My First Tri...

400 meter swim, 19 mile bike, 3 mile run... Sounds easy enough... and on some level it was. But the thought I am left with after competing in my first triathlon is I am in good enough shape to finish a triathlon... but no where near good enough shape to win one.

I started out well enough. The swim was not hard and I was out of the water in 8 minutes. Not the best time ever but nothing to complain about. Especially since I think the course was a little longer than 400 meters. It took me almost 3 minutes to get out of the transition... I went into the transition in 2nd place in my age bracket and left the transition in 5th. That is definitely something I want to work on before my next tri.

As for the bike... It was hard... I think starting with a 19 mile bike was a little presumptuous of me. To be fair, when I signed up for the tri it was a 600 meter swim, a 14 mile bike and a 3 mile run... But the course changed... I managed to bike at a pace I felt comfortable keeping for 19 miles. And I think I paced myself well... But by the time I got to the running I was tired... My body was still functioning pretty well but every time I started to jog I got dizzy. At one point during the run I saw one of my professors (she was in the invitational and had finished already... she was just running for a cool down) and she ran/walked with me to the finish. I was excited to have the company and she helped me maintain my focus for the last mile or so.

I ended up beating my goal time which I was very happy about! I had hoped to finish in under 2 hours and 15 minutes and I came in at 2:11:58.5. And even though I finished dead last in my age group (10th out of 10) I have to say I am happy with my accomplishment. I had a blast! I am definitely doing another one!!! Just not until 2008.

Some things I learned for the next one:
~ I need to work on my biking. I think I am going to take a spin class and build my endurance.
~ It would be nice if I could run for longer than a mile without getting winded. I am working on that too.
~ Even after not swimming competitively for the last seven years... I still absolutely LOVE the sport!
~ I need to put GATORADE on my bike so I can replete my salt.... so I don't get dizzy... So I can actually run...
~ I need to take my training a lot more seriously and set more stringent goals for myself... actually I take that back... I need to follow through and complete the goals I set for myself. ;)
~ I want one of those snazzy triathlon suits so I can transition faster and because some of them just look cool.
~ With that snazzy triathlon suit... I would like some padding for the biking portion... 20 miles is hard on the back side!
~ I have to take off my kickstand before the race! It is against USAT rules and it adds weight to the bike.

Before the tri:

The Competators: Jen, Mel, Annie, Dinah

Our swim start

The transition area

Me drinking water and starting my "run"

We all finished!

We went to Cracker Barrel afterwards with our wonderful supporters. Thanks again for coming out guys!!!

Oh and a special thanks to my parents for coming in all the way from Dallas to watch me race. I forgot to get someone to take a picture of me with them... Otherwise that would be posted too! I love you Mom and Dad. Thanks again for coming. It reminded me of all the swim meets you NEVER missed while I was growing up. I am so blessed to have such wonderful parents.