My spouse and I made a commitment when we had kids, that they would grow up without TV!! Our breakdowns were Saturday Night
Hockey (one period only) and then the 2000 Olympics.
Knowing they could only watch one event of the Olympics on TV, my kids picked
the triathlon. They (and I) had no idea what it was but if you are allowed only 1 event the 100 Metre track race isn't a good
pick!
I didn't watch it but came in and out and saw what they were doing. I didn't have much interest and am not sure I realized
much more than they were doing different things. And then came Simon Whitfield in for his glorious gold, and I burst out, "I
want to do one of those" - whatever it was. My burst was soon forgotten but not by my spouse.
For my birthday that
Fall, he got me a road bike. I was not sure what I was going to do then. I had not been on a bike in over 20 years, I
had been running a bit and swimming is something you do at the cottage to cool off.
Anyway, I signed up for the Guelph Sprint, Labour Day Weekend 2001. The bike gathered dust until August. I went out once
to figure out the pedals and once to figure out the gears. I think I got in about 3 km on it before the race. And
the race? I had a blast - probably slower downhill than uphill as I was petrified.
But I loved it because of the
other woman; some accomplished athletes and some as scared as me and we all had a great time encouraging each other to do our best
- whatever that may be. I feel the same encouragement and the same thrill at every event I have been to, no matter what my results
are - the rush is in getting there and doing the best one can.
This year is my 50th Birthday. What better way to make a
statement than trying something that seems so out of reach and outlandish!! I expect Simon Whitfield to once again inspire me
at the Olympics and then off I go to IMC.
Here is my story. I started working at a new job in the health profession about 4 years ago and many of my colleagues ate high fat
diets. Everyday, I watched them eat French fries and hamburgers for lunch loaded with mayo and ranch dressing. I watched them
as they gained more and more weight. They had difficulty walking as their legs rubbed together and they would get out of breath just
walking down the hall. I never want to be in that poor or health.
No way not for me! Also I lived with a very overweight mother who never could do anything athletic with me. My dad was the one who had to do all the heavy work around the house. I always think the labour around the house should be done together. I decided to get healthy and so far I have lost 87 pounds! Keeping in shape makes you feel better all around.
One of the aspects of triathlon I have come to enjoy about this crazy wonderful sport is learning how people came to love it. Each
person has a personal journey, a story to tell on how they arrived to the start line and what compelled them to be there.
As a young
girl, I hated sports and dreaded track & field, gym class. I suffered from juvenile arthritis at the time so it served as an excuse
not to participate in anything athletic. The label "athlete" was for everyone else. I was better suited playing the piano.
A
few years ago I was going through "my year from hell" which involved going through a divorce and being diagnosed with malignant melanoma
skin cancer. During this terrible time, a person I had briefly worked with became a very dear friend to me. This friend (also an avid
runner) who had recently moved to Dubai, sent me a pair of Asics running shoes as a gift. I simply started to run and heal. I discovered
it was the greatest gift I have ever given myself. I soon went on to sign up for my first 10 km, them moved on to complete several
half and full marathons.
After joining Team in Training as a mentor I began to learn about triathlon and signed up for a sprint race two summers ago. I swam
the swim portion doing a combination of front crawl, breast stroke and the dog paddle. In the race shots that day I look like Mary
Poppins sitting upright on my Canadian Tire bike. That day I finished the race nearly dead last and fell in love with triathlon.
This
past summer I completed my first two half-Ironman races and only wanted to strive for more when I crossed those finish lines. My friend
Sue held up a sign that read "Katie, You Are An Athlete!". I decided then that I can endure anything and push myself beyond what I
thought was possible.
The friend that moved to Dubai? His name is Paul. He and our son Josh, age 7are the reason I'll be at the
start line of the Kentucky Ironman next August 31st, 2008. Hugging them both at the finish line is the only feeling that will surpass
being called an Ironman that day.
One Sunday afternoon, I was watching the Hawaii Ironman, it was 1982. I will never forget because there was a young women, Julie Moss
crawling across the finish line with every ounce of energy that she had left. Determined to reach her goal!
Others watching this with
me thought she was 'nuts'. I thought she was incredibly brave, strong and determined. I knew then that one day I would do an Ironman.
