| Crossing Finish Lines | | | | had read my "I am an athlete" e-mail and they |
| | | | knew how much of a big deal this training was |
| By Carrie James | | | | for me. I was always in the back of the pack, |
| | | | often the last person to finish the workout, |
| Â | | | | but I would run into the park where everyone |
| | | | was recovering, and they would all cheer and |
| "GO CARRIE!!!" | | | | say "way to go, athlete!" I was greeted by |
| | | | huge smiles and high fives, and colleagues |
| Â | | | | who were obviously proud and to my surprise |
| | | | even impressed with me. |
| I heard and saw about 15 of my teammates in | | | | |
| blue and yellow jerseys screaming from the | | | | Â |
| sidelines. | | | | |
| | | | I realize now that this whole process has |
| Â | | | | been a series of finish lines. I can't speak |
| | | | for my teammates but I personally have |
| "SPRINT!!" | | | | crossed athletic finish lines I never thought |
| | | | I would cross, training my body for this |
| Â | | | | race. I crossed emotional finish lines, |
| | | | realizing with every grueling workout that I |
| I heard my best friend yelling, as she joined | | | | was doing things I never thought I was |
| me on the course to run the last few blocks | | | | created to do; things I never thought were |
| with me. I sprinted to the finish line, | | | | part of my identity. |
| through cheers and screams, and the announcer | | | | |
| said "I believe that was Carrie James!". I | | | | Â |
| fought back tears, lifted my hands to the sky | | | | |
| to thank God for getting me through the run | | | | ? |
| when my legs were gone and all I had was | | | | |
| prayers, and bit my quivering lip as I handed | | | | Â |
| over my bib number and tag. The first face I | | | | |
| saw as I passed was Mike Reilly, the "Voice | | | | I held it together pretty well at the finish |
| of Ironman" - the inspiration and the leader | | | | line that Sunday afternoon, until I saw my |
| for our company in the sport of triathlon; | | | | good buddy Chris pass the finish line. I felt |
| the man who had motivated us to take up this | | | | hot tears start to stream down my cheeks. He |
| sport. What a great greeting. He welcomed me | | | | had been such a motivation to me through this |
| with open arms and I tried not to sob. I | | | | whole process, telling me "you can do |
| wanted him to think I was tough, after all. | | | | anything you put your mind to" even when I'm |
| I'm sure he already did. | | | | sure he believed at times that I might not be |
| | | | able to complete the task at hand. He would |
| Â | | | | e-mail me motivational forwards during the |
| | | | day to pump me up, he would tell me things |
| I held it together pretty well, I thought, | | | | like "you will never regret a workout; you |
| considering the 3 months of training, the | | | | will only regret not working out". He was |
| emotional and physical hurdles, and the | | | | always at the finish line of one of our brick |
| friendships I had experienced on my way to | | | | workouts, with a big high five and a smile, |
| this finish line. I joined my teammates on | | | | encouraging me the whole way. |
| the sidelines, because I realized that even | | | | |
| though my celebration had begun, there were | | | | Â |
| still members of my team who were in later | | | | |
| legs, still pounding the pavement to get to | | | | The reason I broke down when Chris crossed |
| the black and white checkered FINISH banner. | | | | the finish line wasn't really about him |
| I waited in anticipation….."who's | | | | necessarily, although he had been an amazing |
| next?" and cheered as loud as I could with | | | | friend and teammate. It was about the whole |
| the little lungs I had left as each team | | | | process; this team of individuals I never |
| member crossed the finish line. "GO MIKE!" | | | | would have grouped myself with athletically, |
| "GO CONNORS!!" "GO SCOTT!!" I had been sick | | | | who had believed in me, cheered for me, cried |
| for the last 3 days and this day was one of | | | | with me, screamed encouragement at me, busted |
| the worst, so I screamed as loud as I could | | | | my butt during the ActiveX workouts. The |
| even though my lungs were burning with every | | | | collective team as a whole had been the exact |
| breath from the physical feat I had just put | | | | positive peer pressure I needed to take |
| myself through. It felt like this was part of | | | | myself to another level athletically. If it |
| my race; I wasn't done until I had cheered | | | | would have been one friend or one colleague |
| every one of my teammates to the finish. | | | | pushing me, I don't think I would have gone |
| After all, cheering each other on has been | | | | as far or done as well as I did having an |
| part of our race, part of our story. | | | | entire team behind me. The positive unit that |
| | | | was the ActiveX Charity Team was such a |
| Â | | | | strong group, I think we all encouraged each |
| | | | other to places we didn't think we could go. |
| ? | | | | And we had fun while we were doing it. |
| | | | |
| Â | | | | Â |
| | | | |
| In March two of my buddies at Active, Mike | | | | I decided through this process that my life |
| and Steve, cornered me and convinced me that | | | | from here on out is going to be about |
