What Ironman Wisconsin "Feels Like"

Sometimes I’ll sit here watching Ironman Wisconsin videos and get chills. It’s surreal to think I will be on that course in seven months.daddf5fc-4133-41e3-95c2-0d78ab1216c2

I can already see the eyes of the Fab Five as we enter the water, a symbolic beginning to the end of training. Five guys focused on the same goal for over 8 months – and it all comes down to this.  Once the swim starts, I may not see them for the next 10 – 12 hours, but in many ways we’ll be connected as one.7976247757_9ace6d5bcc_z

Tonight, I am there.  I hear the screams from hundreds perched on balconies overlooking the water.  I hear the encouraging words of athletes floating around me.  I hear the cannon explode, sending me into mystery.

I feel the water splashing in Lake Monona. . . the mass of humanity pounding me with no regard . . . the serenity of a place humans weren’t meant to go.

I feel the slippery shore as I exit the water . . . my bare feet slapping concrete as I climb the winding road to the top of the transition helix.

My ass hits the seat for the first of many times that day.  My thighs burn as I roll through picturesque farmland.  Cheering fans slap my back while they hug the narrow climb in Verona like a Tour de France.

The loop through Camp Randall stadium, home of my favorite football team, takes me back to players I idolized as a child.   A gauntlet of familiar faces wave signs and give high fives as I recall college memories from State Street.

My ankles ache as I turn the final corner and feel the rush of the finish line.  I glance at the majestic state capital,  embrace the tunnel of fans, and culminate the biggest physical accomplishment of my life.

It’s in my bones and won’t release me.

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