Flying Like an Eagle

Congratulations to our Eagleman 70.3 triathletes!
From L to R: Stacy Wanamaker, Brian Maher, Lorie Ann Voight, Steve Kieb, Kelly Maher, Beth Hughes, Trish Dugan, Mary Beth Romagnoli, Kim Pietro. Also racing but not pictured: Kristen Roe, Joanna Chaffin, Brandi Boyanski, Amy Reynders, and Eric Prager.

Dear Cycling Friends,

Back in our January newsletter, I shared with all of you some of my athletic goals for the coming year which included racing the Eagleman 70.3 triathlon in Cambridge, MD this past weekend. I looked at it as another motivational tool: if I tell 4000 people that I plan on doing a half-Ironman distance race, you can bet I'm going to get to that finish line even if I have to crawl over it! So last weekend, I headed down to the beautiful Eastern Shore of Maryland with 13 other Syracuse area triathletes. The race is a significant endurance challenge: 1.2 miles of swimming, 56 miles of cycling, and 13.1 miles of running. We had all devoted a significant chunk of our free time over the past 6 months swimming, biking, running, and strength training. For all of us, it was a complex balancing act, trying to figure out how to fit in our training while still working and spending time with loved ones. So how did we do it? What lessons can we share with you to help you meet your goals, whether it's to race a triathlon or simply get out of bed in the morning?

Clearly identify your goal and create a roadmap to get there. It all started almost a year ago, when I clicked send on my race registration for Eagleman. From there, I worked backwards and created a 6-month training plan to follow to get me to the starting line. You can easily find plans online for any race distance, or enlist the help of a coach if you're unsure of how to map out your own workouts

Build your mental toughness. There are certain mental qualities athletes can to develop to meet the demands of competition and give themselves the best chance to perform their best: confidence, concentration, commitment, and composure - the four Cs. Confidence means believing in yourself and your ability to handle what comes your way. Concentration is the ability to stay in the moment and focused despite distrations. Commitment is the willingness to train hard and keep going even when things are not going well in order to achieve your goals. Composure means managing your emotions and controlling how you respond to what happens to you in a positive manner. A mentally strong triathlete who gets a flat tire during a race can still make the best of the situation by reassessing his goals for the day (commitment), reacting to the situation calmly instead of with anger and frustration (composure), quickly focusing on changing his flat tire (concentration), and still believing in his ability to reach a new goal for that race (confidence). All four qualities play a crucial role in helping you balance the stress of competition, and in a larger way, the stress of life.

Create a network of friends who help you along the way. I was very lucky to find such a great group of people to share my journey toward that finish line last Sunday. We had spent many miles on the road biking and running and countless laps in the pool, often in the early hours of the morning (never a favorite of mine). But what I remember most of all is the laughter and the fun along the way. THANK YOU!

This coming weekend brings 400 athletes from all over Central New York to Green Lakes State Park for what is bound to be a fantastic day of swimming, biking, and running. For some, including my 15-year-old son, it will be their first triathlon. For others, racing this triathlon is a long standing way to kick off their summer. For all, it will be an opportunity to meet their goal. And if you missed your chance to sign up for this triathlon, there are still plenty of opportunities to achieve your summer goals. Registration is still open for several upcoming races including the Giro of Otisco on June 19th, The Owasco Flyer on June 26th, the Owascoman Triathlon on July 3rd, the Cazenovia Triathlon on August 15th and the the SkinnyMan on Saturday September 4th. So get out there and get riding!

Be safe,

Trish

Owascoman Triathlon