Official Triathlete

I finished my first Olympic distance triathlon this morning. I had done two sprints prior but this one required more stamina as it doubled the distance (1 mile swim, 25 mile bike, 6.2 mile run). The weather was super horrible...worst conditions EVER! It was cold and rained most of the race. The rain started as I was setting up my transition area and so I quickly donned my wetsuit to try to stay as warm as possible. Of course, I didn't notice the rain while I was swimming but I did notice the decent-sized waves! A few times as I was attempting a breath I got a mouthful of water. I was super excited that I actually had passed a few of the half-ironman competitors in the water. Not sure how that's possible! All in all, I was VERY satisfied with my swim. I finished it in under 30 minutes (28:52)!

The transition to bike took forever because not only did I have to take my wetsuit off but I chose to wear running pants for warmth; however, getting those things on with wet legs is difficult to say the least! Not to mention all of my things were wrapped in plastic bags to keep them dry. Why I tried (or anyone did) is beyond me though because everything was soaked within a few minutes of biking/running.

The bike itself was the worst. First of all, I have a $5 bike that we bought at a rummage sale and while we have put some money into it to make it road-worthy it is still from circa 1983. Bike technology has changed a bit in the last 30 years. So much that while I was trying to have a quick conversation with a fellow racer she was sailing by me while coasting and I was pedaling my butt off just to keep up! How embarrasing! A guy even passed me on a MOUNTAIN BIKE! I passed maybe 12 people and at least 127 (give or take 50) passed me. YIKES! Clearly I need a new bike if I want to continue doing this sport. But to be fair I did spend the least amount of time training on my bike. The results showed. The rain hit us hard on the latter part of the 25 miles. Believe me, biking in the rain=not fun. Not only is it hard to see because of the rain drops pelting your face but it's dangerous! There were quite a few people who had wiped out and injured themselves pretty badly over a set of very slippery railroad tracks. The officials were making us dismount and walk over the tracks after that happened. Another bummer is the spray from the other bikes coming at you. At one point I rode past a Garage Sale sign and turned to another racer and said, "You wanna hit it?" She laughed. The route was very picturesque on winding, hilly tree-lined country roads. I wish the weather had been better so that I could have enjoyed it more.

During the transition to run another racer asked me if I was breathing okay. I thought that was odd and after telling him I was breathing fine I asked him his reasoning for asking me. He said my lips were blue. I said, "Yeah...it's because I'm freakin' cold!"

The run leg was SUPER challenging. The Lake Geneva Triathlon (actually held in Fontana) is known for "Frank's Killer Hill" so I had expected one tough hill to climb...not six or seven! WOW is all I have to say. These hills were ENORMOUS! I didn't mind the rain so much on the run leg. I wouldn't go so far as to say it was refreshing because I was still dang cold but I will say that it was a welcome distraction (Note the rain in this picture). Running in soggy shoes however was not. I passed a percentage of those racers who had passed me on my bike leg but I had expected that because usually running is the best of the three disciplines for me. Although today I would venture to say that my swim may have been. I did have to stop and tie my shoe at 3.5 miles, which was very difficult to do with numb fingers. I'm satisfied with averaging a 9 minute mile, especially after the swim and bike.

I know by now you are probably thinking, "suits you right for voluntarily signing up for that nonsense!" but I can't even try to express the feeling of accomplishment I had when I crossed that finish line. It's something I've had my sights set on for two years and to see it come to fruition really puts a smile on my face. This triathlon made the top 100 triathlons in the country for 2005 by Inside Triathlon Magazine so I'm especially proud to have completed my first Olympic distance on a challenging course such as this. I finished the entire race in just over 3 hours if you don't count transitions, which I don't because I'm not a super elite racer. I was hoping for under 3 but given the conditions and those ungodly large hills I'm happy with what I've accomplished.

John came out to root me on which was really encouraging and fun to have someone to hug after it was all over with. He is my biggest cheerleader and has been such a wonderful support for me while I trained this summer. His confidence in me never wavered! I was very nervous about this race feeling like I hadn't trained enough and even contemplated dropping down to the sprint distance last week. I really was doubting myself and voiced this to him. I am sooooo glad he talked me out of it and gave me the boost I needed because I really would have been disappointed in myself had I done that. We got a bite to eat before returning home and I really enjoyed this alone time with him. Mark (my brother) was taking care of the kids at home. All in all I am very pleased with how I raced my first "real" triathlon and I'm looking forward to beating this time at next year's race. I still had energy at the end of this one so I know I can do better next time if I push myself harder. Hopefully the weather will be better.