On sports

I've been considering getting involved in a new sport. Not a team sport, of course. I want something I can do whenever I feel like it, plus I'm just not aggressive enough to play team sports.

I'm not planning on quitting running anytime soon. In fact, I've got (very tenative) long term plans to run an ultramarathon in 2009. From observing my roommates, I should have plenty of time in the spring of fourth year to train for an ultramarathon. I'm going to continue my two marathons per year thing as well, but I want to add something new.

My two ideas so far have been triathlons and rock climbing. I like the idea of a triathlon because it's an endurance event and very similar in philosophy to running. I like competing against myself and the clock. I'm don't really care how I do in relation to other people - I mean, I usually figure out which percentile I was in, but I'll be unhappy if I'm in the top ten with a sucky time, but really happy if I PR and am at the bottom of the pack. The big problem I have with the triathlon is it involves swimming. I'm not a big fan of swimming. I can't see without my glasses or contacts (20/400 at my last eye exam and I've gotten worse since then), and contacts and water don't usually mix too well. I guess I could invest in a really good pair of goggles. I'm just not sure if I'll be able to make myself swim in the winter. I hate being cold as it is. I can swim - the one summer I had access to a pool, I used to do laps. I'm just not a big fan of getting my head wet.

Rock climbing is appealing because it doesn't involve water and works an entirely different set of muscles. However, it requires a partner and isn't just something you can do at any time. So...maybe. The gym I go to when I'm at home, has ways to find a partner and several of my classmates climb. I'm just not sure.

Other than this...I'm not sure what I can do. I'm not interested in yoga or pilates or tae-bo type stuff. I find lifting on its own boring. I guess I could just cycle, but if I don't have a goal to train for, I might as well just stick to running.

Twenty minutes until I can go to bed...