Parting words

This past weekend, friends lined up for a fabulous race out in Madison, WI. For me, it marked the second anniversary of my writing here.

My first year was about training for my first Ironman distance. It was fun. And hard. And full of lots of self discovery and insight.

Then I didn't finish the IM. And I sulked for a while. And picked up the pieces and put together a new race year. And then I continued to swim, bike, and run.

And life was good. Very, very good.

And here we are, two years later. And I'm realizing that I have changed a great deal. And my relationship to the sport has changed, as well. When I started, I sought a good deal of redemption from triathlon. I wanted -- and needed -- to find a core for myself that included discipline and follow through. I needed to prove to myself that I could, even when it was tough.

And I fell in love with the process and it found a place in my world. A permanent place. And, coincidentally, my life opened up in other ways. I fell in love with a boy. And he found a place in my world. A permanent place.

It has been two very good years.

And recently I have found that my writing has trickled down to less inspirational pieces about training and racing because, frankly, the process has become less about redemption and realization and more about just plain living.

And as much as I want to write more here, I'm finding I resist it. I don't want all of my writing to be about sport. I have much more complexity in my noggin to share. I have relationships and a professional life. I have hopes for a family and dreams of a new home. I have personal journeys that are no longer tied intimately with training and racing.

I need a new home and need a more personal, reflective voice. I'd like to write about it all, not just the triathlon journey. I need to write again, not just report.

So my words will migrate elsewhere. I'll let you know when it's time. I hope that many of you will come with me, and continue to listen to what you find interesting. I have every intention of trying outlandish new adventures and falling down in stupendous ways. I expect to have every pitfall and bad decision on paper, as well as each success. I have a marriage to build and a family to start and a career to jumpstart and an Ironman to conquer.

The next few years will not be dull. That, I promise.

So, thank you to the hundreds of friends who visit each day and the 50,000 who have spent this past couple of years together with me. I appreciate you more than I can describe. And soon I hope to share much more with you than just my splits. Soon I'll share my life. Yes, there will be training. But there will be more. I hope you enjoy it as much as I suspect I will.