My Second Tri By Jayne Marshall

On my first tri I got second and on my second tri I got first. Sounds good, doesn’t it? Of course it could also be worded--in both tris I got last place. Either way, it was fun, and I’m hooked. When they were handing out the awards the group of ladies behind me were making a big deal out of being 49 and still doing triathlons. Consequently, I got a nice round of applause when I went up for my 70 and above award.
I’ve decided that in each tri you probably learn something. Last time I learned that you swim next to the rope because you don’t want anyone cutting in front of you just as you’re about to turn. I was talking to some ladies in the 60 year old division and they said, “That’s true. That’s why it was so nice in the Tri for the Cure. The ladies were a little more polite. But, it shouldn’t be too much of a problem here because all the real competitors were at Tempe Town Lake doing the International Triathlon.” They were right. I only had one guy bump into me and that was during a dash to the ladder to get out of the pool.
In this tri I learned something very important--make a check list of equipment. The first thing on my check list is going to be: DON’T forget your running shoes! In the last tri I had Roxie’s bike and used my running shoes for the bike and the run. This tri I had my own bike so I had to have my biking shoes. I don’t keep my running shoes with my biking equipment so when I packed I guess I figured I had the same amount of equipment as I did last time, so I must be good to go. When I was setting up my bike and laying out my equipment I went, “OH, S--T! Oh well, I guess I run in my Tevas.” I remember one time, years ago, I was walking down a country road and just felt like running (that had to REALLY be a long time ago) and I ran in my Tevas so I knew it could be done. I felt better when I was on my bike, coming up the hill to the finish, and saw a guy running in his Tevas. I figured that he was probably doing it by choice. Anyhow, it worked, but it was a different gait and I noticed that there was a lot of pounding on my shins. They’re still a little sore but no big deal.
When I went to pick up my packet I talked to the guy that puts on the Triathlon and asked what to do about my legs being mush for the run. He said to go in an easier gear through out the race. I guess I went in too easy of a gear because my legs were fine but I don’t think my bike time was that good. Don’t have the times yet so will analyze that later. Maybe by my 20th triathlon I’ll get it all together. But, LeVerne!! You should be proud of yourself. You’re a very dynamic teacher and your student is learning. She drank a whole bottle of water while she was waiting to get in the pool, and drank half of a Camelback during the ride. Pretty good, huh?