DNF

Before anyone else says it, let me be the first...

Wah, wah, wah, wah, wah. HTFU!

Having spent one year riding, becoming a first time runner, and learning how to swim and struggling to get to the point where I can successfully swim 2500 yards nonstop, I DNF'ed in the event I was training for.

I actually finished the swim leg about 4 minutes faster than my guesstimated time and I believe I was third out of the pool of the 10 participants in my 900 yard swim wave (the slow wave), and even managed to blow by those people on the bike leg.

Here's the 'wah' part. Somewhere around halfway on the bike leg I hit a rock or something and heard the dreaded hissing sound, to which I said, "No, no, no, no, no..." I got a pinch flat on the front tire. I was disheartened determined to keep going and finish so I took the wheel off, fumbled the tube out (got passed by those who I passed I while ago), and while pumping up the new tube, snapped the tip of the valve off, rendering it useless. That's it. Race done. Game over. I put my bike over my shoulder and started walking. A car stopped at the next intersection offered me a ride back to the T1 area and my car.

It felt like an old Warner Bros. cartoon; all the setup and preparation only to have it shot down in a short period of time. I'm glad I did my first tri in July, so that I at least have something to show for, for all the time and effort spent.

To add insult to injury, on the way home I somehow lost one of the pads from my aerobars. Stopped by the LBS on the way home and had them deal with the flat, picked up a CO2 system for (hopefully never) the next time, ordered a new set of pads for my aerobar, and have been sulking ever since.

I know, HTFU. Can't help but being dissappointed by the whole uncontrollable thing. Not looking for sympathy, have enough for myself, but just want to say to anyone who ever had to DNF for whatever reason, your're not alone.