Ran across this quote the other day and gosh damn it hit home... 

“Be brave enough to suck.”

After 11 seasons of playing Major League Baseball, I found myself contemplating what to do next... 

When I ran into 3 childhood friends of mine (the Wray sisters and Kevin “Chops” Quelmalz), they invited me to join them at an upcoming sprint triathlon. My first thought was absolutely not... I barely knew how to swim, the only bike I owned was a beach cruiser and at the time, my version of a long run was first to home.

There was absolutely no reason to go get my ass kicked and embarrass myself in front of a bunch of uber fit people in spandex, which of course there was no chance I was going to wear... 

The thought of being uncomfortable scared me and the thought of sucking was even more terrifying to my ego, but for whatever reason, I decided to do the race.

I’ve told the story several times before in the Daily Hustle but just in case you need a refresher, I almost drowned in the water, I got passed by 16 year old girls on the bike and the run was the ultimate mind rolling and lung busting session...

All of my fears came to fruition with a near death experience in the water, slaughtered ego on the bike and the ultimate uneasy feeling of aspirating through a straw on the run... 

Simply put... I SUCKED. 

Yet as bad as I was and as much as I may have been demoralized, I LOVED every fucking minute of it. 

The rest of the story is still being written but 11 months later, I completed my first Ironman and have gone on to finish 12 IM’s, countless ultra marathons, a triathlon across the country and the 12 & 24 hour speed golf world records... 

I don’t bring this up to celebrate my perceived accomplishments but rather I bring this up because I found an entirely new life as an ultra endurance athlete because of one simple reason... 

I was brave enough to suck at something new. ?

-EB

 

P.S. Have you hopped on a Team GoHard Foot Reflexology Board yet?