Damage Control

About 200 metres from the finishing-line of Ironman New Zealand a fortnight ago, I cramped badly. It reminded me of the courageous scene of Craig ‘Crowie’ Alexander experiencing a similar attack on his hamstrings a mile before he won in Kona last year. I had a few jabs from my quadriceps on the cold and windy ride and thought little of it. In retrospect I could have amped up   my electrolyte (salt) intake. When I took to the hilly run course, those ‘niggles’ started to manifest themselves as a more serious condition.

When these spasmodic episodes emerged, I slowed down my pace aiming for the next aid-station to nurse my battle wounds. However, I was only disguising the symptoms of a more serious nature. My last 200 metres took a crawling two minutes, as I attempted to stretch my tight, fighting muscles into submission. Two minute later, in less than steady form, I shuffled in (almost on my heels) to my worst finish of a half-Ironman. I was, however, pleased for my effort especially during this tough run. What doesn’t kill me makes me learn. Limp and learn.

Leadership Lessons: How often do you fight fires? How many of these can be eliminated or reduced? How do you cope with exigencies and emergencies? How do you manage the beginnings of a ‘bad day’? How responsive are you to impending changes, and what do you about them?

Photo-credit: Matthew Wong