Greetings from horse country...

(hmmm... somehow this feels a bit like the beginning of a 12-step program meeting...)

Hello, my name is BGTwinDad, and I'm a triathlon-o-holic...

Well, not really, since I've never done one before. But what am I, really?

Umm...

What am I?

Child of God
Father of two 4-year-olds (boy/girl twins... duh...)
Husband to a wonderful wife
Son and son-in-law to some great members of the previous generation
Engineer

Why am I here?

Well, I've never really done much athletically... ran track in 7th grade, but quit the team. Never ran after that. Spent a lot of time carrying a trombone around the football field, but never a ball. Played little league, but mostly looked for flowers in the outfield. Learned enough swimming as a kid to keep from drowning. You know the type. I spent more time reading about stuff than actually doing stuff.

I did spend a lot of time - especially in college - backpacking, hiking, and even trying rock climbing (really bad at it - no muscle strength!), and riding my bike around campus. But I never really pushed myself physically.

Then I found myself hitting 30, mildly overweight, with a family history that would make a cardiologist with a jones for a new yacht drool, two small kids and a wife that would like to see me attend their graduation from kindergarten. I decided to do something about it, so I dusted off the old bike and started riding it.

Me starting training was a lot like folks quitting smoking. I've done it about 4 times over the last couple years. Last year I put nearly 1,000 miles on the bike, and a few hundred miles on my running shoes, but never saw a pool. This year I've been far less active on the bike, and restarted my run twice, but finally learned how to swim "freestyle" enough to not panic in the pool.

I stumbled into this site while looking for a good online log. Haven't been here long, but I'm beginning to like it a lot!

Where am I going?

Well, the baseline goal is to keep the old pump well oiled and functional for a few more decades. Not that there's any problem with it right now. Had a stress test, and the doctor said I must have cheated, because the EKG looked like it was copied from a textbook. I intend to keep it that way. And make it better.

Second, I need to drop about 20 lbs and improve my functional strength. I've always been pretty weak, physically, and for once I'd like to be able to knock off 10 chinups and a decent 5K time. It's a self-image thing. I'm quite confident in my mental skills, they're quite adequate for their uses, but I've never been too comfortable physically. I'm changing that for the better.

Third, I want to set a good example for my kids. I want them to see me working hard, pushing myself, succeeding, and drawing my self-image from my work and effort. I just think it'll be easier for them to understand this with physical effort than with, say, my job.

Fourth, I want to have some fun, let off some steam, and get a break from the pressures of life. Things get pretty frustrating sometimes in my world, and the simplicity of the effort and ease of measuring progress is appealing to my sanity.

Finally, I want a challenge. I want to work at something I can't do and turn it into something I can. I grew up being the "smart kid" who got picked last because he couldn't run fast or whatever. I want to show up at my 20th reunion and be able to say, "Well, after I finished the Ironman, we took a trip to..." Call it vain if you like. I don't much care. I picked triathlon because I like all three sports, and because when I mentioned it to people they look at me funny, like "why don't you pick something more realistic... you can't really do that..." There's something about that that fires me up inside and makes me want to prove them wrong...

Soooo.... I'm spending the winter strength training, building running bones, working on cycling speed/power, and swimming efficiency... I'm shooting for my first (sprint) tri in April. Then another one a group of coworkers did this year that's in September. Maybe some others in between, along with maybe a Century and some 5K/10K races. Then in '06 I'd like to try an Olympic distance tri. Will I accomplish all of this?? Probably not, with work and family priorities, but I'll have a lot of fun trying...

Oh yeah, and I TALK TOO MUCH!!