The Improbable Dream is a VERY Personal Journey

Written 13th January 2010.

All this recent time on my own; sweating, swearing, gasping for air, pushing myself to new heights (heights that I alone can see or even dream - and perhaps others might not even think they were heights!) has taught me many things but one above all - This is a very personal journey.

I know it sounds obvious but its a truth that you can know mentally yet it takes a while to learn emotionally. This is my journey, no one can do it for me. There's no one else on the bike pushing up the hill, there is no one else pushing through those last few yards when the legs are burning, there's no one else getting out of bed when its cold, there's no one else.

Ok but there's more - Other people can provide some support, offer occassional assistance and guidance, and even act as role model or motivator but after all is said and done, I must do all of this myself. I cant rely on others to do the hard yards, to plan, to sweat, to motivate. And fair enough- the only 'role' of the people I meet along the way is to help me learn, to add great colour and interest to my life - an activity that is fundamentally a solo effort. They have their life to live and I have mine. I'm looking forward to meeting and interacting with these others, people who will add much to the overall story of the journey.

there is much I must do for myself. And like all journeys, the devil (or rather, the success) is in the detail. It's also in the attitude of the individual - me!

Basically, achieving a goal like this is a project management issue. And thats good, cause I'm trained in project management.

Apart from the more obvious issues, some of the major 'headings' I will need to get my head around are -
* Planning of training and activities including training plans, choosing equipment, understanding intensity and duration, training and eating while travelling plus lots others.
*Decision Making of an athlete, including time management, sourcing events/ activities
*Preparing for each event including tapering, logistics, finances
*Executing the event - timing for each sector, food and water for the event
*Enjoying myself during training and executing, including time on my own

So we're not just talking a simple training program here, we're talking about a complex project management exercise. And yes, I think it will be fun.

Journey on.

Word Count - 395