Bountiful Triathlon

Such a "creative" title, huh?!? :)

About 5 months ago, my sister, Beeb, (a.k.a. Marianne) invited our whole family to participate in the Bountiful Triathlon with her. If you remember from my "100th Post" (#24), I can't swim. I promptly replied to her invitation with the "I. WOULD. DROWN." rationale, surely thinking that would get me "off the hook." NOPE. Beeb, not known to give up that easily when she really wants something, contacted me about a week later and told me she had found me a "swimmer," so I was good to go as a relay team! (She had to keep me -- as it turned out, only ONE brother-in-law and myself out of a family of 34 accepted her invitation.)


And that's how the background story goes about how I got to this point.

I don't even own a bike. (Slight problem!) But, a few years ago, my husband's parents gave him back his old Schwinn from when he was about 12 yrs. old or so. It's been hanging from a hook on our garage ceiling ever since. By process of elimination, I decided that THAT was the bike I'd use for the Triathlon.

And since I didn't have a bike, you can safely assume that I don't even own a helmet, either. Hey, Ryan has one, so THAT'S what I decided to use for the Triathlon!

The first time I took it out for a ride, I was a bit nervous -- after all, I hadn't ridden a [non-stationary] bike since my mission. But, it's true what they say, "...it's just like riding a bike..." and it all came back to me. Well, at least, after I wobbly made it down the hill for a street that I live on!

After several training bike rides, I got a flat tire once while out riding. Another fancy schmancy biking girl came by and asked if I needed help. She not only had the "official" biking attire, but she ALSO had a sort of fanny pack on her bike with an extra tire tube in it and a tire pump attached to a bar on her bike. She attempted to help me, but the ol' Schwinn is so old, that her modern, fine pump was "incompatible" with my....I don't even know what the correct name for it is....it's the thingy that sticks up from the tire that you attach the pump to...ya know what I'm talking about? Well, I didn't even know there were different sizes and that one pump DOESN'T fit all! Well, there I was still stranded and the biking girl kind of chastised me. She told me that I needed to carry a pump. She told me that I needed to have my own sort of fanny pack with a spare tube, a CO2 cartridge (or something?), a cell phone, a credit card, AND to carry water. NONE OF WHICH I HAD! And she didn't say this, but she probably wanted to: "And you need to get rid of your lame shorts & T-shirt, too!" I'm like, It's not like I'm a professional or anything!!

So, that gives you an idea of what kind of "athlete" I am, entering the Tri(bi)athlon world!

In all my experience in running races in the past, there has always been "casual runners" who also enter the events. Not everyone is like the Kenyans who WIN all the races (and absolutely smoke the rest of us!) So, basically, there are a good number of people who are "average" amongst my running peers. BUT, the thing that worried me about the Triathlon was that these people were "real athletes!" I mean, the whole challenge of a Triathlon is that you have to be a "3 sport athlete" to be able to do it. I felt like I was NOT in their "league." I thought that triathlons were outside of my "athletic range." (Well, they are - I can't swim, but everyone else there CAN do all 3!)

Anyway, I trained. Not at Olympic speed, but I trained. (Thanks to Jill for humoring me and training with me and allowing me to "change up" our usual workouts that we had become accustomed to.)

In the days leading up to the Triathlon, I was at a Family Outing with my sister who conned, er, uh, I mean, invited me to do this and my brother-in-law who also was entered, and they found out that I don't even have any biking shorts! They were amazed. Shocked. Horrified. Again, I'm not a professional! After their reaction, I didn't dare tell them that I was using running shoes that I've had for at least 5 years and socks that were also a few years old!! ;)

In an effort to do things a little bit right, I did try a couple of sporting goods stores after I got home from the Family Outing (the day before the Triathlon), but they didn't have any biking shorts. It was too late to go to a "Bike Shop" that closes early.

The event director also sent out an email the day before with all the deets....He said something about wearing your running shoes, but setting up your "transition area" with your biking shoes. HUH?!? There's a difference? Again, NOT a professional! ;)

So, I show up to the Triathlon in the morning, in my "regular" shorts, with one pair of shoes and park my old Schwinn (with a hole in the handle bar foam) and hang up my 13 yr. old's bike helmet on it. My brother-in-law informs me that the bike next to his is probably a $5,000 -$6,000 bike! And then I notice the set up of another athlete's "transition area"...a towel laid out, with the biking shoes, various gu's, power bars, salves, gloves, etc., etc. arranged just so on top. It SCREAMED, "I am a professional!" And, again, I acknowledged: I AM NOT!

