Triathlon Training Dream Saved by Rusty Bikes

Last updated on September 28th, 2012 at 07:04 am

Officially I have started the first wave of my triathlon training as part of my health and fitness dream. Can I be painfully honest with you, fellow dreamer?

I am exhausted!

This is week two of running and swimming and boot-camp, oh my! I am definitely starting to feel the drain on my energy every night as my husband has to poke me at 10:00pm to wake me from another dozing off session on the couch. For those of you out there who knew me as the one online at 2am, those days have passed.

No comfort zone allowed in a triathlon training dream

Staying out of my comfort zone is a daily goal. The aches and pains that show up in the morning prove my working out is doing something, even if I do grown dramatically getting out of bed everyday.

When the decision to focus on a triathlon training came to me out of the blue a few months ago. I didn’t have 2/3 of the products that I needed to get this started: swim or bike gear.

I currently have no bike to start my bicycle training on. Well, I do have access to two bicycles in fixable order on completely opposite ends of the bike quality spectrum, and both belonging to the men in my house. One is a discount store special to get my son the bike he HAD to have one Christmas (used for 6  months then left to rust) and my husbands older but high-end road bike by Bianchi – not a bad option if I weren’t so vertically challenged – but it’s a bit too tall for me.

This photo of my bike choices says it all.

Product Idea: Recycle, re-use and refurbish those rusty bikes

I had the fortune of briefly attending the Tour de Fuzz fundraising bike ride that fellow dreamer Remy and my husband Ray coordinated photography for. Talk about a dangerous place to go if you really want a bike!

Walking past the bike valet, where everyone got to drop off their shiny race bikes after pedaling a massive distance, was bike shopping danger. Sleek lines, shiny and streamlined, most of these bikes were high end and modified for their exact purpose: light and fast riding perfection.

I wasn’t too let down on the concept of getting a new road bike, even a used, lower end model to start for a few reasons. I had priced the new high end models (about the cost of a used motorcycle) and knew those were a ridiculous place to start. Then I priced the new entry level models (about what I am planning on spending for my son’s first car) and thought to myself “I love used bikes!”

We are lucky in this area of the country, with mild weather and terrain that is perfect for fitness enthusiasts to be surrounded by resources for used and refurbished bikes. Even these, starting at just a few hundred, gave me pause. with that niggling voice of doubt in my head.

Are you really going to stick with this?

Most of us have adjusted the way we spend money, and extracurricular activities, even those taken up in pursuit of a dream, have to be added to the budget. For now, it’s fix up what I’ve got and get on the road!

Here’s my triathlon-training, bicycle products dream needs list –

• 4 bike tire tubes: Both bikes have been sitting so long in various weather these are a necessity
• 4 bike tires: Yep, another side effect of sitting in one place and ignored. My son’s old bike even made an impression on the front porch with a rare “clean spot” left behind after I moved it!
• Rust prevention: any metal item left alone, around the elements, will need some way to combat rust
• Bike pants: I resist this only due to the fashion impact of how you look once off the bike, but my soon-to-be-back-on-the-road husband tells me this is a must. If you read my post on getting geared up for swimming, you know I don’t worry too long about looking like an idiot.
• Bike helmet: I have to be a “safety first” role model, and I know too many riders that wouldn’t be here without one.

Look for updates on how the bike refurbishing is going, and I’m looking forward to sharing my first riding experience in years.

Do you have a list of products that you need in order to dream big? Another more important question… have you told anyone you need them?

Even purely cerebral challenges may need a few products (faster computer, better hosting) to keep you on the road to success. You’ll notice that list above didn’t include anything I would consider a “want” – that is whole other list. It’s just the basic needs to get things going.

What’s on the top of your dream needs list?

~ Heather