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June 08, 2006
There's a first time for everything...
As the old saying goes, "There's always something special about your first time." Seems apropos for my first Ann Arbor Tri Club article. This is also the first time I've ever tried to do "Publicity" for anything, so bear with me, and let me know how I'm doing. Truth be told, this year is full of firsts for me.
This weekend, I will be competing in my first Triathlon — the Ann Arbor Tri. I was talked into racing in it by my girlfriend Mary, and we've been training for it off and on for several months now. When people hear the phrase "Ann Arbor Tri," they tend to emphasize the fact that it ends with a trail run, which, by all accounts, is several orders of magnitude more difficult than similar-length runs finishing other races. Taking these foreboding anecdotes to heart, much of our foot-training has taken place in the Bird Hills. It is a fantastic place to run; I find it incredible that a set of trails within the city limits can be so secluded and 'foresty' (especially so close to a major highway.) But don't everyone go and run there, then it wouldn't be so secluded anymore ;). I consider the run my weakest 'event,' as I bike to work daily and have been on several touring trips by mountain bike, and I feel like I have a high level of comfort in the water from several years of teaching swim lessons and lifeguarding. (Not fast by any stretch of the imagination... just comfortable.) After deciding that it would be more fun to ride a road bike than my aging mountain bike, I bought a used Trek on Craigslist, and started the slow process of getting accustomed to a bike less than half the weight I'm used to. Now the race is closing in, and I'm feeling fairly confident that I'm ready. I certainly don't harbor any delusions that I will turn in a time that will impress anyone beyond the world of my family or close friends. However, I am certain that I owe it to myself to run the best race I conceivably can — as I'll likely remember it forever — because, of course, there is always something special about that first time.
I think it would be fun for you to write about your own first times doing things. First Triathlon? First First place? First time in last place? First Marathon? First Century? Perhaps something outside the realm of Tri's, or not even athletic at all. I'm sure we all have interesting or funny "firsts," both inside and outside the sport.
Taking a line —
J. Woodard
(If you've got a good 'first time' story, email it to me at jonathan@aatriclub.org and I'll post it here.)
Posted by admin at June 8, 2006 04:14 PM