Once upon a time...

As I only entered the Blenheim Triathlon yesterday, and I have 6 months to get fit, I have not actually started training yet - why would I? No. It was cold and raining this morning. I didn't want to put myself off training before I actually began. As a result I have very little of interest to say about triathlon training. Instead I shall tell the story of how this madness came about.

Once upon a time I fell in love with a man. This man is sporty and active. He spends his life gadding about like a puppy. He runs, he surfs, he skis, he plays hockey... you get the picture. Content to sit on the sidelines like a dutiful girlfriend, I cheer and gasp. I spend freezing afternoons shouting "Well in!".

Then, as is expected, I introduced my man to my friends. Actually, I introduced my sporty, triathlon running man to my sporty, interested friends and before long.. they are all in to this triathlon thing. So now, if I want to spend quality time with them, I have to watch them swim, bike and run in various locations across the British Isles. I hold the bags and do the motivational shouting. I have never, ever participated...

One night, in a bar somewhere, I was asked if I ever wanted to do a triathlon. "Look at me!" I scoffed "Do I look like an athlete?" Then came the fatal moment. I was reminded that, at one point, I had in fact completed a triathlon. Long before my sporty friends were marathon runners and triathletes, when I was Games Captain of all things, I did a triathlon... and it didn't actually kill me.

A seed was planted. One triathlon every 15 years won't hurt me, will it? I could be part of the crowd. Oh, and I could do it for charity. That would make sure I went through with it and didn't wimp out. If people sponsored me, I could hardly change my mind. And one little triathlon would be quite nice. There I would be, in the grounds of Blenheim Palace, a World Heritage Site, jogging along, smiling, people would cheer me... the seed grew into an idea, the idea in to an intention and then, like a mad person, I signed up and paid the entry fee.

I'm in. I'm going to do it. And what's more, I'm going to prove to myself that I can be sporty if I want to. Perhaps I had better get up and go running, even when it is raining?

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