2012

Happy new year for 2012!! I haven’t done much of a blog update for a while, despite the fact that so much has been going on...I think we (Ms A and I) covered off most of the big ticket items from the list of things that happen in life in 2011. Things like getting engaged, selling a house and buying one together, moving in together, getting married and then getting pregnant...her, not me!!

So obviously the big event for 2012 will be a new person in the household, due to land in about mid-June – I think this will trump everything from 2011 in just about every respect in terms of what it means to our lives. Although we don’t know the sex yet, we’re going to find out when we can just so we know, and so we can cull half the names from our potential name list. But until it makes an appearance we’re referring to it as “Smiffett”, for obvious reasons given our respective surnames!!

Suffice to say, all this dominates our thoughts and we’ve got a lot of things to get sorted by June...but at least we already have a pram, so that is a start.

There’s other things going on aside from making babies, namely in relation to sports – running, coaching, writing and associated activities. Each of these things could take a whole lot more time and attention, so I find I’m in a constant battle to balance out the attention each gets to strike a balance between doing each justice and making sure I do a good job with each to the standard I aspire to. To that end I realise I need to put constraints on the demands of each...even though I’d like to do everything!!!

My running is generally going OK, with some annoying “naggles” from time to time serving to frustrate me. I’m realising my own mortality in terms of what my body can cope with, although this is also a source of great challenge and intrigue to see what I can do to manage my fitness and durability to achieve the performance I still aspire to. I do still have a burning desire to achieve some great goals that drive me each day to overcome the morning stiffness and tiredness that is part of life at my age!! But, of course, when Smiffett arrives things will change, like it or not, so I’ll need to be flexible and realistic after June...we’ll have to wait and see...

Coaching is going well, and is the source of great motivation and enjoyment in working with a wide range of people who also happen to be driven to achieve their own sporting goals. I feel that I’m just a facilitator to guide their energy and drive in what seems to be the best way I know how, and that we all learn along the way – I certainly never stop learning from what each person does and achieves. I’m in a fortunate position of literally turning people away so I can maintain the level of service I set for myself, and it’s humbling that there are people who seek out my coaching services...and that the same folks support our group by continuing to come to training and be part of the group. Good karma.

Then there’s a range of other, related things and opportunities that are beginning to pop-up and force careful thought about how it’s all going to fit in. Run technique coaching has been a big interest for quite a while, and with the addition of a new video camera is a service I’m beginning to offer as a more specialised service to paying customers. I’m refining my approach with practice, but there seems to be some good demand for this kind of service where I can at least offer an option.

I’m still writing articles but don’t have as much time as I’d like to devote to this area, which is frustrating as there’s so many things to write about on different levels. Just about all the things I write appear on www.firstoffthebike.com which has been a great way for me to explore a wide range of topics and a platform to publish them on. There’s more opportunities coming up in that area this year, in particular in the area of race coverage, which is exciting.

Another opportunity that may take off this year is holding regular deep water running classes, which would be great but again with the challenge of fitting it in. Deep water running is something I’ve done way too much of, and with increasing awareness of it is as a viable training option is something I think would be popular. There’s a few things that need to happen for this to go ahead, but I’d say there is a pretty good chance of it getting going early in the year.

The other main thing in life is, of course, work, where I spent most of my day and am on a big project that will run for another 1.5-2 years and is both enjoyable and challenging on a professional level. Having said that, I’m looking to shift to a part-time basis – 8-9 day fortnight – during and by the end of the year, so the sake of the kid and these other interests. So work is going quite well at the moment, which is good.

With all that there’s a lot going on in this little head, and rarely a dull moment...although having said that, the last few days at home with little on have been wonderful, spending it with my lovely wife and just hanging out.

I’ll keep on posting updates in various bits and pieces as the year goes on...so stay tuned for on just about everything!!