After all the months of training, race morning was finally
here. The wife and I get up super early
to make sure we have everything we need.
We pack up the truck and off we go.
We go and check in and get body marked and make our way down to the
transition area. As we start to set up
our little area we are checking out how others are setting things up trying to
not look like the newbies we are. 5
minutes later we are all set and ready to go….
We had a couple close friends who met us at the race that
morning and stayed throughout the race and cheering us on at each
transition. My buddy checked on me at
the beginning and near the end of the run to make sure I was doing ok and offer
some words of encouragement. His wife
ran most of the run with my wife to keep her going and to push her along. We are very lucky to have great friends like
that and their support that morning was motivating for sure.
Backtrack now to the start of the triathlon. We are standing in a group of 50 or so people
(ALL newbies) get ready to jump into the water.
The race director counts us down and off we go into the water. Now I am not new to racing events and know
that the biggest mistake people make is going out too hard too fast. So knowing this I jump into the water and….
go out way too hard! Maybe a tenth of a
mile into the swim I am struggling but was able to quickly adjust my breathing
and stay on pace.
Running into transition I am hurting more than I wanted but
I know my bike training has been spot on so I am confident I can make up some
time. I run the bike out of transition
and hop on. With about a mile to go I am
feeling super confident and happy with how the ride went so I crank it up to
the finish and run my bike into transition.
That hurting I had from the swim is long gone and now I am feeling confident
and strong.
Now let’s run. Like I
said earlier my buddy was at the exit of transition and took off with me to see
how I was doing and if I needed him to run with me and push me. I felt strong so he said he would see me near
the end. There was a bunch of people
sitting along the run course cheering you on and playing music. Whether it was coincidence or just perfect
planning almost everyone I ran by had Eye
of the Tiger playing. A big thank
you to all for that! About a quarter
mile to go my buddy jumps out and runs a minute with me telling me what I
needed to hear and I head down the final sprint on the beach to the
finish. I have not seen the race photos
yet but I’m sure my finish photo shows a man in pain. That final sprint down the beach was not
easy. But what I can say is my finish
photo shows a picture of a new triathlete.
I was able to stand near the finish and watch my wife cross the finish
line and become a new triathlete as well and that makes me proud of what we
have accomplished.
This was all new and instead of staying in our comfort zone we branched out to try something new and for that we are both stronger
people and stronger athletes.
And to answer that question I have been getting already…..
YES I plan on doing another! So why
don’t you sign up with me and meet me in transition.
