I recently completed the Danskin Triathlon, in San Dimas, California. It was the second time I participated in this race, and it once again was an amazing experience.
I went through the 10-week training program through ClubSport, had a fancy new road bike and felt pretty darn good going into the race. My goal was to finish in under 2 hours (my previous time was 2hr 8min), which was pretty doable.
About 100 yards into the swim, I got kicked in the face and my goggles came off. I had to tread water for a moment, trying to get them back on my eyes, and catch my breath. I had a tough time establishing a good breathing pattern, but still managed to finish the swim in 16 minutes. I ran up the hill, stripped off my wetsuit and hopped on my bike!
The bike ride was great, I definitely felt the difference between my heavy hybrid bike and my lightweight, sleek road bike. I shaved 8 minutes off the bike ride!
The run started off okay, but I had to pee about 1 mile in. I had been so shaken up by the face kick in the swim that I was unable to relax enough to pee in the lake...gross, I know, but much more efficient than finding a porta-potty! Even with the potty break, I still shaved about a minute off my run, and finished the whole race in 1hr 58min! I'm already plotting what I can do differently next year...I figure I've got at least another 10 minutes to shave off!
It was quite humbling to see the many disabled women competing in this particular race, which raises awareness for breast cancer. There were breast cancer survivors, even a few women missing an arm, or a leg. It made me appreciate my health and strength so much. It's something that is often taken for granted, I just assume I'll always be healthy. Hopefully I will. But I also know enough to not be naive. So for now, I'll tri because I can. And I'll do it for all those who can't.
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