Tri This: One Year!!!

One year ago today, I began my triathlon training adventure. I had been inspired by a report in my local newspaper about a sprint/mini-sprint race held at a rec center the previous weekend. I looked at the distances involved and thought “I can do that”. More importantly, I wanted to do that. Starting out, my […]

Tri This: 11 months in

I’ve been training as a triathlete for eleven months now. I’ve done two mini sprint races, one in August, and one last January. I finished the first one with a painful 2 mile run, but given that I’d started from zero in running, finishing was my goal. January‘s event was a reverse and time driven indoor […]

Homeowner Triathlete

I’ve been encountering some schedule and fitness issues recently. Last week, we finally got a few days of badly needed rain. This messed a little with training plans. While I saw one hardy runner out in the downpour, I was not so inclined. And while I might consider running in the rain, forget biking. Too […]

Tri This: Ten Months

Ten months. Wow, I’ve been at this triathlon training project for a while. And I’m still at it, and have my first sprint-length race, complete with open water swim, in late June. The big change for me is that I am now following a training plan leading up to this longer (for me) race. I’m using […]

Tri This: Taking the Plunge

Well, I finally did it. I signed up for a sprint triathlon this summer, with an open water swim. Its the TriBella Women’s Triathlon, to be held at Cherry Creek Reservoir on June 23. Thirteen weeks, but who’s counting? I am. Time to get serious, or more accurately, more disciplined, about my training. I’ve been […]

Tri This: Race #2

The indoor reverse tri. 20 minute run, 30 minute spin bike, 10 minute pool swim. It really does turn the traditional triathlon on its head. The order of events is reversed, starting with running and ending with swimming. And instead of doing a given distance in each event, one does it by time. Its an […]

Tri This: This Year

Well, its the first month of 2018 and many folks are making resolutions and plans. So I’ll chime in here with a few of my own for triathlon and fitness, along with some race options that I am entertaining for this year. I started this tri-training project last June Tri This On, with an original […]

Tri This: Month 6

Six months. Half a year. Goll-eee. A mini-milestone. I’ve been training at triathlon for six months. Six months seems like a long time and yet it feels as though I am still finding my way. Its easy to notice significant progress, particularly with running. Given that running for more that 2 minutes was really hard […]

Tri This: Tri-angles

I wasn’t a huge fan of geometry and trigonometry in high school. My issue was with the proofs; whatever I was being asked to prove seemed obvious to me and hence a “waste of time”. I now recognize that the discipline and logic involved are indeed fine tools to have at one’s disposal. Despite my […]

Tri this: Month 5

I’ve been at this triathlon training project for five months now. The newness has worn off, and as I mentioned in Tri This: Month 4, one of my current challenges is finding the rhythm of training that works for the long haul. I’ve been working out regularly, 5 or 6 days a week, and I’m noticing […]

Beaches and Running

Beach running is a new adventure for me. BA and I are spending some time at the Oregon coast, one of my favorite places on the planet. Shortly after our return from the eclipse, BA mentioned that she really wanted some time at the ocean. As the ocean is my best place for relaxing and […]

Tri This: after the race

Now what? I met an unanticipated goal. I did my first triathlon, a mini, last weekend. When I started this project in June, my plan was for my first event to be sometime in the first half of 2018, a sprint triathlon. Its a little strange now having that first event completed and I’m surprised […]

Tri this: Race Day!

My first ever triathlon is done!

Tri This: Race Week

Race Week. For this first timer, there’s a bit of charge to those words. I’m doing a triathlon. On Saturday. I’ve been training less than three months. I just returned Tuesday from a week away. Relax. Its a mini. Swim 300 yards, bike 11 miles, run 2 miles. I can do all of those things. […]

New Wheels

I got a new bike. I haven’t had a lot of those in my life. I rode hand me downs from a neighbor and my mom until I bought my first new bike in high school. It was a ten speed, in Kraft dinner orange (this was 1972) and it was cool. It was stolen […]

Tri this: I’m in!

Well, I’ve done it. I’ve entered my first triathlon. Its the Mini Haha (mini ’cause its short, haha ’cause its fun–their words, not mine) put on by the Broomfield Recreation Center. Its a mini-sprint event, with a 300 yd swim, 11 mile bike ride, and 2 mile run. As its name suggests, its a fun […]

Spiky Beauty

The seasons have clearly changed here, going from the lush greenness of late spring/early summer to the more brown and sparse landscape of hot and dry midsummer. With that, I’ve noticed a change in the plant life. Green leaves and blossoms are morphing to drying grasses and the spiky plants, with their protective armor seem […]

intimidated

A few weeks ago, I was looking at a listing of local triathlons, curious about what was available. As I suspected, there are quite a few, from low-key sprint races put on by parks and recreation departments to a full Ironman. Perusing the listings, I was surprised to find myself intimidated and overwhelmed at times. […]

Tri training, month 1

First off, I am really pleased that I completed this first month of training. I showed up, I trained, I learned. Overall, I feel stronger and healthier, with more energy and enthusiasm for life. As I write this, my SI joint is aching, (see Tri this: P.I.T.A.) reacting to a slow walk to the post office (about […]

Tri this: P.I.T.A.

Pain In The Ass: Both the experience of being injured and where it hurts! A few weeks ago, I made a mistake. I rode my bike with my swim bag slung across my body, messenger bag style. I’ve done this before, riding the short distance from my home to the rec center where I swim. […]

Meadowlarks and other joys of morning training

Early morning exercise has its benefits, most notably, the joys of being in nature as my day begins, with the song of the meadowlark

Tri this, part 2: Running, pain and the power of belief

As is often the case, places of struggle have a great deal to teach us, if we are willing to listen. I’m challenged to bring my curiosity to this place and be willing to notice and learn, even as part of my reaction is to walk, not run away. Its the third week of my […]

Tri This On

I’ve decided to be a beginning triathlete. Triathletes participate in triathlons, athletic events involving swimming, bicycling, and running. You may have heard of Ironman competitions, which are the big deal of the field, involving an open water swim of more than 2 miles, followed by a 112 mile bike ride, and finishing off with a […]