Just got my ironman tattoo :)

First off....I don't care if you're into ironman tattoos, or tattoos at all; I have tats that represent other parts of myself, including one for my first marathon, and I wanted a tattoo to represent this achievement.

However, I wanted something different than just the logo...took me over five months to figure it out, and finally I just went to a tattoo shop and brainstormed with the artist. I'm glad I did, because I love what we came up with!

The turtle is kind of ongoing tongue-in-cheek joke I have about being a back-of-middle-of-packer (middle-of-back-of-packer?). Slow and steady is my approach. I have a tiny stuffed turtle that I carry in races for luck, which I found while on a run, my running buddy loves turtles, etc. It's a recurring theme. My marathon tattoo is a turtle, too, so it seemed fitting. I bought a little carved onyx sea turtle in Cozumel after the race and thought a sea turtle would both commemorate the tri (at least the swim, although the artist joked about putting a turtle on a bike) and pay homage to the location.

Anyway, I think it's perfect - for me. I couldn't be happier about it! Behold, the iron turtle!!