First Triathlon @ Island Lake

The idea of training and preparing yourself for your first triathlon is one thing. Getting tons of advice from seasoned veterans if you will, helps considerably. Unless you are some gifted athlete, nothing truly prepares you for the start of a race. I had two goals for this race, the first was to finish and the second was to finish ahead of my father.

Swim | .5 Mile | 27:21

That was a long time in the water! In the pool, I was swimming a half mile right at 20 minutes. But truly the start was just insane. I have to be honest, two things threw me off. The first was trying to find my father who vanished to wish him luck in his age group. I searched but with over 500 competitors plus spectators I just could not find him. So with two minutes before the start, I walked into the water and just was not ready. I started off in the middle of the pack, I had been advised to hang to the left…sigh. If you are looking for an experience of being swam over, kicked, pulled, yanked…you name it, this is the event and spot to try it out.

After 5 minutes  the pack sorted itself out and I was treading water if you will. but a state of panic started to set in. OMG where is the bottom of the lake? I can’t touch the bottom, what if I…OIY! The thoughts that scramble through your head. And so, as warned my several veterans the mental battle of the swim began. And to add insult to injury, my freestyle swim turned more into a dog paddle.

After ten minutes of swimming, and not even half way the onslaught of elite women swimmers came by. Or should say over? Yippie it was another wave of swimmers, who do not site where they are going, to contend with. And so we made the turn, the half way point and with the mental battle still going on I said you can do this…what other choice did I really have? Drown?!

The swim route was straight out and straight back. Not standard by any means, but the seaweed in the normal triangular route caused for a change. And so I kept swimming…and hey look there is my dad on the side, struggling as well. 😉  I waived to him and kept on going. Feeling more confident in my swim, things started going well until some guy was coming head on right at me. At that point I had enough of being swam over, so a good punch to the head woke him up and got him back on track.

As I saw people walking in front of me, I could not have been any happier. For one, I survived the swim and for two…I SURVIVED THE SWIM!

Bike | 12.1 Miles | 41:06

Well, talk about being exhausted from the swim…I was quite winded. My transition time was horrid, just couldn’t get the wet suit off!!! Being a Mountain Biker and Cyclist for 6 years, I was in my element. I truly do not recall a time where I passed more people. My time was nothing to write about, ohh too late I am but the top guys finished around 33 minutes. And during my training, my times were 34-36 minutes. The swim killed any chance I had in performing my best. But regardless, passing what seemed like 200 people was just a thrill in itself. The whole 12.1 miles I passed bike after bike, it was just exhilirating!

Run | 3.1 Miles | 38:22

So those folks I passed on the bike…yeah a lot of them passed me back up on the run. Not being a swimmer or a runner really put a crimp on a better finish. But, let’s be realistic this is my first triathlon!!! The run started off nice and flat into a steep climb, which leveled off with a slow uphill gradient that lasted for a mile. The last time I felt this taxed, was…well riding my Mountain Bike up a hill for the first time. I came across a guy who had taken a spill on his bike, he was fast but slowed down and we chatted. He pushed me along in my run and encouraged me to keep going.

Total Time | 1:50:57

Well, goal one was accomplished…I finished. The best part about the finish, my wife Kelly and son Aiden were there to congratulate me! So what about goal two? Where was my father? He started 6 minutes later than me and I did see him on the run, about a mile behind me. Was it possible that my father, also competing in his first triathlon…was going to best my time? My father finished, but we did not know his time. We went to the computers and looked it up, pretty much right after he finished. His time, 3 minutes slower than me. Goal two was accomplished!

Overall I truly had a great time, and this will not be the last triathlon I compete in…I have if you will caught the bug. Looking forward to the rest of the season!