My Story

I'm 53 years old, a Kindergarten teacher for 22 years, married with a grown son. I've always been active, but not always in an athletic, competitive way. I played intramural sports in junior high and high school, and I ran track in high school. I wasn't very fast, just a skinny girl who liked to compete. My mother died of cancer when I was 16, and my Dad remarried two years later. I gained a mom and three step-sisters in the deal. I've not been without a bike since I was eight years old, so after I got married and had my son, I continued to ride and run some. I was never a big person, so weight control wasn't an issue. I was active enough, but didn't often break a sweat. The year my son graduated from high school, my step-mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. I was 40 years old, my mother's age when she died, and I realized that, as a woman, if I didn't make my health a priority, no one else would. I started running more, did strength and core training. Joined a gym, took spin classes. I signed up for swimming lessons at the Y. I had learned to swim in a muddy hole at the local river, which means I learned how to save myself from drowning, and not much more. I always wanted to learn how to "really swim," like the Olympians or triathletes I saw on TV. I bought a road bike, and the next thing I knew, I was training and racing as a women's Cat 4. The races were fun and I'm glad I did them, but my best competitive finish was 25th. I belong to a local cycling club, do century rides and compete in a local weekly time trial series. I love to ride and run, and I really enjoy racing and pushing myself to see how hard and fast I can go. I thought maybe I could be competitive in triathlon. I did my first race, a sprint, in the summer of 2010. The potential embarrassment of explaining why I didn't finish was the only thing that got me through the swim. I was 60 out of 66 out of the water, but had the fastest bike split. Finished 19th overall, and lost my age group by only a minute. Clearly, I needed to work on my swim, so I joined a Masters Swim team and got to work. Unfortunately, I injured my hip in the spring of 2011, so wasn't able to run. I did a half-iron distance Aquabike that fall, again, panicking on the swim. I was last out of the water, but, again, had the fastest bike split. I finished in 4:18. I had hip surgery in December of 2011--labral tear and an impingement--rehabbed, and came back strong in 2012. I'm running and riding stronger than I ever have, thanks to Spinervals and a great physical therapist. I did some cycling races and events, and some running races this year. I did four local mini-tris this summer and won all of them, but panicked on the swim in every one. I would be almost last out of the water, then had to work so hard on the bike and run to gain the lead. I did a local "classic" distance tri, had a good swim for once, and won my age group. I was signed up for another sprint and an Olympic distance, but wasn't able to do either for different reasons, but in both cases, I was hugely relieved. So, I'm kind of at a crossroads right now. There are some cycling and running events I am going to sign up for that I really want to do well at, so will be training hard for them. I'm not ready to give up on triathlon yet, but first, I need to drown that swim monkey on my back.