Reflections on 200 triathlons

This past weekend, at age 70, I completed my 200th triathlon, reaching my goal of hitting #200 this year. I finished 14 tri’s this year (so far), from Jacksonville (north) to Cocoa Beach (south) and from the Gulf of Mexico (Crystal River) to the Atlantic (St. Augustine). With all the changes in the world and to Sandy and myself, I didn’t want anything to stop me. It took me 17 years to hit 100 and only 13 years to reach 200. The odd thing is, that young man (of 40) who did his first in 1993, felt the same amount of joy before, during, and after the race as I do today. And to me it’s the pleasure of completing the event successfully, knowing all the little things that can go wrong and working your hardest to make them go right. I still look up during the swim leg at the sun shining across the water and think, “What a beautiful day!”. And after the bike ride, as tough, long, and hot the run may be, I still feel the thrill of crossing the finish line. I know one day fate will conspire to stop me, but, with Sandy’s support, I’ll continue to strive and train to keep that day far off in the future. By the numbers: 200 triathlons. 35 First Places, 32 Second Places, 22 Third Places. 89 podium finishes result in a 43% podium rate. 2 half-iron distance, 3 one/third-iron distance, 45 Olympic distance (including 12 St. Anthony’s Tri’s), 150 sprints. More remarkable, No DNS, No DNF, No Penalties, No DQs. Now, when’s the next race?