I DNFed My First Triathlon.

Here's Why I'm Not Mad About It.

About a year ago, in a fit of post-trail confusion-- if you can believe it, coming home from a five-month hike is very disorienting-- my husband talked me into signing up for a half Ironman. As he remembers it, he mentioned he wanted to sign up for one, and I simply said, "I'll join you!" I'm quite sure it took a little more persuasion on his end, but, as I already mentioned, I was in a state of overall disarray, so perhaps his memory is more reliable than mine. Either way, I signed up for an Ironman 70.3.

A triathlon of that distance entails the following distances: a 1.2-mile swim, a 56-mile bike, and a 13,1-mile run, totaling 70.3 miles. The only problem was, I didn't know how to swim. I wasn't comfortable on a bike. And I hadn't run any meaningful distance since before I thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail in 2021. So I guess that's three problems.

I trained for over a year until I could swim in open water for over a mile, bike for several hours, and run until my boredom won out. But I knew endurance was never going to be my issue. A half Ironman has strict time cutoffs for each discipline. Each racer has exactly 70 minutes to complete the swim, 5.5 hours from the last starting swimmer to finish the bike course, and 8.5 hours from the last starting swimmer to reach the finish line. My thought process: as long as I wasn't close to the last starting swimmer, I just had to finish the swim in my allotted time, and I was home free. Even at the end of my training, I wasn't confident I could finish the swim in that amount of time.

My first open water swim practice

And I couldn't. Not in a race environment, anyway. Over 2,000 people started the race that day, and they had 4 people enter the water every 5 seconds. By the time I got in the water, I was one of hundreds, and dozens of us were aiming for the same 10-foot archway 100 meters away from the dock. People were grabbing my ankles, crashing into my body (likely unintentionally, but frequently), and even swimming over me (that only happened once, but it was-- and I cannot emphasize this enough-- so scary). I was in a state of sheer panic while being in the water, which is already my least comfortable environment. I had to float on my back for several minutes until I calmed down enough to keep swimming (when I checked my watch after the event, it showed that my heart rate got up to 194 beats per minute). By the time I was able to get myself into a steady swimming rhythm, I was too far behind. The timers said my tracker showed that I was 4 minutes late, so I wasn't allowed to continue.

That day, and several subsequent days, I was pretty bummed to DNF ("did not finish"). There's no way to know, but I'm absolutely confident that I would have been able to finish the bike and the run in the allotted time, especially since those two aren't individual time cutoffs.

This past weekend, Mitch created a simulation of an Ironman 70.3 just for me at Chatfield State Park. I swam 1.2 miles in the gravel pond, biked 56 miles around the Morrison area, and ran 13.1 miles around the larger reservoir. The parking lot at the gravel pond was my transition area, Mitch was my mobile aid station, and I was the only "racer." I got to prove to myself that, had I been afforded the opportunity to complete the half Ironman in Michigan, I could have done it.

Getting ready to start with the sign my in-laws made for the half ironman (as improved by my niece)

Now that I have that closure, I fully get to be proud of myself for everything I accomplished to get here. Even if I hadn't had a race simulation day, I have a lot to celebrate. Here are just a few of them:

1. I now know how to swim.

A year ago, I couldn't swim the full length a pool without needing to take a break partway through. Now, even if it's slow, I can swim over a mile in open water. That's pretty darn cool.

2. I can actually ride a bike.

Since my middle school days, I can count on one hand the number of times I had ridden a bike before this training block. I didn't know how to mount or dismount a bike that was fitted to my proper height. I had to walk my bike down the hairpin turn ramp to get onto the bike path near our house the first several times I tried. Now, I can use it as a fairly reliable commuter vessel, even on roads.

3. I've rediscovered my love for running.

Of the three disciplines, running is by far my favorite. As far back as I can remember, running has been a way to connect to myself. Even if I have never been excellent at it, I found a freedom in pushing my endurance. I've always been able to go far, even if I couldn't go fast. I'm already considering signing up for an ultramarathon for next year.

4. I only spent around $500 on gear for the triathlon.

A $200 road bike on Facebook Marketplace, a $60 wetsuit from a used gear store, and a $100 tri suit from Facebook Marketplace were the bulk of my expenses, and for most athletes, $500 wouldn't even cover the cost of one of the disciplines, let alone three. Always glad to put my thriftiness to good use!

5. My marriage is pretty awesome. Not to brag.

We had so much fun training for this event together. Even though Mitch is much faster and stronger than I am, we did most of our long bikes and long runs together, and that made them much more enjoyble. Also, I cannot stress enough how much I appreciated him coordinating a one-woman half Ironman for me. Just felt really special. Here's a quick recap of the race simulation.

As with thru-hikes, I'm leaving this period feeling proud of what I can accomplish. I love proving to myself that my brain can force my body to surpass its self-imposed limits. Even if I only got 1.2 miles past the start line, I'm really proud of myself for getting to the start line in the first place.

Huge shoutout to Mitch, who absolutely demolished his goal time and deserves recognition for his race accomplishments!!!