[update 7/15/15, things have changed. I’m headed to Ironman Mont Tremblant instead.]

I made a pact with my good friend Marvin. We’re doing Ironman Canada 140.6 in July 2016. Whistler, British Columbia. After being in the multi-sport for about 9 years, it’s time for me to try out the BIG one, the full IRONMAN.

Marvin and I picked this one for a few reasons.

Time of year: We’re both married with kids, so the fall is a busy school time. Summer is the best for a lot of training time. We picked 2016 so we have plenty of time to schedule our lives and training.

Location: We picked Whistler, British Columbia because it’s beautiful, scenic, challenging. It’s on the west coast, so there’s not a big time change to deal with, coming from LA. Flights are shorter than East Coast. It’s more interesting and inspiring than closer races. Sorry Arizona, we’re just not into you. Whistler is less likely to overheat.

The course is not too many loops. In fact, the bike is not a loop at all. It’s a long out and back. Here’s the course specifics.

Back Story: We aren’t technically signed up. We just made a pact to do it together. 9years ago, Marvin got me off the couch and started me on the triathlon journey. Originally he was probably looking for a training partner for his first full IRONMAN, which he did 9 years ago at Coeur d’Alene. This time around, I sought him out to join me on my first Ironman. This brings my journey full circle with Marvin. He’s been one of my most inspirational friends in my whole life, and especially for triathlons. I’ll have a second post on how we invited Lynda to join us, but it’s a whole other conversation. This race is, as for every Ironman, a very personal decision. You don’t it alone. You can’t make the decision alone, and you don’t cross the finish line alone either. It’s a new and amazing journey for me. And you get to hear all about it.

Course:

http://www.ironman.com/triathlon/events/americas/ironman/canada/athletes/course.aspx#axzz3VzugUaiV

Swim: 1.2 miles

Bike: 112 miles

Run: 26.2 miles

There’s many many aspects to the Ironman. I’m looking forward to this new adventure for 2016. I’ll be bloggin all the way.

At my surprise birthday party with PTC, Lynda brought a yummy chocolate cake. One side celebrated IRONMAN Canada 2016, and the other side celebrated American Triple T.

479 days until IRONMAN Canada 2016.