Goodbye Best Friend....

I know this post has nothing to do with triathlons or even Shawn's surgery, but it is something that I am going through, and I just had to sit down and write out my thoughts.

Today, we had to go to the vet and have my best friend, Sebastian, put to sleep because of chronic uninary tract infection and Cushing's Disease. He also started to get bumps on his body much like a wart that would get infected and rather painful. The selfish part of me kept telling me that he was healthy and we really did not need to do it, but the humane part of me eventually took over and said that I never wanted my little buddy to suffer. It was hard, but it was time. He went gracefully to sleep and said "Goodbye," to this world only to go to a better place.

Sebastian Sierra (Bubba) Murphy lived 14 amazing years. I got him when he was around 6 or 8 weeks old. He immediately stood out to me because of his unique and beautiful color. Because he was born near St. Augustine, FL and the San Sebastian River, I felt the name was perfect for him. He was with me before I met Rachel, but quickly adopted her as his mother and they would go for daily walks. I think he loved her more than me sometimes because he used to lay on her instead of me. One time Rachel and I were playing around and Sebastian started growling at me to leave her alone.

Sebastian was obsessed with the game fetch and I have to admit, I was fine with that. I used to love throwing the stick until my arm got so sore that I could not throw it anymore. His nose was amazing. He would only get the stick that you threw and would not give up till he found it. I always said that you could throw a stick in a pile of sticks and he would bring the right one back. Fetching nearly cost him is life early one time because of his second love, swimming. We went out to Lake Lewisville, near Dallas, to hang out with friends. Rachel and I were throwing a stick in the water and he would swim out to get it and swim back. Finally he came over to me in complete exaustion and collapsed. We immediately took him to the vet and found out that he had over hydrated himself from drinking all the lake water. It was a scare, but the next day I brought him home and he immediately went into the back yard and brought me a stick. Crazy Dog!

I learned a lot from Sebastian, but the thing that I am thankful for the most was how he taught me the definition of unconditional love. It would not matter if I was in a good mood, bad mood, if he was hungry, thristy, needed to go outside, or feeling bad. He was always there to lick my face and show his love to me. He just wanted to be near us and would follow us all over the house all the time. It broke his heart when he would do something wrong or drive us crazy from following us and we told him to go to his bed. Of course he would soon forget about it as soon as we called him over to us. He was ready to lick our face again.

Sebastian immediately shared his love with Shawn when he was born and was always nearby. I remember when Shawn was sleeping as an infant, Sebastian would sit under his swing, by his bassonett or at his door on guard just to make sure that Shawn was safe. Even as Shawn was getting older and started exploring, Sebastian was so patient with Shawn. I remember one time when Shawn kept pulling Sebastian's long fluffy ears and he just let Shawn do it while looking at me with those, "He doesn't know," eyes.

Sebastian will be trully missed by this family, and in reality, I don't know when we will ever be able to get another dog. Even if we did, he would never be able to be replaced in our hearts.

We love you Bubba! We will miss you!

Welcome Profile Design to the Shawn's Ironman Family

Since I got involved in training for triathlons, I have always considered Profile Design one of the leaders in triathlon and cycling equipment. I have been able to take advantage of their products by turning my older model Motobecane Record into a sleek and superfast triathlon bike with some of their accessories. On top of it all, they have wetsuits, apparel, and racing wheels that are arguably the best in the world.

When I considered accepting potential sponsorships, I wanted to limit it to only those that I actually used and believed in. I was so excited to have Profile Design join me in my quest to become “Shawn’s Ironman.” Check out more about Profile Design, Bellwether, and Titec by clicking on the sponsor link. Also show your support by purchasing their products available all over the world. To find a dealer near you CLICK HERE or go to Find a Dealer on their website.

Athlete-Tested. World Champion Approved. How can you be sure we have the best? Ask any of our world-class athletes—including the reigning Ironman™ world champion. They use our stuff—and tell us what they need to win. Then, our R&D team rides technology’s edge, bringing the latest innovation to every product. Whether they’re jamming on their pedals in Kona, flying down a mountain in Whistler or crushing that epic local ride, all athletes can trust we’ve given them the best. We know what drives their passion because it’s our passion, too. It’s the details. Shape, construction, materials, and a lot of sweat—not to mention a little blood—go into our products. We don’t take anything lightly. This is our life.

Karen thanks for all the help and laughs. You and Profile Design shine as a true example to the triathlon world that you care about advancement of the equipment and the people in the sport.

Eating the Elephant...

During my training I have found myself sometimes looking too far ahead of where I should. When I do, it can somewhat become very discouraging about what I have to do. In the past few weeks I have found myself doing that, and I don’t know why. Maybe it is because I had officially pony up the money for the Rohto Ironman 70.3 Florida, or the fact that I have had to plan my total schedule and budget for the season, but either way, discouragement seemed to creep in. In what way you may ask? Well, let me explain a little better for you.


