HIGH COST OF BEING A TRIATHLETE

$1,599 Felt Z6 Road Bike

Who was it that said swimming, biking and running were inexpensive sports, hobbies or pastimes? Someone please point out that person!

Whoever made that comment surely isn’t acquainted with what it takes to supply a typical triathlete with the appropriate equipment and necessary clothing. Nor were they aware of the high cost of signing up for applicable competitive events.

The minimum cost of a basic road bike is somewhere around $799 and change. Add a few bells and whistles and you’re up to $1,500 and even more change. Want a bike that is specifically made for racing?  Add another $1,000! And we haven’t even gotten into proper bike outfits and a reliable helmet. And what about routine bike maintenance like new tires, tubes and tune-ups? Yes, road bikes need tune-ups just like automobiles and trucks.

The swim discipline isn’t too bad as far as costs. A good pair of tri shorts, a swim cap and goggles is about all you need to cruise through the water.

$316 to refurbish an older Bianchi Road Bike

Running takes a little bit more money than swimming only because of the extreme cost of a good pair of running shoes, which will run anywhere from $80 to $140. Most runners have two or three new pair on standby.

But even then, you must keep track of your shoe mileage and replace them periodically. After running 300 to 400 miles on a pair of running shoes, 400 miles being the absolute maximum mileage allowed, they are ready to be worn in the garden, for lawn mowing or washing the car – certainly not running on hard surfaces. Your feet are worth much more than the cost of a new pair of running shoes, no matter the costs.

But the way that I look at it is that if I weren’t running, swimming and biking, and putting out the money to do all three, I just may be spending some or all of that money at the doctor’s offices having them mend a broken down, obese, semi-comatose body.

I made my choice, what’s yours?

TOUR OF SEBRING

This past weekend was spent exploring the natural beauty of the rolling hills, citrus groves, cattle ranches, small towns and gem-like lakes in scenic South-Central Florida. Over 400 cyclists participated in a three-day mini-vacation over Labor Day weekend.

Sebring and the Kenilworth Lodge, the host lodge, are located on Hwy. 27 in South-Central Florida approximately 1 1/2 hours south of Orlando and 2 1/2 hours north of Miami. Opting not to stay at the host lodge, we stayed three nights at the Inn on the Lakes located about a mile from the Kenilworth.

My biking distances during the weekend totaled 135 miles, 64 on the first day, 47 on the second, and 24 on the third.

Only on the first day did anyone in our local group experience a flat tire, which we learned was widespread amongst the larger group because of the scorching temperatures and over inflated tires. But on the second day, one member of our group accidentally drove her bike into a roadside ditch when attempting to make a right turn. Surviving the unexpected delay, she laughed, we laughed, and away we went.

All rides, no matter the distance, were fully supported with deliciously stocked rest stops. Routes were well-marked and excellent maps were provided. Rides are done at your own pace, so this event was perfect for riders of all levels of experience.

Included in the $100.00 registration fee was breakfast before each day’s ride and lunch after each day’s ride. Each registrant also received an event T-shirt and water bottle.

The only downside of this event is the early September heat and humidity, but that’s what we train in and that’s what we are accustomed to.

I’ll do it again next year.

MY FIRST TRIATHLON

Please allow me to refer back to an excerpt posted on this blog on the 15th day of May, 2010.

“To be honest, I’m never going to sign up for any event that calls for swimming in bodies of water other than a filtered swimming pool. No way! If it’s all the same, I’ll keep my body out of murky, polluted, shark & gator infested bodies of water. And besides, I would resent having other triathletes kick me in the head just because my swim pace might be slightly slower than theirs.”

So much for my promise to myself! On the 28th day of August, 2010, yours truly participated in a sprint triathlon in the very same park where I do all of my run and bike training. When signing up for the event, my thinking was that nothing could go wrong in my personal training grounds, not even in the park’s main lake.

Race day started out to be a perfect morning. The winds were calm, the temperature was in the low eighties, and the triathlon folks kept the capacity at a reasonable 300 people – and some of those 300 participating athletes were going to be doing the duathlon and not the triathlon, which meant less people in the water and less swimmers vying for personal space while swimming in the lake.

My mini-triathlon ended up being real mini – at least for me. After swimming out about 200 feet from the shoreline and starting line, maybe farther, I evidently went into an anxiety attack of sorts. I never could get my breathing down from the very beginning, and it only got worse as I swam. I even tried breaststroke with no noticeable improvement.

The water was black, spooky and disgusting, and I do mean disgusting.  You couldn’t even see your arms stroking in front of you, but you could feel the slimy grass beneath your body when swimming.

A quick decision had to be made before I ventured too far from shore.

Feeling a bit apprehensive at that moment, and doubting myself, I chose to swim back to shore and continue on with the biking and running – knowing full well that I would be listed as DNF. In fact, the guy at the starting line advised me that I would be listed as such, but in the same breath he commented on how much determination I must have for continuing on with the biking and running despite the potential DNF classification. He made me feel worthy and more determined.

Well, they have me listed in my AG (age group 65-69) as the winner. Not remaining for the awards ceremony after a friend of ours was awarded her age group third-place medal, we didn’t have a clue that I would have been awarded a medal when they came to my age group. I’m glad that I left because I would have been compelled to embarrassingly decline the award.

Turns out, I was the only participant in my age group.   

Anyway, I’m not discouraged in the least. My mistake was not jumping into the water beforehand and warming up, and not training in that type of environment. Even in a pool, it takes me two to three laps, often more, just to get my oxygen flowing throughout my system. Even when I was a youngster, my breathing was challenged considerably while swimming and running.

Yesterday morning, I swam one-mile. The day after the event, I swam ½ mile, both times in the swimming pool. I’m a skilled swimmer, but when you have an anxiety attack in open water, you’re goose is cooked. My goose was cooked well done.

I’ve since signed up to participate in the Port St Lucie duathlon October 10th. Whenever I become skilled in open-water swimming, I’ll give a triathlon another try. But until that time comes, only duathlon, biking and running events will be on my agenda.

Oh, my biking and running during the triathlon went really well. Much better than expected!

So you see, there were more positives than negatives that came out of that triathlon. Rather than be defeated by one negative, I’ll build on the two positives.