Can you call it a race if you don't break a sweat?

It was a beautiful hot('ish) day on Sunday for Lake Chaparral Triathlon.

My Dad came to stuff (I mean "help") me into my wetsuit pre-race - thanks Dad!  Had my usual mediocre swim, but I always start at the back and pass people continually, so at least I feel like I'm gaining time.

Had a great bike - was able to keep my speed up on everything (pushed myself to keep spinning on the uphill), so was pleased.  I've discovered doing a sprint distance allows me to go all out on the bike and still survive the run, so that's what I did.  But whose idea was it to put a 90' turn at the bottom of a nice downhill??

The run started fine - got through the first couple of km's; I'm thinking of everything Llew tells us - strong core ("zip it up"); heels to bum; relaxed shoulders - pull the rope; and most importantly 2 inches shorter!! This is what I appear to have forgotten as I went along and felt the twinge in my calf, that progressed into an "Oh crap - this AGAIN":(  And I walked the remaining km's.... and I didn't break a sweat.

Disappointing, but as Cathy said - you must practice to get better.  Fair point, I'm not running between classes with Llew.  Or, someone could just ride beside me (or let's be realistic - walk fast, while I "run") and tell me to do all this stuff.  Maybe I'll put it all together at some point.

Came home feeling frustrated and thought maybe this is a sign that triathlon really isn't for me.  Then I thought about all the races I've completed and even though I won't ever win anything - I'm out there. I finish even when I feel like I'm wasting my time and the coaches time.  I don't think I'm ready to give up just yet.  

So you can still participate and not break a sweat.  Signed up for tri club stuff in the fall - may have to talk to Jon about this - I've gone overboard with classes again.  I'm not quite ready to surrender and I may take Cathy's advice....

When I compare this triathlon to the performance (and the aftermath) I had at a mountain bike race - 24 Hours of Adrenalin in July, I think triathlon is the safer bet for me.

Ciao and happy training.