ROAD TO IRONMAN with DEREK GARCIA May 13, 2011

In the months leading up to the ninth running of Ironman Coeur d'Alene on June 26, Derek Garcia will be writing a monthly column keeping the community updated on his journey as well as what the hundreds of athletes from the Inland Northwest are doing in preparation for the race.

Damage control.

That is the name of the game in Ironman 99 percent of the time. It is like the old saying, "It is not IF something goes wrong, but WHEN."

Obviously this year hasn't brought about the most ideal conditions to get ready for an early season Ironman. That doesn't change the fact that hundreds are signed up to race from Kootenai County. So it really comes down to making the best of the situation.

For those that have mentally and physically grinded through this horrendous spring, it is a matter of keeping positive. As soon as the mental change is made to looking at things with a negative "poor me" type attitude, things can go downhill in racing or training in a blink of an eye.

TO BE successful in completing a goal, there are times in which the mental reset button has to be pushed. I have mentioned this idea before of having reasons deep down inside that drives a person to succeed.

Anytime that the "poor me" thoughts start to creep in, it is time to remind oneself why they are pushing through whatever it is that they are going through.

Here is the truth - to compete in an Ironman a person is in the top 1 percent of the population on earth in not only physical fitness, but affluence. That is something that should not be taken lightly. It is an absolute privilege to be involved in a sport like triathlon and a community like ours that embraces us spandex-clad individuals. I had to remind myself of many of my whys this past weekend as I competed in Ironman St. George, Utah.

AS I was standing in transition getting ready to start the swim I realized I had forgotten half of my nutrition back at the house I was staying at for the week. The gun hadn’t even gone off yet and I was already having to problem solve.

Another aspect of the race was that the forecast called for 95-degree heat. Now I knew I had signed up for a race that could potentially be warm, but not HOT. Quickly I had to hit that so-called reset button.

So in no particular order I mentally rehearsed my list: I have two beautiful boys, I do this for the glory of Christ, I LOVE my wife, I have a great support system, I never in my life have worried if I would eat the next day, I am happy and healthy no matter the outcome of this race, STAY CALM, go to plan B. That was it, reset button successfully pushed, and time to start with a clean slate.

Now I will confess this has taken a long time to get good at, and I still have a long way to go. Here is the point, Ironman is approaching quickly and the mindset over the next few weeks and definitely race day will ultimately be the overruling factor of success or failure on June 26.

SO LET’S address some of the things that may already be causing havoc. It has been ridiculously cold. OK, to combat this, remember that locals have the advantage of knowing the course like the palm of their hand. Maybe training hasn’t gone to plan, then it is time to adjust goals based on current fitness.

I would rather have someone 10 percent undertrained then 1 percent over trained. The important thing is to keep triathlon in perspective. It can be unbelievably fulfilling, and Ironman can be a lifelong accomplishment, but it is still a HOBBY.

Would it cause this much stress if it were fishing? If you are competing this year I encourage you to re-visit your whys, come up with a plan B for everything on race day, and if all else fails, remember you chose to do this so you might as well enjoy the journey.

AS I went through my race this past Saturday I repeated my reset list easily 100 times. It was an absolute grind-it-out, not-the-way-I-had-planned type of day. Fortunately Ironman is a long day and things can come around in the end. I did Ironman St. George to try to qualify for the World Championships in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, and that is exactly what panned out once the dust settled.

So instead of racing Ironman Coeur d’Alene I will be supporting the athletes that I coach along with all of those that are competing this year. I can’t wait to see everyone cross that finish line. Hopefully I will remember my nutrition, because I don’t have a plan B for when I am on the sidelines.

Derek Garcia is a multisport coach at the Salvation Army Kroc Center, and owns his own personal coaching business, Derek Garcia Multisports. Derek will be supporting all the athletes at this year’s race and once again will be competing in the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii in October. You can contact Derek by email at [email protected], or come see him face to face at the Kroc.