2008 IMAZ November Edition
Well, April of last year I volunteered at IMAZ. I rode my motorcycle on the course in front of the lead male rider. It was a tiring day and I didn't have to pedal.
When April 2008 rolled around, it was my turn. I had done my training, established realistic goals and was ready. I had a tiring, but fun and successful day. I was proud to have finished my first Ironman, especially given the very hot conditions that resulted is one of the highest DNF rates of any Ironman in North America.
The organizers of the race decided to move it to November to try for better weather conditions. This weekend was the first of the new "Fall Edition" of IMAZ and I decided to head out with my camera to see Ironman from a new perspective.
Some of the highlights included seeing the lead bikes racing out of transition and getting a picture of the guy who finished the swim in first place and the bike in second place:
Watching these athletes fly by on their bikes was both humbling and motivating.
While I will never compete with the pro's, I know that I could complete an Ironman faster than I did in my first one. It would require training. I would like to dedicate that much time and effort to making another run at IM and chopping some time off of my PR, but this is just not a great time for me.
Actually, there is never a great time for taking up a hobby that will require 20 hours a week and an endless store of support and patience from your loved ones, it is just something that you need to prioritize in order to do it. And right now, I am just not willing to prioritize IM above other things I enjoy (photography being a big one) and the other jobs that I have (dad, husband, etc) again. It was a great experience and I had the full support of my family, but I am not ready to make the commitment again (yet).
I will be continuing to work on pictures from this race and will be updating them on the Flowing Desert Photography site in the IMAZ 2008 November Gallery. Feel free to drop by and let me know which pictures you like with a "thumbs-up" or a comment. I am adding race numbers when they are legible, so if you know someone that did this race, try using the search field at the top of any page for their race number.
When April 2008 rolled around, it was my turn. I had done my training, established realistic goals and was ready. I had a tiring, but fun and successful day. I was proud to have finished my first Ironman, especially given the very hot conditions that resulted is one of the highest DNF rates of any Ironman in North America.
The organizers of the race decided to move it to November to try for better weather conditions. This weekend was the first of the new "Fall Edition" of IMAZ and I decided to head out with my camera to see Ironman from a new perspective.
Some of the highlights included seeing the lead bikes racing out of transition and getting a picture of the guy who finished the swim in first place and the bike in second place:
Watching these athletes fly by on their bikes was both humbling and motivating.
While I will never compete with the pro's, I know that I could complete an Ironman faster than I did in my first one. It would require training. I would like to dedicate that much time and effort to making another run at IM and chopping some time off of my PR, but this is just not a great time for me.
Actually, there is never a great time for taking up a hobby that will require 20 hours a week and an endless store of support and patience from your loved ones, it is just something that you need to prioritize in order to do it. And right now, I am just not willing to prioritize IM above other things I enjoy (photography being a big one) and the other jobs that I have (dad, husband, etc) again. It was a great experience and I had the full support of my family, but I am not ready to make the commitment again (yet).
I will be continuing to work on pictures from this race and will be updating them on the Flowing Desert Photography site in the IMAZ 2008 November Gallery. Feel free to drop by and let me know which pictures you like with a "thumbs-up" or a comment. I am adding race numbers when they are legible, so if you know someone that did this race, try using the search field at the top of any page for their race number.
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