Spence Smith

Well… Getting to this day has been a year long process. I first came here a year ago with my tri friends to cheer on other tri friends as they raced away in Ironman Louisville. The next day 15 of us signed up together.

Little did I realize what the following year of life and training would become.

Little did I even realize how much I would change in a years time. The up’s and down’s in life both personally and professionally all the while I had Ironman as my goal.

So as you read this I’m well into the race and I’m really thankful for all your well wishes and prayers.

Thank you Randy and Chris Elrod for walking with me through this entire process. Randy… our runs together mean more to me than any other time we have to hang and talk….Well besides all the wine, food and good porch time:)

Dan Perkins, who is racing as well in Ironman Louisville, thanks for all the advice and encouragement. This is Dan’s 10th Ironman!

Thanks to my co-workers for putting up with me, especially my boss, Steve- not only is he a great boss but his friendship never fails and his guidance is always solid.

My family… I know you think I’m nuts but thanks for always looking after me.

Thanks to the Franklin and Frisco Campus… You all are amazing and I’m going appoint Mary Graham and Sheila Walsh as chief prayer warriors.

And last… those friends of mine I’m talking to everyday in some form or another. I could go on for days about how thankful I am for you.

So here’s the deal… Today is A Grand New Day for me (post on Women of Faith-A Grand New Day coming soon).

It’s like this. Today starts a new chapter of dreaming the impossible dream and walking it out. It’s about learning what Determination really means. What it means to push to the limit and keep going. It’s about redeeming today for a life that has been changed and giving a new meaning to this day August 30.

Today… is about me… and I’m getting through it because of you.

SO…You can follow along at Ironman.com and track my progress through out the day. My bib number is 1564. By the end of the day I will have traveled 140.6 miles swimming, biking and running.

Have a great day!

Mine is going to be really really long:)

Over the past several weeks I’ve been training for Ironman Louisville 2009 and one thing is for certain. The mental aspect to this event is just as important as the physical aspect. In fact… the more I think about the strength of the mind, the more I realize how much our minds and how we think has to do with the success or lack of success in what we are trying to accomplish.

For the cycling community, July is a big month because of the Tour de France. The race lasts all month. This year Lance Armstrong is going for his 8^th win after coming out of a two-year retirement.

If you know anything about his battle with cancer and his fight to find a cure for cancer, you will know… this guy wins in his head first, then walks it out with his body – mind over matter. I’m a liveSTRONG supporter and completely believe in what Lance is trying to do.

For me, recently I rode 100 miles with a group as a training ride for Ironman Louisville. It was my first 100 miler. This was a day I will never forget. The temperature was in the 90′s and the heat index was 117 degrees. Everyone on the ride had problems. The last 20 miles were the longest 20 miles of my life, but I got through it. How? Mind over matter.

During the ride I wanted to quit. I knew I could quit. It was too hot to ride. All of my friends would certainly understand. But I was determined to finish. I knew where the water stops were and I decided to take it on mentally. I broke the ride down into 20-mile sections and tackled them one mile at a time. I talked to myself, I paced myself, and I stopped on occasion to cool my core temperature down. My mind took over so my body could get through it. It was tough. It hurt. But I did it.

If the weather had been cooler the 100 miles would have been a lot easier, but when there is a major physical problem in the works like heat. Just walking to the car is tough.

Think about this the next time you take on a tough project, conversation, physical activity of any kind… over even a disease like cancer. What can you do to over come the struggle and finish well? How can you train your mind to walk it all out before you physically have too?

For some of you, life has some really tough times. You CAN get through them. Tackle life in your mind, and then tackle it with your whole body and soul.

Saturday I sat down with my coach, Kat, and we walked through 99% of my travel schedule so we could map out my race schedule leading up to Ironman Louisville August 30, 2009. This is going to be a big undertaking for the next 7 months. Click the READ MORE button to see my schedule.

One of the races is a sprint. I’m doing it with two newbie’s to the tri world, Ken Davis and Randy Elrod. They are two of my closest friends so this will be a fun day. It’s the GJCC sprint on Memorial Day. Here’s the list…

May 17 – Memphis In May Triathlon 2009
May 25 – GJCC Sprint 2009, Bellevue, TN
June 14 – Ironman 70.4 2009 Lawrence, KS, Half Ironman
June 27 – Harpeth River Ride 2009, Nashville, TN (century ride)
July 14 – Muncie Endurathon 2009, Muncie, IN, Half Ironman
August 30 – Ironman Louisville 2009, Louisville, KY