It's feeling pretty natural by now. This morning I woke to overcast skies, and the awareness that it is Cornhusker State Games Triathlon Day. Some of you know that I have been scrupulously avoiding signing up for "events" for a couple of years... since November of 2019. A couple of months of self-discipline, followed by the pandemic, and now, the slump of being less fit than I was, and the weight creeping back upwards.
But two years ago, on Triathlon Sunday of the Cornhusker State Games, we buried my brother's ashes in the family plot. But before we did, I walked down to the bike course and cheered the cyclists zipping by.
Last year, the games were made "virtual", and even those that were being run "in person", I avoided. This year many events are back in person, and since I am fully vaccinated, I'm a little braver. We thought that the pandemic was behind us but lately with the numbers ticking up, I'm being careful... but I'm also starting to train more, with thought to being a "support kayak" at a triathlon in September.
This morning, I debated in my mind: go to Walgreen's to pick up sunscreen (I'm out) and new brush heads for my electric toothbrush? Or go watch the triathlon start? I left the house prepared for both. Walgreens did not look open yet; the parking lot was empty, so my choice was made for me. I kept on walking by.
Into the park, along the path, I spotted the mile 3 flag on the run course, signifying only a tenth of a mile to the finish line. My anticipation grew. As expected, I reached the spot where everyone was gathered for the pre-race meeting.
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| The finish chute, waiting... |
I had noted on the walk over that they had not yet shut down the streets for the bike course, so they were not starting quite as early as they had in some years. There were fewer participants, but as in years past, they all lined up, ready to be escorted to the water's edge for the swim start.
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| Isn't this just the perfect triathlon weather? |
At this point in the walk, I walked around the transition area and up onto the dam, to get a couple of really nice shots of the sunrise over the water as the little kids wave of the Super Sprint started.
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| The white cap is the last little girl out of the water... a girl after my own heart. |
Baby triathletes! Aren't they adorable?
I have to wonder, might it be time to start working on getting my act together for 2022? A "five years later" reprise?
Well into my walk, I kept moving, over the dam, past the turnaround point of the 5K run course, and across the park to the bike course, where I cheered for the young ones peddling up the hill, some of them with bikes, shall we say, not optimal for road racing?
This young man has a knobby tired mountain bike, so he's working harder than a lot of cyclists! But you know what? I started my tri training on a knobby tired mountain bike, and it made me stronger for when I upgraded to a fitness hybrid and later to a road bike.
About this point my walk had returned me to Walgreens, so I made my way across the street, put on my mask and got the items I needed. After that, it was home to a sweaty selfie, followed by a shower and breakfast. Longest walk in a long time (4.69 miles), and the smile in the selfie is a reflection of that feeling of fit!
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| A sweaty selfie |
Now it's time to put in the pep talk tag lines, but let me just say, today reminded me of the dreams that came along with reaching my weight loss goal, and how grateful I am to have chased them, nine years ago, when I did my first "official" triathlon.
If you have something you always wanted to tri, oops try😁 I would encourage you to go for it.
Start slow, train up... be patient with yourself... and then you can live off the memories, as I am now doing, even if you never do it again.
See how sweaty I got WALKING as a spectator? OK, part of that is humidity, but part of it is a genuine workout.
Now let's all live the best Sunday, July 25, 2021 we can, right where we ARE on the journey of life. For LIFE is good, and we are worth the living of it! ✨💖Spark on, whatever platform you land on, post Sparkpeople.com.
way to go glad you had a healthy fun day alexsgirl1
ReplyDeleteAnd am home watching the Olympics triathlon coverage on USA network in the late afternoon.
DeleteI don’t like to “look back” too often, because I tend to dwell there too long and those, for me, are many times not positive and waste precious time. Your “life-affirming” trip down memory lane was the delightful kind and I welcome those!
ReplyDeleteThank you. Glad it didn't trigger any regrets for you!
DeleteFabulous memories!!! I'm glad Walgreen's was closed so you had a chance to visit and cheer! You make a difference!
ReplyDeleteI've been in love with this sport (as a spectator) since the 1970's... and it feels just incredible to know that I trained up and actually finished an Olympic distance triathlon not once but six times, over four years. I have had five years "off" since then... and starting to have that hankering.
DeleteHow awesome! And the smile says it all.
ReplyDeleteHugs
😁😁It does!
Delete2017 was the last time I participated in an event as well. It was one and done following that pelvic fracture in 2015. Two years of recovery, an event and then, exercise tolerance lost ... perhaps, for the rest of my life. Tolerance here one day and, literally, gone the next and yet to return. Like you, living off the memories. They do warm my heart. ~ JEANKNEE
ReplyDeleteTotally agree. Even if I don't ever do another again... I did it while I could. As did YOU!
DeleteHi Barb! I relieved some of your memories with you here! We’ve been Sparking together since your Tri times! Kinda makes me think about it in motherhood terms…love love my children now and when they were little but don’t want to go back to raising wee ones. Same with some of the activities I used to do and love…no desire or regret to do them again. BUT, moving and doing like a good long sweaty walk, I will continue! Thanks for the motivation and inspiration. I now plan to head out for an evening walk when it cools off a bit!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy that walk! All things in their own season, right?
DeleteThank you for allowing us to join you on your walk down memory lane. While it didn't burn calories for us, it certainly generated some "feel good" feelings. You put your dreams into action and shined a light on the path to success for others. What a testament!
ReplyDeleteAw, shucks... thank you.
