Mini . . . Not so Mini

My friend Mal and I signed up for a Mini Triathlon in Oldham County.  It sounded like the perfect race - a 400m swim, 10 mile bike ride, and 3K run.  All easy distances and are doable even when doing all three consecutively.  I haven't competed in a full triathlon in three years so I was getting excited to compete and hopefully place as well.

During the past week our beautiful summer weather abruptly ended, dropped more than 40 degrees, and turned to early winter.  Each day the high for the day set a new record high for the lowest temperature.  Unfortunately, that meant that the OUTSIDE pool we were to swim in for the triathlon had also dropped in temperature!

The pool was supposedly close to 65 degrees!  I think it was probably closer to 60.  The water was so cold that it was difficult to breathe.  Most people might think it is hard to breathe anyways while you are swimming, but in cold water your chest feels like it is compressing and your lungs are the size of peanuts.  I usually breathe every third stroke, but I had to go with every two because I was having such a difficult time getting air.  I even had to push off the wall most times instead of using a flip turn because having to hold my breath to turn was nearly impossible.  I didn't do as well in the swim as I had while practicing, but I was still happy with the time considering the circumstances.

 Just finished the swim, getting ready for the bike

After the swim I was excited to move onto the cycling.  The sun actually began to shine for the first time this week!  It is a beautiful to feel the warmth of the sun when you are a popsicle.  The bike portion started well as I clipped into the pedals on the first try!  But then it all fell to pieces.  As a preface to my saga, in previous races I have participated in there are usually racing volunteers directing you in the direction of the course.  Before the race I didn't look at the bike course map, nor did I bring it with me.  I had planned to just follow the other cyclist.  As a group of us passed a policeman on the roadside we continued straight ahead.  Apparently we were suppose to turn on the street by the policeman.  After several miles I came to a fork in the road and was extremely confused as to the direction I should take.  I hadn't passed any other cyclists (except for those who I had followed) so I was beginning to worry.  To make matters worse, I took my first fall clipped into the bike as I tried to unclip my shoe to stop at the fork in the road.  A car passed by me and didn't bother to stop.  That just added to my frustration.   

I waited at the fork for a few minutes until another cyclist came to the fork.  I asked him which way we should turn and he gave me further instructions on the course.  I was told to turn right and then take another right in a bit.  I thought that we were still heading in the right direction since the other cyclist knew the course.  I kept heading out thinking at some point I was going to see someone . . . but never did.  I realized that I was lost and was not on the correct course.  I always bring my phone with me when I cycle on my own, but I had decided to leave it in the transition area today.  So I had no way of calling Travis to ask for directions or to let him know that I was okay - just terribly lost.  

I kept cruising down a small highway for about 5 miles and then I saw a sign "La Grange" to turn right.  Okay this must be the right the other cyclist was talking about.  After 4 miles I passed Mac's Lake Resorts which is where we had camped the night before.  By now I new I wasn't on the right course but I knew how to get back to the triathlon.  I began to think about how in life when we have no instructions or we don't follow instructions that we can get lost easily - probably even more lost than me in a bike race.  When life gets rough we might ask for guidance from a friend or maybe someone who you think is a friend and while those instructions can help us get on the right path, sometimes they lead us further away from where we should be and where we really want to be.  So I guess I learned a life lesson today while I was so peturbed with myself . . . We should know where we are headed and how to get there before we start out on our journey and if we do get lost it is okay to ask for help, just recognize the source from which you are getting your guidance.   

Mal jumped in to finish the last stretch of the run with me

 More than 5 miles later I am pulling into the transition area the opposite direction as most bikers.  Travis is pulling out to go look for me.  What should have taken about 30 minutes turned into an hour and 10 min trek.  I did finish the race - I ran the 3k - really slowly.  My goal was to do the triathlon in less than 1 hour.  I finished it in about 1 hour 38 minutes. What is worse than placing 4th place?  Placing 4th out of only 4 females in my age group!  Well at least I came out to be 137th out of 142 people.  Lesson learned: Next triathlon I am going to read my map, take it with me, and bring my phone.  

Me and Mal at the finish line