LAVA makes my blood boil

Dear LAVA Magazine:

Congratulations on your premiere issue, but you completely dropped the ball with your response to "Disappointed Joe" who missed the bike cut-off at Ironman St. George. He wanted a comp entry to a future race because he felt the Ironman organizers misrepresented the difficulty of the course . You put on the kid gloves and calmly explained the (many) logical and factual errors in his letter. I understand wanting to be supportive of fellow triathletes, but some people, like Disappointed Joe, just need a good swift kick in the ass.

As a back-of-the-pack Ironman finisher, Disappointed's letter offends me. He doesn't have an inspiring story of going from couch potato to triathlete; he's a self-proclaimed lifetime athlete who felt compelled to list his many athletic accomplishments, and who finally got humbled by a race. Welcome to land of the mere mortals, buddy.

I was with a friend at Ironman Arizona when she missed the cut-off for the third lap of the run. (Disappointed Joe would call her a "failure.") She signed up for the race knowing she would be fighting the clock the entire time, and attempted it anyway. As she left the course, she handled it with grace and dignity and didn't look for excuses. Disappointed Joe, in contrast (and by his own admission) wouldn't have even tried doing an Ironman if he knew how hard it would be. He can't seem to understand how an athlete of his caliber could possibly receive a DNF - the problem MUST be with the race itself. When my friend returns to Arizona some day and crosses the finish line, she will become twice the Ironman Disappointed Joe can ever hope to be, because she understands that becoming an Ironman is all about the journey.

Disappointed Joe says he never wants to do another triathlon again. You want to be supportive? Why not tell him "good idea" because it's pretty obvious he has absolutely no idea what the true heart and spirit of Ironman is all about.