It was imperative that I do at least one triathlon in 2017. I needed to give some sense of purpose to my daily swims. I needed to compel myself to do at least a few bike rides this year. I needed to feel a little bit like a triathlete - not just a runner who cross-trains.
So I enter the Chelan Man Olympic Distance triathlon. I had not visited the Lake Chelan area since I was a young child and was curious to see how all the Seattle wealth had transformed the place. I was expecting a pretty large-scale intense atmosphere, but I find ChelanMan a casual, smaller, local affair. I arrive at noon the day before the triathlon and spend the afternoon playing in the lake and cycling along the waterfront.
The Chelan area accommodations on Airbnb started at $500 per night when I checked 3 months ahead of the event. Then when I checked back on the website 2 months before the event, even these prohibitively expensive spots had been snapped up. So I slept the night before the event at a nearby state park in the back of my father’s SUV. The other US campers arrive at the park in huge RVs and had assembled large, military-scale campsites with spacious tents, elaborate barbecues, camp chairs, additional banquet-sized tables, spare generators, massive water containers, clotheslines, strings of thick electrical cords, light poles, all covered by a huge superstructure circus-tent style shelter. The adjacent campers are intrigued by my customary minimalist style. I've only brought a folding pad, some snacks, a sleeping bag a toothbrush and my triathlon gear. Even at that I feel overwhelmed by the logistics of simply dealing with my swim, bike and run bags . I am perfectly comfortable in the SUV and after my long day playing at the lake I quickly fall into a deep sleep.
The next morning I awake at sunrise to perfect conditions My confidence is only slightly shaken by the looks that the old bike I leave in Seattle receives, and the contrast between it and all the $10,000 bikes. But then I have never been convinced the bike makes a huge difference.
I feel great on the swim leg -- drafting much of the way and then sprinting when I spot the finish marker looming on the shore. It is my most enjoyable triathlon swim ever. Too bad my time at 31-minutes is still much slower than my Olympic Distance swims of a few years ago. But the important thing was how smooth I felt.
I was in the last starting wave and am one of the slower swimmers, and I so I find myself passing one after another other cyclist on the course's rolling hills. It is great fun — I enjoy the scenery and the feeling of speed and of being back on a bike. Too bad my time of 1:12:35 is a bit off from previous triathlons. But then what can I expect having done so little bike training over the past 11 months. My longest training ride was only a paltry 30k.
The lack of bike training seems to take a toll on my run time - 41:57-- but agin, just like on the swim and bike legs I feel relatively comfortable and appreciate the camaraderie of the other triathletes who are quick to yell out encouragement.
I finish 32nd out of 321 entrants in a time of 1:29:57
Swim - 31:26 165th
Bike - 1:12:35 65th
Run - 41:57 10th
