Countdown

One year ... 366 days ... that's the time I have to get ready. One year to learn to swim well-enough to survive 1.2 miles in the water. One year to get strong enough on the bike that 56 miles at a good clip still leaves plenty of gas in the tank. One year to rebuild my run so that I can run fast, I can run tired, and I can run fast tired.

There will be challenges over the next year, with moving, some travel, family issues, and training issues. Already, I know that swimming will become harder with the pool closures. I might not be able to continue bike-commuting once winter hits, and that's 5 free hours of aerobic work every week. Still, I'll find ways through and around, because I have no other choice. One year.

My education in the sport (or all three sports) continues. Where I may be lacking physically, I'll make it up mentally. By training smarter, I'll train harder, and I'll outperform those with greater gifts, and I'll outperform my own imagination. I have to rein in my enthusiasm, and temper my disappointment in current efforts. Patience is the key. The race isn't tomorrow. One year.

I have goals for that day (none to be disclosed now), and a plan to achieve them. Piece by piece, hour by hour, mile by mile, I'll chip away at the block until I've sculpted something that can accomplish what I'm setting out to do. My calendar of work for the next 4 months has been filled out. Every day, every effort, already recorded in ink. Plan the work, work the plan.

For one year.