“Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after.”
- Henry David Thoreau
We have two big passions in the Corbin household: fishing and triathlon.
Triathlon has been put on the back burner for a bit as I am taking care of a bum wheel (not the Zipp one on my bike, either) - so I spent some time fishing on Sunday. During our fishing extravaganza, I was thinking of how fishing relates to triathlon.
You see, often times Chris goes out and fishes, but doesn’t do any catching. I asked him what drives him. It doesn’t seem like fun to me to go out and fish and not catch anything. I’ve come to learn that fishing, just like triathlon, is just a day in a lifelong journey. There’s a passion that burns deep, a desire to keep coming back for more, and the strive to become a better angler. I can easily relate to these aspirations as a triathlete: passion, desire, and looking to become a better athlete.
It starts with the hunt. Finding the perfect water, the perfect day, the perfect hour that the fish are hungry.
Just like in triathlon - find the perfect course, the perfect day, the perfect weather, ideal conditions.
Then you have to have the perfect preparations. You have to select the right fly. Do some problem solving and figure out what the fish are eating, how they are eating, when they are eating.
Just like in triathlon - lots of preparations go into the effort. On the race day, we execute a lot of problem solving along the way.
Then there’s the execution. Casting the fly, presenting the fly, mending the line.
Just like in triathlon - we execute what we have been practicing. Something we have done over and over for weeks/months on end.
When you fish, you wait. Patience.
Just like in Ironman - you have to be patient.
And then there’s the CATCH! The ultimate prize. An adrenaline rush at first. The zippity zzzzzz zip of the line and if you are lucky, the fish puts up a big fight!
Just like in triathlon - sometimes you catch the perfect day. It’s an adrenaline rush. You always nearly have to put up a fight, sometimes it just lasts longer than others.
And if you are a lucky fisherman - you land your prize and reel it in.
Just like in triathlon - somedays you land a big one!
Sometimes, actually most times, as a fisherman the big one gets away. And you get to brag to your friends about how big it was.
Just like in triathlon - somedays, things don’t go as planned. But you still get to brag to your friends about how fast your T2 was.
And the same process starts again. Find your water, pick your fly, cast, present your fly, wait, wait, wait, and hopefully you catch a big one - keeping your eye on the prize along the way.
Just like in triathlon - try, try and try again.
Hoping to catch my big one sometime soon! And for the record, I am talking about a 30’’ trout. Remember, its just a day - in a lifelong journey.
Best wishes,
Linsey
