I did it!! I finished my first triathlon, and I can't begin to tell you how fun it was!
I was nervous. I had burned out on working out a week and a half before the event, and I hadn't worked out AT ALL in that time. I only got my hands on a working, real-life bike two days before, so I wasn't able to practice riding in the streets. My lazy behind never ran in the streets either. I hadn't run outside probably since marathon training.... or shortly thereafter. Running outside is great, but living in LA makes it harder. You're breathing bus and car exhaust, getting caught at every street light... and you'll have near-death experiences every few minutes as bikers and cars nearly run you over. Its a tough job, I'm telling you.
So I dragged my family out at 5:45am and headed to Pasadena Rose Bowl. The event didn't seem very organized.... nothing was easy to find, I was missing things in my packet...blah blah blah. I'm just glad I was early enough to figure everything out before it was time to get to the start line.
I had no idea what to expect. There was a "transition area" where you set your bike up and set out anything you might need. I took my dirty, second hand, bought-it-for-twenty-bones mountain bike, and set it up next to the elite, aerodynamic, $4000 triathlon bikes.
The whistle blew and we started out running. Somehow I managed to be in the very front of the group when we started..... don't ask me how. I was reminded of this when my baby brother said, "Manda... why did you start out at the front, and by the time you came around again, you weren't at the front anymore?" I stuck out my hand and said," Hi, I'm Slowpoke Simon....nice to meet you."
I had expected adrenaline and excitement to push me, give me more speed, maybe shave some minutes off my time. Then about .2 miles into it, I felt my body dragging. I couldn't believe it. I knew I should have trained outside, but this seemed ridiculous! I felt like I was barely moving. I berated byself for a good mile, just shaking my head at failing to train properly. I started to feel tired, and suddenly, there it was. The 2 mile marker. It was only a 3.1 mile run. Thats when I realized the worst part of the whole event was nearly over. Yay! And then the tide changed for me. The last mile was downhill, and suddenly I picked up speed. I was cruisin....passing people, getting more energy..... I was on a roll. I suddenly wished the run was longer.
I ran to the transition area to grab my bike with my people cheering and screaming "YOU CAN DO IT MANDERPANTS!!!
It's amazing what a litte encouragement and mild embarassment will do to your energy levels.
I got on the bike and was CRUISIN.....
I finally felt the speed I had wished for in my run. As I sped away from the cheering crowd, suddenly the ride got tougher. Thats when I realized why I had struggled so much in my run. It wasn't because I was unprepared or out of shape! The first two miles is at an INCLINE. I had been running uphill. As slight as it was, I hadn't noticed it so much..... but hoofing it on the bike, it became noticeable. I forgave myself for all the attitude I'd had about it...and was proud that I made good time despite the challenge.
The bike part was 9 miles. Not so far, but by the last go around of the loop...I was itching to get onto the next part. I tried to go faster....I messed with the gears.....and I will say the last downhill mile was FUN! I switched the gears so I could pedal as I was going downhill, and I got some serious speed. I was trying not to imagine crashing into the 8 year olds in front of me, or hitting a patch of sand and biffing it big time. I was pretending I was a hardcore athlete.... where nothing but finish lines and award ribbons are happening. Not eating pavement or nursing a concussion.
As I cruised into the transition area to prep for the swim, I hollered at my people to rush to the pool. It wasn't close at all, so they all had to book it over there pretty fast. It was the tiniest swim I ever heard of in a triathlon. 150 meters and it was all over.
Of course I wasn't about to wear a bathing suit in public, let alone RUN in one. No thank you. So I tore off my shirt and did the pants/sports bra thing. Its amazing how pants will kill your speed. Kill it! I felt like I was dragging a small child through the water.
A few strokes into my swim, my goggles got all wonky. The left side filled with water, so I had to swim to the other side only seeing out of one eye. When I got to the other side, I stopped to tighten the strap....hoping to fix the problem. All it did was make BOTH sides fill up with water. So now I'm completely blind, dragging dragging through the water.....and somehow I got stuck behind some dummy who decided to swim breaststroke through the water. Seriously? Did anyone tell her that this was a timed event? A race of sorts? Are you kidding me with this? She nearly kicked me in all my blindness several times.
Finally, I tore my busted goggles off, went around the dummy who was lolligagging in the water, and cruised to the finish line. Thats about the time my people walked into the pool area. Just in time to watch me get out of the water.
I was pooped. But in an energized, lets-do-it-again kind of way.
I'll have to modify my training so I don't get so burned out....but I'm excited to do it again. Bring on the longer triathlon. I'm ready!!
To see a professional picture that was taken of me running, check out this site.