I wanted to mention a couple things BEFORE I get the results on my knee MRI today hopefully. Theres not a single ounce of me that regrets doing the Quintuple, or continuing on when I felt my knee hurt about half way on the bike. First of all, Im fairly certain that I tweaked my knee about a week before the race started, rearranging weights in my home gym. I was being careful and even thinking to myself ok now take it easy, you have a massive race coming up. I was wearing a weight belt to protect my back, but I was moving a 70lb dumbbell and turned slightly and my left foot didnt move and felt something. It wasnt major at all, but enough that I told Chel numerous times, that I hope I didnt do anything to my knee. And I felt it during a little run prior to the race but still nothing major...but I stopped doing anything the week before to hopefully give it time to settle down. So when I mentioned some of the tweaks I was concerned about before the race, that was the major one. I didnt want to mention it because I figured everyone would think I was being dramatic and didnt want to sound like I was already making excuses for not finishing, so I kept my mouth shut. That being said, it wasnt nearly bad enough for me to consider not doing the race, and after ALL the training and sacrifices I made to get ready for it, it would have had to be a full blowout and obvious, for me to bail. And as far as quitting when I felt it really go at about 280 miles into the bike, well...like I said before, I was only leaving that race either across the finish line or on a stretcher. And I guess it wasnt bad enough to get me on a stretcher so I kept going. And think about it from my perspective, to have pulled out because of it, would have meant all that training was for not and then Id have to do it ALL OVER again next summer to try again. And believe me, rehabbing a knee for a month is a LOT easier than training for that *ucker again, I can tell you that. Now at the time I felt this, I of course wasnt weighing any of this, or thinking about any of this. I was just keepin on keepin on no matter what!!! The knee pain just added to the challenge. I would have gone until my leg fell off probably. Thats just how I am and I dont make ANY apologizes for that! Just like sucking it up and doing the Army 10 Miler was probably stupid too, but it meant the world to me...and nobody but my dad and I know what happened out in the night during the Quint, to make me want to fulfill that promise...but once again ZERO regrets. I learned so much about myself out on the Quint course, and it was such an EPIC EPIC test for myself, I have NO problem having a bum knee for a while as my result. To see my family and cross that line with them might seriously have been the greatest moment of my life, coming from where I had been physically and mentally, and so to have to been able to experience that moment of joy in ITSELF was worth it!!! And so for all the naysayers who might be saying I told you so well you might even be right, but say away...cause I am gonna keep grabbing life by the horns and shaking it the hell around!!!!!! Now, still keeping my fingers crossed that the knee is ok, but just banged the hell up....
Posted on: Thu, 16 Oct 2014 11:57:56 +0000