How The Internet Shrinks The World

A few years back when my friend Liz was in the finish line corrals at El Tour de Tucson, she turned to the cyclist behind her and congratulated him on crossing the line.  They chatted for a few minutes about their race day adventures and she asked whether this was his first century ride, and the guy just smiled.

It wasn't until later that week when she scanned the internet for her race stats that she realized she had been talking to Greg LeMond.  Are you kidding me?  Tour de France winner Greg LeMond!  Behind Liz?!  Turns out LeMond was riding in Tucson that day as the honored guest of El Tour.  His name was listed right below hers as a finisher in the 109 mile event.

Leave it to the internet to discover such crazy coincidences.  Which bring me to a find of my own.  

Last night I received an email from a guy named Danny McFee from Hong Kong.  Danny had found my blog and race recap on Ironman France via the big ole' internet.  As he read my insights, he noticed that we finished the race one minute apart from each other.

Lorie:  swim 1:14, bike 7:45, run 4:30 +- transitions = 13:45
Danny: swim 1:27, bike 7:20, run 4:45 +- transitions = 13:46

Literally ONE minute apart!  We must have criss crossed each other's paths a dozen times that day.

And in the circuitous route called "google search" Danny and I found each other, shared our experiences and the world got a little smaller and a little more friendly.

Now I know all is not good when it comes to cyber space.  But today, it IS good.  I love hearing about races from athletes around the world, swappin stories, sharing dreams. And I love that triathlons can bring people together to attempt something difficult, push their limits, and enjoy the process along the way.  

And that, my friends, is why I TRI.


You can read Danny's IM France race report HERE.