Back in July of 2012 when I was training for Ironman Louisville, I took a trip down to Louisville to ride the Ironman bike course with my training buddy Tim. This local guy named Bob set up these weekend rides on the actual course all summer long and would recruit his friends and others he knew to set up aid stations along the way! This was definitely worth the drive down, just to be able to ride the course and be a bit more prepared on the day of the actual race. On that day we met up with other riders who were training for IMKY, one of which was Julie Farman. Julie and I hit it off right away….she has an amazing personality, a warm smile and she’s fierce…..this girl had done IMKY 5 times…...FIVE.TIMES. Crazy. She was one of the swimmers who bumped into the athlete who had a heart attack and sadly died during IMKY in 2011. Julie and others formed a call around this man to protect him until he was able to be removed from the water and the race could continue.
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| July 2012: Tim and I take on the IMKY bike course |
Since that time we’ve stayed in touch. I love the people that IM has brought into my life. Julie and I have been meaning to meet up and finally the time had come! I was volunteering as a finish line catcher for Ironman Louisville the next day and so I drove down on Saturday to spend the night with Julie, catch up with her and be ready to go on Sunday afternoon. I was super excited to see her again!
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| Julie and her pup Zeus |
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| We share a love of good wine :) |
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| Zeus can keep up with Julie and run with her for 20 miles! |
Julie’s story is pretty remarkable. She was born in South Africa and grew up in France until age 14 when her family moved to Louisville. Julie became a French teacher and coaches cross country and track teams. Like me, she was a runner before getting into triathlons. She met her husband Michael and he signed her up for her first sprint triathlon. They were active and shared a love of travel.
Julie got a call one day at work from Michael’s brother who was at the hospital. She was told to come quickly and by the time she reached the hospital, Michael had died of a heart attack. It was so completely out of no where and sudden. He was a healthy guy and there were no symptoms of concern in the days leading up to his death. Suddenly Julie was widowed and only in her 30’s. Tragic. Julie recalls the day like it was yesterday.
Time passed but Julie never really processed everything that she had just went through. She went back to work and pushed ahead. And suddenly one day she broke and the floodgates opened. The shock wore off. Julie grieved and she grieved hard. The summer I met her was the first year she had started to feel as though the pieces were coming back together and she was moving forward.
Triathlon is a big deal for all of us who challenge ourselves to go the distance. We do it for a lot of reasons, some of which are deeply personal.
Julie is one of those women who inspire me to greatness. She’s been through more pain and sorrow than I can even imagine. She’s traveled the world, embraces life and continually challenges herself. She opens her heart and her home to a this random gal and I am beyond grateful for that hot, sticky, hilly ride back in July of 2012 when this amazing lady came into my life.
Be Inspiring. Be Brave.
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