my brother...the Ironman

This past weekend Austin and I loaded up in the car and headed to Lousville, KY to see my brother Matt participate in an Ironman. He has completed some in the past by guiding blind athletes (see notes at bottom) but this was his first time to participate on his own. We left Friday after Austin's morning nap and drove to Hendersonville to stay with my best friend Bobbi (didn't take any pictures). We had a great time with her 2 boys and husband. Then Saturday morning we picked up my mom and drove to Louisville. (Taking Austin on car trips is pretty terrible. He HATES the carseat and can't sleep in it so there is nothing enjoyable about driving but oh well...hopefully this will pass when he turns around.) We woke up Sunday morning at 5:00 am to make it to the Start to see him take off. It was crazy how many people were there. There were 2,5000 participants and each participant had at least 3 people there to cheer them on. We did see him start the swim, finish the swim, start the bike, and then saw him 2 times on the run. The whole thing took him 11 hours to finish. The swim is 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles, and the run is a full marathon (26.2 miles). We are so proud of him and proud of the C Different Athletes.

Charlie (66 years old and blind) being guided through an Ironman!!!

Matt starting the 26.2 mile run.

Matt running towards the Finish Line.

Austin, Christin (Matt's girlfriend), and Matt at lunch

My brother founded C different over 5 years ago and it is amazing what he and the other members of C different are doing in the racing community. Visit http://www.cdifferent.org to learn more.