by Brian V.

When I crossed the finish line at Ironman Wisconsin, it completed a goal I had been working toward for roughly four years.

But when I think about those four years now, the Ironman isn’t really the most important part of the story.

I found endurance sports during one of the more difficult periods of my life. I was going through a divorce, adjusting to being a full-time single dad, and trying to figure out what life was going to look like on the other side of all of it.

I met with Coach Joe of Experience Triathlon Coaching Services. I told him my story. He understood. Training became an outlet.

There was something incredibly simple about having Coach Joe’s customized workout plan in front of me. Whatever else was happening that day, I could put on my running shoes, get on the bike, or get in the pool and focus on the next hour. There was a plan. I could plan my weekend around a long run or bike ride, then fit in all my other family and relationship obligations around it. There was something I could control. And there was always another small goal to work toward.

At first, I don’t think I realized how important that would become.

I started small and deliberately worked my way through the distances. I didn’t want to jump straight into an Ironman. Every season became another race, distance, and another opportunity to find out what I was capable of.

It wasn’t always smooth.

Injuries and setbacks became part of the journey. There were plenty of times when my body didn’t cooperate with what I wanted it to do. This season alone, back problems affected both Oceanside and Happy Valley half-Ironman races. Happy Valley was especially frustrating because I couldn’t relieve those issues.

Those experiences taught me that progress isn’t always linear. Sometimes you train hard, and everything clicks. Other times you do everything you think you’re supposed to do, and something still goes wrong. You adjust, learn from it, and keep moving.

But probably the best part of this entire journey is something I never expected when I started: the people.

What began as something I did for myself during a difficult period of my life eventually became something I got to share with other people.

I met friends at Experience Triathlon I probably never would have met otherwise. We trained together, traveled to races together, suffered through workouts together, celebrated good races, and helped each other through the bad ones.

There is something unique about friendships built while doing ridiculous things together.

Some of my favorite memories from the last four years aren’t PRs or finish times. They’re the long rides and conversations during runs, the inside jokes, traveling together for race weekends, and just hanging out at the hotel or house the night before a race. Looking back, a lot of the moments I remember most are the ones that happened around the training and racing, not necessarily during it.

Somewhere along the way, training stopped being just an outlet.

It became something I genuinely looked forward to. It gave me goals to chase, Experiences I never expected to have, and a community of people who became an important part of my life.

That’s what made the Ironman in Madison mean so much more than just completing 140.6 miles.

My goal for Ironman Wisconsin had always been simple: finish. I deliberately took my time getting there, progressing through endurance sports and the different race distances rather than rushing into a full Ironman. Turns out the journey was the destination!