There’s an active energy on campus today. Music, young undergrads, hot bikes, short shorts, men in speedos, sunshine, and cheers coming from over by the wall. I couldn’t help but watch. Fittingly, I think I watched the IronMan competition – where individual guys swim 225 yards, sprint 450m, cycle 2.8km and run 1km. Then, they are faced with a 12ft wall. In the IronMan event, the guys have only one helper, and he’s reaching down from the top of the wall. Following along with the crowds, I laughed, cheered, held my breath, chuckled and collectively sighed with relief as I watched each guy get up and over the wall. Some guys practically hopped over. Other guys worked so hard it almost hurt to watch. One guy jumped, missed, tried again, failed, jumped, failed (his hand just barely slipping out of the helpers hand twice), jumping, trying again… and then, just like that, he was over.

I’m sure I’ll have my own mental and physical walls to deal with at IronMan. What I learned today is that as long as you’re ready for the wall, and you just keep trying, you’ll get over it eventually. No one cares how gracefully you made it over. It’s all about celebrating when you get to the top.

bike commutes
easy – ~2hr, can’t find my bike computer
morning Steveston – UBC
afternoon UBC – Science World