A very sensible order for this race was to look at it as training. As training? How much fun is that? Well how much fun would it be NOT to look at it as training and try to win (just win anything, that is) if not ready for it..?
I thought of it as training from last Tuesday. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, no problem – all training. Saturday, race registration, meeting the friends down in Singapore, checking the course, the transition area, the beach, the water.
Training?
I assembled my bike after the flight only to find out that one spoke was broken, no sweat, it’s just training, right? I will have it fixed and then I’ll be ready. Ready to train. Not even the broken spoke got me stressed. I flew into Singapore with my wife, my son, my ever so supporting parents, we travelled by all the free buses that we could find and arrived at the hotel two hours after the plane landed at the airport which was located “10 minutes away”.
A bike bag, a stroller, a baby and eight other bags later, we ordered room service and just enjoyed the nice setting of being in Sout East Asia in beautiful Singapore two days before a training race.
I realize that even though travelling with a lot of luggage – bags that is – and a baby I have an advantage over many other athletes. I have a baby.
A broken spoke, no problem, training ruined due to illness, no problem and most of all: panic in the water, definately no problem. He’s there and he’ll be there smiling, well, almost all the time even after I get out of my racesuit that I also use for training.
Ok, then come race day. I am nervous. For a training day? What’s up with that? Well I was happy there still was some adrenalin in me after all.
Off to the swim start, I brought two pairs of goggles since I was not sure which ones to use. I decided to start with the clear ones. Put them over my head and SNAP – the strap broke. So that made it an easy choice.
Off for the swim, easy in the beginning. Easy all the way if you look at the time, I looked up once in a while to check where the buoys were and they seemed to be further away each time I checked. I got into a big fight and I was elbowing right and left, stopping to hit even harder only to find out I was beating on the rope and a couple of buoys… Amateur.
Finally I got out of the water, jumped on the bike, and off for 90 kms of riding on the expressway. Averaging about 36 km/h for the first 30 kilometers. During that first loop, out of three, I lost my repair kit, and my spare tube got stuck in the rear wheel. No problem, I just stopped quickly and had it undone and then I was off again.
Slowing down in the second and third lap, feeling tired and my legs were very heavy.
Got out on the run and managed to run with Pilar, an old good friend from Bangkok. She was part of a team (not a threesome this time…) and did the run for them. She was on a 5 min/km pace and I stayed with her for the remaining of her run, which was 2/3 for me.
Finishing in 5:50, three months before Ironman Japan should be considered good. Or at least decent. It was a great event, well organized and enjoyable.
I got out of the water and thought I did terrible, I got off the bike feeling tired and not super happy. I did the run with a smile on my face though – well, a triathlon smile at least. You should always finish a race feeling happy with the acomplishment even if you don’t know exactly what the accomplishment of the day was. Now a couple of days later I think my accomplishments were to have felt relaxed during the week leading up to the race, another acomplishment was not panicing on the swim and also doing the run as fast as I could.