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"Believe in the Dream" - The Journey of an ironguides athlete
From Gilbert fisch
Hi Sergio,
When I decided to race Monaco I remembered your comment about chosing the races wisely according to ones abilities. Well, I have become a pretty strong roller who is still strugling with climbing at steeper grades. So I had second thoughts about racing Monaco. But on the other hand last year our group of very good friends had such a great time there that I did not want to miss these quality times with so much fun. And then there was the tempting Kona slots that made my decision an easy one after all: yes, I wanted to face the challenge and have a good time.
Well, indeed we did have a wonderful time. As a matter of fact the best ever in a race abroad. And that made up for all the suffering and pain I went trough that Sunday.
The swim was just great. After a hectic beach mass start I managed to swim in a small but quite fast group. I felt just great and found my feet that made it very easy to keep the pace. A private gps measure indicated that the swim loop was 2.1k instead of 1.9 which makes my 29:49min a pretty fast time. Then on the bike the first climb begann after as little as 1k and went on for 20k. All three climbs are never really steep but mostly 5-7%. I had a much better feeling than last year but still did not climb they way I wanted. Compared to my speed on a flat course my abilities as a "grimpeur" are still quite poor. So I gave it the best shot I had and did suffer for the whole distance. I lost almost 20min to the best cyclists in my age group. My best friend who won the race did a 2:47hrs. I did a 3:09. Six weeks ago at IM Switzerland he only took 3min of me. So when I changed into the running shoes I did feel tired but I was willing go fight the odds. I ran a 1:42 which is 3min faster than last year. It was so painful but hey, the closer the finish line came the stronger I felt again. In total I finished in 5:29 a 6min pb over last year. But I lost 25min to the winner and ended up in 9th place.
Thanks to all my friends I did go the slot allocation. I payed off big time for me. I guess it is true that when you are sending out positive energy into the universe you will get positive energy back. I never gave up, I never stopped believing in a good outcome. Not a certain rank or a certain time where on my mind but the desire to be able to say: "I gave it all I had - there was no more left and therefore I am proud of what I did!"
And now I will race Kona. From a dream to a aim to reality in 10 months! Yes, I am proud of myself. And yes, I am so thankful for your guidance and support, my dear friend. And yes, we shall meet in Kona and have the hell of a time. What can I ask more?
I want all ironheads out there to know: When I can do it you can do it also. Believe in The Method it will get you there. Be patient, be clever, be positive - and above all have fun and enjoy it. You will never regret it!!
Gilbert
Hi Sergio,
When I decided to race Monaco I remembered your comment about chosing the races wisely according to ones abilities. Well, I have become a pretty strong roller who is still strugling with climbing at steeper grades. So I had second thoughts about racing Monaco. But on the other hand last year our group of very good friends had such a great time there that I did not want to miss these quality times with so much fun. And then there was the tempting Kona slots that made my decision an easy one after all: yes, I wanted to face the challenge and have a good time.
Well, indeed we did have a wonderful time. As a matter of fact the best ever in a race abroad. And that made up for all the suffering and pain I went trough that Sunday.
The swim was just great. After a hectic beach mass start I managed to swim in a small but quite fast group. I felt just great and found my feet that made it very easy to keep the pace. A private gps measure indicated that the swim loop was 2.1k instead of 1.9 which makes my 29:49min a pretty fast time. Then on the bike the first climb begann after as little as 1k and went on for 20k. All three climbs are never really steep but mostly 5-7%. I had a much better feeling than last year but still did not climb they way I wanted. Compared to my speed on a flat course my abilities as a "grimpeur" are still quite poor. So I gave it the best shot I had and did suffer for the whole distance. I lost almost 20min to the best cyclists in my age group. My best friend who won the race did a 2:47hrs. I did a 3:09. Six weeks ago at IM Switzerland he only took 3min of me. So when I changed into the running shoes I did feel tired but I was willing go fight the odds. I ran a 1:42 which is 3min faster than last year. It was so painful but hey, the closer the finish line came the stronger I felt again. In total I finished in 5:29 a 6min pb over last year. But I lost 25min to the winner and ended up in 9th place.
Thanks to all my friends I did go the slot allocation. I payed off big time for me. I guess it is true that when you are sending out positive energy into the universe you will get positive energy back. I never gave up, I never stopped believing in a good outcome. Not a certain rank or a certain time where on my mind but the desire to be able to say: "I gave it all I had - there was no more left and therefore I am proud of what I did!"
And now I will race Kona. From a dream to a aim to reality in 10 months! Yes, I am proud of myself. And yes, I am so thankful for your guidance and support, my dear friend. And yes, we shall meet in Kona and have the hell of a time. What can I ask more?
I want all ironheads out there to know: When I can do it you can do it also. Believe in The Method it will get you there. Be patient, be clever, be positive - and above all have fun and enjoy it. You will never regret it!!
Gilbert
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