To Athena, or Not to Athena...

[colby]

That's my motto: "Outlive them all."
I figure I'll start placing in my late 60's early 70's if I can still maintain my current paces.

Haha, I told someone that about Ironman when they asked me about going to Kona: maybe when I'm 60. I guess at least being a woman, I've got 2/3 fewer people to worry about compared to the dudes out there. So maybe I'll make it when I'm 55 (this is where my husband rolls his eyes at me about doing Ironman for 25 more years).

Maybe there should be an optional first-timers category like there is Athena, though you still run into the same problem with the ultra-fit people. A lot of first-timers have real nervousness getting into the water and it might be helpful for them to start in a wave with people like themselves. Or, it could be a disaster, I guess. Also doesn't help the perennial fatties like myself who are only a first-timer once but an Athena every time, and still not ultra-athletes.

(I did lose 1.5 lbs in the last 2 weeks though.... I'll believe it when it gets to 5 or 10, as 1.5 lbs is within the margin of error. This is on top of not gaining back half of my Ironman weight, so I am overall down about 7 lbs from before I did Ironman, when I was at my max of 162. So, now I'm "stuck" at 155, so it's pretty safe to race Athena in 10 days and not feel like a TOTAL jerk.)

[tribogota]

Oh shoot, I am gonna have to compete with you all when we are 60, I too have said, no ironmans until then. Maybe for my 60th birthday....but I too hoped to be in the top 3, according to this thread, I may place out of that already....