I started to look at the times of the previous participants in the IM 70.3 Florida to set a goal for my training. Once I established my goal, I went out to train one day and noticed that I was considerably slower than what I set for my goal. I immediately started get down on myself, and I started to think about how impossible it is to complete my goal. I had to get refocused and fast. I started to do some research and ran across this paragraph:

You're going to have good days and bad days. There are going to be days when you really do not want to train. All of that is normal and ok. Don't worry about all the miles you need to cover; just focus on today's workout; just focus on the next mile. Live in the moment and don't worry about anything else. Break down your training and your workouts into smaller, more manageable segments and just focus on them. You can always take one more step or do one more lap. Stay in the moment and focus on right now.

That paragraph immediately made me realize that I was looking too far into the future instead of dealing with the training of today. I found further encouragement in 6th Chapter of Matthew:

Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.

When Rachel and I were going through the overload of information that we were given about Shawn’s conditions, it was really hard on us at first, but we were soon surrounded by friends and family that were there to love on us and support us through those times. Through God’s direction they became our rocks and crutches when we were weak. Now that I look back at it, we only had time to focus on one thing at a time, because we could not wrap our minds around everything that was happing to Shawn. We were staying in the moment and focusing. I still can’t believe that we got through what I would have considered the impossible before we went through it.

If you ever heard the old saying, “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time,” it can be used several ways in our lives. For me, and for right now, I am rephrasing it to say, “How to you get to the Ironman? One workout at a time!”

From now on each workout has become its own individual event before the Ironman. Since each workout has become an event, all my focus is on only finishing that workout, and celebrating each completion. Sunday was a Brick Workout for me consisting of a 1 hour bike ride and a 30 minute run. I was actually able to make each section an event and it resulted in the workout being one of the best training sessions I have ever had. I am sure I looked like an idiot in front of my house jumping around and celebrating like Michael Jordan did after making the winning shot, but I did not care. I was victorious…now let’s us move on to tomorrow’s event.

To all my friends and family, I appreciate your support so much. We are built to laugh, cry, and live life together. Without your encouragement, I could not do this alone. Thank you!

Update 2/9/2011:

I am overwhelmed by the support that I have received from my friends, family, and followers of this blog over the past few days. I can definately see that I am not on this journey alone. Thank you so much for taking the time to share your stories and words of encouragement in the past two days.

Someone sent me a link to this video. Greg went through a lot of what I went through and this is his small story:

Swim Training & The Houston Marathon

The past two weeks of training have been very difficult, not because of the training itself, but because my schedule has had some interference. I have been trying my best to accommodate my schedule and get in my daily workouts when I can, so that is why I have not been able to post an update. I have found it very difficult with my current schedule. Fortunately, I have fallen into a routine, and I have one of the most understanding wife’s a man can have.


If there is anything that I have a tendency to cheat on when it comes to my workouts, it would definitely be my swim workouts, which I know I shouldn’t. I have always been a decent swimmer from the time I was little. My sister, who is older than I am, had a job as a lifeguard at pool in the nearby small town. My mother was single fulltime student/employee, so I spent most of my summers swimming at the pool while my sister worked. I pretty much became a fish at 2 years old. My father and mother got back together after they initially went through a divorce when I was around 10 years old. He decided that he was going to take his tractor and dig a pool in our back yard. It was really a great experience with an obvious reward after our job was done. I spent a lot of the summers and late springs swimming. At 15 I attend lifeguard classes and soon would follow in the footsteps of my older sister. I really hope that Shawn shares the same interest in swimming as I did at his age.

In Lifeguard Class I was the youngest, but still one of the strongest swimmers. Eventually, I got a job as a lifeguard then later became certified as a Red Cross Water Safety Instructor, and then I became a Red Cross Lifeguard instructor. I had all the strength in the world, and I was always a pretty good swimmer, but the freestyle stroke was never my best stroke. I was never efficient, but my mom would argue with anyone that it was still pretty. Unfortunately, pretty only last for short distance, so would wear out after a few hundred yards. My breaststroke on the other hand was a much stronger stroke, and I often dreamed of going to the 1996 Olympics as a swimmer. Living in a small town, our local school did not offer a swim team, so I was limited on developing my stroke. Eventually that dream died and life took over. In reality, I had not done any swimming since I was about 19 years old until last year.

When I first started swimming for triathlons, I remember wearing out after about 200 yards. I know, that is a far cry from the 2.4 mile swim that you have to accomplish in an Ironman, but you have to start somewhere right? I knew that I would eventually have to face my demons of not being a good freestyle swimmer and learn how to get an efficient stroke. I first started out by researching online, attended a few swim practices with the UH Masters Program, and eventually buying a book that had swim drills that I could incorporate into my workouts. I have come a long way, but I still struggle with swimming. If any of you out there have experience in swim technique or a coach looking to get some name recognition, I would really appreciate your help.

This past Sunday I was privileged to watch a very close friend, Tash, complete the Aramco Houston Half-Marathon. I was truly inspired by her achievement and the 30,000+ other runners that attempted the full and half-marathon. I decided to get my bike and see her in several areas of the race. She ran with determination and always with a smile on her face. It has given me so much encouragement toward my endeavor. I would like to publically congratulate Tash and all of the other runners who fought through the rain to cross the finish line. You may never know how much your accomplishment is motivating me every time I think about that experience.


Start of Houston Marathon



Mile 4