Dan Hayes...You are an Ironman!

It's taken 39 weeks, countless hours of sacrifice and training and one hellishly long day to be able to say those words...but it's true, I have joined the ranks of the Ironman!

Let's begin my final post of this Journey to Ironman Wisconsin with some pictures of the day. First, here is my wonderful family, including my brother and future son in law (he's the one in the white hat). From left to right you have my sons Tim and Nate, my beautiful soul mate Angie, my daughter Stephanie and her fiancee David. What great t-shirts huh? My kids surprised me on Wednesday evening before we left for Madison with the news that they would be there for the race, it was AWESOME!

this is on the bus to the bike leg.
My son Nate can sleep anywhere!Tim and David, being themselves....Of course, Doug, my brother. Having him and my sister in law Sue there was very special!Here I come for my first pass on loop 1 of 2 on the bike leg. Still in a good mood.....that would soon change!

Here is a video at the start of the run. Simply click on this link, view the video and click on your browser back button to return. You can also view my run up to Transition 1 after the swim by clicking on the link just to the right.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-194986141843658774&pr=goog-sl

This is pass 1 of 2 on the run. I'm about 13 miles in and starting to feel some real fatigue

It's hard to tell, but this is me crossing the finish line...I just finished and my family is arriving. I don't think I remember anything feeling so good as finishing that race.. The group shot (minus the photographer - sister in law Sue). You can see Eric on the left behind David. Eric finished the race in just over 12 hours. I'm so proud of him, he was injured about a month and a half before the race and he STILL finished. What a superman! Brian is on the far right, he's the original Ironman of the group and solely responsible for all this madness!
Here is me, Brian and Eric..to say it was a special weekend would not do it justice....!

So there is the day and it was truly an experience that I will carry with me forever.

The race itself was, physically, the most challenging thing I've ever done. But in the end, it wasn't the hardest thing to do, or where I eventually was introduced to that person inside that I believe you're supposed to be introduced to. For sure, I had several talks with myself in those 13 hours, like the one at mile 20, when I realized it was just 6 more miles, but at my current pace, that meant over an hour yet to go and I wasn't sure I had it in me. I was forced to ask myself, what will you do now? Will you "do it because you said you would"? There was no choice of course...I simply answered it, kept moving and began looking for mile marker 21, then 22 and so on...knowing that finish line was not about me, but about those that believed I could do it, about my family who did not doubt me.

No, for me, the introduction was somewhere between Chicago and Oregon, Coke and United Pipe, dinner with my family or 2 hours on the bike, a 4am wake up call or the desire for sleep that was so strong it hurt. That's where I met me, and I am proud of the person I got to know.

The medal around my neck for finishing on Sunday does not belong to me, It belongs to my wife Angie. She is the one who sacrificed for this Ironman..I simply had to put in some physical effort. Angie was required to make sure I had everything cleared out of my way to train, she was asked to put her needs on the back burner while I headed out the door. Forget about Saturday morning coffee with her husband who had been travelling all week, I had to get on a bike....Couldn't think about a vacation or even a long weekend, I had to train. After my long rides or runs, I certainly complained about my aches and pains. But for 39 weeks, not one negative word came from her, not one complaint, not one ounce of pressure to skip that work out. Instead, it was, "do what you need to, dinner will be here when you're done", or, "tell me what your schedule is so I can plan around it" and you can bet I got plenty of "I'm proud of you" , or, "what do you need?" So to her goes all my thanks and gratitude, it just wouldn't have been done without her.

Thanks to my kids who supported me, my Coke family who encouraged me, and my new United Pipe family who wished me the best. Thanks to all of you who read my blog and posted your comments. I thought about all of you on Sunday and knew I could not let you down.

A special thanks to Pat Witte and Dan Kueppers for taking precious time away from their families to see me come out of the water that day, you guys are the best!

Thanks to Eric for training with me, calling to check in so regularly and for looking me in the eye as we floated at the starting line and said, " no matter what, we finish today...." you knew just what to say.

I can't thank Brian enough for his friendship these last several years. "The walls" we have faced together and alone are numerous. Thanks also for getting me started, and being there throughout, all the way to the finish line.

I live a blessed life, full of love, joy and fulfillment. My last thanks goes to my Heavenly Father. All the glory, honor and praise goes to Him. Praise for the physical body to complete such an endeavor, praise for the mental capacity to command my muscles to continue, praise for the family and friends He has seen fit to bless me with and praise for His love and grace.

Love,

Dan