the great leslie

I said I would tell you about the triathlon, and so I will. It seems like a long time ago, now. And since then, I've done almost no running, swimming, or biking. I'm trying to get back in the groove, especially since I am planning to do at least one more triathlon at the end of the summer.

The event was good. It wasn't too hot (which was huge). There were about 1800 racers. Of course, the grounds were covered with the most in-shape people you can imagine, so I was pretty out of place. Still, I tried to be cheerful and not run back to the minivan.

Since all these events start at, like, seven in the morning, we had to leave by five to get there on time, set up, attend to last minute details. I forgot to get my anklet with the timing chip, which was considered a small crisis by the TNT folks (Team in Training, the folks from NYC who helped support the athletes), but only took a few minutes to rectify.

My number was 304, so I got into the water pretty early. But, before I even got in, the professional athletes were already out of the water. They swam the entire mile in 20 minutes! It took me an hour. The water was GROSS for the swim. My Uncle Bobby had several stories about livestock feces to tell after-the-fact. We went in every three seconds. I got jostled a lot in the water by folks passing me, but didn't drown.

Then out of the wetsuit, on to the bike. The ride was flat, but I was really slow. Everyone passed me, but sometimes they say nice, encouraging things, so this is good. Part of it was on a highway with several lanes and I was sure I was going to get hit by a car. But, soon enough, it was on to the run. It was very hilly, but there was a lot of shade, and I was glad we'd started so early, lest it would be a hundred times hotter.  I walked some, but I wasn't the only one.

I finished in about four hours, which is very slow. My mom, dad, Bobby, and Chandler (my cousin) showed up about the time I crossed the finished line. Of course, they wanted to take pictures and such. I just wanted to get out of the sun and eat some watermelon.

We had a party at my grandma's after. I made guacamole and the church ladies came. So did some of Bobby's friends. I was tired, but it was good. Grandma had an especially good time I think. The church ladies gave $15 to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Considering their dues are only $1 a month, and there are only six members, it was huge contribution.

I've felt out of sorts since I returned. I guess when one does something that takes so much time and effort and then it suddenly ends, you feel like something is missing. Soon enough, I'll be back into training for these other events. Maybe then I will feel more together.

Everyone has been so excited since my return and are proud of me. I feel like it was no big deal. If I did it, it must be easy. My horoscope for that week said I should get over that. I guess that's one more thing to train for.