I completed my first triathlon today. I did it with style. I did it with panache. I definitely did it the hard way. You'd think that most people would try a sprint triathlon the first time. I'm not talking about those professionals who run, say 10k and think, "Gee, a marathon might be fun," and go out and win some big marathon in their first attempt. No, I'm talking about your regular person, above average in athletic terms, but an average person. No, I chose a triathlon that included kayaking in place of the swimming. I've never been in a kayak other than a debacle with a sea kayak in Belize. Most of my small watercraft experiences end with my being responsible for it's tipping over or falling sideways over a waterfall, things like that.
Suffice to say, when my wife informed that she wouldn't think any less of me if I withdrew before I left the house, you might understand where she was coming from.
I got to the event, got my kayak, paddle, and life jacket and took it over to the boat area. After a 20 minute wait in line for the port-a-potties, the race got started. I decided to let people get ahead of me so I didn't have to deal with the jostling to get to my bike. Having gone on 3 (now 4) bike rides in the past two weeks and past 6 years, I didn't figure on needing to be out front so I could be in the lead. Luckily, one person was still behind me because as I started to peddle, my new-fangled bottle cage slid down the frame and got in the way of pedals, the chainring, most anything that helped the bike move forward. I got off and was about to attempt to rip it off when the last person offered help and actually had a set of allen keys. Five minutes later, we were back in the race. I hadn't even made it out of the parking lot before that first malfunction. Things were going well, I was making really good time, and then I hit the hill that is said to separate the men from the boys. I guess I'm a toddler. I didn't even make it to the steep part before I got off and walked. Most people couldn't make it up, so I wasn't alone, but I was thirsty, not having any water because I left the bottle and cage in the grass by the starting area. At the top of the hill, they had a drink station, and then there was a huge, long downhill as a reward for making it that hill. Soon after that, it felt like I was coasting slower, pedaling was harder and I looked down to see my front tire was about half way flat. I had five miles left and hope nothing would happen, but it definitely slowed me down.
Then I got in the kayak. As a volunteer pushed me in, he asked if I was ready. "Ready as I'll ever be," I replied and I tried my hand at kayaking for the first time. It was really windy and at points there were whitecaps on the lake. When the wind came from any directions except in front, it kept turning my boat and I had a really hard time moving forward rather than sideways. Eventually I sort of got the hang of it and during the lulls in the gales, I got a pretty good rhythm going. I can see why people like kayaking. Working my way around the lake (about 2.2 miles) I thought we had a straight shot to the finish when I came around a bend and had about 15 more minutes of paddling with a really vicious wind. But, I made it, didn't tip it, and stayed relatively dry.
Starting the run was an exercise in reversing rigor mortis. My shuffle would have done a zombie proud, but I slowly loosened up so I was able to actually lift my feet of the ground. I didn't go any faster, but I managed to avoid all of the tree roots and stay upright. A few old men passed me, but I did manage to pass one person in the last mile.
Overall, it was a lot of fun. I'm planning on doing it again. I'd like to actually be in shape the next time and not lose 10 minutes to bike problems. Accounting for the 10 minutes, I finished in about 2 hours 58 minutes. I think I could take a half hour off of that time. So there's my goal for next year: 2.5hours or less.
I need a nap.
Or a massage.
Probably won't get either.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Scratching That Itch (see previous post title)
I went for my first ride the other day and realized how long it's been since I last rode. I hope the course is not as hilly as the roads near me. 20 miles may be longer than I remember, and my butt is not in cycling shape (and I'm not talking about fitness). It felt good to be on a bike again, though. There were little things that came back to me. There's a particular sound to the gears when the rear derailleur is off the gear just a bit and it lets you know if you need to move it up or down a tiny bit. I couldn't describe it to you, but without thinking about it, I knew how to adjust it. Even though it's been over six years since my last ride, I kept reaching for the downtube shifters that were on my old bike. These are mounted on the stem and I think I miss having them down there. I got into the big gear today and the feeling of moving the big crankwheel just felt like power that I've missed.
However, there were a lot of things my body didn't remember. The most significant was how to be comfortable on the seat. Until I stopped 6 years ago, I had been on a bike so regularly, that I couldn't remember ever feeling uncomfortable in the saddle. That changed the other day. Even with bike shorts, I'm definitely out of practice, but it's still worth it. Being out on a back road, rolling along, it all came back why I love to ride. There will not be another seven year itch because I will never again go that long without riding.
As for the triathlon, I'm not sure what's going to happen. It's 20 miles and I've got two weeks to get my butt into riding shape. Hopefully I won't be wet from the kayak portion before, and hopefully I'll be able to run the 4.5 miles after.
However, there were a lot of things my body didn't remember. The most significant was how to be comfortable on the seat. Until I stopped 6 years ago, I had been on a bike so regularly, that I couldn't remember ever feeling uncomfortable in the saddle. That changed the other day. Even with bike shorts, I'm definitely out of practice, but it's still worth it. Being out on a back road, rolling along, it all came back why I love to ride. There will not be another seven year itch because I will never again go that long without riding.
As for the triathlon, I'm not sure what's going to happen. It's 20 miles and I've got two weeks to get my butt into riding shape. Hopefully I won't be wet from the kayak portion before, and hopefully I'll be able to run the 4.5 miles after.
