A Travel Adventure Tri!
Jan Guenther
Marbella Spain. Located on the southern tip of Spain, this fancy, yacht-soaked seaboard city hosted one of the many Ironman run 70.3 triathlon events happening all over Europe. Last fall, my son, Connor, who is stationed as Navy Diver on the Military Base in Rota, Spain, asked me if I wanted to sign up with him to race this rather exotic half Ironman on the 7th of May.
Instantaneously, my rational side thought YIKES, early May? How the heck can I get the training in? I have very little free time to add swimming, running, and biking to my winter activities. However, emotions rule. I emailed back: “Heck Yes! If you are doing it, I am there!” I did add, “But please realize an early race like this is super tough on your ol’ mom who does not live on a beach”
He didn’t care. So! I needed a plan.
Physical suffering could only be reduced if I built in some sort of cycling and swimming movement, weekly, all winter long. At 63 years old, I knew myself—If I asked too much in terms of winter tri training, I would fail. My winters are full. My store, Gear West, demands much from me during the snow season, and any free time I have outside of retail, I cross-country ski. Over the past 30 years, I have never swum, run, or biked during the winter.
My goal?
To retain muscle memory of swimming and cycling, and rely on cross-country skiing for fitness and speedwork. I would bike indoors on my Wahoo trainer for a combined total of two hours a week, and swim once a week in the Lifetime pool. I would ask my brain for nothing more and therefore would eliminate the guilt of always “falling short.” My energy would remain devoted to necessary retail hours and the fun of cross-country skiing. I would bank on a fitness transfer if I could maintain minimal contact with the biking and skiing motion. (I gave up on running.)
I stuck to my minimal tri plan through winter. By mid-March, I added a bit of running and moved the cycling outdoors. But the winter never ended! Cold and snow accompanied almost every outdoor bike workout and my training took the form of riding on my MTN bike under three layers of clothing the long way to a coffee shop, warming up, and then a return bike. I threw in a few three-mile runs, punctuated with two 10-milers, and added two 1-mile non-stop pool swims.
My motivation stemmed from the IM race course that was facing me 6 weeks after ski season: A 56-mile bike with 5,500 ft of climbing, a saltwater 1.1-mile ocean swim (I have not experienced any ocean swells since IM Hawaii twenty years ago), and a hot 13.2 mile run on the Mediterranean boardwalk.
The final worry?
I could not determine a safe and guaranteed delivery of my tri bike. I did not trust the airlines, since I had three flight legs, and the service, Bike Flights, would not guarantee delivery. The only solution was renting. I contacted a bike service associated with IM, poured over the two remaining road bike options left, selected a pretty expensive model (hey, I am a spoiled bike store owner), and would pick it up 24 hours before my race.
The race result?
I had the time of my life. My training plan worked out well, for me. I stuck to what I absolutely needed to do and still enjoyed my winter. My Pinerello carbon bike fit me perfectly and shifted on all the hills without issues. Best of all, I started the swim with Connor and saw him periodically throughout the event. We both dug deep within our minds and bodies to finish.
Connor’s 6-foot frame was shaped to swim with heavy dive equipment, and he experienced massive muscle cramps. (I’m not sure he trained at all for this race.) I struggled with a little bit of everything, including not enough porta-potties on the 80-degree run course and jet lag. (I had arrived two-and-a-half days earlier.) But we finished with big smiles and a mutual feeling that the challenge/pain was worth it all.
And yes, my son beat me by about 18 minutes!
The time frame in life to share experiences with one’s grown kids is short. So many factors are uncontrollable. For me, having the health to accomplish such a goal, and knowing that discipline (which was not fun at times) delivered results, was super rewarding. I just felt grateful and sure hope I can hang onto the memories. Life is so challenging and moments like these are so fleeting. For me, identifying opportunities and making time to sprinkle in the joy, is my goal.
This race in Spain will remain in my brain!
Jan Guenther, Owner, Gear West, Ski, Bike & Run