DeleteGreat blog we are all moving on and trying to find our new places to land :)
ReplyDeleteYes, we are! Thanks for stopping by here!
DeleteThanks for popping by! Savoring and encouraging the joy of others will get us out of that negative sense of nostalgia, and then we can fully savor our own memories, too.
ReplyDeleteI think it's nice to be able to say "I did that" or "I gave it a shot" instead of "I wish I had".
ReplyDeleteAmen and amen!
DeleteNice memories. Thanks for sharing ❤️
ReplyDeleteI only ever enrolled in one solo+ timed non-kayaking* event, a half marathon swim-bike (I picked the option without the run because of my bad knee)
Just about when I’d planned to start training, I discovered white water kayaking. So each weekend I had a choice; train for the bike ride, or go WHITE WATER KAYAKING!!! You can see where this was headed...
I did a few swims but it was hard to schedule them and I can swim forever but I’m not very efficient. I have been cycling since I was 15 (and did my first century that same year, so for me, picking back up cycling is like, “riding a bike.” 😉😂). I was so cavalier about the bike part I never rode the route loop once, even though *I lived on it* 🙄 LOL
So on the day of the event I was last one out of the water, then got in my bike and bonked, figured out what was wrong, ate & drank, made up a BUNCH of time, passed a lot of people, and crossed the bike/swim line 20 seconds beyond the cutoff. Everyone was super nice, “Better luck next year!”
I got home, put away my gear, and then went KAYAKING, and never looked back 🤣
I did use the open water suit a few more times in an annual 3-mile open water charity swim for a local hospice organization. And I used the bike a bunch more times in an annual ride for AIDS research. And my unofficial times in both of those were way better than the times I clocked in the swim-bike.
So I guess wearing a chip isn’t really my “thing.” But I’m so glad it makes lots of other people happy! 😁 🥰
+I did once participate in the Tuckerman’s Ravine Pentathlon in NH. I’d been planning to do the kayak but tore my rotator cuff a week or two before, and swapped with the cyclist. Good thing I like climbing. It was 16 miles, 3000ft straight up, from the valley to the trailhead where our speed hiker was waiting. I was over conservative to avoid bonking (see previous experience, LOL), and finished fresher than I should have. Good thing our skier was a competitive racer. He made up for the slow kayaker (who later confessed to capsizing a few times) and my time which was at least 15-20 min slower than it should have been. This time I had a good excuse for not having ridden the course before, since it was in a different state and I hadn’t even been the designated cyclist! LOL
*I participated in a solo kayak slalom race once, but that was more about precision than speed. I placed third overall and first among the novices. No chip required - just judges with a stopwatch and gate monitors with binoculars. 😉
Oh, then you might have enjoyed watching the "canoe slalom" event in the Olympics? I found that very interesting! I seem to gravitate toward the less often seen sports... to each our own, huh? I never thought I'd ever do a "real" triathlon... then JUST_TRI_IT on Spark inspired me. It's pretty amazing what a big impact others on that site had on all our lives!
DeleteThanks for sharing your experience. As my brother MOBYCARP used to say, "there are all kinds of runners". Not everybody does races. There are all kinds of active people... find the active that makes you happy, and as you said, "never look back".
With only a cellphone hotspot for internet and no cable or satellite, I’m not in a good position to watch stuff. But I’ve seen footage of competitive slalom boating and I’ve recreationally paddled with slalom racers, and I used to take pool classes from a youth slalom coach in Rochester in the winters. I can say that they have an enviable degree of precision and control in a current. Slalom boaters go down a river in *style*, where most recreational whitewater paddlers just bash through.
DeleteAnd slalom boaters can get an incredible amount of amusement out of a small, otherwise unexciting stretch, working on ferries and attaining (going upstream from eddy to eddy) and surfing, practicing and perfecting and enjoying until they have got their moves down to their satisfaction.
The other interesting thing about competitive slalom is how weird the currents are in artificial courses. Because the walls are super smooth, the eddies, waves, and other features are freakishly strong compared with what you find in a natural river, with irregular banks and bottom that confuse and dissipate some of the force of the current.
Anyway, that’s probably TMI but I enjoyed the thought of you watching the paddling slalom 🙂 and you’re right, I would have enjoyed it if I could have.
One thing I like about the whole BlogSpot conversation is that even though it's not in as much "real time" as Spark seemed to be with getting e-mails as soon as a response was posted, it all kind of stays together in a conversation, comment, response, response to response, etc.
DeleteThanks for a glimpse into the slalom paddlers' mind-set! Now, back to the women's triathlon! 💦 It's wet in Tokyo, and that's crazy on the bike.
Agree. Threaded comments are a game-changer!
DeleteYet another example showing that some options in our post-spark world actually represent improvements...
🙂
2017 was the year of my car accident and I too had the: Has it been 4 years already?!
ReplyDeleteIts been a very slow recovery, but I’m definitely better than I was 4 years ago.
That's actually hopeful... recovery may be slow, but it CAN come! Continued healing wishes sent your way.
DeleteEnjoyed the virtual walk with photos. Friend Feed on SP not updated for two days for me so catching up.
ReplyDeleteGlad you eventually made it over! Catching up is kind of how some of us operate, every day! ✨
DeleteLovely to be cheering along the newest "tri-ers" and remembering your past participation!!
ReplyDelete💖
DeleteBeautiful Barb !!!
ReplyDeleteA 5 year triathlon reunion.!!!!
🏆
😍
DeleteA pretty good reunion at just under 5 miles! Way to GO!
ReplyDeleteYes, it felt GOOD, for more than one reason!
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