Seven Year Itch
It was over six years ago that I last went for an actual bike ride. An ensuing move to a gated community in the middle of the Appalachians in a geographical location called Deep Gap started the decline. The only flat surface around there were the decks that surrounded each house and most of the roads in the area weren't paved - not the most conducive to a road bike. Following that was the first move with a child which led to the realization that the truck was filled and there was no room to insert a bike without unpacking and repacking many items. I donated that bike to a deserving student that both I and my wife had as a student at the university and was helping us load the truck. Four years passed, another child joined the household, and still I didn't have a bike.
In my infinite wisdom, I figured that I could get a bike and be ready for a triathlon in one short month. It's not a regular swim, bike, run triathlon. No, that would be too easy. I chose a paddle, bike, run triathlon. Did I mention that the last time I was on a kayak (and the only time) I managed to tip it end over end? I didn't just turn it over, but actually tipped it backwards so that the front end went up and over and dumped me off backwards. In my defense, my wife and I were given no instruction other than to go ahead and take out a kayak that was sitting on the beach. As we walked the kayak back to shore we found out that the kayaks were supposed to be drained before going out. Ours wasn't. That explained why the moment one of us leaned, the kayak would tip. All of the water in the kayak would rush in that direction. There was a lot of water and we provided a good half hour of entertainment for the spectators on the beach. At least we were in Belize.
I finally got a bike last weekend. After searching for used bikes in the area, I had some luck. I was getting very discouraged. Moving from Madison, WI, I though finding a used bike would be easy. They have entire showroom floors filled with used bikes at a couple of locations there. Not quite so easy here. I found a wonderful little shop in Bloomsburg, Paul's Bicycle Shop. Getting to the shop was the hard part. I had to bring the 5-year-old with me who had been a good sport going to a community yardsale in the morning, but I wasn't sure if she had two trips in her for the day. As we got to Bloomsburg, I realized with a growing sense of dread that it was the beginning of the Bloomsburg Fair. Following the GPS directions, we were taken to a street about a block from the fair and everywhere you looked, there were signs in yards selling parking. 15 minutes later, I found a spot on the street about four blocks away, surrounded by $2 parking (it was about $5 right by the fairgrounds). As we walked up the alleys towards the shop, all we could see were all of the rides. Being 5-years-old, she was convinced we were going to the rides. By the time we were at the shop, we were half a block from the rides. Somehow, I got her to understand that we weren't going on the rides and she didn't throw a fit.
The moment I saw the shop, I figured I had picked the right place. It was tiny. It was crowded with bikes and supplies and barely had room for people. It was a shop run by somebody who just likes bikes. He had about 20 used bikes, three of which were road bikes. There was an old Peugeot, a Fuji, and some yellow beast for which I didn't catch the brand. The Peugeot and the Fuji were about my size. I took the Fuji. It is an old Fuji Supreme that I'm guessing comes from the early 80's. It's just the kind of bike I was looking for and with, if I remember correctly from my few days as a bike mechanic, a 10mm wrench, I can fix most anything that I need.
In my infinite wisdom, I figured that I could get a bike and be ready for a triathlon in one short month. It's not a regular swim, bike, run triathlon. No, that would be too easy. I chose a paddle, bike, run triathlon. Did I mention that the last time I was on a kayak (and the only time) I managed to tip it end over end? I didn't just turn it over, but actually tipped it backwards so that the front end went up and over and dumped me off backwards. In my defense, my wife and I were given no instruction other than to go ahead and take out a kayak that was sitting on the beach. As we walked the kayak back to shore we found out that the kayaks were supposed to be drained before going out. Ours wasn't. That explained why the moment one of us leaned, the kayak would tip. All of the water in the kayak would rush in that direction. There was a lot of water and we provided a good half hour of entertainment for the spectators on the beach. At least we were in Belize.
I finally got a bike last weekend. After searching for used bikes in the area, I had some luck. I was getting very discouraged. Moving from Madison, WI, I though finding a used bike would be easy. They have entire showroom floors filled with used bikes at a couple of locations there. Not quite so easy here. I found a wonderful little shop in Bloomsburg, Paul's Bicycle Shop. Getting to the shop was the hard part. I had to bring the 5-year-old with me who had been a good sport going to a community yardsale in the morning, but I wasn't sure if she had two trips in her for the day. As we got to Bloomsburg, I realized with a growing sense of dread that it was the beginning of the Bloomsburg Fair. Following the GPS directions, we were taken to a street about a block from the fair and everywhere you looked, there were signs in yards selling parking. 15 minutes later, I found a spot on the street about four blocks away, surrounded by $2 parking (it was about $5 right by the fairgrounds). As we walked up the alleys towards the shop, all we could see were all of the rides. Being 5-years-old, she was convinced we were going to the rides. By the time we were at the shop, we were half a block from the rides. Somehow, I got her to understand that we weren't going on the rides and she didn't throw a fit.
The moment I saw the shop, I figured I had picked the right place. It was tiny. It was crowded with bikes and supplies and barely had room for people. It was a shop run by somebody who just likes bikes. He had about 20 used bikes, three of which were road bikes. There was an old Peugeot, a Fuji, and some yellow beast for which I didn't catch the brand. The Peugeot and the Fuji were about my size. I took the Fuji. It is an old Fuji Supreme that I'm guessing comes from the early 80's. It's just the kind of bike I was looking for and with, if I remember correctly from my few days as a bike mechanic, a 10mm wrench, I can fix most anything that I need.
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