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Sunday was an awesome day. There were many reasons for this, but the one I am going to focus on is the 6th thing I have done this year that I have never done before. I realize that I had better get cracking on these “new things” because at this rate I won’t reach 42 new things before year’s end. The good news on this front is that I do think I have done more than 6 new things, but I have not blogged about them. It is my intent to be a more intentional blogger…can I count that as a new thing?
So back to Sunday. In the afternoon my triathlon training group met at Guelph Lake for a practice run of the triathlon we will be racing on the June 16-17 weekend. There was much anxiety on my part about being able to participate in this practice tri; I was desperate to do it, but also needed to catch a flight in the evening for a week of work travel. It took a bit of coordinating to get me there (thanks Sue!) and then a car service to pick my bedraggled body up at the gate to the park and drive me to the airport and then my Tri coach being willing to take my bike, helmut, wetsuit and other assorted gear back to my house. Once I got this part all organized it worked with race-like precision! I should at this point apologize to the fellow that was beside me on the plane. All I had time to do was towel off from my run and throw on sweats for the ride to the airport. I still had my running shoes one! Sorry dude.
So to the race. We swam and out and (diagonal) back in Guelph Lake. The temperature was perfect. I thought it might be cold, but it was wonderfully refreshing. I LOVED the swim. It was a bit nerve-wracking because the bouy was hard to see until I got closer to it, but i felt strong the whole swim. I loved the open water and the fact that I could actually swim in a straight line! I was just under a 1km swim.
Out of the water I started running up to my bike and did managed to grab the cord on my wetsuit to unzip it as i ran up the hill. I was surprised by how hard I was breathing once out of the water because I really didn’t feel like I was breathing hard in the water. My transition was quick for someone who had never really done a transition before and I must admit I was looking forward to getting on the bike to have a bit of a rest! I had trouble clipping my feet into the pedals and needed a couple tries, but once I was clipped in I was off! My legs felt strong and I was not cold as I pedalled off in my wet tri suit. The bike really demonstrated that I need to figure out how to shift gears a lot better! My chain came off once, but I managed to get in back on fairly quickly. I lost speed on approach to the hills because I wasn’t sure how to manage the gears, so at least now I know this. Confession time–I have only really done one long run on my bike before, so i think I need to focus on the bike ride in the next couple of weeks. Spin class doesn’t help with the shifting! I did enjoyed the bike and felt pretty strong.
Then off the bike to start the run. Wow. As I started out and felt my calves start to cramp all I could think was HOW DO PEOPLE DO THIS FOR A WHOLE IRON MAN???? Or even an Olympic distance (I have one on September!!!). These people are amazing. At this point I simply can’t fathom it. So off I ran…slowly. My nemesis is my lack of speed on my run. I ran between a 6:30 and 7:00 pace. Grrr. I could have pushed a very little bit more, but not much. I did have a bit of a kick at the end and was thrilled that I ran the whole thing and didn’t need to walk. Okay it was only 4kms , but it was 4km after 20 kms of biking and almost 1km of swimming.
I totally get how someone can get addicted to this sport. I really did enjoy each part. It was challenging and also a whole lot of fun. I have absolutely no idea how I did. This wasn’t timed as it was just a practice one to give us some experience. I have not how fast or slow I went (well I know that the run was slow), but the thrill of finishing it–even though it was practice–was fabulous. It was all I could do not to announce to everyone I met at the airport, “you know, the reason I smell to bad is because I just completed a practice triathlon <sniff>”
I so so blessed to have the most enthusiastic and encouraging tri coach in the world, Vy. I also have a couple of friends, Andrew and Tricia, who are actually triathletes and they are and endless source of inspiration to me. This practice triathlon has really opened my eyes and I have a better idea of what the real one will be like. Next Saturday we are going back to the lake for another practice swim, I hope I am back from this work trip in time to get out there and do another lake swim.
There was a family member that took pictures, so when I get those I will post them!