A few days ago after hearing the latest worries and
questions about her approaching first triathlon, Christine wanted her bike
position looked at; saddle height etc. I emailed to say that we were happy to
take her on a bike ride whenever suited her and asked if she could get her bike
in her car OK to get over to us.
Having chosen today, when I said it would be
good to do a ride on nice quiet roads so we could try to improve her gear
changing and look at any other problems and asked how early she could get to
us, I got this reply.
I can come any time.
I will try out my bike carrier, failing that I will cycle. It's only
6 miles so I don't think it will be a problem. Looking forward to
it.
I bounced back with:
It would be a VERY good idea
to try your bike carrier out in any case before your event. Be here about 8.30
am if poss. We will be doing a bike ride from here, so you don't need an extra
six miles to here and back. Question time during and
afterwards. I mention this because she
had asked how she could leave her bike securely at her first triathlon whilst
she did the swim. Ahhwww Bless.
This is a real novice and we
are going to go through everything with her. She was very pleased to learn that
there would be a transition area that would be secure and only athletes would
be allowed in after they had registered and only allowed out with a bike that
had the same number as the one on her race number, wrist and timing chip.
When she arrived at our home,
Steve looked her bike over and fiddled with this bit and that, and pumped the
tyres up. I don’t think she has changed gear since she brought the bike home
from the shop late last year. Steve didn’t think she had cleaned it either.
Well, I cannot comment on that count because Steve completely looks after my
bike normally and I have the guys at The Bike Store in Worthing
who do a service before a big race for me, or I politely ask any of my several
bike friends who all know that I am completely clueless about bike mechanical
stuff.
So we set off on the bike
ride and after I little bit of chatter on the way down to the sea front, Steve
thought we had best turn into the swimming pool car park since it was plain
that a little transition practice was needed. We went to the back end of the
parking area and had Christine park her bike by the fence, leaving her jacket,
(Since she has not got around the idea of going straight out in her tri-suit
yet; bit of a mental block on that one). So trainers, helmet, coat, all left on
the ground. Steve sent her back to the other side of the car park and shouted
her through her run out of the pool to her bike, shoes on, jacket on, helmet on
and done up before moving the bike. Run with the bike to the Bike mount line (Me)
and one lap of the car park. Several more times.
Then we started out on the
ride. We did lots of sharp turns, lots of advice, lots of practice. On the way
back we did a few repeats of me pushing on just a bit ahead and she and Steve
doing a bit of a sprint to catch me again.
It all went well and I have
to say that although she is inexperienced about triathlon that she is a very strong
lady and was not having any problem keeping up, she is sensible woman, another
police officer in fact. She has been going out on her bike but if you are
totally unaware of what happens at an event, you sure as hell cannot practice
it. We both thought she did very well and she looked and sounded like she
enjoyed every moment of the ride.
In the chat afterwards over
coffee at home, she said that she had already done one ride of fifty kilometres
and hoped one day to try a standard distance triathlon, something we pointed
out that she could already do that distance if she wanted to. She is already an
experienced runner; let us remind ourselves that she came to us on the
recommendation of a friend when she wanted to up her running mileage to get her
through her first marathon last summer.
So, she is already a handy
runner. Her swimming is fine and she got through the Frostbite Aquathlon ten
days ago well, apart from taking an age to get dressed in a jumper, coat etc.
after the swim, before going out on the run and was then annoyed because she
got a swim plus transition time on the results that did not reflect her good
swim.
The mind set difference
between the two ladies that we are helping right now is vast. It is a Grand Canyon of a gap. Christine is not at all confident,
even though she is doing so well, so early, then there is the Gal in New Zealand ex
navy, ex police, who wants to jump at Iron distance with all guns blazing.
I loved that scene in the
first ‘Men in Black’ film years ago, where they clicked the ear of the guy and
he had a tiny little alien sitting at the controls inside his head like Captain
Kirk on the bridge of the Starship Enterprise. Gonna get a little one of those
for both ladies…. That should do it since there is nothing else standing in the
way of either of them but their heads.
No comments:
Post a Comment