Monday, July 29, 2013

Triathlons Are Like Summer Camp

I've been meaning to write this post for awhile and I'm choosing to write it now because I think I need the friendly reminder :)

What I love about triathlons is that the race is basically like a day at summer camp. Swimming! Biking! Running! All activities that we so eagerly looked forward to as kids. Especially biking. Biking was our first opportunity at independent transportation and was our own little method of freedom. FREEEEEEEDOM :)

I'm choosing to remind myself of this fact today because I had quite the painful bike ride this Saturday. The Timberman course has this super nasty hill. I made it through but holy crap...it was hard. My new speed fill straw kept jumping around and smacking me in the face (this is why we do training rides with new equipment) and I realized I must wear biking shorts on race day. Then it came time for the post bike ride brick run. I actually felt pretty great and the view was exactly what I needed. Out and back right along Lake Winnipesaukee with beautiful lake homes to keep you entertained. I realized, although there is that hill that makes me want to not do the race all together, the venue, the people, the ability to even consider doing such a race, is what is actually making me excited to do the race. 

This tri-season has been different without Black Fly. I always loved Black Fly because a whole bunch of us Zoomers went up to NH for the weekend and hung out and raced together for the 3 days of the event. I feel like Timberman is going to be that weekend...except all the racing will be done in one day! I'm really just reminding myself, it's not everyday you get to swim in a beautiful lake surrounded by mountains, bike on country roads (and maybe you go over some of those mountains) and run next to the water as boats are coming by and people are out just enjoying the gorgeous view from their homes. Adult summer camp :) And hell, I guess you can always walk-I'm going to try very hard not to though! I figure, if last year I ran a half marathon spraining my ankle 2 weeks prior, I can do this. It just may not be so pretty. 

I was also reminded of how fun racing can be the other day. Last week was a crazy mess for a whole number of reasons (including leaving my wetsuit at Walden-D'oh!) and one of the nights I was bolting over to Waltham (stuck in tons of traffic) to attend the Tedy's Team meeting about the Falmouth road race. I rushed in starting looking over the logistics, formulating a plan in my mind about how to accomplish this "task." In my mind I went over when was the best time to leave Boston, when to pick up my packet, how to be dropped off on race day, where to meet up on race day etc... and then I heard the words "after party". O right, this is a fun race, Tedy will be there, we will all be hanging out and celebrating after. RACING IS FUN :)

We don't look for worse of the wear after biking and running the course, right? Do I look a year older now?
I'm also sad I don't have any photos to post from Saco Bday weekend or other riding/running events. Now I have a new camera so more photos to come! A big thank you to +1 for driving to and from NH last weekend and this past weekend. (I was also kind of a whiner on the big hill and he gave lots of great encouragement to get me through it.)

Here we go Camp Timberman! TRIATHLONS ARE ADULT SUMMER CAMP :)

-Older (wiser?) but still a bad triathlete

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