Start at the very beginning...

I am not a triathlete. At least not yet. I plan on becoming one though and this blog will document my journey from stay-at-home-dad to triathlete.


I actually trained for a triathlon in 2008, but I had appendicitis less than a month before the race and then never got back to training because my wife got pregnant with my daughter.


I have heard stories that most triathletes had a background in running and they picked up triathlons as a way to vary their training by using bikes and swimming as exercise while recovering from an injury.


Not me.


I am not a runner. I am not a biker, either. Nor am I a swimmer. I guess I would consider myself more of a TRYathlete because I'm willing to TRY any sport out there.


I grew up in Southern California (Long Beach, to be more specific) and always played sports - football, baseball, basketball, soccer, volleyball - but I was never the fastest player on the team. Quite the opposite. I was the lineman in football, first base or right field in baseball, center in basketball, defender in soccer, middle blocker in volleyball. And I would never run for the "fun" of it.


I did grow up with a pool and loved splashing around and racing friends and family the length of the pool, but I never swam competitively and never actually had coaching in any stroke.


My wife, however, really enjoys running, and she encouraged me to run with her when we first got married. To my surprise (and her horror) I was actually faster than she was! That gave me the confidence to run on my own and go to the gym and run on a treadmill instead of just hitting the basketball courts or pounding the weights.


Since we have been married, my wife and I have completed the Huntington Beach Surf City Half Marathon and 5K, something I would have never dreamt of doing just 10 years ago.


With the birth of my lovely daughter in 2009, I had a long and hard look at my family's situation and realized it did not make a whole lot of sense (or cents) to stay in the job I had. I was working nights and weekends and not pulling in a lot of money. Everything I made went to daycare, gas for my car and parking in downtown Portland where I worked. I was lucky to have $100 left over at the end of the month. My wife and I decided the time away from each other was worth more than $5 a day, so I resigned and became a full-time dad. I won't lie, it has been difficult at times. Every now and then I get feelings of failure because I am not providing for my family. But the bonding I get with my daughter is invaluable.


One day, just two weeks ago, I read a magazine article about a man who was not too much older than I am1. The article started out by saying this man had always wanted to be a sports broadcaster and was now in charge of the sports department for a San Francisco television station. That article really depressed me. I had always wanted to be a sports broadcaster. I had worked in sports journalism since I was 21-years-old. Now, at the ripe old age of 35, I was unemployed (granted, it was my own choosing).


I made a list of things that made me happy. Some of the top items on the list included "working out" and "sports writing."


And that, my friends, is how we arrived at this blog.


I vow to train for a triathlon and share my journey with whomever would like to read it. This will not be a "How to train for a triathlon" blog. I am not a qualified trainer and do not pretend to be one. In fact, I will be reading training books and getting a personal trainer in order to ensure success as a triathlete.


Hopefully this blog will have funny and inspiring stories for other people undertaking new and scary endeavors in life. It doesn't necessarily have to be triathlons. I will share my failures and triumphs, laughter and tears, breakthroughs and injuries.


I welcome any comments, suggestions, advice, feedback...Lord knows I need it!