Ever since about 15 minutes after I crossed the finish line in Arizona people have been asking me, \u201cSo what\u2019s next?\u201d\u00a0 I have responded to that question with a resounding and emphatic, \u201cNothing!\u201d\u00a0 The past few months of my so-called retirement have been blissful.\u00a0 I haven\u2019t been in the water or on my bike at all since Ironman.\u00a0 And I am completely ok with that.\u00a0 I would say I\u2019ve averaged about 6 miles a week in my running shoes since then.\u00a0 Maybe.\u00a0 Ok, so I\u2019ve been on the elliptical and I\u2019ve gone to boxing, too.\u00a0 But mostly I tell people I am now training to be a couch potato.\u00a0 And loving every lazy minute of it.<\/p>\n
I went through a bit of a post Ironman, post holidays, January funk when I felt the pull to sign up for a race.\u00a0 But if there is one thing I have learned over the past years of self-destruction and trying to \u201cfill the void\u201d, it\u2019s that no matter how many races I sign up for, no matter how many race tee\u2019s I acquire and no matter how many medals I earn to add to my wall of bling, none of that will ever feel like enough.<\/p>\n
Ironman was sufficient for longer than most races.\u00a0 But even still, the eventual longing set in and I started to wonder, \u201cHmmm, now what?\u201d<\/p>\n
So, I\u2019m pleased to announce to my audience of faithful readers that there is a \u201cwhat\u2019s next\u201d for Rambling Runner Girl.\u00a0 Though, I think you will be surprised by what I have chosen for my next event.<\/p>\n
I turn 40 in October, so like I mentioned earlier this year, I want to do big things!\u00a0 In the world of triathlon, it doesn\u2019t get much bigger than 140.6. So I am focusing my efforts elsewhere.\u00a0 Any guesses?<\/p>\n
I\u2019ll give you a hint.\u00a0 It involves water, but not swimming.\u00a0 There is transportation involved over hundreds of miles, but no bike.\u00a0 I will probably take my running shoes, but more than likely it will be a pair that have already put in the miles and aren\u2019t used for running anymore.\u00a0 Are you confused yet?<\/p>\n
Well, a few weeks ago, while I was sitting at Tae Kwon Do with Silas, I started talking to a pastor from my church whose boys also take Tae Kwon Do at the Boxing Gym.\u00a0 I said, \u201cI\u2019m looking into short term missions.\u00a0 Does the Crossing have any trips?\u00a0 Or do you have any info that would help me get started?\u201d\u00a0 Randall directed me to an organization that I have become familiar with during my time at the Crossing.\u00a0 Living Water International drills fresh water wells in impoverished places around the world.<\/p>\n
Over the next couple weeks, I looked at the scheduled trips, found one that could work with my schedule, sent off an email inquiry, authorized a back ground check, and emailed pictures of my passport to the trip organizer and Voila!\u00a0 I\u2019m in.\u00a0 That was the easy part.<\/p>\n
I still have many months to go.\u00a0 My trip isn\u2019t until the end of November.\u00a0 Part of the reason I picked the dates I did is because December 2nd<\/sup> is typically a day of the year that I don\u2019t look forward to.\u00a0 I dread it.\u00a0 It\u2019s a sad day, the anniversary of saying good-bye to a father I loved, and still love, dearly.\u00a0 But this year, on December 2nd<\/sup>, I will be in Nicaragua. I\u2019ll be on an adventure in a country I\u2019ve never been to.\u00a0 I\u2019ll be helping people\u00a0gain access to\u00a0fresh water, as a means of health and safety.\u00a0 I\u2019ll be loving people I\u2019ve never met.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know a soul going on this trip.\u00a0 I have no idea who will be put on this journey with me.\u00a0 But I know this is going to be good for my heart.\u00a0 It\u2019s going to be big!\u00a0 Bigger than I can even imagine right now.\u00a0 I can\u2019t think of a better way to honor the legacy of my dad than this.<\/p>\n It\u2019s easy to get wrapped up in shiny sparkly things like new bikes and all the latest techy running gear.\u00a0 But there is more to life than triathlons. \u00a0(Tri friends, take a deep breath.\u00a0 I promise it will be ok that I just said that.) This doesn\u2019t mean I\u2019m hanging up my running shoes entirely.\u00a0 In fact, I just ordered my new Louis Garneau tri kit for the Swim Bike Run tri club.\u00a0 So I\u2019m definitely going to be signing up for some races along the way.\u00a0 This just means that my main event of 2015 takes me off the race course.\u00a0 WAY off the race course.\u00a0 And will place me in a village in Central America, to once again do something that I never EVER expected.<\/p>\n PS-I am already signed up for my next race.\u00a0 But this time I\u2019ll attribute running the Berryman Marathon part of my training for drilling a well in Nicaragua.<\/p>\n