My First Triathlon

Deborah Reber Yippee! Yesterday was the big day of the Danskin Seattle Triathlon, which I’ve been training for since June. It was my first triathlon, and, despite the cold, rainy weather (August is usually GORGEOUS in Seattle), I absolutely loved it!

The race was held in Genessee Park, and started off with a 600 meter swim in Lake Washington. Swimming’s definitely my weakest of the three events, but I managed to finish without too much floundering and sputtering.

A 12.4 mile bike ride was next, which I was kind of nervous about because of the wet, slick roads, and as it turned out, wind and rain pelting me in the face while crossing Lake Washington on the I-90 bridge. But I actually really enjoyed the ride, burning sensation in my thighs and all.

Last was the 5K run, which started off a little rocky because of the whole tight thigh muscle thing, but since running’s my sport of choice, I got into a groove pretty quickly.

All in all? A definite success. And I may even be hooked….

While I loved the athletic aspect of the race and trying to reach the goals I had set for myself, the best part of the Danksin Triathlon was being a part of such a large girls and women-only race. The energy in the air among the girls from 14 years old on up was incredibly positive and inspirational. We cheered each other on, helped each other during the transition between legs, and motivated each other to get over that last big hill in the run. Women of all ages, sizes, and athletic abilities were challenging their minds and their bodies to do things they didn’t know were possible…and you could see in the teary hugs on the other side of the finish line that their accomplishment would be an empowering memory for years to come.

Are you interested in doing a triathlon? Here are some links for women-only events you may want to look into: