Fear and My Support Crew

Fear is a big part of athletics. Fear of the unknown, fear of what is going to happen in a race and if you will see the tangible results from all the training you have put in. For years I think I dealt with it pretty ineffectively. I am trying to work on it now. One of my big tools for dealing with this is focusing on the most important person in race---ME. I do not look at rosters of who is going to be at race because in my little world, it does not matter. When it comes to a race we all line up on the same line, at the same time, on the same day. No one gets a head start because they got less sleep or banged their knee on a table or forgot to put Body Glide on their bits. Standing on that starting line is actually pretty special, at that moment everyone is equal and hopefully, ready to give 100% of what they have that day.

I used to fear the results. What would happen if I did not accomplish what I strived for? I have come to realize that NOTHING happens. Life goes on, you train and race again and usually, if you stick with it, you get the results. If I make a COMMITMENT to the effort in each race, the rest takes care of itself. I am not saying that I would not be disappointed if things did not go the way I had hoped but there is solace in knowing that if I gave the effort to achieve those results I did all I could. The effort I gave and the focus that I pay toward each race is what I can control and this helps me alleviate the fear of the unknown (ie, the results). With each race, I fear the fear less. I have come to embrace it. It makes me excited to race, to find out what challenges I will have to face and ultimately, overcome. I know that if I continue to race, I will have some great races and I will have some not so great races but that is part of it. I accept it and embrace it. All aspects of racing are things that I enjoy and I am so thankful each and every time I am able to get out there and test myself.

I could not do all this without my support crew at home....Andy and our two cats, Storm and Jaromir. They know that each day, when I train or when I race, I commit to doing it the right way; to putting in the effort and letting the rest take care of itself. Before my first pro race Andy said "who cares, it's just another race, put on your blinders and do your thing." I did and it went great. Although, Andy did admit to me that he got worried because I got out of the water in 4th place and came off the bike in 12th that I would be a little down but that was not the case. I still got beat on the bike, but not by as much, it's coming along and I have confidence that I will get there. I could not ask for more from my husband, he believes in me no matter what. I gave him props by putting his name on the back of my tri top for the race:

Here are my two cats (Jaromir on the left, Storm on the right). They make me smile!

And, after a long day at the races, everyone is tired, not only me!