No Path to Follow
If you read my first ever blog, Why Start a Blog, you would realize that the world of blogging is all new to me. But if you read my second blog, I Might Have Been a Blogger Before, you might be calling bullshit. “This guy wrote over 100 entries in a trail journal 15 years ago,” and you got me on that one.
Keeping a journal while hiking the trail was about documenting my day-to-day travels and experiences. I never had to sit and ponder what to write about. Let’s face it, I spent 10 to 14 hours a day walking through the woods giving me plenty of time to think about my daily journal entry. Writing for this blog is entirely different; there is no path to follow to an end and there is no time during the day to think about what to write. In fact, this is the third entry in a row that I dictated to my phone while on my bike trainer.
From Kids to Adults
My transition from Scholastic coaching to coaching adult endurance athletes follows a very similar trajectory. From the moment I walked off the wrestling mat for the last time I have been a coach. I have coached college wrestling, high school baseball, high school and junior high wrestling, and high school track and cross-country. Hell, I even taught seven-year-old girls how to play soccer. In all of these coaching positions, I was hired or volunteered and the athletes came to me. I could focus all of my energy on teaching and inspiring each of them to be their best.
Transitioning to coaching adult endurance athletes has been awesome but the endurance community can be resistant to working with a coach. This was a personal mistake I made for the first 10+ years of my triathlon career. I searched endlessly for generic training plans and then only followed them about 50% of the time. Whether it was a trust issue or the financial commitment that came with hiring a coach, I resisted for many years. It wasn’t until 4 years ago when I joined Yoder Performance that I was able to unlock my potential as a triathlete. I am forever grateful to Andrew Yoder for not only challenging me and keeping me accountable in my training, but also for serving as a mentor in my growth as a coach.
Field of Dreams
Writing a daily recap of how many miles I hiked, what I ate and what wildlife I saw might have been blogging but it came pretty easy. Starting this blog, deciding what to share and in what fashion has made me step outside of my comfort zone. Trying to build a community of athletes that can work hard together and support each other is a bit more challenging and I am always up for a challenge: because, “If you build it, they will come.”