How often do you achieve the impossible?

I have managed to do it five times so far. Every time it is different, every time I want to quit, and every time I continue.

After five races, I feel that I have only managed to come close to the edge once. I think that in order to really tap into your potential, you need to prepare your mind and comfort your psyche. At a very deep level, your spirit needs to know that "everything is going to be all right". Once you have this inner peace, your mind will allow you to push beyond nature's restrictions. My goal for next season is to have a race where I know that I couldn't have pushed harder. I hope it's an Ironman.

Ironman is all about "will". The will to sign up for the race. The will to do the training. The will to continue when your body asks, and your mind begs you to slow down. They say that getting to the line is half the battle, but on a bad day, the only way you are going to finish is for insanity to triumph over reason. There aren't many opportunities in life where you can push mentally and physically right to the edge. Success is never guaranteed and nasty pitfalls await the reckless. I love it.

Everyone who finishes an Ironman has a special knowledge. Knowledge of their core self. Some folks don't like what they find out. Most love it. If you approach the event with respect, and race for the right reasons, I don't think it is possible to have a "bad" race. Even on the worst day, there's no place I would rather be.

What is your definition of speed? Mine is Kona. Anybody who can qualify for Kona is fast in my books. I've had many conversations with people who have qualified, and you know what? They very rarely equate their success to having chosen their parents well. They have the Knowledge. They know the amount of hard work it took to achieve their objectives.

Perhaps people who credit success to a gift are really just trying to protect themselves. What kind of gift? I've heard about many gifts: genetics, family connections, the right school, wealth, and others. From what are they trying to protect themselves? From the Knowledge. From the fact that they are in charge of their own destinies, that their potential is unlimited, that they can achieve anything they truly desire.

The knowledge that we can all achieve the impossible, that's what Ironman means to me.

How Do I Know I Am Ready?

Ironman is so daunting that I still can't comprehend the day in its entirety. I have to break it up into bite sized chunks. Thinking about the whole distance is guaranteed to leave me a little frazzled. Each event is a little too far to be comfortable. Stack them on top of each other and it just seems a little silly.

Once that gun goes off, we never know what is going to happen. Sure it will be tough - you've heard people talk about the amazing highs and devastating lows. You've seen John Collins talking about "winning by not quitting". You've watched every IMH re-run you could lay your hands on while spinning on your trainer. You've logged more weekly mileage in the pool than the average American walks in a month. But still, at the back of your head, you're wondering "am I ready?"

If you are the typical Type-A Ironman athlete, you probably have a vision at the back of your head of blowing the course away. It is easy to get caught up in the hype of race week, well meaning training partners, and (in my case) your own ego. Ironman is an event that demands that you check your ego at the door. Better yet, bury it as soon as you enter.

I firmly believe that anyone (and I mean anyone) can complete an IM so long as they respect the race and have a deep desire to finish. By respect, I mean racing within one's self and accepting that lots can go very right and very wrong. Respect means doing the training and arriving at the start line having done the preparation. A little fear goes a long way in ensuring a smooth race day.

Everyone has their own thoughts on pacing, and I would say that the number one mistake most folks make is in the pacing of their first race. For me, respect also means going out easy and not trying to beat the race into submission. Only a very special few can qualify on their first IM. I had four attempts at the distance before qualifying.

Faith in one's self is essential. Going into a race, I am always hit with little doubts about my preparations and training. Here is what I do to keep the ghosts at bay. I lie in bed meditating on training sessions that have gone particularly well. I slow my breathing, listen to my heart and repeat "the power is in my body, the strength is in my bones". I tell myself that I am ready. I build a warrior mentality all over my body and inside my head. I think about any area of the race that concerns me, and visualise myself moving through that section of the course strongly, powerfully and in control. This works so well that I always have my problems in another area of the course! I think that is why the veterans of the sport do so well, they have a large reservoir of experience to tap into. I now know that no matter how bad things get, they will always improve.

You have to be doing Ironman for yourself. Racing for your husband, your mother or your mates is helpful, but you have to want to finish - badly. The reason is that there will be many moments in training and during race day when you will want to quit. By not quitting you will learn a lot about yourself. You will become stronger, you will change. There aren't many things in life that give us the opportunity to test our inner strength. IM is one of those things.

There is a big jump from Oly distance racing to IMs and many, many people fry themselves by rushing this transition. If you are in a hurry, a two-year campaign makes the most sense. Your first season builds to a 1/2 IM, and your second season kicks off with a 1/2 IM. By the time you arrive at your IM start line, you will at least have confidence that you can make it to the end of the bike. After that, sheer guts can get you home. Make no mistake, these events are TOUGH. That however, is what makes them so rewarding.

So, how do you know you are ready to do an IM? You don't. You commit, train and pray.