Wow! It has been over a year since I last posted. I guess for good reason, as I have not been able to run or bike since my surgery. Life is different for me now, and my days as a triathlete have come to an end.....................
WAIT!
Stop the presses!!!!
Who am I kidding? A triathlete never quits. Sometimes we recover. Sometimes we have to take a moment to re-evaluate things. But quit? never!
For the past few months I have been swimming more and more. Some time a few months back, I tossed out the idea of doing a relay with some friends from the Cleveland Tri Club. Chuck Marquardt who has undergone major heart surgery and been unable to run as a result jumped at the idea and took on the cycling portion. I mentioned it to Brandon Henneman, in hopes that he would run for us, and we had a team lined up for this mornings race at Fairport Harbor.
Always one of my favorite venues, I thought the protected waters on Lake Erie would be perfect. The 500yd swim starts in the water, and finishes on the beach. We were granted an exception to tag at the shore, so that I wouldn't have to race across the beach and risk a fall. The race was also $30 for the three of us....That is amazing!
6:00AM- The alarm goes off and I begin to ready myself. Goggles, cap, suit.....Check. This is much more simple than is a race where I have to be responsible for three disciplines. So I shower, dress, and eat before heading outside to meet Annie (she and I are dating) and Theresa (a Plain Dealer reporter working on a profile piece about me). We climbed into Annie's van, giving Theresa lots of time to interview me and save gas. We then headed east to Lake County for the race.
7:30AM- We arrive. The lot is full, so Annie drops us off before finding a parking spot. We meet up with Brandon and Chuck, get our t-shirts, body markings, and waivers signed, and head down to the water. Theresa meets Mickey Ryzmic of the Greater Cleveland Triathlon. I imagine she got a great interview or at the very least a good laugh.
Chuck having racked his bike, met us and we established a spot on the beach to tag. Things seemed to be moving quickly when we looked out at the water and realized the swimmers were all old men. Brandon helped me enter the water as we hear the starting horn, and my competitive nature kicked in as I dive forward into the water and begin swimming. Later I was told it was more of a flop due to the lack of power in my legs....A few strokes in and I notice another man my age wandering in slowly. I pull up and ask, "What wave just went out?"
"That was men 35 and up, relay teams are next", he tells me.
I relax, and swim to the start. I didn't have to wait long before my actual wave began.
The horn sounded. Feet and arms were everywhere. The dark open water of Lake Erie was blanketed by an overcast sky. My adrenaline was surging. I love this. This is my sport, and I am participating despite my disabilities. My stroke felt strong and smooth. My breathing was steady and calm. My only weakness was the lazy kick due to my injury. I seemed to be pacing well with a friend of Mickey's, so my confidence was also strong. This swim went as well as my swims go. I sighted well and swam straight. I went around the marker cleanly, and approached the beach with strength and the desire to swim further. Once I was out of water deep enough to swim, I crawled on my hands and knee's to the waters edge before tagging Chuck who raced off to the Bike transition.
After I had my shoes and leg brace back on, we headed to the transition to wait for Chuck on the bike. I did play by play for Annie and Theresa giving back history on many of the other athletes from CTC. Brandon headed into transition, and we waited along with Mel (who was and often is with Brandon).
Chuck came rolling into transition with a smooth dismount. This was his first race since 2007, but he looked like a pro that clearly knew how to play this game. Once tagged, Brandon took off running looking for a 20 minute 5k. We moved to the finish area and grabbed a much needed seat.
Chuck grabbed some post race food, and we waited...
A short time later we saw E-Speed run past yelling for Charlie....We thought she was looking for another Charlie. She was not, she was sent by Brandon so that I could finish the race with him. He made me take our race number, and we moved slowly a cross the finish with my leg brace and cane. Mickey was on the mic now and making sure that everyone knew that I had returned to the sport today following my injury. I proudly waved to the cameras held by Annie, E-speed and Janet (CTC Prez).
