Well, a couple weekends ago I tried a Triathlon, a "Tri". For those of you who don't know, this is a race that is involves: Swim, Bike, and Run, in various distances.
This race was a Mock Sprint Tri (shorter distances) - the real event is in a couple weeks, but a group wanted to do a sample of the course, and they opened it up to anyone who was interested in Tri-ing (ha ha, I have a bunch of these wittys, brace yourself). One of the gentlemen that I cycle with on Thursday nights extended the invite, so he was my connection to the Mock Tri. . .and the one I figured I'd tag along with for the event, as we both agreed that swimming was our weakest leg of the three exercises.
Throwing complete logic and responsibility to the wind, I decided to participate, even though I had honestly not been swimming in over a decade. That's right. Other than donning a bikini and sitting out next to our neighborhood pool supervising my children, I had not been in a pool to swim since, I don't know, college?
There was a SNL skit in the 80s I think, called Bad Idea Jeans. It's a bunch of guys standing around sharing - bad ideas, I mean, really bad ideas. You can find the video on Hulu, if you are interested. My point to this side note is that I kept thinking to myself, "Bad Idea Jeans" as I geared up for this Tri. Bad idea that I was doing this, because I had not been practicing at all for the swim portion, bad idea because I didn't own the proper gear for this kind of event, bad idea because I didn't know the course in advance, just. . .a bad idea.
Per my usual M.O. I showed up bright and early. As I started getting all my stuff set up (bike tires pumped - check, water bottles ready - check, running shoes set out - check), I realized I forgot my socks somewhere. . .I know I had grabbed them, but they were no where to be found in my gear bag. Crap. Shift.
A guy pulled up next to me, while I was setting up. . ."How many triathlons have you done?" he asked.
"None. This is my first." I said with a big grin.
He had no response. I felt like this was a really. . .Bad. Idea.
The swim was supposed to be a 500 yard loop around the lake, but my cycling friend and I swam along the shore, since neither one of us was comfortable enough with the swim to head out into the lake. And I did swim - without dying or cramping. Goal achieved.
Next came the bicycle portion. I ended up with the fast group, due to helping someone with a flat tire, so per my normal multisport experience - I was last. It was a beautiful day though, and I enjoyed it. 12.5 hilly miles on the bike.
Back to the Start to change into running shoes - 5K run. I ran with my cycling friend, and it was a beautiful run. We finished strong!
It actually ended up being a great experience, and I am so glad I Tri'd it. (hey, I warned you).
After returning home, I discovered my socks lying in the road in front of my home. . .they must have fallen out of my bag when I was loading my bike.
Similar to my duathlon experience, I like the changing of events - going from one event to another helps the time to pass, and works different muscle groups. I would love to do a Tri again - especially if I have an opportunity to practice swimming prior to the race.
Because. . .
If at first you don't succeed, Try Tri Again.
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