I finally realized during one of my runs (go figure) that the reason I am so set on returning to Kona isn’t so much to compete in the Ironman World Championships, but rather to be racing with my husband as OUR way of celebrating our wedding anniversary.
That’s how this whole Ironman journey started, after all: Ryan and I got married on October 13, 2012. Despite having to search multiple venues, the date was non-negotiable.
- First, the reason we even started talking was because of the Chicago Marathon. I was having Achilles issues and Ryan started suggesting bike and swim workouts I could do so that my fitness would be strong enough to get me through the marathon, despite not being able to run for 4 weeks. Sure enough, I made it through the marathon (unfortunately, it was that one in 2007 that was ridiculously hot and ultimately canceled, but it didn’t matter because I was already hooked on the marathon thing).
So for us, our story started with the Chicago Marathon and that’s the weekend we wanted to get married on as a way of bringing things full circle. - Second, Ryan’s birthday is December 13 and mine is May 13, so we thought it would be neat if we could get married on the 13th of October.
Luckily, the 13th of October in 2012 was a Saturday, so things kind of just fell into place.
Long story short, it literally came down to the last mile of the ½ marathon. I was pretty sure that I was in 3rd place at the turn-around of the out-and-back course, so was pumped when I passed 2nd and starting to get worried that I’d never pass 1st. With literally one mile to go, I rounded a corner and just heard Ryan’s dad YELLING at me to push harder and go as fast as I could. I crossed the line completely exhausted but ecstatic as I knew that Ryan and I had both qualified for our first ever Ironman World Championships.
- From patella tendinitis (likely overuse from training for the Trials) back last April, I gained an incredible amount of strength on the bike.
- From tearing my plantar fascia in September, I again continued to build that strength on the bike.
- And from my crash on my bike in May, I have had the luxury of working with an awesome coach to get my swim better. I was forced to use the buoy every swim as my hips were causing great discomfort (side note: turns out I had a stress fracture from my fall), so my stroke was able to improve.
I still have a long way to go, but this is the most progress I have made in the swim in awhile and I feel much more confident going into Lake Placid.
It means celebrating another incredible year of marriage to my best friend, in a way that connects us deeper than anyone can imagine. All of the prayers and messages along the way have really helped keep my head up high and do not go unnoticed or unappreciated.
Thank you to everyone who believes in my dream and journey. I cannot wait to get this LPPARTEE started and will make sure to post lots of pictures of our crazy adventure!