Running with the Pack 77: The Black Bear Triathlon, summer running, “the drug”, fun finishes, Action Wipes, and more

Summary: This week, we have a lot of short topics (summer running, fun races, endorphins, etc…) and then finish with a race report about the Black Bear Triathlon, which was my first Olympic-distance triathlon and my first open-water swim. Before the show, Stevie asked me how the Black Bear Triathlon went. The short version: Cold. Frightening. Wet. Intimidating. Demoralizing. Painful. Exhilarating. Amazing. Euphoric. Challenging. Enlightening. —– The longish version: The water was incredibly cold compared to what I was used to. I went in for a practice swim and nearly quit because of the water temperature. It triggered a strong panicky feeling, but Andrew made me go through with it. I’m glad he did. I had never done open water swimming before, so that was all new too. I had to contend with other swimmers and staying on course. I also got a friction sore on my neck from the wetsuit. I felt a little dizzy after getting out of the water, so I took my time in the transition area, ate a gel, said hi to Andrew, and then ran my bike to the mount area. It was raining while I was doing the bike course, so the roads were wet. I was obviously on one of the lowest-end bikes there and got passed by a ton of people. I saw some people with flat tires and a couple who wiped out – so I’m glad nothing like that happened to me. The race description said that the bike course was REALLY hilly and challenging. They weren’t kidding. I kinda suck on hills, even though I practice on a hilly route. It’s partially because my bike is cheap and heavy, partially because I have only been cycling for a year, and partially because the competition at this race was incredible – loads of people from Philadelphia and New York – many of whom have done Ironman events before. After one last killer hill, I made it into “T2” (second transition) from the bike to the run. I saw Andrew again – racked the bike, took off my helmet, gloves, and glasses, and put on my running shoes. The run was the easiest part. It was a nice flat two-loop course. I passed several people who had passed me on the bike portion. I had another gel and drank lots of water. I felt pretty strong. I had some pain in my back and a stitch in my side, but nothing unbearable. I finished the two loops and ran up to the finish line where they announced my name. The woman giving me my medal said “State College, Penn State, wooo!” which I thought was pretty cool. After the race, I caught up with Andrew, grabbed some snacks, got my gear from the transition area, and headed back to the car. Once there, I switched out of my triathlon gear, used a couple of Action Wipes, put on clean clothes, and we headed home. We stopped at the Powerhouse restaurant on Route 80 on the way home and had some of the best eggplant parm that I’ve ever had. I finished in about 3:11, which was 263 out of 364 people who started (so back of the pack). My goal time was 3:00, but all things considered, I’m very happy with how I did. I finished with a smile on my face. I learned a lot. I had a great time.