Completed First Triathlon - Thanks.

I completed my first triathlon yesterday and thought I would share my experience, as I know I benefited from reading other people's experiences here.

The race was the Tradition Sprint Triathlon (found on http://www.multirace.com/). I trained for about seven weeks using the Level IV Training Plan found on the South Beach Triathlon website.

I live in FL and have spent plenty of time in the water; however, I have never been comfortable in deep water and have never been able to swim properly. When I first began training I could barely make it one way across the 25 meter pool at my gym. It would take over a minute and I would be gasping for air.

So, after two weeks of swimming atempts (3 times a week, 30 - 60 minute sessions), I was convinced I would never be able to swim properly. During my third week of swimming, after swallowing many gallons of pool water and reading countless articles on this webpage, something clicked and I finally got comfortable in the pool. The race was about a month away.

By the end of the training program I was able to swim 1/2 mile in the pool comfortably and in around 16 minutes.

At the beginning of my training I purchased a new Bianchi Via Nirone 7 and the bike training came fairly naturally. I put about 250 miles on the bike over the last six weeks. This bike is not designed for Tri's, but it is comfortable and fits great.

I've always been a descent runner, did a 10K race a couple of years ago and have been able to meet the majority of my running goals.

The entire time I was training, and as the race day approached, I became quite anxious over the swim portion. The swim was "400 meters" (honestly seemed longer), in fresh water and the water was murky and 71 degrees. I built up enough addrenaline to feel semi-confident right before the race.

Within 10 seconds of jumping into the water with about 19 other racers, I was on my back doing a backstroak, which I had never practiced. I panicked big time, and never did relax during the swim. I swallowed quite a bit of water due to my terrible breathing and form and ended up being in the water just shy of 14 minutes. Surprisingly, quite a few other people around me had the same reaction, even some who I know have done other tri's. I remember one guy saying how hard the swim was before dropping back, while another was calling to the lifeguard so he could rest for a moment. I eventually caught the main pack and I was 15th out of 20 to come out of the water, amazed that I was not the last.

It is hard to describe how I felt mentally, but I believe the best description would be "happy to be alive". I really lost my competitive edge, since I knew I was in the water for so long and felt such a huge sense of releif having survived the swim. I felt at several points like I was going to die in that lake.

Bike took just under 31 minutes (10 miles). I slowed down signifcantly towards the end when I was trying to open my gel pack (first time taking gel, should have practiced).

Going into the run I felt pretty defeated already, ran around 6 miles per hour for the first two miles. As I approached the third mile (which came surprisingly fast), I realized I needed to start moving if I was going to make 1:15, which was the long end of my goal of 1:05 - 1:15. I ran the last mile in about 7 minutes and finished with too much energy. Run took over 28 minutes and my final time was 1:15:17.

What I learned, and wanted to share with those about to compete in their first triathlon, is that it is very important to practice open water swims. The feeling of having to recover from poor technique and improper breathing, in the middle of a group of swimmers ready to swim right over you and with nothing below your feet to stand on can be very overwhelming. I know I was unable to recover from the way I felt.

Secondly, do not let the swim defeat you mentally. I know without a doubt that I could have cut off 3-6 minutes between the bike and run if I had kept my edge. Do not let the dissapointment of a slow swim, or the releif of having survived it keep you from working hard during the next two events. If I had kept my edge I would have been close to the faster end of my goal time.

Any suggestions from the pros on relaxing in open water, techniques to recover if panicking during a swim and tips on taking gels while biking, would be very helpful. Also, when is the best time during a race to take a gel?

Thanks again to everyone who posts their stories, they helped put me at ease enough to get me in the water. Despite how horrifying this swim was, I am looking forward to my next tri!