My First Triathlon! And I didn't die!

On Saturday, May 30th, 2009, I did something I never thought I'd ever do...I finished a sprint triathlon! It wasn't without it's drama, believe me. Oh, you want to hear about it? Well, grab a chair (which you're probably already in) and get comfy...

It was already a great weekend because Danielle was in town. Things could have stopped right there and it would have been a great weekend. But she wasn't just here to visit; she was here to support me in running the tri. I picked her up from the airport on Friday and we made the long drive down to Pocomoke City, MD (way on the Eastern Shore, near the southern-most tip of Maryland). We checked into our hotel, and while waiting for everyone else to arrive, we explored the town. Our hotel was actually about 25 minutes away from Pocomoke City, in the equally small Virginia town of Chinkateague. It was beautiful though...right on the water and very peaceful. We explored some tourist traps and found out where the recommended restaurants where. We also checked out a t-shirt factory shop, where Dee and I did some impromptu dancing in the middle of the store. It was a lovely moment...one I hope to recreate whenever the opportunity presents itself.

Eventually, everyone else started to arrive. Unfortunately, Caitlin (Nick's girlfriend)'s plane was severely delayed, so they wouldn't be joining us until late that night. The remainder of the triathlon crew went out to a pretty nice restaurant to have a big pasta dinner. It was a lot of fun to just be together, chill and relax before race day. Once we got back to the hotel, we laid out our stuff for tomorrow and hit the sack.

(Nick and Caitlin arrived at about 12:30a that night. What troopers!)

In the morning, we got up and headed down to the lobby for some breakfast. As we sat around eating, Danielle and Caitlin busted in, wearing home made Team Miles and Team Schroedl jerseys and carrying pink pom-poms! Everyone got a kick out of that, especially myself and Nick. It was really sweet of them to do that, especially since Nick and I would need all the help we could get!

We made our way to the race site, and it was a sea of people getting registered, lining up their bikes, going into the YMCA building to use the bathroom and running around to get warmed up. This was the same triathlon that Alejandra did last year, so everything was very familiar to me; I just couldn't believe this year I was going to be participating! As I got my bike and shoes set up, I couldn't help but think about the swimming portion. It was gonna be a little less than half a mile, but looking out on the lake and seeing how far we actually had to swim, it seemed a lot longer. I hadn't gotten to do any swimming for the past couple weeks, but for some reason I didn't feel like that would slow me down that much. I actually felt like I'd do really well. Dee was encouraging me the whole time before the start, and that helped calm my nerves.

Just like last year, there was a pre-race meeting, and just like last year, there was a pre-race prayer. I really liked that about this race...plus I needed one more plee to God for help!

After we prayed, we headed to the water! The race would start in waves...men 20-29, men 30-39, women 20-29, men 40 and up and women 40 and up. I was in the first wave, so I got in the water and prepared for action. The water was fairly cool and very dirty; even though I had my goggles on, when I looked underwater, I couldn't see a thing. No problem, I thought. I'll just keep on swimming and not worry about that.

They counted down from ten and away we went! As soon as we started, I saw just how different swimming in open water is to swimming in a pool, especially when you're swimming with about 30 other guys right next to you. Water kicked up in my face and I swallowed a bunch of it. I started choking and immediately all my confidence was drained. I resorted to doing the back stroke (aka, the "stay alive" stroke) and started heading out. Unfortunately, the back stroke is not very fast, so as all the other waves started, everyone was passing me. Also with the back stroke in open water, there's nothing you can look at which tells you what direction you're going, so you have to constantly turn over to make sure you're still going the right way. I forgot to do that several times, and ended up swimming into the middle of the lake, while everyone else was swimming around the perimeter! A guy in a kayak, who was one of the life guards, had to stay with me the whole time to make sure I didn't drown. I was SO thankful for that, as there were several times where I had to cry out to God to help me make it.

After what seemed like forever, I finally made it back to the shore. By then, several more of our friends had arrived and where cheering me on (I didn't hear them cheering for anyone else in our group, so I assumed I was the last one to come out of the water). I felt very tired, but was looking forward to getting on the bike. Dee was right there as I was transitioning, offering her words of encouragement. As I got to the bike rack, I saw Nick and Ali! Turns out they had come out of the water just before me. I was grateful to see them, and that gave me even more energy.

I hopped on the bike and away I went. I am a MUCH stronger biker than I am a swimmer, so I made up a lot of time while riding. Along the way, I saw several bikers who were stuck on the side of the road with blown tires. "Oh God, PLEASE let me get through this ride without blowing a tire!" was my prayer all along the way. Walking several miles back to the start line with a broken bike was the absolute LAST thing I needed. Fortunately, God answered that prayer. I was also able to pass several people along the way, which did wonders for rebuilding my confidence.

As I got back, I put the bike up and prepared for the run. Dee was right there, still shaking her pom-poms and cheering me on, and I really appreciated it. Right as I started the run, I passed the finish line. I looked over to see the clock and it read 1:15 (one hour and fifteen minutes elapsed time). I couldn't help but laugh (that was what I wanted my finishing time to be when I first decided I would do the triathlon many months ago). At this point, I now wanted to finish in under two hours. My legs felt like lead after getting off the bike, but I still managed to hold a decent pace while running.

As I crested the hill and hit the final stretch towards the finish line, I was met by Matt (who had already finished the race and had come back to cheer us on). As I got closer, I could see and hear Kiki and Rob cheering (they had also finished) as well as Dee, Caitlin and the rest of our encouragement squad. I pushed it towards the end and finished in 1:43. Considering my swimming mishaps, I was more than happy with that time.

We cheered the rest of our group on as they all finished the race in their respective times. It was a great experience overall, and I'm glad I did it. I think everyone else felt the same way. When it was all over, we put our stuff away and got cleaned up. Dee and I played a very competitive game of air hockey, which resulted in a tie. Next time, I'll get her though. :)

On our way back, we stopped off at a steak house and had a fantastic post race meal of steak and other treats. Later on that evening, all of the triathletes came over to Nick's place for some dinner and a movie (Paul Blart: Mall Cop is HILARIOUS!).

All in all, it was a wonderful day!