This came from a post on www.beginnertriathlete.com asking what people put in their mental toolbox for the day of the race. My favorite reply was:

1. Why Ironman? - You need to know why you are doing this. When you are on the course and feel alone, knowing your reason for being out there and focusing on that can help you through the tough moments.

• The best response I can give to this one is because I can. Im blessed that I have the time, money, health, ability and support from family and friends to try something. Those of you who know me well know I rarely do things the conventional way, and never back down from a challenge no matter how outlandish it may seem.

2. Manage your expectations – This was a big one for me because I felt a tremendous amount of pressure to finish. The pressure and fear of failure was weighing so heavily on me. When I let that go and made my goal getting to the starting line I felt so much more relaxed and confident about the race.

• This one will be tough. They tell you to make only one goal in your first Ironman attempt … finish. Do not make a time goal whatsoever because you will undoubetdly start chasing that and forgetting the rest of your race and nutrition strategy. That being said, my goal is 12 hours or less

3. Focus on what you can control - You can’t control the weather, the condition of your fellow athletes, the course etc so don’t get yourself stressed out about those things. Instead dial in the things you have direct control over. Your gear, your nutrition plan, your training.

• This one will be very easy. I tend to be resilient under pressure and have learned alot through my previous races, and from other triathletes that I know and what nuggets of wisdom I get from them.

4. Stay Present - This is the most important one. For us the day is going to be long and when you are out there pretty much alone at mile 90 of the bike or mile 20 of the run you can’t be thinking ahead to having to run a marathon or those last 6 miles to the finish. You have to stay in the moment and not get distracted by the next thing. Learning to be with yourself during the highs and lows of the day is also very important.

• Another easy one. Racing in my hometown will be an amazing experience and I will feed off of every ounce of it. I know that I have no idea what Im getting myself into and that come race day its going to be an almost spiritual journey in the late parts of the race. So far I have handled this well in training and in my other races. Youve gotta like spending time by yourself to be a triathlete.