Famers, also rank in the top ten in a number of career strikeouts. No matter how many times Jackson would strikeout during the regular season, a pitcher would inevitably make a mistake and give him a low, outside pitch to drive over the fence. Jackson would do his best to accommodate the unfortunate pitcher. This would usually happen when it counted the most - in the World Series. (Reggie Jackson still holds the record for most consecutive home runs in a World Series game at three {on a mere four pitches}, earning him the moniker “Mr. October.") Babe Ruth is, both statistically and realistically, the greatest left-handed power hitter who ever played the game of baseball. Both earned multiple World Series victory rings.
In the 2001 Tour de France, Lance Armstrong lost radio contact with his team captain in an important mountain stage of the race. Doing the only thing that he knew to do, Armstrong powered up the mountain with all of his might, winning not only this particular stage of the race, but the coveted yellow jersey as well. (The yellow jersey signifies the overall leader in terms of time.) Armstrong went on to win his third consecutive Tour de France, a feat accomplished by only five other men in the 125- year history of the most elite bicycle race in the world. Armstrong is also the only American ever to accomplish this stunning feat. Amazingly enough, Armstrong had never even won one Tour-de-France before being diagnosed with testicular cancer that had spread to his lungs and brain before being arrested, then treated. Indeed, Armstrong had only completed one Tour de France, and that year before he was diagnosed with cancer. (And was later disgraced by an unproven scandal. The “B” samples that were presented as evidence had been sitting on a shelf for three years, longer than their shelf lives.)
At the beginning of his legendary career, Marc Allen lost the Hawaiian IronMan six times before winning it on the next six occasions. Only one other person, The Man himself, Dave Scott, has accomplished this feat.
An average amateur athlete can only hope that, for one day, he/she can emulate Marc Allen or Dave Scott on his worst day.
Thomas Edison was once asked what he attributed his many successes to. Edison's answer was, "my many, many failures." Edison later expanded on his earlier comment by saying, "Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration." (My own personal translation of Mr. Edison's two quotes is that there is no substitute for hard work.)
One-half of the way through the triathlon season, I realized that my season came down to three races; the one-half-Iron Man (already done), the full Iron Man (still in the distance), and a sprint championship course called Cinco Ranch, at which, unfortunately, I have never done well. This is the most heavily weighted sprint course in my region, and with good reason. While the competition is stiff, the course itself is difficult enough to have been used as a testing ground for Olympic hopefuls the year before Triathlons became an Olympic sport.
On paper, it looks tame. A 500-meter open water swim, followed by an 18- mile bike ride, and a short, three-mile run. The ideal race for a beginner to get his/her " feet wet," you say? Well, no. The race is staged in late August in southeast Texas (people who live in south Texas go to saunas to cool off in late August!) The race doesn't start until 7:30 a.m., the time that the temperature is beginning to rise to uncomfortable levels in Southeast Texas. Why this is, I'm not exactly sure. The swim is held in a retention pond, and unless one is staged in the first two waves, the water temperature is usually in the high eighties. Many triathletes refuse to compete in this race out of a fear of getting hepatitis during the swim leg. I've never heard of this actually happening, though.
The bike leg can be fast and furious if the wind is blowing up from the south, but the possibility of a 20-40 mile per hour head or crosswind also exists on the bike course. Then, the real fun starts. By the time I get to the run course, the temperature is usually in the high 90's along with the humidity, in the shade. The thing is- there is no shade. Part of the run course at the Hawaiian Ironman (the part that goes through the lava fields) is known as the "energy lab." The turn-around road at the Buffalo Springs Lake one-half-IronMan distance triathlon is known as “the energy lab Il,” because there is no shade for about three miles. To me, the run course at Cinco Ranch will forever be “the energy lab Ill", and I have competed in Buffalo Springs Lake twice. (In other words, it is a little like running through three miles of hell, or at least west Texas, if there actually is a difference. However, to quote the greatest orator of the twentieth century, Sir Winston Churchill, “If you are going through hell, keep going.” )
To finish this particular race in the top twenty in my division, as I had done in the previous two races, would, indeed, take my "ideal race."
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