The End of The Beginning

When my alarm went off at 3:45am yesterday I was void of any interest in going to the Danskin. I rolled out of bed and straight into my car (I honestly don't remember much) and made the hour in a half drive to Sandy Hook. Although I had only passed a handful of cars all morning I suddenly found myself in what looked like rush hour traffic...100's of cars holding bike racks and waiting, none too anxiously for their inevitable fate. I had questioned my sanity during the entire drive, yet I was beginning to have a sense of comradely with these other crazy women.

My GPS showed me in the Atlantic Ocean...actually the blue triangle is over the small peninsula where the tri was located. It was a beautiful setting with large million dollar beach homes and water views everywhere...I discovered that later...right now it was still too dark to see anything since it was ridiculously early! The black around the GPS screen is the view out my window...just darkness. Did I mention it's early...and COLD!

After waiting in the line for parking, I had to wait in the line to enter the transition. It was FREEZING! It was around 48 degrees and windy. The thought of getting in the ocean in a few hours was FREAKIN me out! While waiting patiently we decided to kill the time by taking pictures of each other. You make friends quickly with perfect strangers when you feel like you may be experiencing the final moments of your life...we were either going to freeze or drowned!

While waiting in line the sun seemed to spill over the horizon bringing life to the dark sky and momentarily made me appreciative of my insanely early wake up call. The transition area was filled with anxious women. The Danskin has a lot of first timers, Survivors, and women running in honor of someone or to raise funds for cancer research.

I had to take my obligatory "muscle" shot for the girls. I thought I would look extra sexy by taking it just before the swim wave. Nice look, I know your jealous...and you have to admit it takes guts for me to show it to anyone.

If your considering this sport...think about what a great look it is!
The race itself went like this...tried to not think about the ocean factor but the gulps of salt water I consumed made that difficult. The swim was choppy and crowded but not too cold and went well (aka I wasn't mistaken by a shark for a seal). My feet were numb though from the cold pavement and I never really felt myself kicking.

I transitioned to the bike without any issues and the first half of the ride went great! I kept my speed up around 18 or 19mph. Then I hit the half way point and turned around to finish the bike and hit a huge head wind. I didn't realize that a lot of my speed on the bike out was due to a great tale wind! Suddenly I was struggling to go 14mph. It was depressing. The ride was along the ocean and really breathtaking (figuratively and literally). The con of being on a peninsula was definitely the winds!

I finished the bike and left on my run. I was trying to keep my pace around a ten minute mile. I ended up being at 10:11, not my best but it was okay. My goal was under 1:30 and I finished in 1:27:34.
During my early morning adventures Brad was back home in bed recovering from his marathon. He crawled in bed around 2am after driving back from Ohio (the same day he ran!)...less then two hours before I headed out for the day! He finished his race in 4 hrs. and 22 minutes! Considering I can barely run a 10K, I was impressed! What a crazy weekend. And for what? Well the bling bling of course! Brad got this huge medal that weighs about 4lbs...it's very impressive and I guess if I was willing to run 23 more miles that is what I could get! I took home my finishers medal from the Danskin...as well as my prize from Helzberg Diamonds! My number was randomly selected with 9 others to win this 18K white gold diamond star pendent necklace! At least that was the pitch I was told when it was presented to me...it's probably worth no more the $99 but still...I won something (which I never do) and it's a nice memento of my first triathlon season! I decided to take a few minutes on my drive home to stop and enjoy the beach and reflect my first triathlon season. I knew that I was just south of NYC but until I made the walk out to the beach I hadn't been able to see the skyline in the distance. I love the contrast of the city with the ocean.

I took some time to reflect back on my first triathlon season. The first thing I want to acknowledge is my families support. Almost a year ago I told Brad I wanted to do a triathlon and he never had anything but encouraging things to say. Although they couldn't make it to all the races, I couldn't have put in the necessary time training and going to the tri's if they hadn't been willing to make some sacrifices.

In many ways triathlons were exactly what I had anticipated and in a lot of ways they are so much more. It confirmed in me some of my strengths and weaknesses...things I've known in the back of my mind but don't take time to acknowledge or deal with unless faced with a situation where you're stretched. I'm slowly acknowledging that perhaps I'll never have the physique I desire in my mind, but just because I may not be a certain size I am more physically fit and capable then a lot of people. The triathlons gave me a focus to my exercise other then just "weight loss" and instead helped me recognize my need and desire to just be athletic and fit and a good example for my girls.

But probably the most important thing I gleamed from this summer is my respect and admiration for a lot of people that, despite the fact that they are nameless and faceless to me, inspired me by allowing me to catch a brief glimpse into their own journey and achievements by completing a triathlon. Danskin's motto for this season is "The woman who starts the race is not the same woman who finishes the race." It's really true, something changes...for each individual it may represent something completely different in their journey. For some it's a crowning achievement, for others a first step. I'm still pondering what I'm taking from it and where I'm going with it, but I'm thankful along the way for what I've already gained.