Movin' on up
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1281 days
Triguy98 posted 2 years ago.
The challenge. I started with sprints knowing full well I would jump to Olys the next year. When i bumped into an ex XC teammate of mine, he told me he likes the 1/2 distance more, so thats on my plate for this year. 2007 is going to be the year of the IM for me. Nice smooth progression.
Life is short. Play hard and get dirty doing it.
40
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1037 days
donegal1 posted 2 years ago.
My dad was a cyclist, so growing up we always watched the Tour, IM Hawaii, etc. It's always been a dream for me.
After running through high school and early college, I took off about a year and a half from any athletic pursuits. Frankly, it was miserable! After refocusing, I returned to racing with Oly tri's and du's. I was in a bad car accident last year which put training on hold for awhile, but I'm now back racing Oly's and HIM's. I'm only 21 (or 22 according to USAT), so I'm keeping my training focused on success at those distances right now, but my ultimate goal of racing the IM world championships is always a driving force. :-)
112
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1215 days
outexan posted 2 years ago.
I agree about the challenge. i thought i would be satisfied racing only sprints but after a year of that i was ready to test my body again and will do some olympic tri this year
If you arent moving forward, you are moving backward.
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2320
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2376 days
Tribro posted 2 years ago.
The challenge. Fear has been the thing that held me back. I never thought I could do a half when I started the sport. I did and was overwhelmed by the accomplishment, more the mental breakthrough than the physical (though that was tough). Even so, I still never thought I could do a full Ironman. I'm finally going to give that a go this year. While I have a long way to go physically, staying mentally positive is the only way I'll accomplish it.
554
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1345 days
vanjames posted 2 years ago.
I've always been one to run before I walk. Started with Half IM then IM the next year. Now I like the fact that easy sunday runs are 20+kms
4339
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1594 days
kylie posted 2 years ago.
I'd have to say the complete challenge and thought to prove to me that I can -- both physically and mentally. I like to see what I can do, and I've never considered myself athletic or in good shape (independant of how much I train). Also, I'm naturally a steady-pacer... I am not the fastest, but I can hold my pace for as long as I want (at least so far). Mentally, I thought I could. I mean, I'm just that stubborn. But there are cutoffs, so you never know for sure.
I started with a sprint, but moved to 1/2 IM after a few sprints/near oly distance races. I figured I could run that far, so injuring joints wasn't an issue, so why not try it? I definitely could have been more physically ready, but I had a blast and have been learning to train smarter since (and getting better technique). For IM, I had to plan more since they close early, making my regular last minute decisions not an option. My best half IM time is more than half of my best IM time -- but still, I've loved every minute of each of them!
However, I'd have to argue with BBB's wording of the question... I sometimes find the longer races are easier. It's going faster that is harder for me, so I find a sprint a bit harder than an IM. Just cause in a sprint I have to push out of my comfort pace even more than in an IM.
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137
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1490 days
TriTimKC posted 2 years ago.
It looks like most of us "move on up" for similar reasons. Fear, confidence, challenge, physical accomplishment, mental breakthrough, etc, etc. We start out slow...
We pick a local sprint triathlon we think we could do. FOR FUN... We borrow a neighbors bike. No clipless pedals and shoes just yet. We do the whole race in our "Saturday at the pool" swim suit. No fancy heart rate monitor either. Our transitions are awkward. We survive and think WOW that was awesome! I'm hooked!!
Now we start to think its time for an olympic distance (no more short courses for me!) and we find one and signup and train. We buy the new bike. WITH the pedals and shoes. Get a HRM and a "tri-suit". We practice our transitions. But damn those extra meters and miles are brutal. But again we survive and commit ourselves to train harder and smarter for next year. Maybe challenge ourselves and finish a half ironman???
So now we find a half IM. Signup and train. And train. And yes, now those Sunday long runs of 20km are our short long runs. We've lost 10, 15, 20 pounds BT (before triathlon). The distance doesn't kill us cause now we're in "good" shape. We ARE triathletes! We start to use terms like PR, BRICK and WATTS and only certain people know what the hell we're talking about.
At this point there is only one thing left to do...
Time for (gulp) an Ironman?!
"Swim smart, ride strong, run tough" - Gordo Byrn
612
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1398 days
qb ant posted 2 years ago.
kyillee wrote:
However, I'd have to argue with BBB's wording of the question... I sometimes find the longer races are easier. It's going faster that is harder for me, so I find a sprint a bit harder than an IM. Just cause in a sprint I have to push out of my comfort pace even more than in an IM.
Are we supposed to do sprints fast :eek: uhoh.....
I started doing tri's a little late - my first sprint at 44. I've done nothing but sprints and du's, so now I'm training for my first oly. I think everything TriTim said was right on. I started with a sprint "just for fun" and got totally hooked. Now it's time to challenge the body and mind and see what I can do.
