It's a small world!

No this post is not about that evil ride at Disney, although that did make for a really funny thread on BeginnerTriathlete.com a few year back. Check it out if you dare but don't blame me if that tune is stuck in your head. http://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=48893&start=1

No this post comes from a little encounter I had the other day at A.C. Moore. My wife sent me out on a mission to pick up some craft supplies. So I head out wearing my Steelman Triathlon sweat shirt, find the supplies and go to check out. The elderly lady at the counter sees my sweat shirt and asks, "Oh a triathlon, is that the one in Hawaii?"

Long ago I realized that no matter how obsessed I am with the sport of Triathlon, I shouldn't expect anyone else to know much about my sport other than "that triathlon in Hawaii they show on TV." But I really like being able to say, "Why yes I have done that race in Hawaii." Having won a lottery spot in 2007, I was able to make one of my dreams come true. So that race is very special to me, and it is great way to start a conversation share my passion the wonderful world of triathlon.

So back to A.C. Moore, I replied,"No this race was up in Quakertown, but I have done the race in Kona." Turns out she used to live in Kona back in the early 1980's and had a house overlooking the ocean. The store wasn't busy so we talked for about 15 min about Kona, how much the city has grown, how the race moved to the island and went it was moved to the island they could watch the swim from there backyard and the run from their front porch. I told hear about the "new high school" (used to be only the school was the one on the upper part of Palini), and the new shopping centers (Lowes, Walmart, Boarders, etc). It was really nice to share perspectives about a place were both had very fond memories of.

On the ride home, I also remembered, back in 2007 after we checked in for the race and were wandering around the shops at the King K hotel, we shopped in an artists studio and one of the artists recently moved from Collegeville, PA (the next town down 422 from where I live) to Kona. I remember having a similar conversation with her and we brought a personalized piece of art by her (Triathlon themed).

So you never know who you will meet out there.