Sunday, September 10, 2006

In which Abbie and I are beasts

6 a.m. - Wake up
6:17 - Force myself to open my eyes and actually get out of bed
6:30 - Drive to 1000 Hills for the race
6:52 - Drive back home for a forgotten bike helmet
7:18 - Return to race course
7:19 - Realize I have no socks
7:40 - Ride shuttle to beach before the swimming portion of the race; scare Abbie with my competitive intensity
7:53 - Work up the nerve to enter the 74 degree water
8:03 - Begin swimming8:43 and 1200 meters later - Exit the lake to a crowd of cheering fans and a trio of bagpipers; force Abbie to run with me to the bike corral
8:44 - Worry briefly about the sand coating my feet compounding the lack of socks; begin lengthy bike race with nobody in sight
9:24 - Realize that Abbie and I aren't actually in last place; we are totally smoking a 74-year-old woman
10:01 and 18 miles later - Amid more wild cheering, begin running portion, observe people already finishing the running portion10:04 - Notice that sand in my shoes has begun to chafe
10:22 - Stop to clean out my shoes to absolutely no effect; notice that my feet are bleeding in several places
10:31 - Pass old guy who is barely walking yet still cheers us on
10:35 - Struggle through a wall of exhaustion to hear Abbie ask, "David, do my eyebrows look all right? I don't want them to look bad on the pictures."
10:35:02 - Pretend that I am hallucinating from the tiredness
10:39 - Pass second old guy on lengthy downhill
10:51 - Cross the finish line at a blistering sprint amid much more wild cheering and many photographers

I must say that this triathloning business brought back a lot of fond memories of my racing days. I absolutely love the communal racing atmosphere, and how everyone is so encouraging throughout the day. Another triathlon probably won't be too far distant, I hope. Or maybe a marathon. I feel like I could tackle just about any competition after our performance this morning.

4 comments:

Sarah said...

I am so proud of you for doing that! I wish I had been there to cheer you on. Why don't you do your next triathlon in KC?

I am also wondering how it is that little middle-of-nowhere Kirksville has that many people willing to run a triathlon.

Anonymous said...

Davey, I absolutely loved your account of your and Abbie's outstanding accomplishment!

Anonymous said...

Congratulations!!!! You should both be so proud of yourselves. That is a tremendous feat. For the next time--one little word of advice. Pack your bag the night before and include socks. I know that is very contrary to the Rothermich procrastination gene, but I really think you ought to try it.

Anonymous said...

Good work. I am intrigued (correctly spelled on first try) with the idea of participating in a triathlon. Maybe I could join you in the future?