Cutting to the chase of it:
A few email exchanges and one "almost" 3:1 meeting between myself, the head coach, the team manager and the LLS director seemed to have settled each sides grievances. A compromise had been determined. LLS/TNT expressed their concerns for my safety and capability to complete my swim. Knowing my dissatisfaction with their decision, a few alternate choices were placed on the table.
A) I could have a "pitch swimmer". I would do the bike and run part and someone else could do the swim part.. becoming the first ever "duathlete" with Ironteam.
B) Although advised against it: By May 24th I could test to swim 1.2 miles within the 1:20 window either through a sanctioned event or through an Ironteam coach. Until then I cannot do any open water swims with the team. I would have to have my own personal "swim consultant" that I must meet with routinely and then a weekly report as to my progress would need to be provided to the team coaches.
C) Should I fail to do option (B) I can then choose option (A) or go to option (D)
D) Walk away from the entire Ironman event. The money I did fundraise would then be held in limbo and rolled over into a different event of my choosing for next year.
E) Should I pass the test: I would then be allowed to rejoin Ironteam for open water swims. I would also be required to continue seeing a personal "swim consultant" and have weekly reports about my progress be provided for the remaining duration of the season.
What have I been doing?
I have been SWIMMING like a fish! I now have a personal "swim consultant"/friend who is helping me achieve that perfect swim stroke, body/balance position in the water. I have also been seeing an EFT specialist to help me overcome my nausea. And I have been swimming as often as I can in open water and in my wet suit. Pssts.. now keep this on the "down low" but I now know I CAN swim the 1.2 miles within the time allotted. :) I've already done it several times.. so stay tuned!
Another quick update: This past weekend I signed up and completed back to back Century rides. This was a great accomplishment for me personally. In training I have never ridden further than 65 miles. In just one weekend alone, I rode just slightly over 200 miles. I rode in a climate of 90+ degree weather and climbed anywhere from 5,500-6,000 feet of elevation daily. My nutrition was good and I was well hydrated. I battled any demons laying before me. I must say the 2nd Century Ride was more challenging. My body was already taxed from the previous days Century. The route was less shaded and more available to the suns rays. I also rode alone without any of my core Ironmates surrounding me. The weekends events was an ultimate test of my endurance, my determination and my training and it paid off!
**My song to get me through the grueling moments: Build Me Up Butter Cup
(im going to have to print out the song lyrics before my next event)
4 comments:
You Rock!
You should be able to have your fundraising discounted by 1/3 since the coaches are only willing to coach you in 2/3 of the sports. That's just absurd!
Way to keep your head on, and teach them what Iron really is, they apparently need the lesson badly. Someone also needs to teach them what the hell a "TEAM" is.
I heard about this series of events from another TNT member and asked around about the coaches. I guess a group of experienced Ironman coaches with 25 years of coaching and at least 6 IM's under their belts don't know diddly huh? This is not a beginner program we are talking about here, it's an Iron-frickin-man for crying out loud. I wish you the best of luck in facing the challenge and I hope you are successful, but don't beat up the coaches who are looking out for your safety. At least you have options now. If this were an Olympic distance team, I could see the need to teach basic swimming skills. Ironteam should be a training program, not a teaching program. I have yet to even consider Ironteam until I have completed at least a half Ironman with or without TNT. Good Luck.
I never implied that they didnt know "diddly". They are the coaches and have the personal experiences and knowledge to help us get to our Ironman events. I should hope that qualified individuals are the ones holding the coaching positions. This is a serious event that we are all training for and we need to be prepared.
They were right in the fact that I wasnt a good swimmer. They were right in the fact that I was slower then everyone else.
But they were wrong for (initially) taking away my right to train for the swim part of my event. I had 3 mos of training season left. They were wrong in taking away my right to try to improve and meet my goal. They were wrong in giving up on the athlete before the athlete had even given up on themselves.
Regardless.. we need to move forward from this point. Just this past Sat. I met their requirements. I completed a 1.2 mile swim well within the time parameters set. I know the work is not over and it will be difficult. I will continue to train and learn. I will be even more focused and driven than before.
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