I know the slogan is “Red Bull gives you wings” but I think it should be “Tour de Rock gives you wings.” Because, thanks to all the TDR training, I was able to do accomplish something I never thought I would: I completed my first triathlon on Sunday. It was the Subaru Series triathlon sprint at Elk and Beaver Lake.
Now, if you’re a marathon runner or Ironman addict, then you’re probably rolling your eyes and saying “big whoop.”
It’s just that I had never before thought of adding “triathlon” to my list of goals in life. I’ve run the TC 10K once a few years ago, just because I thought as a good employee I should run the race we sponsor. But my knees have always acted up after a long distance run so I figured I better just leave it at that.
But in May, I started talking to a woman in her 60s about the Tour de Rock and she told me she planned on doing her first triathlon sprint, a 500 metre swim, 20 kilometre cycle and five kilometre run.
I had no idea something as intimidating sounding as “triathlon” could come in such a neat little package. “I can do all those things,” I thought.
So after cycling practice on Tuesdays and Thursdays I started going for 5K jogs, something I later found out are called “brick runs.”
Then I added in lengths at Crystal Pool. I used to swim competitively in high school but haven’t spent much time in the water since then. My busy schedule only allowed two visits in the two weeks before the tri, where I swam one kilometre of laps and called it a day.
The morning of the triathlon, I woke up a bouncing mass of nerves and excitement.
I double checked my backpack over and over. Cleats: check. Goggles: check. Runners: check. Heart-stopping anxiety: Double check.
When I picked up my race package the day before, I felt like I was in a place I didn’t belong. I looked around at some of the elite athletes with $15,000 bikes and five per cent body fat and felt like an intruder in an exclusive club. Worse yet, the wet suit my friend sent me in the mail failed to arrive in time (angry glare coming your way, Canada Post) so I pictured myself swimming in my skivvies.
Getting my race package was like getting a temporary membership to the club. I had a number, 1299. I put the stickers on my helmet and my bike so it was official. I rented a wet suit for $25 (thanks Aqua Sphere).
So when I entered the organized chaos again on race day, I felt a tad more relaxed.
Stepping into the water for the 500 metre swim, the water wasn’t nearly as bitingly cold as I thought. I started jumping up and down like a little kid as the men’s sprint took off, a group which included Kevin Nunn, a former Tour de Rock rider and fellow rookie triathlete. The women had three minutes to go. I wished the swimmer beside me good luck. Then we set off.
I made sure not to panic despite the flapping of arms and limbs all around me. I counted every stroke to keep me calm. The water was a bit choppy so my two-strokes-and-breathe technique went out the window and it was pretty much head-up all the time.
There were times I flipped onto my back to catch my breath and because backstroke was always my strongest stroke. I know it’s a bit unorthodox but it’s not against the rules! Looking up at the sun trying to poke through the clouds, I almost forgot about all the people around me and just told myself to push.
I got out of the water, peeled off my wetsuit (didn’t fall over and embarrass myself like I pictured, yeah!) put on my cycling jersey and took off on the bike. This is where the training so far really paid off. I mean, I don’t want to brag, but I was flying! I felt really confident and knew this was where I could make up any time from a slower run.
While my goal was just to finish, I had set a time goal of one hour and 40 minutes and for the first time I felt I could do much better than that. And I said to myself: “Enjoy this. Have fun and lap up the experience.”
I started waving to cheerleaders on the side, posing for photos (no surprise there) and yelling “way to go” whenever another rider passed me.
And I made friends! Whenever I passed a girl in a pink and black jacket, I would see her pass me a few minutes later.
We did a back and forth dance for a while and started smiling and encouraging each other.
She must have recognized the blue and yellow Tour de Rock training jersey I was wearing because later in the day on Sunday, I got a tweet from a woman named Zoe Jackson who said
“Nice race today! I was the rider in the pink and black jacket. You kept me pedalling hard when you kept passing me!”
By the time I got to the run, I was in a great head space. I did a little dance with my arms when I passed the dude blaring Kanye West from his pick-up truck.
At the half-way mark, I almost got a little sad that soon it would all be over. I willed my legs to go faster, knowing that I didn’t want to look back at this and think “I could have pushed harder.”
And when I saw the finish line, I booked it, like I was being chased by a rabid dog, which is also reflected in the photos (which will never see the light of day).
The feeling of having that medal put around my neck was glorious. It was like getting my wings. I later found out my time was one hour and 28 minutes, fourth in my age category! I may have found a new obsession.
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Katie DeRosa is one of the media riders for this year’s Cops for Cancer Tour de Rock, a 13-day bike ride from Port Alice to Victoria. Follow DeRosa's blog for details about the ongoing training, leading up to full coverage of the ride Sept. 20 to Oct. 3. To donate to her fundraising campaign, click here.
