What is Extreme?

Except for maybe the very first year I trained for an Ironman, I have never thought of it as an "extreme" pursuit. Swimming, biking and running for a long time is not very dangerous, and if one is willing to put in the training time, any reasonably fit person can complete an Ironman, IMO.

Yet for years I have had friends and acquaintances both inside and outside triathlon who have held me up as their "extreme" friend. Sometimes I just smile, and other times I explain that it's not like climbing Mt. Everest without oxygen. After all, if I am able to do this while employed full time, how hard can it be?

And then there came a point, and I would say this was about 4 years ago (which curiously coincided with when I began writing this blog which was a result of major upheaval in my life), when I felt ready to do this Ironman thing a bit differently. I mean, do the training, but do the training with my own particular madness thrown in. Schedule in some events and races that wouldn't normally be recommended for a typical training cycle. Sometime during the next year is when I was christened "Crackhead."

I didn't really train more--I just trained harder, and the results began showing up the next year. It got to the point where whenever I would run into someone I hadn't seen in awhile, their first question would be, "When is your next race?" And usually there was one right on the horizon.

Thing is, the more I did and the harder I trained, the more I enjoyed it. Practice becomes habit. The body adapts; the mind follows. What was once a stretch became routine. Life moves on, though, and there were periods of time when I couldn't be at my best physically, but that is something we all have to accept.

As each year has passed and I've grown older, I've wondered how long I can continue to improve. I guess it's longer than I initially thought, only because I started so low down on the speed/endurance spectrum!

I still do not consider myself fast or extreme. Thing is, I know people much, much faster than me and some who do much more extreme events that me. I am not even sure what to make of Ultraman--to me it is more of a choice, and when I finish it, I still won't think I am that extreme--after all, it is just swimming, biking and running.

When I think extreme, I think Badwater, Western States, climbing Mt. Everest, RAAM. Ultraman will be hard, and some will consider it extreme. But for me, extreme is something that I just can't conceive of doing--yet. Whenever someone says to me, "I could never do an Ironman," I typically respond, "Don't say you can't--say you choose not to."

A week ago someone said to me, "You don't know the word can't." Maybe not, but I know my limits, and the game to me is all about increasing them methodically to the point where the extreme becomes the expected.

Even though Revenge of the PirateMan gave me some confidence for Ultraman, I am keeping perspective since:

• I swam in a pool and split 10,000 yards over 4 days. I need to be able to do it all at once in a huge lake while relying on a kayaker to lead my way and feed me. That is something I will need to practice.
• The biking was pretty flat. Ultraman Canada has tons of climbing! I am not that concerned about biking 90 miles at once, and even the 170 miles on Day 2 doesn't seem that daunting except from the perspective of the amount of climbing and saddle comfort. But I have spent 10 hours on a bike before, so I've got that going for me!
• I ran 52+ miles in 4 days, but will need to do it all at once. I get my first shot at close to it in 6 weeks.
• There were no time cutoffs. I pretty much lollygagged my way through 4 days! Each day of UMC I'll get 12 hours to do what is on the schedule.
• The weather was pretty good, despite the rain. UMC saw temperatures in the 100's on days 1 and 2.

So on paper what I just did was some kind of preparation, but I have a ways to go. Does that make Ultraman extreme? A little ;) But I have a pretty good idea of what I need to do to be ready--ready to not just cover the distances, but to cover them within the time cutoffs. The extreme part of it, I think, is being prepared for anything over 3 days. And in one respect, putting myself in the hands of a capable crew. I was glad during ROTPM that the only person I had to depend on was myself! If I fucked up, it was all my fault! I have been so used to relying on only myself for so long.

But here's where the universe helped me out. In dealing with my Dad's estate, I had to put together a team of people who would help me get through the process, and as I've known for many years, choosing good people is paramount to any large team undertaking. What I learned is that I need people around me to help me who understand me but don't judge. Who will listen to me when I am losing faith in myself and remind me that I am strong. Who will not coddle me but will push me to do bigger and better things and finish what I started and then congratulate me. Who will put up with my sometimes paradoxical seriousness and silliness. Who will let me loudly or silently indulge my self doubts and refuse to believe them.

Sometimes what I think is extreme is finding these people, but I have found some in my life and they are like jewels to me. When I finish Ultraman, it won't be just me. It will be me and my crew! We have so much work to do, and we are already starting. Shelley is working the crewing thing and I am working the training and personal gear thing. Right now it seems like a massive undertaking, but I am happy that it's a team effort and can't wait for all of us to arrive at the starting line to begin our celebration!

What is extreme? Extreme is something I can't conceive of. Ultraman, here we come!