And did I mention it started to rain? We'd gotten another email the day before stating that there was a 30-40% chance of rain, but we'd go on with the event. And, because Murphy rules my life, of course, the "chance" became a reality! :)

Anyway, are you wondering if I'm ever going to get to the actual event?

Well, I am.

This triathlon was a "sprint" which means only a 5K run, a 10.5 mile bike, and a 350m swim. It was in a Run-Bike-Swim order. This is reversed from "usual" Triathlons. So, my swimmer just had to WAIT (& wait) for me!
I ran - and I felt good. I ran every bit of it, which was my goal. (In my training, I always had walked for a minute or two, so this is something I had not done before!)

Some of my favorite parts of the run were:
* A family relay team had made up T-shirts with a picture of a Transformers head on the back. The caption: "Transforming couch potatoes into All-Star athletes." :)

* An old man out walking on the sidewalk, in jeans pulled up above his waist, cinched with a belt and wearing a long-sleeved shirt (in August) and stooped over. He raised his arm and waved at me (okay, maybe it was all of us) enthusiastically and called out, "You look great! Keep up the good work!"

* About six young kids (like under age 7) were lined up on the side of the road with their hands out for me to go by and give them "fives" as I passed - just like the NBA players do when they run out!

* My family drove by in the Suburban along the way and cheered out the window. They parked up ahead and got out of the car and took photos (or at least Ryan tried as he ran on the sidewalk next to me!)

* As I was approaching the finish line of the run, I heard Brett (another brother-in-law) belt out, "GO SUZ!" Two of my sister's whole family's were there, so then as I neared the end, I heard a lot of, "Yeah, Aunt Suz's!" from my nieces & nephews. My sister, Michelle, and my Dad was also heard from somewhere along the sidelines. I'm sure it was all just "charity cheers" but it was good to hear! As a side note, my Dad had driven my Mom all the way back to St. George following our outing on Friday night, then turned around and drove all the way back up here so he could be there for the Triathlon! Yah...he's proud of his kids! :)

So, then on to the biking portion. It felt good to be DONE running and get on the bike and speed (well, by my standards) away. The breeze cooled me off and it was refreshing (the rain had stopped, but we'd been warned about slick road conditions!)

So, I'm going along...and I hadn't gone far when I see the first biker pass me, going the opposite direction, RETURNING back to the "transition area" at the end of his ride. WHOA! He was 10 miles ahead of me - literally! But, I go on. Pedaling and pedaling and pedaling.... AND THEN...(you knew it was coming, didn't ya?)

MY CHAIN FELL OFF!

What the...? It not only fell off, but it got lodged/jammed in between the bike frame. I had to pull over and STOP to fix it. Are you kidding me? Can't Murphy even take a "rest" for my first tri(bi)athlon?

I pulled and I yanked and tugged...and nothing. A minute goes by.

I detached the front part of the chain to give me some more "slack"...and nothing. I was sitting there on the sidewalk and all these other bikers were passing by.

Tugging, pulling, yanking. Another minute goes by.

I think, "If only I had my cell phone, I'd call Matt to 'come to the rescue.'" And that fancy schmancy biker girl's chastisement from months before came back into my mind!

Pulling, yanking, tugging. Three, four minutes go by.

One other triathlete asks in passing, "Are you OK?" I told him my chain fell off - and he nods and goes on. Well, of course, he's got his own triathlon to complete.

Yanking, tugging, pulling. Five, six minutes go by.

I think I need some sort of "tool" to knock it out of there. I look around and find a little twig - which just broke so easily when I tried it.

Tugging, pulling, yanking. Seven minutes go by.

I start to weigh out my options. Does this mean I have to quit? I am NOT a quitter! What about Allen, my "swimmer?" He is waiting for me to finish! I can't let him down. Do I have to just walk my bike back to the start and find help? Can you walk a bike with the chain off? That would take too much time. I definitely don't want to quit.

Pulling, yanking, tugging. Eight minutes go by.

I look in the gutter for anything else that can help - all I see is a cigarette butt.

Yanking, tugging, pulling. Nine minutes.

I was by the intersection where policemen where directing/stopping traffic for the triathletes. I called out to one of them, "Do you have any tools?" Nope. I thought it was their job to help! :(

Tugging, yanking, pulling. Nine minutes, 45 seconds.