I promised myself on that day I would do one before I was 50! I was 24 years old.
Fast forward thru many years of raising 3 children,
going back to school, and trying to fit fitness into a very busy life. Somewhere in the back of my mind, was always my Ironman dream.
Running wasn't new for I've run since the birth of my youngest daughter, now I just had to add cycling and swimming. Swimming was
fun as I had certified as a lifeguard back in my 30's while my kids took lessons...but the bike!
I just happened to change jobs at this time, my new boss came from a cycling/running background! He helped guide me thru this new
world of cycling. What to buy, what I needed, how to ride, how to improve and complete my first duathlon. I was hooked! That was 1999.
2000 brought me to my first triathlon and from there it was simply a matter of getting all my training partners hooked so I
would have company :-) It worked and I've had the most amazing training partners anyone could ask for.
2006 brought me to Ironman
Wisconsin, I was 50 years old! I remember waking up that morning, not able to eat, so nervous but confident that today was my day.
My training partners were all participating, each nervous in their own way. One of my training partners Sid entered the water beside
me, he knew I was nervous because I wasn't 'talking'. He was so calm, he just looked at me and said, "Just pretend it's one of our
swims at Lake Simcoe, we'll swim together, nice and easy, just like a regular training day!" He never left my side, my guardian angel
in the water. From then on I could feel my confidence building and knew I was ready. Ready to have the best time of my life!
I did, it was a day I'll never forget! It was a day I accomplished something I've wanted for a long time. Proud that I did what I set out to do. Prouder that I hung in on a day when the weather just didn't let up. So proud, and when you reach the finish line and they announce, Bernadette Thomas YOU ARE AN IRONMAN! You know that every early morning workout, long bike ride and run that took you into the sunset was worth every moment!
Growing up I was a very active kid, and lucky for me I had some great coaches along the way to help direct my energy. I would
participate in any sport that presented itself, but mostly loved team sports like basketball and softball. I did take swimming
lessons and did a bit of track, but only because it was a childhood requirement. Those sports seemed so boring to me.
After high school the sports teams dwindled as work and university (and parties) consumed me. I relieved my excess physical energy through aerobics, but soon found that it was becoming difficult to find challenging classes. After a frustrated evening of back-to-back aerobics classes I decided to trade my aerobics shoes for running shoes and a walkman. That day I became a runner.
So now here I am preparing for my first Ironman in 2008. Who knows what the future will bring? All I know is that my lifetime objective is to continue challenging myself in different ways and to stay fit and healthy enough to always say YES when active opportunities present themselves. Recently I was surfing in Hawaii and thought, What a blast! I want to be fit and courageous enough to be doing this at age 65.
My story begins about 3 and a half years ago. This is the time when I decided that I was going to retire from a 30-year career
at IBM at the end of 2007 and do something remarkable to mark this milestone.
I have always been very goal oriented with most
of my time and energy being focused on my family and my career but I knew that when the time came to leave IBM I needed a new goal
upon which to focus. To make it real I wanted to choose something way outside my comfort zone.
I started running in earnest in the year 2000. With several 10ks and Half Marathons under my belt at the beginning of the new millennium I was hooked. Not being too terribly much of an athlete growing up but loving the idea of pursuit of a tough goal and persistence I found that the long distance events were right in my ballpark. Lets just say I had more success with endurance than I did with speed!
In the spring of 2005 I sat down with Adam Johnston, our Coach from the Endurance Lab, and discussed with him my vision of the ensuing years and we leapt ahead to 2008 and began to work backwards. The thought of completing an Ironman in 2008 seemed quite extraordinary and remarkable given that I had only dabbled in duathlon and had just begun to get wet in the pool with open-water swimming as a distant dream.
So fast forward to January 2008 -- I am now retired from IBM as of January 1. My goal for 2008 is Ironman Canada -- 2007 saw my first and only Half Iron distance at Timberman 70.3 in New Hampshire: 2006
was several Olympic distance events and 2005 was the Season of Sprints.
As a mother of a 16-year old daughter what is most important to me is that I share with her the confidence, belief in oneself and passion that one can do whatever one sets out to do regardless of what age and stage you are in life --imparting that wisdom upon her -- then I will truly know I am an Ironman.
