As we embark up on the 2012 Midwest triathlon season, many of you are gearing up for your first races. That first triathlon can be an incredibly exhilarating albeit intimidating experience. Let me share with you the story of my first triathlon.
It was 2001, I was a junior in college and I had no idea what the heck I was doing. I had competed in a couple of Indoor Triathlons and thought it would be fun to take this sport outdoors, so I registered for the J-Hawk Earlybird Triathlon in Whitewater, WI. I packed up my road bike (an early college graduation present), my boyfriend (now my hubby), and a few other accessories into my Ford Escort (the H2O Bug for those of you who have known me that long) and headed up to Wisconsin. Little did I know how this sport was about to change my life.
I will never forget arriving at that race and seeing all these other athletes who clearly knew what they were doing. I distinctly remember saying to Gene, "I can't do this, let's go home." I saw people in head to toe spandex, tricked out bikes and shoes that clipped into their bike pedals. What?!?!?! I was definitely out of my league.
The swim for this particular race was a 500 yard swim in a pool. That I could handle and people were probably even impressed by my speed. I quickly learned that the swim is a VERY small portion of the race. Only seven minutes of this race, to be exact. I fumbled my way through T1 and headed out on the bike for the longest 13 miles of my life. I think I had only had the bike a few weeks and was in no way prepared for the gusting winds and country roads. It took me over an hour. After a slow T2 (I was exhausted), I headed out for the run with heavy legs. I recall taking a wrong turn and crying in a panic that I was going to get lost in the trails of Whitewater University. Thankfully I found my way back on track and managed to cross that finish line.
By the time I was done it was a gorgeous, sunny and mild spring day. And I felt awesome. I totally sucked at the race but I had finished, and gotten a taste of that feeling of accomplishment that I still cannot get enough of. I had totally gone out of my comfort zone and done something that, at that time, almost no one that I knew had. From the moment I finished that race I was thinking about when I would do it again.
Is your first race coming up? Is it going to freak you out on race day when you arrive? Absolutely, but those race days jitters are just one part of the whole experience that you will learn to embrace and even look forward to. Even to this day, after completing upwards of 75 races, I still feel like I want to puke when I walk into transition on race morning. Don't let it scare you away, it may just change your life like it has mine!
-Coach A www.sparkmultisport.com
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