Sunday, August 3, 2008

Olympic Glory...



Okay. I might not be going to the Beijing Olympics. To tell you the truth, I won't be in those kinds of Olympics at all, unless purple hippos start dancing.



The kind of Olympic glory I am talking about is the glory of taking on my first Olympic distance triathlon. Okay, technically I am not doing an Olympic distance triathlon. In reality, I am doing a "mini" distance triathlon. I like calling it an Olympic distance triathlon better though. Who the heck calls a triathlon a "mini"? It sounds too cute and fluffy to be a triathlon distance! You would pet something called “mini”, not race it for several hours...

... Which brings me to my major point about this distance: I AM SO NERVOUS!!!! I can't believe I am actually signed up for a triathlon of this distance. In addition to my nerves, I am also really excited for the day I can race. I am really looking forward to seeing what the distance is like, and how I will fare in a race this long.

I would be counting down the days to the race- that is, only if the date (Aug. 24) wasn't so close to the day that school starts (Aug. 26). It is weird to both look forward to, and dread a single date. I REALLY DON'T WANT MY SUMMER TO END!!!

Do you want to know what the official distances of this race are? Sure you do- that is why you are reading this post. If you don't care, go read something else! Sorry, didn't mean to offend you... you can care about whatever you feel like (tear).

Anyways, here are the distances of this triathlon (drum roll please...) 1000 m swim (so easy), 24.9 mile bike (so intimidating), 6.2 or 6.55 mile run (not sure of which distance- two places on the race website say two entirely different things).

My main questions:
Did I really sign up for this?
Am I sure I can do this?
Am I sure I can finish this in one piece?
What if I am not ready?
Oh my gosh! 25 miles of bicycling? Am I sure I can do this?
I wonder what a 6 mile run will feel like after bicycling 25?

And about the race:
What should my nutrition be like?
How can I make sure I have trained enough?
How hilly is the bicycle ride?
Will it take me 5 hours to finish this race?
Will I finish at all?
Should I get slicks for my mountain bike, or just leave the bike alone?

I guess I will find these questions out when I go to the race. I hope the race goes well. My mom made me pay $83 of the $93 entry fee myself. Ouch!

At least the entry fee isn't as expensive as a ticket to Beijing!

4 comments:

Oly said...

Answers:

You can do this.

You will finish in one piece.

You will be ready.

You can do this.

It will not take you five hours.

Yes you will finish!

And if you decide you want some slicks for free, let me know and I'll send em your way.

Tri-ing Rose said...

Thanks so much for the reassurance!I am so excited and nervous!

I'll let you know if I decide on the slicks. Thanks for the offer! How worn are they?

triblog carol said...

If you can get slicks for free, go for it. Don't bother buying them, tho. I spent my first season on a mtn bike and bought slicks. I didn't see any difference in my average speed. Good luck!!!!

BTW, swimming makes me famished!

Oly said...

The slicks are not very worn and YES they will make a HUGE difference.

Less rolling resistance and much higher psi than the mtb tires.