Unfinished Business ( Chapter 2) - Parris Island

For those who missed out on chapter 1, I'll try to bring you up to speed. I'm going to borrow the mission statement from Sara Reinertson's 2005 attempt at the Ironman. If you don't recall this, take a look at Youtube's "Sarah Reinertsen - Ironman - Don't say you can't ". Since my Ironman preparation last year ended just three weeks shy of the big day, I have gone back to work this year with the goal of making it all the way to the finish line in Florida. Completing what I would consider some "Unfinished Business". During the first week in January of this year, I registered for five training events that I felt would help me get back to the Florida IM. This is back when I struggled to swim 200 yards, with my one good arm, and was recovering from a sprained ankle. It was also two weeks after my first trial bike ride where I went for all of two miles. That required a lot of faith or a "don't care" attitude about the entry fees. Parris Island was event number one of this quest. It was awesome to be out there competing again. We had a pretty large group of Lexingtonians there. Believe it or not my swim time and bike time were actually faster than last year's. Of course, pushing that hard left me with no strength to run with. With the staggered swim times I was unable to see the duel between Mike and Tim, who started only seconds apart. My daughter-in-law, Jessica, completed her first triathlon in a pretty impressive time. It must have been that last half mile of help, in the run, that she received from the team. Team Whetstone kicked off a new year, cheering for at least eight, by name. The team followed up the race with a rewarding warm afternoon at Hunting Island Beach. Those of us that get out there and run, are such a fortunate group of individuals. We enjoy being outdoors in most any kind of weather, soaking up the beauty of this world as we push ourselves to a fitness level that only ensures that we enjoy it more. We often don't appreciate what we have been blessed with until we are deprived of it. When I could not go out and do is when I missed it the most. I only hope that I enjoy the next five events as much as I did Parris Island. On now to chapter 3, with a smile and a supportive team.

Ironman 2008 video

Here's a video that I made from Ironman 2008 pictures (make sure you turn your volume up)

Let the Season Begin - Parris Island Triathlon

We're kicking off the Ironman Training Triathlon Season with a huge hit.

Michael competed in the Parris Island Triathlon on Saturday, March 19th. He was joined by several good friends/family.

Pre-race jitters are always calmed down a little by seeing your good friends.
Mike 9, Jessica (Michael's daughter-in-law), and Tim Eichstaedt. There were other members of the LRC participating but couldn't be found for the pre-race picture.


Maizeigh and Big Daddy stretching before the swim start


Mike in his swim


Tim took time out for a smile


Big Daddy going for the pass


Big Daddy - a great shot


How do you like my shoulder now?


Big Daddy finished the swim, heading to T1


Jessica smiling for the camera, during her swim


Jessica in T1 with Team Whetstone cheering her on


Rick Rikard starting the bike


Big Daddy coming in from a strong bike ride


Run start


Mike's run finish - sub 1 hour


Tim's run finish


Rick on his run start


Jessica's run start


Rick's run finish


Team Whetstone watching the soldiers


Jessica's run finish


LRC finishers


Michael's Time - 6th in age group:
Swim: 10:00
T1: 1:48
Bike: 32:27
T2: 1:11
Run: 22:36
Finish Time: 1:08:00

What's amazing is that after nursing his broken collar bone and broken ribs, Michael's wish of being faster really did come true. He beat his swim time from 2010 by 13 seconds and his bike time by over a minute. Way to go Big Daddy!!!!