| I was being a wuss for not participating in | | | | continuously setting finish lines out in |
| our thrice weekly ActiveX boot camp workouts. | | | | front of me, farther than I think I can |
| They promised me that my body would see more | | | | reach, and doing everything in my capable |
| changes than the little runs around the bay | | | | power to cross them. Setting goals for myself |
| and kick boxing classes I was doing with my | | | | at work, with my family and friends, with my |
| girlfriends. I thought I had been doing | | | | community service, with my character as an |
| pretty well physically this year; I was | | | | individual. Keep pushing, keep improving, |
| meeting one of my girlfriends at the gym | | | | keep impressing myself. It's never about the |
| twice a week for kickboxing and weights, and | | | | other people. It's about what I am capable of |
| I was taking Pilates classes twice a week. | | | | doing. I think God puts us on this earth with |
| Mike and Steve assured me that all of those | | | | other people (and luckily put me in this |
| workouts combined would not equal three days | | | | great company with these amazing people) |
| a week of ActiveX. So I joined. And I | | | | because we need each other to help us reach |
| immediately loved the workouts. | | | | our finish lines, our life milestones. I |
| | | | think God will continue to put people and |
| Â | | | | opportunities in my life to encourage me to |
| | | | finish the race strong. I am so thankful to |
| First of all, the workouts were social. | | | | Him for this experience, for giving me |
| That's what got me the most. I heard | | | | strength, great new friendships, and a unique |
| "everyone's doing it" enough that I wanted to | | | | experience I will never forget. One that I |
| be part of the crowd. It was fun sweating and | | | | have to repeat, like, several times a year |
| grunting on the top of the parking garage | | | | now. |
| together, laughing when our legs were wobbly | | | | |
| from squats. Second, I loved how my body was | | | | Â |
| changing. The cardio I was doing at home was | | | | |
| helping to slim me down, but the ActiveX | | | | Â |
| workouts were carving my muscles; making me | | | | |
| leaner. Even though I was sore every day for | | | | "It's important to know that at the end of |
| the first month, my body eventually got used | | | | the day it's not the medals you remember. |
| to the struggle and started to feel strong. | | | | What you remember is the process-- what you |
| My three mile runs on the bay turned into | | | | learn about yourself by challenging yourself, |
| five mile runs, and by the end of June I had | | | | the experiences you share with other people, |
| finished my first 10K. It was the first time | | | | the honesty the training demands -- those are |
| I had ever ran 6 miles, and it felt awesome. | | | | things nobody can take away from you whether |
| Once again, it was my ActiveX teammates, this | | | | you finish twelfth or you're an Olympic |
| time the ladies, who had cheered me through | | | | Champion." |
| and ran the race with me to the finish. I | | | | |
| crossed the finish line with my friend and | | | | ~Silken Laumann - Canadian Olympian |
| fellow ActiveXer Karen, and realized that | | | | |
| with my team, together, I was able to do what | | | | Â |
| I might never have been able to do alone. At | | | | |
| the end of that race I felt invincible, and | | | | 1 Cor. 9:24Â Â "Do you not know that in a |
| honestly, pretty impressed with myself. | | | | race all the runners run, but only one gets |
| | | | the prize? Run in such a way as to get the |
| Â | | | | prize." |
| | | | |
| Then we started brick workouts on the | | | | Â |
| weekends. There were about thirty of us from | | | | |
| the ActiveX Charity Team who met on Saturday | | | | Heb 12:1  "…let us run with |
| mornings to train. We rode our bikes around | | | | perseverance the race marked out for us." |
| Fiesta Island, did swim clinics where we | | | | |
| practiced dolphin diving in and out of the | | | | Â |
| waves at La Jolla Shores, and did bike-to-run | | | | |
| workouts at Glorietta Bay on Coronado Island. | | | | "What we have is based upon moment-to-moment |
| There was something about riding my bike down | | | | choices of what we do. In each of those |
| the Silver Strand, across the street from the | | | | moments, we choose. We either take a risk and |
| beach where the Navy Seals train, that really | | | | move toward what we want, or we play it safe |
| inspired me. On one of these brick workouts | | | | and choose comfort. Most of the people, most |
| my CEO, Dave Alberga, rode the whole ride | | | | of the time, choose comfort. In the end, |
| with me, giving me tips on my cadence and | | | | people either have excuses or experiences; |
| efficiency on the bike. He is a very | | | | reasons or results; buts or brilliance. They |
| accomplished athlete, and it felt great to be | | | | either have what they wanted or they have a |
| a part of his team. | | | | detailed list of all the rational reasons why |
| | | | not."~ Anonymous |
| Â | | | | |
| | | | Â |
| Our brick workouts eventually turned into | | | | |
| full triathlon-distance workouts. | | | | "The Creator has not given you a longing to |
| Swim-bike-run. By this point my training team | | | | do that which you have no ability to do. |