A caged animal

" The world is a scary place now that you've woken up the demon in me."

-Disturbed's Down with the Sickness.

Well I haven't raced in about two months. It seriously has felt like an eternity. It killed me a little to be on the sidelines as some of my favorite races took place without me. At the same time it has allowed me to put some perspective on my life. I need to get myself into a better postion in life. I don't want to end up like my parents or my grandparents, living their whole lives struggling to get by, but at the same time I don't want to be such a miser that I let life pass me by. I was looking at entering Brandford's Hammerfest Triathlon, but upon seeing the entry fee increase decided better of it. So my last attempt at a tri is going to be the Nutmegman Half Iron. I hoping 2 months of pent up energy and frustration will allow me to unleash my fury and aguish on my competiton and that there shall be a wailing, moaning, and grinding of teeth in Southbury, CT on Sept. 21 like there never has been or shall be again, granted my partner in destruction and biggest competition is across the pond in Austria....Bjoern this one's for you buddy! The last two months have been like having my wings clipped, most likely for my better good realizing that as a broke college student I can not compete like a pro or a financially sucessful middle aged age grouper. I need to plan my races better , which is why next year my schedule will be a little more limited. I'm hoping to be able to pull off Ironman New Zealand again, but I'm officially playing that by ear, I will be doing Ironman Arizona next November so if I'm not racing in August/ Spetember I can chalk it up to higher training volume.. but regardless, going into the Nutmeg Half Iron, my cycling is the strongest it's ever been, granted I know I need a little more improving, my swimming is back in it's usually front of the pack shape, and my running well, it's lacked a little bit but I'm no slower than I usually am, depending on the field that shows up I'm confident that I can be a force to be reckoned with....especially with 2 of the big names in my age group sitting out this year. So on September 21, as I charge into the water for the first time in 2+ months I feel confident for my chances at a podium and a sub 5 performance. So now it's just waiting on putting up my entry and kicking this pig.
R.D.