Race Recap: The Columbus Challenge Triathlon - Aug. 9, 2014

After nearly 12 weeks of training, I swam 0.9miles, biked 23miles, and ran 6.2miles to cross the finish line of my very first Olympic distance triathlon - Columbus Challenge Triathlon!

  
 To think back when I first started training, I could barely swim a 1/2mile without stopping. By being persistent and practicing, I was able to increase the distance.  Even with my brother and his family and one of my best friends there, my anxiety about finishing the swim increased as the time to start the race got closer. They had a time trial start. This just means you lined up according to your number and a swimmer starts every five seconds. This way is a lot better than a mass start at the beach. The first 10 minutes or so of swimming, my heart was racing and I could not get my breathing right because of my nerves and the cold I had. I did alot of backstroke to calm myself down the first half of the swim. Once my nerves calmed and my nose got cleared out, I was able to go back to the front stroke. My sighting on the swim was pretty bad too and even got disoriented one time, but I was able to stay calm and start again. I imagine the lifeguards having a good laugh at my inability to swim straight from buoy to buoy. At the end of the swim, the volunteers were there to pull you out of the water because it was so slick.

Since the swim did not go as well as I had hoped, I still had plenty of energy left for the bike and run. The transition from the swim to the bike went smooth. I dried my feet off to get my shoes and socks on, walked my bike out of the transition, and on I biked. I had one of my honey stinger gels after I had been on the bike for a mile or two to keep me fueled. The course was mostly country roads with miles 7-14 around a big lake that had lots of hills and curves. I drove the bike course the day before so I was ready the hills. With a few miles left, I ate another gel to fuel up for the run.

  Coming into transition, I was able to see my mother-in-law and my parents with my 3 kids cheering for me. This was a first time, my kids had seen my husband and I race and it was my mother-in-law's first time seeing a triathlon. Having a cheering section was a first for me, so that made the race even more fun. The run was 2 loops in the neighborhood that was pretty flat. My legs handled the transition from the bike to the run pretty good. I had read slowing down a few miles before the transition can help so it seemed to have worked for me.

 Coming down the home stretch, high fiving all my family, and crossing the finishing line was an amazing feeling.  It did not matter to me that I had one of the slowest swim times, it matters that I had finished something that pushed and tested me - something 3 months ago I would not have been able to complete.  My husband joined me in this challenge as well. He ended up getting a flat tire around mile 6 on the bike, but still finished the bike ride - riding 17 miles through hills on a flat! We do the races to keep us motivated to stay healthy for our kids and to do something fun together. Now onto figuring out the next challenge!

Before and after the race 

 This race is a fundraiser for Foundation for Youth in Columbus, IN (my hometown). Packet pick-up was quick and painless and even had a free dinner if you wanted the day before. Race day parking was in the neighborhood which was an easy walk to the transition area. The weather was overcast, and the water temperature was 77F so wetsuit legal. The markings on the bike route was easy to follow and volunteers did a great job directing. I wished they had more lifeguards in kayaks or canoes, but overall I think it was a well organized race. There was even a mother-son team like Team Hoyt that was inspirational to see along the course and cheer for them in their first triathlon.