Since this triathlon endeavour is likely the most interesting thing in my life right now (or at least, the thing most on my mind), I'll be sharing my experiences and thoughts about it with you all.
First, I have come up with a list of concerns I have about this event. Let me enumerate my fears:
1) I'm actually pretty worried about what the chlorine will do to my hair when I finally go swimming. I'm growing it out, and I don't want to ruin it. I'm feeling like a princess about my hair. I am planning to ask my hairdresser what I can do to protect it when she gives me my trim next week.
2) I'm very concerned about wearing the same bikini thing that I will be swimming in for the entire race. This idea is gross to me. It's wet, I have to pull on bike shorts over a soggy wet bikini bottom, and then ride my bike sitting on my soggy butt for however long it takes me to ride. Then I pull off the soggy bike shorts and am supposed to run? In my bikini?
3) I'm scared someone will kick/hit me in the face during the swim.
4) I'm scared I'll swallow the gross lake water and get a weird intestinal infection. In fact, I not only don't want the water in my mouth, but I would prefer it not touch my skin at all. It's dirty.
5) I'm nervous about being able to unclip without fail in case of bike emergency. I've ridden on the crowded bike path, but what if this is more crowded? How do I successfully negotiate a crowd (or let someone who is more badass than me pass me) without falling into a big collective bike heap that is entirely my fault because I am clumsy on my bike?
6) What if I get sunburned? Is it appropriate to leave a can of spray sunblock and a towel in the "transition" area?
7) Do I really need to practice my "transitions"? Isn't that just a measure of how quickly I can change clothes, and not a measure of my fitness? And we're not talking about a lot of clothes here. Remember the bikini? I'm working on feeling confident running in this item.
To better assist myself in getting over these fears, I have come up with a list of things to do that may help me chillax.
1) Purchase the special triathlon bikini, hoping it is comfortable, quick-drying, and will stay in place.
2) Run and bike at least once in this bikini, perhaps while it's wet, so that I know it will stay in place and not do anything terrible to my body.
3) Complete bike/run portion of the tri (on my "to do" list this Saturday).
4) Complete swim portion of the tri, preferably several times, both in a pool and in the disgusting gross icky murky reservoir. Maybe I'll even ride my bike in the bikini to the swimming destination. Maybe. It will depend on the bikini. And my self-confidence.
5) Start to think about learning how to fix a flat tire on my bike. Because that's the kind of luck I have.
So as I come up with new concerns, and as I complete the items in my checklist, I will report back.
There are two reasons I don't do triathlons: running and swimming. But if you leave those two out, it's just a time trial! I always wondered about how one wore appropriate clothing for such an event. I could see running and swimming in the same outfit, but on the bike too? You'll have to keep us up to date on how that works.
ReplyDeleteha! there's three reasons why i won't tri:
ReplyDeleterunning, biking, swimming.
hmm, i'd find someone who's done this before, and suck all the needed info out of their brains.
there's more to the transitions than you might think. you want to know exactly where everything is, the best order in which to change out, and be able to do it without thinking. autopilot.
riding in a pack-the idea scares me. talk to the dad badger. he knows stuff.
as for the water: DON'T THINK ABOUT IT. :)
Bikini Bottom ~ where Sponge Bob and Patrick live, home to the Krusty Krab.
ReplyDeleteI'm still making the argument in favor of "more knowledge is better" and you be needin' a bible. As Rraine points out, there are many things you need to know, not think you know, generally, sorta.
Sorry, but all of the fears I might have remain in the "indelicate" category as we already discussed.
I admire your courage to even contemplate doing this. This would require a level of fitness I haven't had for forty years. For me a triathlon involves walking to the fridge and the bathroom.
ReplyDelete@all - Thanks for your support! I'll keep you all posted on what I learn and how the training goes. There is an expo for the event next Saturday that I will likely attend, and hopefully answer some questions.
ReplyDelete@Tag - LOL! Add walking up the stairs to go to bed, and that's my triathlon experience so far!