Purl, Interrupted

yo soy triathlete (now with more photos!)

Finished! In under 2:30, which (while very slow by normal person standards, is way better than I had hoped for).

It was a very emotional experience. Pretty difficult on a lot of levels. Pretty fun, too. Very rewarding.

My bionic shoulder held up like a champ. Where I really struggled was with my breathing -- felt like I never caught my breath during the swim or bike, and then had an asthma attack at about mile 3 of the run. Pretty unusual for me (but so is biling 500 m, biking 10 miles and then running 4.1 miles, so that could have something to do with it). So it was very challenging, physically.

The thing that was most amazing to me (other than the mere fact that I did a triathlon 15 months after having my shoulder replaced) was how incredibly supportive people were. Being cheered on by other racers is a really amazing experience. People were amazingly kind, supportive and encouraging.

As an added bonus, it was a really beautiful day -- the forecast had been for mostly clouds and maybe some rain. But it was gorgeous and sunny -- one of the nicest days all year.

So ... here are a few photos in case you find the whole story a little too far fetched. :-) Not that I'd blame you.

With Jara and Jen, waiting for our numbers to be called for swimming:

With Jen, getting ready to swim:

Swimming action shot:

Swimming, when it looks like drowning:

Transitioning to the bike portion (what a beautiful day! I had planned to race in running tights and full jacket; ditched the tights and took the sleeves off my jacket):

Looking slightly absurd biking in big honkin' urban cruiser.

Running, Chugach Mountain backdrop (I think this is my favorite photo of the event).

Elated at the finish.

With Jen and Jara after the race:

Posted by cmandala at May 18, 2008 06:59 PM