triOK's group - The best group - Closed (Page 45)

jogo - 2008-03-31 9:27 PM TOTAL SADNESS!! Yesterday, I was pretty high that I survived that indoor tri and today reality set in. The results were posted and I finished 88 out of 100 and lowest in my tri team. I've tried rationalizing and saying it was my first tri and I'll do better, but the sadness is still there. I thought I did much better but there was no way of knowing because it was all based on distance accomplished. Many tears. I think I have eaten my body weight in comfort food today. My emotions are just on a rollercoaster. I was doing good with my weight and my nutrition until the results came up. How does everyone else deal with disappointment? Has anyone ever had what they thought was a good race only to have their satisfaction kicked to the curb when they saw their standings?

I completely understand how you feel... its soooooo hard to pour your heart and soul into training for a race, but disappointment is in the nature of the sport.  To have a perfect race is truly a rarity... and sometimes you will have a bad race.  What happens if you flat in a race, or have a panic attack, or someone kicks you in the face?  I mean, I have heard of REALLY bad things happening in triathlon.  Its hard.  Its supposed to be hard.  That's why we are all here!  But when you look at your finish objectively.... you finished, healthy, strong, and you had fun... did you not?  None of us are going to be pros or make any money at this.... its something that we do for fun (as crazy as it is).  When you let disappointment creep in to this, the sport will lose its fun and then there is really no point to it anymore.  Its ok to be disappointed and want to do better, but you can't sabbotage your chances of doing so.  You've come such a long way in a very short amount of time.  And for that, you should be so proud of yourself!  Just look at where you were 4 months ago.  And what about this time last year... did you ever think you would be a triathlete.  That's right, I said it.  You are a triathlete now and you have many many many more races ahead of you.. so don't sabbotage yourself.  Be thankful that you have the ability and determination to even try.  Most people would rather call you crazy than think they could do it themselves.

Congrats, again, triathlete!!!  Buck up and get back on your bike - the season is a long one!!!

LOL!!! 

There is no 4th sport called screaming in triathlon.  But yes, bad things happen.  I have had them happen TO ME!  And I have heard about them happening to others.  Personally, I HAVE been punched in the face during an OWS.  Some @$$hole swam over the top of me toward the end of the race and as he did, he followed through with his stroke clocking me on the left side of my face.  He didn't even stop to see if I was okay.  (I was fine, but it could have been worse).

Last year at the Chicago triathlon, a lady got kicked in the face.  The kick broke her nose and she ended up drowning.  I dont mean to scare anyone, but this stuff does happen and you need to be vigilant when swimming with a bunch of people.

I am prone to panic attacks... I have had 2 during a race.  The first one was in a pool swim in my very first tri.  It scared me so badly that I almost DNFed.  The second time was at the same race I talked about above where I was punched.  It was at the beginning of the swim start, as I jumped in the water (float start), the water came over my head and triggered a massive panic.  Thankfully, it had happened before and I knew that I could calm myself down by getting my breathing under control.  I swam with my head above water for the first 50-100 yds then started my race.  But think of how far behind I was...   I missed the podium on that race by 20 seconds.

That's the spirit!!!    YAY!!!

I haven't seen a program like that, but I am only a bronze member. 

The way that I beat this is to just walk around the transition area before the race and challenge people to a fight. Usually somethin like , "You better pray to the God of skinny punks...."

Really, I dont do that, but imagine what it would be like

LOL!!!  Alright, tough guy...

 My kids used to play the game of seeing who could be quiet the longest....I was just wondering if that's what we are doing????

 Have a great week of training everyone....did anyone race this weekend???

You know, I have no idea.  My company sent me to Germany for a week and I lost track of everything.  There was so many people involved, I couldn't keep track of the data.   And then being gone for that long just messed everything up.  Dang it.

And its happening again... going to Austria next week for 2 weeks.  Just when my training started to look good.  

Hey Laura, have you learned to change your tire yet?  If not, you definitely should.  This is really really important when you start biking.  I can guarantee you you will get a flat in the middle of a ride, and if you don't have the proper tools and knowledge to do this, you might find yourself stranded in the middle of nowhere.  Changing a tire is really easy and they have tools that you can carry with you on your bike that make it a pretty simple fix even if you are in the middle of nowhere.

