When you can't catch a breath on the swim and your equipment fails, keep trying!!
So there we were. My husband and myself, lined up at the start line of the My First Triathlon in Harrison Mills, B.C. I was so excited to get in the water and start.
Fast forward to the swim. What the heck was this about? I couldn’t see anything, I could barely get a breath, and panic was starting to mount. My expected swim time was NOT going to happen. Swimming in a pool was far different than this mess. I dragged myself out of the water, got my bearings and headed to my bike. As biking is not my strong point, I was a little nervous, but I felt the training would take over. Unfortunately, mechanics failed me and my tire blew about halfway through the bike portion. I threw in the towel and went to cheer for my husband.
Fast forward 4 weeks. There I was again, lined up at the UBC aquatic centre in Vancouver. No, a flat would not scare me off doing (and finishing) my first sprint tri! “OK,” I thought, ”Keep calm, just swim and focus.” Roughly halfway through, it hit me–I was trying this again and it felt GREAT. I had forgotten how much I love to swim. I even passed someone in the pool—wow! I jumped out and thought, “OK, first portion done.” No panicking, no floating debris and wood chips this time. Just good ole chlorinated clear water. Gotta like that.
During transition I tried to be fast, but everything was just so sticky. I jumped on the bike and went. “Don't think about tires!” I said to myself. The bike course consisted of 3 loops of a 6k course. Very smooth and beautiful surroundings. With the first loop done, I waved to my husband. With the second loop done, I waved again and yelled out, "No flat yet, hahah!" Halfway through the third loop I felt that damn tire. I kept looking down, and saw it going, going, going. But no way was I stopping. I pulled my butt up and just went hard. I thought, “I will drive this bike into the ground if I have to.” I came around the last stretch, and yelled to my husband, "FLAT TIRE!”
In transition, I all but threw my bike onto the ground, whipped the helmet off, and went. I thought, “Wait , did I leave my legs on the bike?” It took a good 2k to get the feel of the run. Then it hit me—I was only 3k away from being a (sprint) triathlete. I kept going, then I saw the finish. I decided to sprint. Final time: 1:32
It felt awesome. I am officially hooked.
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Always Tri Again
When you can't catch a breath on the swim and your equipment fails, keep trying!!
So there we were. My husband and myself, lined up at the start line of the My First Triathlon in Harrison Mills, B.C. I was so excited to get in the water and start.
Fast forward to the swim. What the heck was this about? I couldn’t see anything, I could barely get a breath, and panic was starting to mount. My expected swim time was NOT going to happen. Swimming in a pool was far different than this mess. I dragged myself out of the water, got my bearings and headed to my bike. As biking is not my strong point, I was a little nervous, but I felt the training would take over. Unfortunately, mechanics failed me and my tire blew about halfway through the bike portion. I threw in the towel and went to cheer for my husband.
Fast forward 4 weeks. There I was again, lined up at the UBC aquatic centre in Vancouver. No, a flat would not scare me off doing (and finishing) my first sprint tri! “OK,” I thought, ”Keep calm, just swim and focus.” Roughly halfway through, it hit me–I was trying this again and it felt GREAT. I had forgotten how much I love to swim. I even passed someone in the pool—wow! I jumped out and thought, “OK, first portion done.” No panicking, no floating debris and wood chips this time. Just good ole chlorinated clear water. Gotta like that.
During transition I tried to be fast, but everything was just so sticky. I jumped on the bike and went. “Don't think about tires!” I said to myself. The bike course consisted of 3 loops of a 6k course. Very smooth and beautiful surroundings. With the first loop done, I waved to my husband. With the second loop done, I waved again and yelled out, "No flat yet, hahah!" Halfway through the third loop I felt that damn tire. I kept looking down, and saw it going, going, going. But no way was I stopping. I pulled my butt up and just went hard. I thought, “I will drive this bike into the ground if I have to.” I came around the last stretch, and yelled to my husband, "FLAT TIRE!”
In transition, I all but threw my bike onto the ground, whipped the helmet off, and went. I thought, “Wait , did I leave my legs on the bike?” It took a good 2k to get the feel of the run. Then it hit me—I was only 3k away from being a (sprint) triathlete. I kept going, then I saw the finish. I decided to sprint. Final time: 1:32
It felt awesome. I am officially hooked.
Click on star to vote