Then in March 2020, something happened that I never thought I would see outside of a movie. A global pandemic shut down the world. Since triathlons are part of the world, those got shut down too. At first, it didn't seem like that would happen. In March/April we would "flatten the curve" but surely by summer things would be back to normal. They were not. To my knowledge, there was only 1 triathlon that went off in 2020 and it happened to be in Hendersonville, NC. I was tempted, but the cost/benefit didn't see worth it.
Fast forward to spring 2021. Vaccines were beginning to be made available. Hope was eternal. Surely by the summer time everything would be normal. Triathlons did come back but there was still some fear. We didn't want to get Delta so I was extremely cautious. I only did outdoor events and wore a mask before and after the events. I did a few triathlons but never got in good shape until the fall. That is, until White Lake Fall where I finally felt back! I placed very well and felt like life was back to normal. Then, on the way back home, I got a kidney stone (my first ever) and experienced pain I didn't know possible. Later in the week, insult was added to injury and I received a diagnosis of Covid positive - Delta. How did the most paranoid and careful person get Covid? Must have been the race somehow. I ended up giving Covid to my daughter and my wife. My daughter maybe sneezed once. My wife had a bad cold. I had it VERY bad. I couldn't keep weight on, sometimes losing 7 pounds (in sweat) a night. That ended my triathlon season 2021.
In November of 2021, we got word that a close family member had stage 4 cancer. All of a sudden, getting covid again (or ill in anyway) became a much more fraught possibility.
Throughout the offseason, I trained and worked very hard. I wanted to have a major comeback from years of struggling. I set out on a very ambitious schedule. The last 2 full seasons I had finished 2nd in the state NCTS triathlon tournament for my age group. Nothing motivating like having two second place trophies on my mantle.
My 2022 triathlon season just wrapped this past weekend. Here is what I was able to do:
First, I competed in 19 total races (was signed up for a 21st but was sick and unable to attend 1 and a hurricane cancelled a second). This is far and away the most I've ever done. It's truly a testament to my wife's patience and generosity.
Second, I had one goal at the onset. Get 1st place in my age group for the first time in the NCTS tournament. This would be my final year in the 40-44 group so was important to me to do it this year. I ended up competing in 8 of those events. I received 1st place in my age group/division 6 of the 8 times. With this goal well in hand, I started to have some stretch goals.
The first stretch goal was 1st place in the South Carolina SCTS tournament. I spend a lot of time in Charlotte with my in laws so this seemed like it was logistically possible. I ended up competing in 5 of those events. I received 1st place in my age group/division 4 of the 5 times. This one was a little closer because I, unbeknownst to me, missed an important race worth a lot of points. But I was still able to get 1st place in my age group in this tournament as well.
The next stretch goal I had was to try in compete in Age Group State Championships. I participated in the North Carolina state championship and got 3rd overall. I participated in the South Carolina state championship and got 7th overall (1st place in my age group both times).
Next, I really wanted to get back to traveling and racing. This is something I would do all the time for marathons, but triathlons are logistically very difficult. So I invested in a good bike case and got out to Boulder for the Boulder Sunset triathlon. This trip was fun but VERY frustrating because I got off course on the bike while I was in 4th place overall. I ended up going off course for 4-5 minutes but still managed to get a 3rd place AG finish. The race I just got back from was a wonderful triathlon down in Key West. I got 3rd place overall, 1st in Age Group.
Another stretch goal I had was to win a race outright (something I always entered running races thinking I had a chance to do). The thing I hate the most about triathlon is that there is Overall, Division and Age Group distinctions. Ultimately we all know that winning a race means that no one finished in front of you. So my goal was to do that. In September I ended up winning back to back races. First the White Lake Fall Sprint followed by the OBX Sprint Triathlon where I won by more than 6 minutes! From an overall perspective, I got 1st place twice, 2nd place 3 times, and 3rd place 1 time.
Another stretch goal is being the best in my age group for a race regardless of division. Of the 19 races, I was the fastest in my age group regardless of division 9 times. Amazingly, there wasn't a triathlon I did where I wasn't either the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd fastest overall for my age group the entire season (finishing 3rd just 3 times). And fwiw, 14 1st place finishes for the age group/division.
Another stretch goal I had was to continue to improve my overall USAT ranking. I had never finished higher than a score of 89 or a state ranking above 8th in my age group. As of right now, I have a USAT score of over 94, I'm 4th overall in the state for my age group.
Another stretch goal I had was to improve in cycling/swimming. I come from a running background and running is important, but frankly not as important as cycling for sprint races. So I worked very hard and made major gains cycling. My improvement in cycling was the reason for my successful season. But something else strange has happened. Swimming is by far the least important event for sprints. We're in the water for a flash. Given that most events this year were wetsuit legal, this really helped me. But I also worked VERY hard in the pool. My training times were far and away the best I've ever done (frankly not even close to what I used to do). So when you look at my race stats, by the end of the season, it would not be incorrect to say that (somehow) swimming was my best event. That is, I would placement wise often finish ranked better in the swim than the bike. Even stranger, quite often, my swim rank would beat my bike AND running ranks. I'm a swimmer now?
The final stretch goal I had seemed like the hardest. Despite all my top finishes, the distinction of USAT All American seemed a bridge too far. That being said, as of right now, I am currently a USAT All-American. The results aren't final until 2/1/23 however if it holds, it will be the ultimate honor I have enjoyed as a triathlete. My name will be added to the All American issue of the USAT magazine next year.
This has been truly satisfying and I look forward to taking a small amount of time away from training before ramping back up in the beginning of 2023. I am excited to be entering a new age group (45-49). Who knows, maybe its time to start to set goals about returning to the Age Group National Championships but this time for sprint distance. I would have to head to Milwaukee in August :-/ but would have a shot of getting a ticket to Townsville Australia in 2024! Have to think about that one ;)