I would recommend taking your bike to the shop and asking the bike shop peeps to teach you how to do it.  I definitely think you shouldn't ride without knowing how to do this... 

Robyn, or anyone who has done some tri's, can you go through the process of a race step by step....I'm assuming they will let us know some of this but it would relieve some of the anxiety if I had some understanding going in.

Here are a few of my understandings and you can tell me if they are correct:

1.  You set up your transition area and then they close that before the race??

2.  For the bike, where are the numbers?

3.  I have a racing belt although I'm not sure what is for.  Is it just for the run?  So we get a separate number just for the run that is snapped into the race belt and that is put on just for the run??? 

OMG... yes.  Commando.  Don't wear anything under your bike shorts.  *cringe*  Oh the chaffing....

Bike shorts are made to wear without anything underneath.  And this is a common topic in Tri Talk, so don't feel funny about posting it.  Running shorts.... same thing.  They have built in underwear so you don't have to pack your own.

I knew there had to be more questions out there... this group is far too quite.  Feel free to post ANY question here... no matter how silly you think it is.  I GUARANTEE someone else here is wondering the same silly thing.

Let me answer your questions now.. and I will give you a run-down of a race tomorrow morning when i have time to make a LONG post....

1.  Yes, the transition area will typically close before the race.  They don't want people in there messing with stuff before the race starts.  They will usually be very vocal about when transition closes.  There is usually someone with a blowhorn, or the like, to tell people what to do.

2.  This depends on the race.  Sometimes they give you a number to wear.  Sometimes they give you a cumber to put on your bike.  Sometimes they give you a number to wear on your helmet.  Sometimes they give you all 3.  When you get to the packet pick-up, go through it and ask someone there what to do with all of the numbers.  Sometimes you just won't have any idea what they want you to do with everything so don't be afraid to ask.

3.  The race belt is for your race number.  Some of them have little places to keep GU and other goodies, but really its for your number.  Again, most of the time you just have to wear your race belt for the run, but sometimes they require it on the bike.  ASK someone to be sure since every race is different.  I do not recommend pinning your number to a shirt and trying to put it on in T1 or T2.  It doesn't work... trust me on this one.  A race belt is less than $10 and worth every penny.

What else ya got?

Good luck on your upcoming tri, Elizabeth!

- Lora

Instead of doing the whole distance, I would do a swim/bike brick.  When you stand up quickly after coming out of the water, you might feel dizzy.  Its common and not something to worry too much about.  You just need to know what to expect.

The bike/run transition is a different experience as well.  Coming off the bike, your legs aren't going to want to work very well.  Try shortening your stride until you loosen up a bit.

Don't do the full race the week before you race.  You are going to need to recover before then and racing before you race is not a good idea.  Do some easy workouts this week and eat/sleep well.

Eat 2 hours before the race starts.   And if you plan to be out longer than an hour, you might get before the race starts.  You could also gel on the bike, but that is up to you.  However, DO NOT WAIT until race day to do this.  If you plan to use gels in the race, you should use them in your training first.  Some people get upset tummys and even throw up with nutrition that doesn't sit well.  You have a week and a half to learn to use a gel... I would suggest it.  Highly suggest it.  They will keep you from bonking and also keep you focused during the race.  If you decide to gel during the race, I can give you some ideas on how to do it ...

Race belts:  They are just elastic bands that you attach your race number to.  You clip it on in transition and you're gone.  Get one.  And yankz too.  Don't waste time in T2 trying to tie your shoes.  You are going to be out of breath and have other things to worry about.  The yankz are just elastic laces that you put in your shoes so you don't have to tie them.  You should be able to get both of these at any sporting goods store or running store.  I would check a running store first.

Another good tip:  Bring 2 towels into transition.  1 big one to mark your "spot" and another small one to dry your feet off in T1.

Flip flops.  You might have a long trek to make coming out of the water.  I have been to races where T1 was 1/4 of a mile from the water.  Running across gravel/hot asphalt sucks.  Bring flip flops to walk around in and you might need them coming out of the water.  And you might not need them at all.  Just take them with you. 

Most pool swims are done as a snake swim... but if they didn't ask for swim times, I am not sure what they are planning on doing.  If you have a non-swimmer in front of you, pass them and dont feel bad about it.  They should know to yield to a faster swimmer... it is a race, so don't feel like you are in the wrong for passing someone.