On Saturday I did my first triathlon. It was called the Paul Bunyan Tri and was up in Bemidji, MN, near where the Mississppi River starts. It was a sprint triathlon so .5 mile swim, 12 mile bike, then 3 mile run. I really enjoyed it. It had all the key elemant I look for in a good race.
1) I was able to pass a few people.
2) I didn't come in last.
3) Attractive T-shirt (can be seen in the shot in front of Paul himself.)
4) Good post race treats.
What more do you need? I'm not sure how many peopple there were- maybe 150 ish, and I came in 18th overall, 3rd in my age group (out of only 6 people of course, but we don't have to mention that.) 1hr 15 minutes-ish. My personal best (of course my only best as well.) Not bad for a beginner. I feel like this is something I could get good at. I went into it most unsure of the swimming- I swam up to a mile a day every day that we were at the cabin 2 weeks ago, and worked mostly on trying to increase the distance I could go before have to give up on freestyle and switch to breath stroke. I thought I was doing pretty well, but just had no idea what I'd be up against. On race day it was 55 degrees and stormy. The temperature actually ended up feeling nice, but the waves were huge. It wasn't a question of which fancy stroke should I pull out, but rather how do I doggy paddle well enough to not drown. Between the arms and legs flailing around me and the huge waves in my face everytime I came up for a breath I felt lucky to come out alive. My only saving grace was the fact that the descent out was gradual and I could run/swim a chunk of it. I felt like the last one out of the water, but must not have been because I certainly didn't pass 132 people during the bike ride, and DEFINATELY didn't pass the rest of them during the run (though I have to say I felt pretty good about the fact that I passed 3 and was only passed by 4. Running's not my strongest area.) So, all in all it was a wonderful time and I am excited to do more of those.
