Triathlon Saturday

Yesterday Jeff & I competed in our 4th triathlon. This specific race was special because it was the first "multi-sport" event I started with last year. The organizers are on top of their game, super organized and put on the best events. I also appreciate the variety of events that we could choose from. Last year I competed in the aquathon which was 400m swim/5k run. This year, I chose to try aquabike (400m swim/19k bike) while Jeff competed in the sprint triathlon (400m run/19k bike/5k run).

Setting up transition area and pre-race fueling

Lining up at the swim start....
no one can look cool in a swim cap!

400 meter swim has started!
Everyone is paced 5 seconds apart and we "snake" up and down the lanes.

Race photographers captured Jeff on his race portion.
Go Jeff!

Relieved to reach the finish!

Surprised by a 1st place finish in women's aquabike!

Sturgeon Moon 5k

Jeff and I signed up for the Sturgeon Moon 5K in Cicero. It was a twilight run planned around the full moon. We expected an average run, but both surprised ourselves with our results! I ran my personal best mile time in a 5k. Jeff was at heels the entire race too. Jeff was excited to place 1st in men's under 40 division. Congrats to him!

Tri--ing Triathlons!

It's been a great start to 2014! Jeff & I are now officially triathletes! We officially completed three triathlons this spring.

Our first was the Lifetime Indoor Tri in March. This was our stepping stone to triathlons. Lifetime offers a unique event, indoors, which doesn't involve packing up any equipment or worrying about transitions. It was a simple concept of 10 minute swim, 30 minute bike and 20 minute run. We were able to complete our first multi sport event experience (phew!), but not worry about bike issues, riding on the road, weather, transitioning, etc. For anyone wanting to try the sport, I highly recommend Lifetime's Indoor Tri event!

Our next triathlon was our first outdoor event, however we were lucky to find a mini triathlon which a short, beginner distance. Most triathlons are sprint (.5 swim, 12 mile bike, 3.1 mile run) or olympic distance (1 mile swim, 25 mile bike, 6.2 mile run). This shorter distance event allowed us to practice our transitions while competing. I always have a fear of having bike issues (flat tire, dropped chain), so I needed practice to reassure my nerves! The only issues we both had was some confusion on the route, but we successfully finished! While putting our bikes back on our car, I heard my name over the speakers for top female finisher in the mini tri! I literally shoved my bike at Jeff and took off running! I couldn't believe it! But, to remain humble, this was the beginner tri, not the sprint tri. So there were a lot of females faster than me, just not in my event. Jeff also placed as fastest male in his age group. Our work paid off!

Finally our most recent tri, was the Cicero Triathlon, our hometown triathlon. It was our first sprint event and open water swim (no clear pools, but a murky lake!) The men and women had a staggered start, so I never got to see Jeff during the event. However, at the end, we were SECONDS apart in our finishing time. We both placed average, in the middle of the participants, but this was the most rewarding event so far. We did it!

Stay tuned for more events at the end of the summer!