So this is it.

Have you joined my incredibly non-annoying, once-in-a-while email newsletter?

So this is it.

Six months of training comes down to tomorrow morning.

Six months of going to sleep early.

Six months of swimming.

Of biking.

Of running.

All for this.

It all comes down to this.

It all comes down to tomorrow.

From 7am to midnight.

I have 17 hours to prove myself on my field of battle.

I will endeavor to do so.

And while I am unsure of the outcome, I have never been more sure of one thing as I am of this:

I will not quit. I will not quit. I will not quit. I WILL NOT QUIT.

There are three things that can take me off that course tomorrow.

I will cross the finish line in under 17 hours.

or

I’ll be physically removed from the course after midnight.

or

I’ll be physical removed by medical personnel because something has gone horribly wrong.

Those are the only three ways I’ll leave the course.

It’s going to hurt. There is no doubt. If it didn’t, we’d all do it.

But when it does, I remember that I’m tougher than hurt. I’m tougher than pain. I’m tougher than exhaustion.

When it hurts, I’ll remember that I made a promise to myself that I WILL NOT QUIT.

When I want to quit, I’ll remember the men and women in our armed forces, who are out there on much more important fields of battle right now. They can’t quit when it hurts. They can’t quit when they get tired.

I WLL NOT QUIT.

I will honor my coach, my parents, and my support crew who have flown down here to be by my side by NOT GIVING UP.

I WILL NOT QUIT.

I will honor anyone who doesn’t fit the standard definition of what they’re trying to do, be it physically, mentally, or emotionally, yet they attempt it anyway.

I will do this for anyone who has ever thought “maybe I can.”

I will do this for me.

I WILL NOT QUIT.

I will do this because, as Lance Armstrong said:

“Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually, it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.”

I WILL NOT QUIT.

I may not make it. I may not make my goal of sub-17 hours, and if I don’t, I won’t be called an Ironman.

This time.

And if that were to happen, I’ll dust myself off, and I will try again soon.

“Sometimes, courage doesn’t shout. Sometimes, it’s the quiet voice that says “I will try again tomorrow.”

If I don’t become an Ironman tomorrow, I will try again.

BECAUSE I WILL NOT QUIT.

May G-d protect me and my fellow 2200 athletes in Cozumel, Mexico tomorrow, while we race for our individual goals.

Thank you all for your support, your comments, your Tweets, your good wishes, kind words, and positive energy.

Tomorrow is the payoff of six months of training. It’s time to go out there and make it happen.

And for better or for worse – Whether I cross at 16:59:59, or I surprise myself and do better:

I WILL NOT QUIT.

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