From the time I was born, I have been an independent, hard-headed, stubborn individual. My first words were “I do it. I do it.” I believe these character traits attribute to why I will never quit.
Skiing at age two - I didn’t need to learn how to turn. I would just shoot myself straight down the hill as fast as possible. It was always my way or the highway.
Growing up, someone would tell me I couldn’t do something - and I made sure I did it. This didn’t always play out well, like the time I stole the car and drove to Portland with my girlfriends. Sorry mom and dad! As a downhill ski racer, they told me I was too little for the Super-G event, I didn’t care - I was out to prove I could do it. I would just work harder at it if I had to.
My parents instilled a strong work ethic in my sister and myself. We started working at 16 to pay for things like gas in the car or new clothes. I was a pretty sweet lifeguard. My dad would go off to work each day and my mom would never stop moving. She was either working, looking after us, volunteering in the community, helping others or cleaning & organizing. On the weekends my dad would be on the bike, running, or socializing. Again, always on the go. There was no other option for us - I grew up in a household of hard workers.
Last year I was with my Grandpa as he passed away. Just like everyone else in my family - he did not go down without a fight.
Now, at 31 years of age, as a professional athlete, I am extremely thankful for my parents & family that gave my sister and I a “Quitting Is Not An Option” attitude.
On Saturday, at the Ironman California 70.3 event - I knew that quitting was not an option. I didn’t have my best day out there. I made a few small mistakes that would have yielded me a better result, I am sure. But that’s racing for you. At one point I was on the side of the road with my bike, I was cold, and thought that this sure wasn’t much fun. There aren’t many days where my job feels like a job. Saturday, during the race, things felt like I job. Back onto my bike, I knew I had a job to do. Be a professional triathlete!
I turned my attitude around and found myself enjoying biking in the rain. How fast could I time trial 10 miles? Could I set a new personal best of my watts? Instead of letting negative thoughts about the cold and wet bring me down - I thought: this is just like playing in the puddles, right??!! Onto the run and 9 minutes off the lead (congrats on the amazing race - Melanie!) I thought: not much to lose, and lots to gain! Let’s do this. Never quit. Put up a fight. Prove yourself wrong. Sometimes the greatest victories don’t come attached with a 1st place next to them. I am hoping my great effort from Saturday put some fitness in the bank that I can use at a race down the road.
A former Olympian wrote me a note before my first Ironman. She said: Never give up, you never know what is going to happen up the road. Wise words that I haven’t forgotten.
I am surrounded by someone who is the epitome of “never quit,” Chris Corbin. I have never met a more positive, driven, hard-working person. His ability to never stop believing in the toughest of all scenarios puts me in awe on a daily basis. If Chris isn’t going to give in, why should I?
I have found that quitting isn’t an option for Linsey Corbin - both on and off the race course. The more I dig my heels in, assert my hard-headedness, and don’t quit - the harder it is to quit. I had heard that once you drop out of one race, its easy to slip into the habit of dropping out of others. The key word is habit. I encourage everyone to adopt the habit of not quitting. Surround yourself with positive individuals that never quit & constantly believe. I never give up in training so I can practice never giving up on race day.
I want to encourage everyone to have a “never quit” attitude - because you truly never know what will happen up the road. You just may surprise yourself.
Thanks for the great support on and off the race course. I am back home in the great state of Montana.
Stay tuned for some updates from the mountains.
Linsey
