On finishing my first triathlon

Yey!

There’s always a time for firsts, the cliché goes. So last June 17, 2018, I finished my first triathlon. It’s one of those things the 25 year old me would never hope to accomplish. But I did, and h*&€ yeah it was definitely one for the books! I can't be more thrilled that my bucket list is now one entry less.



Triman Triathlon is one of the many beginner-friendly multisport events that has seen a surge in popularity in recent years. It’s the cousin of the more accessible and hugely popular Aquaman Aquathlon organized by SwimBikeRun Ph, or SBRPh. Unlike other triathlons joined by more experienced triathletes, Triman imposes no cut off time. It proved to be the perfect initial step for my foray into the triathlon scene.

Preps ... or lack thereof
The first thing I did after registering was to get my own bike – an Atomic Covert, a modest, not really top-of-the-line but midrange “aero” roadbike. Training for the bike leg proved to be difficult to arrange. I don’t have easy access to a safe bike route, and to get to Luneta or Roxas Blvd or UP’s Acad Oval, I would have to cross Manila’s notorious highways, plied by huge container wheeler trucks. I have long lost my faith in Manila’s drivers, and the risks involved in sharing the road with kamote drivers are just not worth it. My only option was to take my bike to a bike route by Grab, which is expensive. Days went by until it was finally time to leave Manila for the triathlon and I found myself with almost zero biking mileage. I have accepted the fact that pushing through with the triathlon, especially the bike leg, would be a gamble.

To get to Fontana Leisure Park in Clark where the triathlon was held, we rented an SUV that had enough space for three bikes. On our way the rain lashed out, sometimes to the point of zero visibility. We could only hope that the weather would be better the next day. Our accommodation was arranged by a teammate from Rekta Tri Team of which I am a new member. Me and seven others rented a villa, which luckily, was offered to Triman participants at a huge discount.

The night before the triathlon our tri team went on a quick recon of the bike route. It was also an opportunity for me to the practice my bike handling skills and test the general condition of my bike. After just a few kilometers of pedaling my rear tire got a flat and I had to walk the bike back to our villa. It was a timely blessing in disguise - had I proceeded with a busted inner tube I would have had to replace it during the race.

Race day
I am normally unable to sleep on a bed which isn't my own. I had to accept the fact that I will be almost sleepless on rest day. Registration closed at 6AM, but I was assigned to the last wave which would not start in two more hours. Talk about prolonged agony!

The weather has considerably improved compared to yesterday. It was neither blazing hot nor rainy, only intermittent drizzles, and the sky was overcast. The swim leg was at Fontana's own 50m pool. Most pools close on Monday, so if Fontana follows the same schedule, the pool was likely in its dirtiest condition of the week that day. That was apparent given how somewhat cloudy the pool water was. Of course, the cleanliness of the pool was less of my concern than actually finishing the swim leg, which I fortunately did. It was rather uneventful and disappointing - I clocked in 900//27:27, a far cry from my 23:00 target. My pace was almost identical to my 800m/24:25 performance during the Aquaman. To be fair, 900m is also the longest distance I ever raced in a pool. That being said, I am still trying to figure out why my training times do not translate on race day, and why, despite training adequately for the swim leg, my speed did not improve a bit. I am sure though that my lack of sleep and lack of proper breakfast is partly to blame - this should make me consider my pre-race day preps for my next triathlon in terms of accommodation and nutrition. My other conjecture is that the pressure of finishing destroys the proper form I meticulously practice for. Again, another thing to consider for my next race.

The smile didn't say, sh*t, I still have 35 km to go.

As to the bike leg that followed, I decided that I had to sacrifice speed for safety as a DNF was not a option for me that day. By this measure, my dismal 30km/1:31:20 performance is sort of a success in so many ways - I did not get a flat, I got no cramps, my cheap bike remained intact, and best of all, I did not crash. The bike route wasn't closed to traffic, but with few cars the road was generally safe for a noob like me who was just figuring out how to ride a road bike on race day.

After I dismounted for the run part my legs felt weird. It was an alien sensation I cannot describe, which was not surprising since I did not really do any brick training, a session where one practices transitioning from one leg of the race to another. I was torn as to what I had to do after completing the bike leg. Should I run? Should I take a rest? Should I gobble up my gel? In the end, with my time still ticking, I settled on - gasp! - walking the 5km run course. It took me 40min to finish the entire length on legs that felt like jelly.

Now that I am no longer a triathlon and cycling virgin, I am setting my eyes on a few more triathlons this year, if only to beat my current stats. I will have to carefully evaluate everything that went wrong with my training and pre-race preps, and look at ways to improve. I am planning to create a more structured training plan in the coming days, most likely one that incorporates brick sets, after doing enough research and getting advise from more experienced triathlete teammates. Indeed, there are a lot of things to think about, but all of those can wait for now. Meanwhile, I have this small victory that needs to be celebrated with a bowl of fancy ramen.