The Calm Before The Ironman Storm #IMTX

The moment that Ironman bracelet clamps shut on your wrist, you known it is real.  The door is closed and you are locked outside with the beast.

The day before Ironman Wisconsin, I walked around Madison fighting to suppress the rumble in my gut.  It’s hard to relax when you know your body is about to check into hell.

I suppose it’s different if you have one under your belt, but I’m not convinced that’s an advantage.  Ironman is not to be taken lightly.

Ironman Texas Swim

You must respectfully acknowledge your opponent, which happens to be yourself.  You must accept, then ignore every twinge in your body.  You are strong, confident, and trained — yet fragile like a child.

Every step is calculated and while you are about to cover 140.6 miles, that extra trip to the hotel lobby becomes noteworthy.  Fifty four unnecessary paces for resting legs.

Sipping water and electrolytes, hoping for the perfect balance.  The optimum level of pre-race hydration that will be your last minute base for the next day.

Light stretching to ease tension that is mostly in your head.  Meditating in the middle of an air-attack while bombs explode around you.

How do you contain the fire?  How do you balance ferociousness?

The anticipation will crush you.  Your mind does back flips as it plays through everything yet to happen.  It’s senseless to obsess, but impossible to let go.  You are mere feet from walking onto the plank.

And oddly, once your bare feet hit that cold wood, you look over the edge and the nerves wash away.  You accept your fate and focus on why you came.  You no longer have to imagine how it will look and feel.   It’s right in front of you, familiar, and waiting for you to join the fun.

This is where you exist.  This is where you belong.

————————-

Best of luck on Saturday to everyone racing Ironman Texas.  This is for you, and especially Rodney and Daniel who I have watched prepare for this monster.  We’ll all be watching and pulling you toward the finish.

Ironman Wisconsin Swim Start 2013 – Video #IMWI

This was the moment I thought about a thousand times, the Ironman Wisconsin Swim Start.   The thought of being in that water with nearly 3,000 swimmers just blew my mind and it was everything I expected.  Here’s a short trailer for the documentary I hope to finish sometime before I die.  Special thanks to Roger Jokela and my brother, Chris Tarrolly for shooting this video and saving the film.


More Crushing Iron video can be found here.

Follow us @crushingiron

Catching Up After an Ironman #IMWI

In the fury that was the week of and week after Ironman Wisconsin, many amazing things happened, but sort of fell through the cracks.  One was my selection as East Nasty of the Week, which is a high honor doled out by my running club.  I was very grateful, but had a difficult time enjoying it because of the race and recovery period.  I just sat down to read the article again and am especially humbled by what the guys I trained with for IMWI wrote about me for the article.

1233165_735817175799_432170694_oDaniel Hudgins, “Mike has been a key supporter for Ironman as the “Fab Five” has been training. He is so much more than your average athlete, though. He is tenacious, and I think we’ll see him continue to improve throughout the years. When we first met last year, I remember him coming to a triathlon I was also doing to watch Jim. He was so interested and the best way I can describe his demeanor was quietly excited. As time went on, and he decided to do Ironman Wisconsin, we became closer and closer as friends. Mike and I battled for who would show up last for our morning workouts in January, and he often won. We joked that he’ll write a book “How To Sleep Your Way To an Ironman”, and it will probably be a New York Times Bestseller. After seeing his consistency, his success in racing, and his talented writing on his blog, it’s much less of a joke now. He’s one of the first people I called when I had a bad ride or something was bothering me. I’d also call him after a great workout or a successful race. I knew he would listen and want to talk about it in detail – and at the same time, he’d provide some comedy in the reality of all the craziness we were putting ourselves through. I’m so proud of him, and I know after this Ironman, he will continue to excel at whatever he pursues.”

1176325_735090951159_602081995_nJim Schwan, “Tarrolly is truly an inspiration. Watching the transformation he has made from his first day at the couch to 5k program to his completion of an Ironman has been astounding.  From the first day I met Tarrolly I knew he was someone I wanted to associate with. I mean, he was wearing cool shoes and seemed like he really had it going on. This was years before either of us attempted any kind of endurance sports. Little did I know we would one day end up training together for an Ironman. He is one of the most creative people I know. He has won film-making awards and authored several fantastic blogs.  His chronicling of his training via Crushingiron.com, as well as the upcoming documentary, will cement his legend.  If you don’t know, act like you know.”

1186007_10152424848012080_1549022374_nKevin Gammon, “I’ve had the pleasure of training with Mike for the past nine months.  During those nine months, I’ve watched him change his entire life style and dedicate himself fully to reaching a goal.  It has been one of the most profound changes I have seen in the three years I have participated in running and triathlons.  He has become a strong athlete and person.  I constantly seek out his advice because I have nothing but respect for him and what he has accomplished.  I anticipate we will see some great things from Mike, both athletically and in other areas.  I will also say I look forward to kicking him during the open water swim in Wisconsin.”

1185411_153292491545387_1272383167_nMark Scrivner, “Mike?  What can I say about Mike?  Dude is gonna crush it.  He’s a beast.  Started running last year and now you can’t contain him.  He’s extremely focused and sleeps more than anyone I know.  I can tell you this much, the only thing stopping him will be himself.  Dude shoots video, plays drums, eats PowerBars and blogs.  It’s been a pleasure training with him, when he actually shows up.”

