This year, once again, I am training for the Breezy Point Sprint Triathlon in Norfolk, Virginia.
At my uncle’s suggestion, I competed in my first triathlon at Breezy Point four years ago. When my uncle mentioned that I do it, I never thought that the race would be much of a challenge; swim 1000 meters, bike 20km and run 5km more. And so, I signed up.
At the time, I was completely oblivious to what biking 20 km and then running immediately afterwards felt like. For those of you who have never experienced this, the sensation is equivalent to running 3 miles with cement blocks strapped to your feet. It's not easy and it sure isn't comfortable. Moreover, it hadn’t occurred to that I was no longer in the shape I was in years past. In college, I had been a competitive swimmer and a pretty decent runner. However, somewhere on the road since college I had gained 35 pounds and adjusted to living a relatively sedentary lifestyle.
I will not go into detail about the actual race experience because it really wasn't that pleasant, and I don't remember large portions of it since I think my brain has blocked the more painful parts of it. However, I will say that I spent a good deal of time in the transition area of the race (not really transitioning, but resting) and that 12 miles on a bike makes for a very long and uncomfortable period of time.
That was my first race. One might think that one time would be enough for me. However, I did the Breezy Point race again last year. This time because my mother suggested it. She didn't just suggest that I do the race, but that all 10 of her children do it.
You see, shortly after I completed my first triathlon, our mother was diagnosed with carcinoid cancer. We were all shocked and at a loss as to what we could do. I think everyone of us had always seen our mother as an invincible figure and never really knew how to respond to the news. Well, last year, we decided we needed to do something to raise awareness and funds. We were brainstorming and weren't really coming up with practical ideas. One person suggested we bike across the US while another said he would rather do a hunger strike than bike that far. We were all thinking of things that could draw attention to this rare disease. I think my mother, who is always the practical person, realized that a family of 10 regardless of what they do, tends to draw attention. And so, she suggested we all do the Breezy Point Triathlon and see what came from it.
Well, once again, I will not describe the experience in detail but I think it is safe to say that most of my family members had the same first experience that I did. However, everyone finished the race and we were really successful in achieving our goal. We had over 30 people participate (including our father) and we raised nearly $30,000.
And so this year, we are preparing (more or less) to do the race again. However, this year, I think is even more important to all of us since our mother is doing it. Last year, her physicians would only allow her to do the swim, but this year, she is bound and determined to do the whole thing.
