Hey guys. Hope you had a good weekend.

Here’s what’s on tap today:

Let’s get into it.

And if you’re new here, welcome aboard. Glad you found us.

We had a dad recommend the Derek Grant podcast in a Saturday Send a while back.

Tuned into his latest episode on a run over the weekend (link below) and found myself stopping to jot down two things he said:

“Growth eventually is going to ask you to betray an old version of you.”

And: “The old you is gonna stop working.”

A lot to unpack there.

The stuff that got you through one season of life isn't necessarily what you need for the next one. The way you worked, spent your time, handled stress, thought about money, whatever.

Dad life has a funny way of speeding some of that up.

I know there are parts of the guy I was before kids that I still really like. There are also parts that just don't work with three of them running around.

And I'm sure five years from now I'll say the same thing about the guy writing this. Growing probably requires leaving a few versions of yourself behind along the way.

Ben Kanute is a professional triathlete based in Loveland, Colorado, and a dad of two kids, ages three and five.

His job is literally swimming, biking, and running, but fatherhood has been the thing with no set course map. That’s the part he keeps coming back to. No one really knows exactly what they’re doing. Every kid is different. You make mistakes, own them, adjust, and keep going.

There’s also the guilt that comes with leaving for training or races, even when it’s the right thing. Ben gives a lot of credit to his wife for carrying more so he can do what he does at the highest level.

What he’s learning is that the same things that make parenting hard are also what make it good. It changes every day. The kids grow fast. They see the world differently. And if you slow down enough, you can learn a lot from that.

His reminder for dads is simple: be patient, stay intentional, and remember that hard things are usually worthwhile.

Follow him at @benkanute.

This is the kind of jacket you’ll end up grabbing all fall. Relwen’s Sailcloth Tanker is lightweight, wind and water-resistant, and easy to layer over just about anything. Rugged without looking overly outdoorsy.

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It’s officially fall, which means there’s still a lot of year left. Research on the “fresh start effect” shows we naturally like using dates like New Year’s, birthdays, or even Mondays as a reason to finally start something.

But you don’t need January 1. Pick something now (for real) a race, a strength goal, a workout streak, and put it on the calendar.

Research on goal-setting also shows that deciding when, where, and how you’ll do something makes you much more likely to actually follow through. Give yourself something to chase before 2027 gets here.