Update

Man, it's been awhile since I've posted... A lot has happened since building my dad's bike! I've done some updating to my bike, completed my first triathlon, and have been training with Chris for the next ones.

Updates

Chris gave me a new front derailleur for my birthday, so now I have a full set of Shimano 105's. I was surprised at the difference in responsiveness between the 105 and the Tiagra that I had!

I upgraded my wheels to Campagnolo Zonda's and put some light Vittoria Diamente Pro tires on them. The bike is noticeably lighter now and I can really feel the difference when I accelerate!

My parent's gave me a new saddle for my birthday, and it matches the rest of my bike perfectly. It is an incredibly comfortable Selle Italia Flite Flow. I swear the red makes me go a little faster too.


Iron Eagle Triathlon

After a couple of injuries early in the year, I got back to training and decided to sign up for the Iron Eagle sprint triathlon at EWU in Cheney. With the 500 meter swim in a pool instead of open water, it seemed like it would make a good first triathlon.

May 31st came quickly and I woke up early, extremely nervous! My girlfriend came with me out to Cheney and my parents joined shortly after. I got checked in, set my bike and other gear up, then checked out the pool and transitions. I was in the 3rd wave of 16 swimmers and ended up sharing my lane with an experienced swimmer. The swim was about as difficult as I expected it to be, and I had to stop every few laps to catch my breath. I finished the swim in about 18 minutes, out of breath and tired. Pulling myself out of the pool was a challenge in itself, but I made it out and quickly made my way to the transition area.

The longest part of T1 was pinning my race number to my bib. I've already purchased a number belt to cut down the time for the next one... The rest of it didn't take long though, and soon I was racing away on my bike. The first mile was downhill and served as the perfect chance to rest a bit from the swim. After that little recovery I flew for the next 9 miles, passing 7 people on the way!

T2 was much faster, as all I had to do was remove my helmet and swap my shoes. After running barely a tenth of a mile, I realized that I was pretty low on energy. I ate a Gu, walked for a small portion, then ran a bit more. I continued walking-then-running for the full 5k and finally crossed the finish line! My finish time of 1:40:22 wasn't great, but the goal I had set was to just finish my first triathlon.

Overall, it was a great experience and I can't wait to continue improving and competing!

About to cross the finish!

Training and Tri's

Chris and I are signed up for Coeur d'Alene's Race the River triathlon on July 19th, and are going to be doing the Coeur d'Alene Triathlon on August 8th as well. Since his return from Bellingham, we've been adhering to the training plan that we created and have both seen improvements. My swim times have decreased and my comfort in the water has increased, and we've both gotten better at running. It's been time consuming but fun and exciting too!