Rainman Triathlon

Once upon a time, I was training for a sprint triathlon and had a horrible bike crash that left me unconscious, covered in road rash, recovering from bone fractures in my wrist and face, and traumatized.  Thus ended my triathlon career… or so I thought!   I gave up triathlons for several years until I decided to compete in one last Sunday.

I recently decided to register for the Tri-Freaks Rainman Indoor Triathlon, which seemed like a good baby step to get my feet wet with triathlon-ing again.  It avoided the intimidating/freezing open water swim by hosting the swim in an indoor pool, and it replaced the scary road biking with cycling on a trainer. This looked like the race for me!

THE SWIM: The swim was the most disappointing part of the race for me.  I think I could have pushed myself more, and I swam more breaststroke than I should have done.  I think I got a bit nervous because I couldn’t hear or see anything (with foggy goggles and earplugs), so I started swimming breaststroke because it made me feel more in control.   However, it is clearly a slower stroke.  It was also a bummer because I was in the midst of a lap when they announced that we had a minute left, and I decided to go all out and complete an additional lap (out and back).  I was just two seconds away from the wall when they called time, so that entire lap (both ways) doesn't count.  I was kicking myself because I know I could have gone faster on the way out (which I completed using breaststroke).  Oh, well!  I now can strategize better for next time.   I also have to say I felt like I was going to vomit during most of the swim, so perhaps the old adage about eating 30 minutes prior to entering a pool is true!

THE BIKE RIDE: Once time was up for the swim, we quickly collected our things and changed for the run (as the clock doesn’t stop for transition times).  The volunteers were amazing in having all the bikes ready to go by the time we were out of the water.  I had rented a nice racing bike for the event, and I got on it pretty quickly.  I tried to find the right resistance that I could maintain for 30 straight minutes, and I think I maintained a pretty good pace (a little over 8 miles in 30 minutes).  I have to admit that I hadn’t trained at all for the biking, so I was satisfied with it. But boy—my bottom was definitely sore after sitting on that rock hard seat for so long!

THE RUN: My legs felt a little bit wobbly after I got off the bike.  I got outside fairly quickly for the run and discovered that it was a lovely, sunny day outside. I completed the 3 miles at a pace of 7:42 per mile as I darted in and out of people enjoying the sunshine at Green Lake.  I was pleased with the run, and (to be honest) 3 miles felt like nothing after all of the marathon training I’ve been doing.

THE RESULTS: I was very pleased with the outcome of the race -- I finished in the top 10 in my first triathlon! The distances completed in the 15-minute swim and 30-minute bike ride were converted to the time it would have taken an athlete to finish a true sprint distance triathlon (800 yard swim and 13 mile bike) and then added to the actual time it took that competitor to finish the 3.1-mile run.  My overall time was 1:26:53.  I finished in 38^th place out of 173 male/female participants, 10^th place out of all 114 female participants, and 6^th place out of the 45 female athletes in my age category.  Sixth place is not too bad!

It was quite the struggle to get the rented bike into my car!

Here I am with Sarah, Amina, and Rachel as we showcase our beautiful swim caps before the race started.  We all registered for the same start time to share the triathlon experience together.  I was able to cheer them on at the finish.

This provides a visual of what the bikes looked like as they were in the trainers at the side of the pool.  I am on the left end.

I felt very strong and happy as I finished the run.   Issac, his mother, and his brother were at the finish line to support us.  

I can finally say that I’m a triathlete!!  I don’t plan on doing any hardcore races ever, but  perhaps this fun indoor triathlon has provided me with the confidence and encouragement  I need to participate in more triathlons someday.