Danskin Triathlon -- Round 2
I ran the Danskin Triathlon for the second time yesterday. I didn't do quite as well as I did last year, but I didn't train quite as much either, so I guess that's OK. Last year's swimming portion was only 600 yards, and this year it was a full 800 yards, or half a mile. So finishing 5 minutes slower than a year ago isn't too bad.
My results were:
Overall
Rank: 1545 of 3710
Time: 01:44:51
Swim (1/2 mile)
Rank: 997 of 3710
Time: 00:19:21
Bike (12 miles)
Rank: 1436 of 3710
Time: 00:40:18
MPH: 17.8
Run (5K)
Rank: 1802 of 3710
Time: 00:34:05
Pace: 00:10:59
Not too shabby. Especially since I haven't done much running all summer. Overall, a little slower than last year, but OK.
I've been thinking, though, about why I've been embracing this stuff lately. The triathlon and the STP and swimming and climbing mountains, etc. When I was a kid, I never saw myself as athletic. I've always been outdoorsy, but when I was young, I preferred a picnic and a novel in the woods to a backpack and hiking boots. And I hated running. Hated it.
I'm still not a big runner. I do it, but not because it makes me happy ... just because I feel healthier and happier when I'm done. But lately I've been embracing these things, throwing myself into physical challenges that I never would have imagined myself doing even when I was in college, and I'm not sure why. Maybe it's just to see if I can. Maybe it's because it's a manageable goal; something I can achieve in a set time frame and be proud of when so much else in life is uncertain and ambiguous. Maybe I've finally learned the joys of a runner's high and now I'm addicted. Maybe I'm afraid of getting old and want to know what my body can do before it can't do it anymore. I don't know.
Have any of you experienced this? The drive to try yourself physically? The sudden embrace of athleticism where once there was only a desire to sit and daydream? If so, where did it come from for you?
My results were:
Overall
Rank: 1545 of 3710
Time: 01:44:51
Swim (1/2 mile)
Rank: 997 of 3710
Time: 00:19:21
Bike (12 miles)
Rank: 1436 of 3710
Time: 00:40:18
MPH: 17.8
Run (5K)
Rank: 1802 of 3710
Time: 00:34:05
Pace: 00:10:59
Not too shabby. Especially since I haven't done much running all summer. Overall, a little slower than last year, but OK.
I've been thinking, though, about why I've been embracing this stuff lately. The triathlon and the STP and swimming and climbing mountains, etc. When I was a kid, I never saw myself as athletic. I've always been outdoorsy, but when I was young, I preferred a picnic and a novel in the woods to a backpack and hiking boots. And I hated running. Hated it.
I'm still not a big runner. I do it, but not because it makes me happy ... just because I feel healthier and happier when I'm done. But lately I've been embracing these things, throwing myself into physical challenges that I never would have imagined myself doing even when I was in college, and I'm not sure why. Maybe it's just to see if I can. Maybe it's because it's a manageable goal; something I can achieve in a set time frame and be proud of when so much else in life is uncertain and ambiguous. Maybe I've finally learned the joys of a runner's high and now I'm addicted. Maybe I'm afraid of getting old and want to know what my body can do before it can't do it anymore. I don't know.
Have any of you experienced this? The drive to try yourself physically? The sudden embrace of athleticism where once there was only a desire to sit and daydream? If so, where did it come from for you?