Why Triathlon???

Recently I got to thinking about why I do triathlon…it’s simple really…I want to reconnect with the fun I had as a kid.

As a kid, I swam nearly every day during the summer months in Lake Okoboji…splashing around, making new friends and swimming with our dog.  There was no competition…just playing in the water.

Family swim time…one of the few times we were in the ocean instead of Lake Okoboji.

I also rode my bike almost daily.  There were times I rode my bike just to have fun and times I rode my bike to get somewhere.  Regardless of the reason for riding my bike, there was always one thing that was consistent…I was never riding to compete with anyone.

Riding my bike…when I was a kid, we didn’t wear helmets, but this is not something I condone now…I never ride my bike without a helmet now!!

I ran around with people I didn’t know, acquaintances and friends of many years.  Growing up with a resort in my backyard provided me with many opportunities to have fun and meet new people…sometimes we were running to the water’s edge to swim and other times we were running in relay events at the resort with the other kids who where visiting for the week…regardless of the reason for running, it was always for fun!!

Running in a relay race with a glass of Kool-Aid…I’m the one in the yellow shirt on the left.

As a kid, it wasn’t about being the fastest, being the best,  or pushing myself to my limits while “training” or “racing.”  Instead, it was about the simple pleasures of having fun while swimming, biking and running.

Sometimes these simple pleasures are briefly forgotten as I try to push myself to new limits during training and racing, but it is important for me to always remember how much fun I had with each of these disciplines as a kid.  It has been fun to reminisce and remember all the fun I had while swimming, biking and running as a kid.  I’m hoping to keep these memories at the forefront while training and racing.  After all…for me, triathlon is about LOVE…those things I used to love to do as a kid and still love as an adult…swim, bike, run!!

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