The thought comes to me, "You've got to pray." And, there on the sidewalk with a "bike down," I prayed in my mind, simply, "Heavenly Father, PLEASE let this chain come out!"

Pulling, yanking, tugging. Ten minutes.

THEN, Two angels in the form of an older couple came biking by from the other direction (not part of the triathlon.) I asked them if they had some tools -- and they said, "YES!" The woman asked what was going on and when I told them it was a triathlon, they didn't even know, but the man said, "Well, let's get you on your way!" He went to work (without tools) and, by golly, the chain became unstuck and we got it back on! They told me to try it out - and it worked - and I WAS on my way. But, not before I yelled, "Thank You!" You were an answer to my prayer!

I was so happy to be riding again, but even happier that my answer was immediate and obvious!

Down, but not out, I knew I was way behind by now, so I pedaled faster than I'd ever done in training. All the while, afraid to change gears for fear that the chain on the ol' Schwinn might fail me again. Afterwards, when I saw my biking time results, I found even with the stop, it was a faster time than I'd ever biked that distance before. In fact, if you take out the 10 min. stop, the time remaining is 20 min. lower than my "usual" 10.5 mile bike time.

I was able to pass several people - granted most of them were not my fellow triathletes, but just "regular" bikers out on the Legacy Parkway trail. So, I was able to call out, "On your left" quite a bit anyways, so it felt like I was doing something.

My same cheerleading section (plus some of Beeb's In laws) was there to bring me on home. Again, thank you for the "courtesy cheers!" Because the biking "traffic" had died down some by this time, there were people walking across the road where I was coming in. It cracked me up that the "Mama Bear" instinct came out in my sister, Michelle, and she YELLED to those people, "GET OUT OF THE ROAD! YOU'RE IN THE WAY." :)

I got off my bike and my "rubber legs" just about didn't hold me. My "swimmer" approached me and I bent down to pull off my ankle band timing chip (the "baton") to give to him and for a minute I thought I might black out before I made it back standing up. Thankfully, he put the ankle band on himself because I don't think I could have.

I went and watched him swim -- so glad that it was HIM and NOT me! He made it look so graceful, precise, effortless - that I almost thought, "I could do that!" But, then I came back to reality and admitted, "no, I can't." It was such a load off that I had me a "swimmer." We finished in 1:50:20.9.

When I look at all the results, I wish I could be faster - I was faster 9 years and 50 lbs. ago. in my marathon day. I dream about doing better and have to fight off the negative thoughts that try to overshadow my success as an individual tri(bi)athlete! I have to remind myself, I DID IT!

Here is my relay team member, Allen (left), me, Beeb (my sister), and Jake (my bro in law)

{Plus, one of my nieces hanging on/hiding behind Jake and Miss B in the stroller in the background}

I saw this trailer that caught my attention:

I talked to the group (all wearing "Team Brenchley" T-shirts) and Brian is the Brenchley and is one of the triathletes. He is in a wheel chair and did not (cannot?) speak a word, but had a killer smile- you can kind of see the wheelchair in the photo, in the trailer. Tyler is a friend and is the other triathlete. He pushes Brian in the wheelchair during the run, hooks a chariot to the back of his bike while Brian sits in it for the bike part, and then puts Brian in a 2-man raft and puts a harness around his waist and swims like that. A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. They told me that Brian is from North Logan, but did not know his relatives names. There's just simply not that many Brenchley's - we've got to be related!

When I first started doing races, my kids thought it was bad if I didn't "win" (which I never do) so I've had to drill it into their brains that it's enough to have accomplished something - and it's NOT about winning (except for the Kenyans), not that I wouldn't mind those grand prizes, but I'm in it to FINISH. I heard from another runner once that, "I'd rather be DFL than DNF."
DFL = dead freaking last, DNF = did not finish. I probably still am an embarrassment to my children, but to emphasize my point further, I also tell them that actually participating, to put yourself out there, is also better than a "DNS" (did not start) which is all of them, so they cannot talk!

I promise, I took 2 showers and washed up between the triathlon and going to church today, but it's permanent marker! Haylee caught a picture of me this morning - here's a close-up of how I looked in my church clothes. My "triathlon tattoos" advertising my age on my left calf to the entire ward! I did, however, get all the black, bicycle chain grease to wash off my hands!

Hey! Come a little closer and I'll admit something to you. I kinda want to do a triathlon again, so I can have a "clean" event without "incident." Any "swimmers" out there? ;)