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

imageI spent a TON of time with these guys over the last year and every minute was inspirational.  Each of them connected with me in different ways and it was truly a blessing to meet them and train together for a goal I thought was impossible.

I’ve said it many times before, but Jim is the reason I am in triathlon . . . and for that matter, not a whale laying around on the couch.  He patiently led by example until I figured out that I should probably follow in his footsteps.  Jim made many sacrifices to make sure I stayed engaged with endurance sports, and I will forever be indebted to his efforts.  Maybe one day I too will be getting up at 3:45 every morning.

Kevin’s gutsy performance at IM Louisville 2012 was the final straw that lured me into Ironman.  Watching my first IM was an emotional and motivating experience.  I barely knew Kevin at the time, but I was so moved by his effort that day, I knew I would sign up to race sooner than later.  We didn’t bike or run together often, but our lake battles were undeniably the catalyst to me becoming a confident swimmer and rejuvenating my competitive nature.

Daniel is one of the most positive and compassionate people I know.  He overcame a lot to get where he is today.  His passion for triathlon shined bright all year and his results proved it.  He embraced every experience like it was his last and smiled before, during, and after each competition or workout.  Ironman was a first for both of us and we loved to speculate about how it would feel to compete, then finish.  We dove into every detail along the way and I think it made us both better racers and people.

Mark showed more guts than just about anyone I’ve ever known as a competitor.  It seemed like he was injured the entire training season, but he kept pushing on.  And I’m not talking about hang nails.  He had a double hernia and a torn bicep, but didn’t let either get in his way.  Despite these setbacks, having a family, and owning a business that was exploding, he kept his eye on the prize and peaked with a great performance at Wisconsin.  He showed a lot of confidence in me and that became a big source of motivation.

It was, is, and always will be the Fab 5 I think of first. We committed to a journey and each other.  We followed through with a major challenge and came away with far more than medals.  We are great friends who shared deep and meaningful experiences that no one can ever take away.

Track The Fab 5 at Ironman Wisconsin #IMWI

It’s official, we are all signed up for GPS trackers at Ironman Wisconsin, so, if you care, you’ll be able to follow our journey in real time with the My Athlete app.  It’s free.

The Fab 5

Daniel Hudgins – Bib #1112

Kevin Gammon – Bib #1284

Mark Scrivner – Bib #2109

Jim Schwan – Bib #2448

Mike Tarrolly – Bib #2705fab5mural

The app is pretty cool and shows athletes moving along the course.  We would love it if you happened to catch some video on your phone and send it to us later to help with our documentary.  I’ll have a server address.

Please pass along this link to anyone you know who will be spectating Ironman Wisconsin and have them contact me if they’d like more information on how they can help with the film. I will also be posting an update on what everyone will be wearing so it’s easier to pick us out.  Thanks for your help.

My email is:  [email protected]

Day 16 Lesson from Neighbor James – Man, you start forgettin’ what day it even is.  Could be Thursday or might be Tuesday.  Don’t matta.  You know what TIME it is.  It time to put on that big ole’ watch and run your little white ass down the block a few times.

My Always Inspiring Teammate

Daniel never ceases to amaze me.  He is pure, authentic, and full of genuine passion for friends, training, and life.  Someone posted this quote from him (that I assume ran in the Tennessean) about the upcoming marathon.  He has a way with words that always seems to lift and inspire you to run toward your next day, week, or race. I’m proud to know him and have him as part of the Crushing Iron team as we inch closer to Ironman Wisconsin

Image

Thumbs Up for Daniel!

I’m kinda busy today, but every time I post something about Daniel and he shares it, I get a lot of views on my blog.  So, here’s a little summary of the year to date and how great it is to have him as a teammate and a social media juggernaut.

We’ll start with one of my favorite running pictures ever.  This is Daniel racing through one of Tennessee’s State Parks and I just love the fact that that guy behind him cannot believe he’s getting beat by a guy in a suit.

Daniel, proving it's all in the mind

Below is Daniel with the rest of the crew at the X3 Christmas Party.  That hair wouldn’t last much longer.FabFivex3This is a still shot from his first interview for Crushing Iron, a documentary.  This wasn’t long after we all signed up for Ironman Wisconsin and his enthusiasm was palpable.  318536_682444175719_1135551876_n

And just like that, his hair went away to raise over 3,000 bucks to feed people who are hungry.  DanielshaveHis sleek new look.388242_682769553659_338134174_n

Here he is working out for one of the first times with his new haircut.  He said he had trouble adjusting to his head being cold.  danielspinclassyellowshirtThis is actually Jim eating a hot dog, but I really like the shot.  JimHotdogBelow is Daniel doing an interview on the same day Jim ate that hot dog.  DanielNRCAnd finally, here he is en route to setting a Fab 5 Half Marathon record of 1:33:30 at the Tom King Classic.

Daniel gives thumbs up
Daniel gives thumbs up

Thumbs up for Daniel!