The 2020 Worthington Community Center Indoor Triathlon is now history. How did I do? I came, I saw, I conquered. Well, that’s an overstatement, but I achieved my goal of covering a total distance of over 7 miles, 7.19 miles to be exact. That’s almost 1/3 mile farther than last year’s total distance. The strength training I went through with Alex undoubtedly paid off, especially with the swimming. I actually got out of the pool with about 30 seconds left, but felt it wiser to use that time drying off and preparing for the biking event. Here’s a side-by-side comparison of my performance in each of the three events:

2019  Swimming: .26 miles (18 laps)

2020 Swimming: .30 miles (21 laps)

2019  Biking: 5.0 miles

2020 Biking: 5.3 miles

2019  Running: 1.61 miles

2020 Running: 1.59 miles

2019  Total: 6.87 miles

2020 Total: 7.19 miles

While I beat last year’s performance, I didn’t compare as well to the other triathletes as I did in 2019. As a swimmer, I finished 7th among the 8 men in my 50 and over age group. The fact that I used the breaststroke to swim most of my laps explains why I lagged behind the other competitors, who mostly swam freestyle.  And while I improved my bike riding total, I still finished last in my age group. As for the running, I probably could have at least matched last year’s 1.61-mile total, if I had not underestimated the remaining strength in my legs. But for a few minutes after the biking, those legs felt like a couple of giant rubber bands. As a result, I started my treadmill speed at barely 10 minutes per mile and increased it only gradually. Belatedly, I realized my legs had rebounded faster than I initially thought. How I wish we started with the treadmill instead of ending with it!

The event was managed well, just as it was last year. Ryan Cooper, a physical trainer at the community center, deserves credit for that. There were volunteers to monitor each person’s performance, a souvenir t-shirt and other SWAG, and refreshments at the end. The jury is out on whether I will take part in a third indoor triathlon, assuming one is held. My decision may depend, in part, on whether anyone else in my family is willing to join me. I might mention in closing that one of the side benefits of training for the triathlon was losing 10 pounds. Keeping that weight off in the weeks and months ahead may be as big a challenge as the triathlon itself.