This time of year our thoughts gravitate towards resolutions for the New Year, things we plan to do more often, better or not at all. However motivation can be lacking due to weather, end of the season fatigue or work and family obligations. In sifting through some old magazines I was reminded of one of the most motivating moments in sporting history. I remember watching it on the Wide World of Sports in wonderment, never moving from the TV. I must admit I was not inspired to hop up and replicate the feat, at least not then but the sheer will, drive and focus of this individual changed my opinion of what it takes to be an athlete forever.
Julie Moss, Ironman Hawaii 1982 and her famous crawl to the finish. If you haven't watched the video, view the two plus minutes that capture her final moments of struggle
<![CDATA[<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/tRB1p89k7_I" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/tRB1p89k7_I</a>]]> then remember the phrase "Don't try this at home folks". The story of how Moss arrived at the ironman finish line began the year before when she watched the 1981 race unfold on TV, deciding to use the training and competing as her Senior Project requirement for graduating with a degree in Physical Education. With ultra-endurance events in their infancy and no real plan on how to proceed or train, in Julie's words, "Because it was so out of context to anything I had ever experienced, there was a fictional quality to the race. Fiction gives you the freedom to imagine the impossible and make it up as you go." And make it up she did. Having done nothing more than surf for physical activity, Ironman training began with a half Ironman event five months before Hawaii. With that under her belt Julie sporadically trained until she ran her first marathon two months pre-Ironman, then another three weeks after that, then two weeks pre-Ironman rode 350 miles (560k) in one week.
In 1982 race nutrition consisted of water and bananas and in Julie's case a melted Snickers bar she foolishly threw away. Even so race day was relatively uneventful until the marathon. Coming off the bike in third place, at some point that she can't recall Moss ended up in first place. It is in the last 10k of the marathon that Julie speaks of discovering the competitive side of her personality. Fighting to keep her position and deep in glycogen debt, Moss continually dug deep to find some reserve energy or will to keep her moving forward. With 500m to go to the finish line Julie's body began to betray her, her legs buckled and lurched, sending her to the ground time and time again. Unable to get up one more time she began her 20m crawl acutely aware of when second place woman Kathleen McCartney passed her to claim first place.
Almost 28 years later Julie is happy if her experience motivates you to accomplish a goal of your own so start with the Resolution Run 5k at Tri & Run Sports on January 1 at 10:00am.
