Mary Eggers

I love this time of the year, or maybe it’s the decade. I have been immersed in Olympic trials…. of course…. swimming trials. Obsessed, immersed, addicted. At the same time I am feeling better and stronger each day and the biggest races for my athletes are weeks, instead of months away.

Warning: I am all over the place today!

And we have a Taekwondo Orange belt in the family. He broke this board with his hand. Watch out. What I love about Taekwondo…. especially the school our son has been attending for over a year now….. are the instructors. They are no joke, they expect a lot from the kids and they are great. It’s wonderful for Luc to have his own sport. You sign your kids up for sports trying to expose them to everything you can, and when they find something that fits them and they love….. it’s awesome. Watching his progress through the belts he has earned thus far is amazing.

July is by far my busiest month. I am announcing at A tri in the Buff, racing the Mini Mussel, coaching Ironman Lake Placid and attending my 20th high school reunion. I might as well pack myself up in an RV and hit the road! I love this time of the season!

Oh….. and Tuesday I get fitted to my new Quintana Roo. I can’t thank the guys at Geneva Bicycle Shop enough. And of course…Quintana Roo! WHAT A GIFT!

If you are going to be in lake Placid….. let me know if you’d like to get together and talk coaching! A bunch of us QT2 coaches will be there, and we will be there Wed through Monday! In October Molly and I will be having a second training camp in KONA during race week! It will involve swimming, biking, running and a whole lot of surfing. We will be there representing QT2!

Each week that goes by my health and my fitness continue to improve. I am craving 6 hour rides. I am itching like crazy to toe the line of an Ironman. However I will wait until 2013. I knew when I was up there last weekend I would have the horrible urge to return to Ironman Lake Placid. In 2008 I was pulled off that bike course after sustaining a grade 3 concussion in the swim (and I am a sub 60 min swimmer). The aftermath of that was devastating to put it lightly.

Last week I felt the urge, the need to come back and slay that dragon. I have had one hell of a time deciding on what Ironman it will be in 2013. The shiniest option in front of me has been IT. Last week I spoke with some friends and thought Lake Placid would be the one.

Then I talked to my husband. He asked me point-blank….. not to compete in Lake Placid ever again.

If he were the type of husband who was not supportive of my athletic endeavors…. well I would not have married him…. but I probably wouldn’t listen. However….. it’s Curt. He’s my husband. He’s been in this sport 20 years. If I told him I wanted to swim to the moon he would support that. If he asks me not to do a certain race, it is not without good reason. He lived the aftermath of 2008. When you sustain a concussion of that degree….. it lasts MONTHS. It was not pretty. I couldn’t work. I had a hard time speaking, remembering…. it was just so bad.

The likelihood of that happening again are really small. Almost impossible to happen again. But if Curt asks me to choose another Ironman…. I listen. I respect him as my husband first and as an athlete second. He doesn’t put his foot down for no reason.

We talked about it. I love Ironman Florida. But I have been there twice. I want to go to Ironman Canada. The logistics and cost are my only deterrent.

Ironman Mt. Tremblant came to mind. Canada. It looks like a beautiful course. Big wide swim, one loop! Perfect time of the season for me…. August. I connected with some friends who just did the 70.3 and heard nothing but great things about it. Sold. Mt. Tremblant it is.

While at camp last week I somehow got talked into signing up for the Philadelphia marathon in November! My last stand alone marathon was in 1996, I am not sure how to run a marathon without swimming 2.4 miles then biking 112 first! The time felt right, the challenge felt right, a few of my teammates are running…. why not? It’ll help me bring my run mileage back up, the guys have already created a fun family adventure…… so there is nothing to lose. I will probably sign up to run with a pace group, maybe 3:35? I don’t have a clue! Time for something new this season!

We’ve got lots to discuss this week. I have had some suggestions for some topics…. such as Core Diet and training, strength training, Ironman tips, and I also want to share with you an amazing class I have been taking at MidTown. It’s one of my best kept secrets this season! Have a topic you want to chat about? Leave me a comment, or shoot me an email!