Olympic Dreams

Olympic Dreams

Ha Ha! Not the Olympics, not the Olympics every 4 years, no. But yes, Olympic “distance.” That’s what I’ve been working on as I try to put a few finishing touches on training for an Olympic distance triathlon in mid July in New York City. Can you imagine swimming in the Hudson off Manhattan for 0.9 tenths of a mile? Or cycling 24 miles up Manhattan through the Bronx or jogging through Central Park for a 10K? Okay, now let’s put all that together, in sequence, back to back, right after the other. Oi Vay!
Nothing I’ve ever done tells me I could actually do this, until last summer when I nearly called it quits in a sprint distance triathlon and my first outdoor lake swim. I kept holding on the buoys, dogpaddling, drinking the Lake, but somehow, miraculously, I made it to the end, and felt the good earth beneath my feet again.

That day last summer was incredibly hot, in the 90’s, with a high heat index, and a monster hill to just start the 5K. After it was all over, and sitting on a bench recovering my lungs, and legs, I realized how crazy I had been in thinking that indoor and outdoor triathlons must be similar, somehow. But they are at best only distant cousins! That afternoon I called my niece in NYC to see how she did with her Olympic distance race. Somewhere in that conversation, knowing I had come in dead last in my age group, I asked Deborah, how much further an Olympic was compared to a Sprint distance. And within a few weeks, I started getting ready for the biggest physical feat of my life. Now, I am only a few days out from the official New York City Nautica Triathlon.

Okay so I upgraded into a wet suit, a newer bike, and a cool outfit, but I’ve also lost about 20 pounds, gained a lot of confidence by swimming way way way further away from a beach than I ever have, and have started to even “take” a few hills on my new red racer. I’ve also fallen from the bike (clip shoes are a real trick to get out of before you fall over on concrete!), witnessed some bad bad cycling accidents, found thighs and calves I never thought I had, and have actually cranked it up into the highest road gear…not exactly anthing Lance might even notice, but a lot faster than my old 1970’s Mariushi 12 speed. I’ve also learned there’s no “pushoff” at the end of the lane in a lake, but learning also how to spot a buoy so far away, that it’s only a blip on my visual screen…but slowly, ever so slowly, I make the turn, and look for another one.

So, it’s off to New York City in a few weeks. My mantra? Sure, you guessed it,
“I am an Olympian!” That should get me through the long jog at the end of this crazy race. In case you’d like to see what the race is, and the distances, etc., here’s the website
http://www.nyctri.com