June 11th, 2017

Today I registered to take part in the 2017 Haugesund Triathlon. Which will take place on June 11th. Which in turn means I have a little over 5 months left to get into shape and beat the time of 2 hours, 33 minutes and 45 seconds. Who's with me??

3 days ago

Well, the triathlon has been done and dusted and my body is slowly on its way back to normality. This week I will return the wet suit to the place I got it from. I haven't got the money for it at the moment and besides, it is way too big! Plus of course, the temperatures will be dropping from now on, so outside swimming is not on the cards for the next few months. Which means no need for a wet suit right now. I will get a new one next year. One that fits!

The bike is back in the basement as well. I will probably be cycling to work in the coming months, but I will need proper lighting for that. Right now I only have one light to the front and I want one at the back as well. 

And last but not least, my running shoes are back in their place. I doubt I will be using them much over the next week and I don't need them on my holiday, so they will get a little rest before I start training again. Because I will start training again! 

I am not sure when exactly next year's triathlon will be, but until at least the spring of 2017, this will be a dormant blog. And then the training will probably start in earnest again and I will wake it up from its hibernation and get going. Thank you for your support and comments here. They meant a lot to me, even if I didn't answer any of them. 

16 hours to go

Oh my! Less than a day to go and I can tell you this: my nerves have started to flutter. Today I picked up my start number and went to a race brief to learn all about it. There was a lot to stuff into my head, and I am not sure I will remember every single thing, but I think I will be okay. 

There was a worry for me that I would be overtaken by the elite athletes (who will be part of the Norwegian Championships) while cycling, but I was told I would be taken out in that case. And it turned out that I had just under two hours to complete the swimming and cycling, so I should be fine. If I am overtaken during the running I will be okay and they let me finish.

The amount of stuff I need though: incredible! As you can see in the photo, there is so much of it! The number (258) to be worn on the back during cycling and the front during running. A chip to record the actual time. A bottle with squash for my cycling part. A wet suit to be worn while swimming. A swim hat, goggles, ear plugs and a personal buoy. Cycle shorts and shirt, bra, running shoes, socks and wrist and knee protectors. Not in the photo are my cycle helmet and my bike. 

I will be picked up tomorrow by my partner in crime, who has been incredibly helpful over the past few months. I don't think I would have been as ready as I am now without him. Not to say that I am that ready, but I will get over that line tomorrow.

55 days to go

Apparently I have become somewhat famous. Here's an extract from an article that can be found on 3atlet.no, a Norwegian site dedicated to triathlon and triathletes. 

Mer enn Ironman

I Haugesund er et knippe vordende triatleter godt i gang mot sesongens store hovedmål.  

Haugesund har blitt landskjent på grunn av Ironman-konkurransen. Men byen har mer å by på enn eliteutøvere og supermosjonister.

”Jeg skal TRI” er et prosjekt som er sikter seg inn mot konkurransen Haugesund Triatlon i slutten av august. Så langt rapporteres gjengen å være i rute. Nylig deltok alle på sin første Open Water-trening.

– Det blir spennende å følge dem utover sommeren, fram mot målet i slutten av august. Nå trenes det løping, sykkel og svømming for fullt, og entusiasmen og innsatsen er på topp i hele gruppa, rapporterer Kurt Misje i Haugesund Triathlon Klubb.

– At disse flotte deltakerne stiller opp, gjør at vi håper enda flere tar utfordringen og tør å gjøre noe som ligger litt utenfor komfortsonen, sier Misje.

Fem personer er valgt ut. Tre av dem skal delta sammen på stafettlag, de to andre er individuelle deltakere. Begge disse skal delta på sprintdistansen.

Mara Jellama er opprinnelig fra Nederland. Hun jobber til daglig som bussjåfør.

– Hittil har det vært både verre og bedre enn jeg hadde trodd. Jeg synes fortsatt at det er vanskelig å komme meg til treningssenteret, men etter treninga føler jeg meg bedre, sier Jellama.

– Syklinga går bedre og bedre. Jeg er kanskje ikke rask, men jeg klarer å komme meg fram, sier 45-åringen, som i begynnelsen gruet seg mest til svømminga.

– Men det har vært enklere enn jeg hadde fryktet. 

And in English:

More than Iron Man

In Haugesund, there is a group of wannabe triathletes well on their way to the season's big goal.

Haugesund has become known nationwide for it's Iron Man competition. But the town has more to offer than top athletes and extreme sportsmen.

"Jeg skal TRI" (I will TRI) is a project which has aims towards the Haugesund Triathlon at the end of August. Thus far, the whole group is reported to be on track. And only recently they all took part in their first Open Water training.

-It will be exciting to follow these people throughout the summer, all the way to that goal at the end of August. At this moment, running, cycling and swimming is on everyone's agenda and the enthusiasm is fantastic in the whole group, says Kurt Misje from Haugesund Triathlon Klubb.

-The fact these nice participants take part in this, makes us hope for more people to take the challenge and dare to do something that is outside their comfort zone, says Misje.

Five people have been chosen. Three of them shall be in the team relay, the other two are individual participants. Both of them take part in the sprint distance.

Mara Jellema (they keep spelling my name wrong) is originally from the Netherlands. She is a bus driver in her normal life.

-Up to now it has been both worse and better than I thought. I still think it's hard to get myself to the gym, but if I have been, I feel better, says Jellema.

-The cycling is going from strength to strength. I may not be fast, but I manage to move forward, says the 45-year old, who was most afraid for the swimming.

-But that has been simpler than I feared.