Anthem Sprint Try-athlon

It was just a month ago today, I headed out for my first training run after concluding that I should "try" a sprint triathlon. If I'd thought about it sooner, I'd have liked to start training earlier. It wasn't until after I decided that I wanted to "try" this, that I actually looked at the calendar. As a life-long cyclist, the 20K ride wouldn't be a problem, but I've never been a runner, and summer swim team is 40 years behind me. The 5K run would be the real challenge for me. The 400 meter swim will probably not be pretty, but I think I can get through it.

My normal running route for the past week or two, has been a 3.14 mile loop (5K). That route goes from my front door and loops around the Community Center. I've been arriving home from this run pretty much spent. Today, I thought I would "try" to bring two pieces together for the first time. My plan was to run up to the Community Center and "try" to swim 200 to 400 meters, depending on how it felt when combined with the running. Then I would finish with the run home. Since this would be a first for me, I though I would shorten the run by making a bee-line for the Community Center and then back via the same route. That would shave a mile or so off my "standard" loop. However, about when I got within sight of the Community Center, I realized that I had forgotten my ID and wouldn't be able to "try"combining swimming with running. At that point, it was a relatively easy decision to convert my run back to my normal distance. I was feeling pretty good as I turned onto my street. So, on a whim, I though, "I should 'try' hopping on the bike and riding back up to the Community Center for a swim." So I would "try" my first transition at my own home.... Grab my ID, change shoes, put on my helmet, gloves, get a drink, grab my bike out of the garage, and go. As near as I can tell, that took about 4 minutes, but I felt pretty good getting on the bike. I've been doing all my running in the mornings, but now it was around 6:00 PM and although the sun was setting, the temperature was still nearly 100 degrees. The evaporate cooling effect at bike-speed was refreshing, so, I opted for slightly more riding than the bee-line route back to the Community Center. But the distance wasn't really the point. It was novel for me to do ANYTHING after running 5K, besides flopping down on a patio chair until the sweating and the panting subsided enough for a shower. So, after only about 8 minutes on the bike, I arrived at the Community Center and transitioned again into the pool. I paused for a breather at 250 meters, only to hear that the pool was closing. (Who knew, 6:30 on Sunday? Well, not me!). ...out of the water and back on the bike, I rode home. In the end, within just over an hour, I ran 5K, biked a total of 3.5 miles, and swam 250 meters. So, I try-ed!