In the months leading up to the 11th running of Ironman Coeur d'Alene, Derek Garcia will be writing a monthly column keeping the community updated on his journey as well as what the hundreds of athletes from the Inland Northwest are doing in preparation for the race.

My son was swimming great.

He was on his way to the wall after pushing off of me 10 feet from the edge of the pool. He was going to make it to the wall, he only had inches to go. Then he decided to turn around and come back.

He got scared. He thought that it would be safer to come back to dad than continue going the direction he was going. What he didn't realize was that the quickest way to get oxygen was to continue forward. It is all part of learning how to swim and watching your kid choke on water is never fun. 30 minutes later a popsicle made everything better.

I HAVE found myself at this crossroad before. I know many who are building towards their Ironman dreams, are possibly in the same spot.

It is tough to lay it on the line. It is a scary proposition to put yourself in a position where you could get exposed. For many the preparation for this is a year or more in the making.

What happens if it is all wasted? What happens if everything you have built towards crumbles on race day? What if I get sick race week?!!

OK, OK, if you are racing stop hyperventilating. Could one of these things happen? Sure, they could happen. My son could have drowned, but he was ready to swim the entire distance he set out to swim and then at the last second doubted. Athletes do not have dad there to save them, but what they do have is their training.

WHEN THINGS look bleak, when doubts creep in, rely on the weeks, months, years of training that are in the tank.

That is the advice that I would give to those getting ready to race in a few short weeks. At this stage in the game if the work has not been done, it's never going to get done. My coach always tells me racing is just expressing fitness.

Racing is the fun part. The hard part has already been done. If you have trained properly you can rest assured. It may seem miles away, but the destination is mere inches away now, and they may even have popsicles at the finish.

Derek Garcia is a husband, father of three boys, cancer survivor, professional triathlete and coach. Derek has coached hundreds of triathletes to successful Ironman finishes. This year he will race Coeur d'Alene Ironman as a professional for the first time. Contact Derek at dg@derekgarcia.com