Sunday, January 1, 2012

What I never thought I'd know 12 months ago:

1. Triathlons are EXTREMELY ADDICTIVE
2. You will plan your weekends around your swim, bike and run
3. You will spend your wages on new gear (see item 4), race entries, training camps and pain and suffering instead of going out, food and alcohol
4. Warning, it is extremely addictive, hence the impulse spending on wetsuits, bikes, running shoes, aero bars, aero helmets, speed suits, power meters, GPS heart-rate monitors and many other ‘gotta have items.
5. You will hate swimming more than you like it for the first year
6. A quick release does not need to be fully removed to access the tyre
7. You will learn new words such as A-race, brick and double-knick
8. You will set your alarm starting with the number 4 - all because you want to fit in a session in before work
9. You will eventually get a flat tire... and have to change it all by yourself.
10. You can ride in the freezing cold and survive the headwind of the year - it just makes you stronger and those less than ideal race conditions seem relatively easy!
11. It will take you a full 12 months, but you will finally find swimming meditative
12. No matter how much you don't want to, when your Coachs tells you to take a gel to get you home, you will take a gel to get you home
13. You will be passed and dropped on the bike many times - but it doesn't matter unless you make it matter
14. You will never be the fastest runner, but as soon as you stop competing with others, you can compete with yourself.......and more often than not, you will win!
15. You will suffer set backs.
16. You may experience an injury.
17. You will wear tight clothing.
18. You will not like how this tight clothing fits or looks.
19. Your age will take on a whole new meaning.
20. You will discover a whole new meaning for tan lines.
21. Food will become an extremely important part of your life.
22. You will learn new words such as GU, cadence and brick.
23, You will learn patience.
24. You will be humbled.
25. You will learn the meaning of and love nothing more than a post-training cafe and breakfast or LLD or BLD
26. You will start using acronyms!
27. You will look forward to your swim sessions - Thanks Coach Ryan
28. Some old friends will drift away and your tri-friends will become like family
29. You will find happiness in the simple camaraderie that is a tri-squad
30. You will voluntarily take part in "Hell Week"
31. You will never know many flats you can get in a 2 days during hell week
32. You will find that no matter where you finish in the race someone from the tri-squad is cheering you on. - Thanks guys it helps
33. You will find 9:30pm is a late night

This sport called Triathlon, becomes a part of you. You start to plan your entire year around sprint, international, half-iron or full-iron distance races. Your vacations become racing, and you start to realize that this sport called triathlon could become a life-long adventure.

Many people settle for things in life. They settle for a crappy job, marriage, friends, food, place to live and overall fitness and health.

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