Swim, bike, run: expressed through haiku and senryu. Triathletes (and other swimmers, runners, and cyclists) are accustomed to spending a long time with their thoughts. Sometimes they listen to music, make grocery lists, repeat mantras, or even pray. We all observe the world around us. I decided to catalog some of my experiences. Maybe you can relate and maybe you'll enjoy and even share some of your own. "Where's the 5-7-5?", you ask. If you're like me you learned that Haiku is a form of poetry with three lines and 17 syllables. It's a little more complicated (and simple) than that. Traditional haiku poems, whose subject matter is typically nature, contain fewer than 17 syllables. And "senryu" is very similar to haiku but the subject is typically more human-centric. You can learn more at the Haiku Society of America (www.hsa-haiku.org) which puts together a very nice annual collection of some of the best examples of this genre.
