This is my second year of triathlon competitions. I use the term “competition” loosely as I am not going out there to compete against others, just myself. For the first time in my life I woke up last year and said, “I’m going to complete a triathlon this summer.” What was really astounding is that I had never swam, didn’t own a bike and rarely ran. With hard work, I not only met my goal but completed three of them. Finishing the final event of the season was very bittersweet, a relief that I could take a break but sad because I enjoyed them so thoroughly.
But the winter flew by and before I knew it, it was time to start training again. This year I am doing the exact same series of triathlons that I did last year. It is a familiar course which makes it easy to track my progress in fitness level from one to the next.
I was surprised this year to notice many of the same people that I saw last year out there. It got me thinking what a great crowd it is. On June 19th, about 500 people started the race and 430 completed it. What really struck me about the crowd is how triathletes can come in all shapes and sizes. Of course there are the super fit people who look like they eat nothing but birdseed for 3 meals a day and they finish without even breaking a sweat (yes you may read the slight jealousy in my writing). Those aren’t the people who impress me though. The people who impress me are the people who believe they can do something and set out to achieve it. Many are moms that are obviously stretched for time, much like me. Others are trying to lose weight and yet others are just trying to stay fit as they age. In fact, the largest age brackets were people in their mid-30’s to 50’s! This proves it doesn’t matter what stage in life you are in, just that you get out and do something!