Thinking out loud

Or in a public form of "print", I guess.

I spend more time than is probably healthy considering my long-term racing goals. I guess the reasons would be that I like the novelty of being able to change focus somewhat on a regular basis. There are also just a whole lot of interesting races and activities out there that I'd like to be a part of, and since I can't do them all right away, I need to find ways to do it.

A long time ago, I discussed with my wife the idea of a five-year rotation, where every fifth year I get to really pursue the racing, and do things like racing at Worlds or pursuing Ironman. In the intervening years, I'd still get to train and race, but it would be under tighter constraints on time and travel. And that's been OK with me.

I had made the argument that maybe it could move to four years, mainly so that I could remain in the same AG if I took another stab at 70.3 Worlds, but some other planning has me thinking I'd rather go back to the five. A review of the last couple, and my thoughts for the upcoming years:
2008 (big year): entry to triathlon, Muskoka 70.3, Worlds 70.3
2009: OSS AG Sprint title
2010: run-focus, half-marathon and Bermuda Triangle challenge
2011: another attempt at the OSS AG Sprint title
2012: run-heavy, maybe EndurRun, a couple of tri's, leading up to ...
2013 (big year): Disney Marathon, 70.3 qualifier, Worlds 70.3

(And listen, I know after Clearwater I said I'd never go back as long as it was still there, but the idea of a goofy kid like me competing at that level, even if I'm almost last, kind of tickles me. And I kind of want my daughter to have a "My Daddy raced at Worlds" shirt. Sue me.)

Obviously, none of this is ever set in stone, as things can change in a heartbeat. I just wanted to lay out some kind of reference for myself to see what the next few years could look like.