For Chuck and I, it was a return to a sport we love. We were both able to be apart of this wonderful culture of health and fitness. The day was special. The finish was fun, but we have no idea what our times were. It really didn't matter. Today we were part of a triathlon team. Today we competed. Today we were triathletes.
We named our team, "Team Billy Shears". That name comes from the Beatles song that states, "I am gonna tri with a little help from my friend's. Today that is what we did.
WAIT!
Stop the presses!!!!
Who am I kidding? A triathlete never quits. Sometimes we recover. Sometimes we have to take a moment to re-evaluate things. But quit? never!
Always one of my favorite venues, I thought the protected waters on Lake Erie would be perfect. The 500yd swim starts in the water, and finishes on the beach. We were granted an exception to tag at the shore, so that I wouldn't have to race across the beach and risk a fall. The race was also $30 for the three of us....That is amazing!
6:00AM- The alarm goes off and I begin to ready myself. Goggles, cap, suit.....Check. This is much more simple than is a race where I have to be responsible for three disciplines. So I shower, dress, and eat before heading outside to meet Annie (she and I are dating) and Theresa (a Plain Dealer reporter working on a profile piece about me). We climbed into Annie's van, giving Theresa lots of time to interview me and save gas. We then headed east to Lake County for the race.
7:30AM- We arrive. The lot is full, so Annie drops us off before finding a parking spot. We meet up with Brandon and Chuck, get our t-shirts, body markings, and waivers signed, and head down to the water. Theresa meets Mickey Ryzmic of the Greater Cleveland Triathlon. I imagine she got a great interview or at the very least a good laugh.
Chuck having racked his bike, met us and we established a spot on the beach to tag. Things seemed to be moving quickly when we looked out at the water and realized the swimmers were all old men. Brandon helped me enter the water as we hear the starting horn, and my competitive nature kicked in as I dive forward into the water and begin swimming. Later I was told it was more of a flop due to the lack of power in my legs....A few strokes in and I notice another man my age wandering in slowly. I pull up and ask, "What wave just went out?"
"That was men 35 and up, relay teams are next", he tells me.
I relax, and swim to the start. I didn't have to wait long before my actual wave began.
The horn sounded. Feet and arms were everywhere. The dark open water of Lake Erie was blanketed by an overcast sky. My adrenaline was surging. I love this. This is my sport, and I am participating despite my disabilities. My stroke felt strong and smooth. My breathing was steady and calm. My only weakness was the lazy kick due to my injury. I seemed to be pacing well with a friend of Mickey's, so my confidence was also strong. This swim went as well as my swims go. I sighted well and swam straight. I went around the marker cleanly, and approached the beach with strength and the desire to swim further. Once I was out of water deep enough to swim, I crawled on my hands and knee's to the waters edge before tagging Chuck who raced off to the Bike transition.
After I had my shoes and leg brace back on, we headed to the transition to wait for Chuck on the bike. I did play by play for Annie and Theresa giving back history on many of the other athletes from CTC. Brandon headed into transition, and we waited along with Mel (who was and often is with Brandon).
Chuck came rolling into transition with a smooth dismount. This was his first race since 2007, but he looked like a pro that clearly knew how to play this game. Once tagged, Brandon took off running looking for a 20 minute 5k. We moved to the finish area and grabbed a much needed seat.
Chuck grabbed some post race food, and we waited...
A short time later we saw E-Speed run past yelling for Charlie....We thought she was looking for another Charlie. She was not, she was sent by Brandon so that I could finish the race with him. He made me take our race number, and we moved slowly a cross the finish with my leg brace and cane. Mickey was on the mic now and making sure that everyone knew that I had returned to the sport today following my injury. I proudly waved to the cameras held by Annie, E-speed and Janet (CTC Prez).
For Chuck and I, it was a return to a sport we love. We were both able to be apart of this wonderful culture of health and fitness. The day was special. The finish was fun, but we have no idea what our times were. It really didn't matter. Today we were part of a triathlon team. Today we competed. Today we were triathletes.
We named our team, "Team Billy Shears". That name comes from the Beatles song that states, "I am gonna tri with a little help from my friend's. Today that is what we did.
