Ironman Chattanooga on Sunday was my fourth Ironman distance race.  I did my first Ironman at the age of 55, and even though I am getting older, I am still getting faster.  I need to remember that.

These past two days, I have been a typical triathlete.  Both during the race and in the hours since it has finished, I have tended to focus on all the things that I could have done better. I went through all the “if only” scenarios.  If things had gone perfectly, then I could have achieved this or met that goal.  But as with all things in life, things never go perfectly.

Eventually, the realization that perfection is unlikely sunk in, and I started to think of the things that went well with my race.  I had by far my best ever swim, my fastest ever bike split and for a good portion of the race, I was positioned in the top ten of my age group.

I also achieved one of my major goals.  It was not on the list of goals that I shared here.  It was a goal that I have wanted to achieve since entering for my first Ironman race.  That goal was to finish the race in under 12 hours. On Sunday, my finish time was…

…    11:50:23

Even though I am getting older, I still believe that I can get even faster.    To get faster will require more hard work, but I am still learning about my limitations. Knowing my limitations and working to address them, is the key.  Eventually I will start to slow down, but I don’t want that to be anytime soon.  I am already thinking of the upcoming off season and getting to work for next year.