Tri@thlone 2008 was a baptism of fire for the two boyos. John and I have been doing Trojan work in the gym over the past few weeks. There isn’t a corner of the pool that we haven’t splashed, we’re onto our second set of tyres on the bikes and the running machines definitely need new timing belts! All in all, it’s fair to say that serious mileage has been clocked up in Total Fitness! Unfortunately, none of the events in a triathlon actually take place in a gym... school boy error number 1!
Saturday 12th of July 2008: 09:12 – Event 1
The first wave of Triathlone 2008 had just departed the pontoon on the River Shannon and myself and John are about to enter the river for our first “open” water swim... school boy error number 2! The contrast between swimming in a pool (4 feet deep!), at a pleasant temperature of 20 degrees and the river Shannon (considerably deeper that 4 feet!), is almost akin to the difference between going on a sun holiday in Iceland or Maritus! Being preoccupied with the cold certainly didn’t help accustom ourselves to swimming in a wetsuit for the FIRST time! By design, a wetsuit is supposed to keep a person buoyant in the water; this was another new experience for us. Just to add fuel to the fire, we had not anticipated the effects water currents could have on our ability to swim upstream! In some cases ignorance is bliss... I think it’s fair to say, that in hindsight, ignorance was of no comfort to us in the river Shannon last Saturday morning.
Saturday 12th of July 2008: anytime after the swim! – Event 2
Considering our adventures with the swim the biking passed without any major hiccups, expect for the hour spend trying to attach the bike rack to the car at 04:00 in the morning! It is worth noting, that neither I nor John had actually cycled our bikes before we left the transition area on our way to Bridewell, 10 KM from Athlone. In the spirit of honesty, I have to confess that I only managed to get my bike at 8pm on Friday afternoon... less than 14 hours before the cycle! A quick shot of air in the tyres and a splash of oil on the chain and we were good to go! Possibly my fondest memory of this triathlon was meeting John in the transition area after he had just completed his cycle and before starting his run. For those of you who know and love John for his extremely positive and relaxed attitude towards everything, you may not have met his alter ego! I quote “I did not spend the entire morning in that flocking river and just cycle 23km to have that flocker abuse me for not having my helmet strapped on correctly...” that was followed by “I’m taking a break now for a few minutes till I calm down and drink my lucozade”... 3 minutes later... “Right, I not running the whole way around this field (transition area), just to get to the flocking exit... which is right there!! Thankfully, the REAL John took control, gave me his wallet and said... “Go and order me a pint and have it waiting for me at the finish line... I’ll need it!” Despair, anger, exhaustion, resignation and sheer joy... All expressed in the space of 3 minutes and really capturing the emotions of a triathlon.
Saturday 12th of July 2008: who’s watching the clock anyway! – Event 3
The run! Serious pain and cramp set into my legs when I tried to run after cycling for the best part of an hour. The head, heart and lungs (surprisingly) were all willing but the legs just weren’t as receptive! It takes a good five minutes or so for muscles to acclimatise to the road and that that stage all I could feel was pain! The huge support from the on lookers was very welcome and greatly appreciated. I can only imagine what Michigan Avenue will be like on the morning of 24th of August... and John, I promise I will definitely have a beer ready for you once you cross that line J
Back to main attraction folks! We need money Crumlin asap... please spread the word!
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