"90% of the game is half mental" Yogi Berra
1576
Member
1356 days
brittda posted 2 years ago.
kyillee wrote:
I'd have to say the complete challenge and thought to prove to me that I can -- both physically and mentally. I like to see what I can do, and I've never considered myself athletic or in good shape (independant of how much I train). Also, I'm naturally a steady-pacer... I am not the fastest, but I can hold my pace for as long as I want (at least so far). Mentally, I thought I could. I mean, I'm just that stubborn. But there are cutoffs, so you never know for sure.I started with a sprint, but moved to 1/2 IM after a few sprints/near oly distance races. I figured I could run that far, so injuring joints wasn't an issue, so why not try it? I definitely could have been more physically ready, but I had a blast and have been learning to train smarter since (and getting better technique). For IM, I had to plan more since they close early, making my regular last minute decisions not an option. My best half IM time is more than half of my best IM time -- but still, I've loved every minute of each of them!
However, I'd have to argue with BBB's wording of the question... I sometimes find the longer races are easier. It's going faster that is harder for me, so I find a sprint a bit harder than an IM. Just cause in a sprint I have to push out of my comfort pace even more than in an IM.
yeah me too!! I can plod along forever really...sprints are a different story. I am just getting warmed up when the 5k run is done :(
for me, did 3 sprints and got talked into an IM--I figured why not since I had done marathons and was a swimmer in a previous life.So for me it was just the challenge of it all
.jpg "CAcyclingFAN's picture")
555
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1134 days
CAcyclingFAN posted 2 years ago.
Personal challenge has me doing the long ones (Jefferson's theme song as well) but I find Sprints the most exciting. In Sprints, I feel like I am racing and probably because they don't seem attract the top stars so I can sometimes place which is fun.
However, racing long also has the attraction that non-tri people are interested in hearing about it. Since I like to talk about my hobbie, doing longer races allows me to talk about what I like with people who generally wouldn't be interested.
When it's time to die, let us not discover that we have never lived. - Thoreau
483
Member
1641 days
trainDaBrain posted 2 years ago.
The first race was terrifying. 500 yard swim in a pool, 10 mile bike, 3 mile run. How in the world could I possibly do that? Let's just say my heart was pounding and sleep the night before was non-existant.
Once I finished it, I was hooked. The next level up was Olympic/International. Same issues, same fears, larger scale. Same feeling of "Holy Crap, what did I sign up for".
The next big leap was the marathon. Did the Big Sur International as my first. In retrospect, more fear of that course and listening to others recommendation that I save it for later (do a different marathon first) would have been wise. That race kicked my butt.
The next level up was the 1/2 Ironman. Big Kahuna. The 1.2 mile swim put the fear of god in me. The weeks before had me tripping out on the sheer size of it.
The last race that had my fear factor up was the CaliforniaMan. 140.6 is a long way to go. Even tho I've seen family members do it, the fact that you have to do a marathon after all that was daunting. Especially having the Big Sur Marathon as a benchmark. Fear was rampant.
Beating back fear is big for me. Especially when I am mentally confronted with something that I know others have done and have had success in. Why be afraid of it? What is the fear there for? Why is this feeling inside me? So I pursue it.
I have a friend who races 24 hour events and has a fear of the dark. In races that allow solo's he'll sign up to challenge his fear and hit the dark alone. I prefer the company of teammates for a variety of reasons, but I can understand that motivation from the triathlon world.
In the arena of adventure races, the motivator is no longer fear, I really enjoy these things and a big reason why I race them is to see the sun come up while I've been racing all nite. Brings back 'hotshot' firefighting memories. Nothing like the sun to give you a recharge. It's a cool feeling.
787
Member
1118 days
dr_rios_ec posted 2 years ago.
For me over the time is always the challenge...always the addiction to adrenaline, and the desire to test my mind and body...to get the feeling that I am alive...to get the high...
When I first climb with my grandfather my first mountain, at age 14, thevery first thing when I went down was to ask my dad for our next expedition to a higher mountain...
When I ran my first 5km family race, the next thing was to see when was going to be a 10km race, until I ran my first marathon...
I just did my first sprint race, and it was a blast...so now I can´t wait for the next one...and with good trainning, some time during this year try my first Oly....
-Santiago
"Man!! Defeat is worse than dying, cause´you have to live with it" -My Dad
"It ain´t about how hard you can hit...it is how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward"-Rocky Balboa
3349
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1362 days
RV posted 2 years ago.
Sure the challenge, but also not being satisfied with the status quo. Wanting to do more. Prove something to myself that I can take on what not to long ago was a dream and through my will and perserverence will make it a reality.
RV
It takes a long time to get good. - Scott Molina
Slow is smooth; smooth is fast. - Rich Strauss
What has made YOU try more difficult triathlon lengths? I.e., sprint to Oly to 1/2IM to IM. When and why did you go bigger/longer? Was it physical ability or mental? Which drove it more?
BBB
There are no excuses - so don't look for them. As a product of your own choices, you directly determine your life outcomes.
Don't think, just do.
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