2016 is Here and There has Been a Radical Change

2016 is here, I didn't ring it in much differently the any other year. Few too many pints of beer with family and friends. I didn't wake up with some kind of epiphany to change my life or anything like that. Actually it all kinda started back this fall when I bought a new bicycle.

So where am I going with this? Well sometimes to go forward in life you have to go back. For me it's going back just over fifteen years. On November 4th, 2000 I finished what was, and still is, one of the greatest athletic accomplishments of my life. Ironman Florida. The Ironman is a triathlon that consists of a 4.8km swim, 180km bike ride, and a full 42.2km marathon, and it has to be done in under 17hrs.

It was a long day, taking me 12hrs and 48mins to get to the finish line. It is the hardest thing I have ever done. The ultra marathon I did last year was tough, and the last 5km was painful, but I was undertrained and not prepared. The Ultra did reignite something in me, and I realized that I was at my happiest when training for a long distance event.

As most of you know, by reading this, my brain fires on all cylinders in the fall and winter, coming up with crazy stupid ideas revolved around motorbikes. That's all fine and dandy, but I get drove nuts thinking about things that will undoubtedly never happen. Take the Scooter Cannonball for example. It is an awesome idea, race, whatever, but other than a few days of planning, it's a long wait until July. A long wait through a depressingly long winter.

So in my search for the next "great idea, event or thing" related to two wheels and a motor I am actually setting myself up for a depressing winter with not much to do, but mope and whine about how long it is taking to get to the next riding season.

The other issue is, I turn 47 years old in May, then it's a short three years until the big 50. For some reason 50 bugs the ever loving shit out of me. To me 50 is the start of old. No offense to those of you over 50. For some people turning 30 or 40 is life altering, or has a big meaning, it wasn't for me, I really didn't give it too much thought. But 50 has me spooked.

So I decided that the year I turn 50, I plan on being in the best shape of my life, better than 31. The age I was during my Ironman. I don't plan on just beating my old Ironman time of 12hrs 48mins and 52sec, but I plan on destroying it.

November 4th 2000

So folks, I'm going to take the next three years to get there. Everything motorbike related is getting shelved, except for the Fundy Rally documentary, and helping out with the Cannonball 500/1000 for Dave Purdy. No big adventures or bike trips, other than my yearly ride to New York for training, and of course commuting. All my effort will be focused on my family, work and Ironman.

So for 2016, I need to get back in triathlon shape, time to get back to the pool, and hit the bike trainer. Everyday there is a workout or two to be done. It keeps me busy, my brain quiet and happy.

No full Ironman this year, I plan on competing in two half Ironman events to get warmed up, and then in 2017 Ironman Mont Tremblant, 2018 Ironman Muskoka, and 2019 Ironman Canada. Thus completing every official Ironman event in Canada. Lofty goals? Yup. Can it be done? Yup, barring any health issues or injury, I can do this. Will the plan change? Probably, but the end goal will remain the same.......toe the line at Ironman Canada as a 50 year old, in way better shape than I was at 31. Simple.

So there won't be a lot of updates on the blog from now on. Progress on the FAR documentary, and the Cannonball 500/1000. That's it.