Remembering Who We Are

MUSINGS FROM A COACH - 8 OCTOBER '25

I just got back from my college reunion. It's been a while. In fact, I hadn't seen most of my friends since we graduated. While I had forgotten a lot, they all seemed to remember the great stories, shared experiences and just how young and dumb we used to be. I was met with lots of love and vowed to stay connected from here on in.

While my excitement from this trip is still high, I tried to figure out how to tie it in with a relevant topic for this week - and I think I've got one.

Remembering who we are.

In the world of adult, amateur endurance sports, it's easy to get caught up in goals, equipment, training plans, traveling to races, performance metrics and nutrition requirements. But deep down, for most of us, we're doing this because it's fun.

Every one of us can remember being a kid running through the playground or woods, jumping into the lake or river and hauling down the neighborhood on our huffy bike, racing each other. We can remember hiking through the woods, climbing that big hill or zipping down to the park just to play.

We didn't plan more than a day ahead, we never considered nutrition or hydration (other than ice-cream) and we shared everything including bikes, towels and goggles. It was just about getting outside and going and having fun. We moved because it felt good. And we did it together.

In the modern day of amateur endurance sports, I think we take on these activities because they are fun. Deep down, we feel that innocent, in-the-moment focus of just being a kid again and being outside, moving. Can you remember that?

So this weekend with my classmates really did bring back memories and reminded me who I am. Maybe there's a way we can filter out all the outside noise, expectations and future responsibilities and just focus on the present swim, bike, hike or run. Maybe we can remember being that kid who just loved getting out there and playing.

It's fun!