It was my older brother Jeremiah who convinced us to sign up for the race in February. We thought, "well we have no reason not to, and we just have to complete it we don't have to be competitive." So we started training. Thankfully our gym has a daycare for Norah so it was easy to get a work out in every day. The hard thing with a triathlon is that you have to be able to swim, bike, and run (obviously) and learning how to do each was definitely a challenge.
I hated swimming I constantly felt like I was drowning. The first time I got into the pool to do laps I didn't even make it one length of the pool before giving up! It was pathetic, and I thought there is no way I can do this. Luckily Jordan was there by my side to pull me along. Pretty soon I could swim one lap, then 2, then 4 and then eventually I was swimming 16 laps which is 400 meters, the length in the race. I wasn't awesome and I was slow but I was confident that once I got to the race at least I wouldn't die.
Next was the running. I've had times in my life when I felt like a satisfactory runner. I even did track and cross country in middle school. But after I had Norah I never really attempted running more than a mile. So I tried to run a mile every day before my normal work out and pretty soon it got easier. I was eventually running 3 miles consistently with a 10 min mile, which is not very impressive. I decided I wanted to be able to run a 7 minute mile and that goal was a bit too lofty for myself. My best time before the race was an 8:30 mile, completing the 5K in about 26 min. Running is by far the hardest for me, and frustrating because I feel like no matter how hard I push my self I just can't get a better time, not to mention the fact that I feel like dying whenever I finish. Nonetheless I knew that I was prepared for the running portion of the triathlon.
Last came the biking. I prepared for this mainly with spin classes, which are an awesome work out! I would occasionally ride my bike to work as well but that was only 8 miles round trip. I told my self that I was in good enough shape that I didn't have to do more biking to prepare for the race, this was a mistake.
When the race day finally came (August 31 2013) I was so excited! Jordan and I woke up at 3:30 am to drink a smoothie, we had heard that if you eat that early before the race it allows time for the food to digest and it seemed to work. We went back to bed until 5:30 am and then got on our bikes to ride three miles to where the race was held (seven peaks), it served as a good warm up. It was so fun getting there and scoping out the competition. There were some people who I could definitely tell were pro and then others who seemed like they had no idea what they were doing, but it was an awesome atmosphere. We racked our bikes got our numbers and then headed to the starting line. I pointed out some girls to my husband who were wearing make-up and I said something along the lines of "ha, they don't stand a chance!" But much to my dismay they ended up taking 2nd and 3rd overall! I guess I will wear make-up next time.
They fired the gun and the race started. Traditionally triathlons start with swimming but the order of this one was run (5k), bike(12m), swim(350m). So with my earphones in and my best playlist I started running, soon I was passing the bulk of the crowd and feeling quite confident. The first mile was a breeze and it was fun trying to keep up with the other competitors. The second mile consisted of an insane hill, I wanted to stop and walk so bad but there was a 50 year old lady (everyone had their age written on their calf) in front of me just pushing away. I thought to myself there is no way a 50 year old is going to beat me. So I kept pushing and eventually passed her! The 3rd mile seemed like nothing compared the hill in the 2nd mile. Overall I was feeling really good and ready to hop on my bike. I ended up finishing the 5K in 27 min and only 10 females finished faster than me. I was very proud and I know had it not been for the steep hill I could have had and even better time.
I finished the running and hopped on my bike. It wasn't too far into the ride that my bum started to get really sore. Jordan and I have 2 bikes and he was racing on the bike that I usually rode, it was also a much better bike. So I wasn't used to the bike I was riding and it was very uncomfortable. Pretty soon all the people I had passed on the run were passing me on my bike! I had never felt so discouraged. But I just kept pedaling. It took me about 45 min to finish the 12 miles which is a sad time but I finished nonetheless. I've decided that I'll invest in a better bike for my next race.
I pulled my bike into the transition area and my brother was waiting there (he had already finished the race) he took my bike and gave me some words of encouragement. I was feeling pretty good other than the fact that my legs felt like jello. I pulled off my shoes and ran over to the pool, and jumped right in. I started swimming freestyle but the lanes were so small and crowded that I felt like I was just treading water most of the time. It was pretty much impossible to pass the person in front of me unless I wanted to attempt to swim over or under them. I was getting a little discouraged but Jordan was standing at the edge of the pool cheering me on I just kept swimming and wedged my way between to large men, got out of the water and sprinted to the finish line where my brother and Jordan were waiting. I finished and I was quite satisfied, my total time was 1:24 I finished 133rd out of 216 competitors, I finished 37th for overall female which sounds better than 133rd, and I finished 7th in my age group which sounds even better. My bike time is what really killed me and I am dissapointed with my overall time but satisfied that I did it! My brother finished in 1:05 and Jordan finished in 1:11, they did awesome!
It wasn't until two days later that the fact that I did it finally sank in, I was driving and just started crying. Aside from giving birth and raising a child this was the hardest thing I have done and it felt good!! Jordan and I are already getting ready for our next triathlon. We hope to do an olympic distance tri (10k, 30 mile bike, 1000 m swim) and a marathon this summer. Next summer we will do a half Iron Man, and hopefully the year after we will do an Iron Man!! Last week I ran 6 miles and swam 1 mile which is the furthest I have ever done by a long shot! I have high hopes for our next triathlon and I encourage everyone to do at least one in your life time, its more achievable than you think!!
Me and Jeremiah
Me and Jordan, I know we are really white!!
