Within the group of Hashers in Grenada, there is a smaller group of Triathletes. They represent Grenada at some (mostly Caribbean) events. There is even a Grenadian Triathlon organization called “Tri de Spice” that supports the team and puts on a couple of local events.

Yesterday was one of those events that Tri de Spice sponsors. The tag team event has a male/female team, and each partner does a 200m swim, 5 km bike and a 1.2 km run. The woman goes first, then tags her partner who then takes off to do his part. As far as triathlons go, this is not particularly long, but for beginners, it can be enough of a challenge.

One of my Hashing friends made a comment on good old Facebook, and we became a team for the Tri. I have just recently come into possession of a bike, this one tall enough for me, and the thought of trying out a Tri had some appeal to me. I am not a fast swimmer, and haven’t had to do any distance swimming since I had to do it for my Divemaster certification, but I figured I would be okay on the bike and run. Bruno and I figured that just going out and participating, and pushing ourselves for the sake of the challenge, was enough. We had no expectations of winning. This was a good thing, as our combined ages made us the oldest team in the competition!

I rode my bike to the sponsoring bike rental/coffee shop earlier in the week and paid our entry fee and “sort of” registered us. They didn’t have the registration forms at the time, but they took the pertinent information, and the money. ‘Mocha Spoke’ is a nice little place close to the entrance of St. Georges University, a good place to be situated for them. Grab a good cup of coffee, then burn up the nervous caffeine energy with a bike ride.

Yesterday afternoon Bruno and I met at the beach at the designated starting spot. There used to be an affordable little bar there, but they have moved and the building is now a convenient meeting place right on the beach with excellent road access. A very good spot to have a triathlon! We finished up the little bit of paperwork, got our team number “4” inked in marker on both arms and both calves, then waited.

Eventually, more people showed up and the beginnings of an event started to take place. Bike racks were set up in the transition area, and we set up our gear. This was my first Tri, but Bruno did it last year, and had learned a few tricks. He had a bucket of water for rinsing the sand off of our feet so we wouldn’t have tons of sand in our shoes. I don’t have a bike helmet, so we shared his. I overheard someone else mention tying your running shoes loosely and just slipping them on “as is” to save time. I followed that advice, and it really did make a difference.

Ken arrived after taking a bus from the marina, and had the GoPro camera out to catch some of the action. He had fun playing videographer, and experimenting with our new piece of video equipment.

At 3:45 we were given the race briefing. Swim out to the first green mark, then to the red, then back to the beach. Go to your bike, but don’t “touch” your bike (move it) until you have your helmet on and buckled. Mount your bike when you get to the traffic cones. Police officers will be assisting with the traffic at the roundabout, but otherwise, you are on your own in traffic (yikes). Go to the True Blue Roundabout, and back. Dismount at the traffic cones, park your bike, then run to the cone at the end of the transition area and around the playing field, then back. Tag your partner and he’s off. Pretty simple, really.

With nervous energy, we lined up in the sand. I was the oldest woman competing, and there were a number of 20-odd year olds. I own no one piece bathing suits, or spandex shorts, so I was in a sports bra and running shorts. “Ready? GO!” And we all ran into the water: well, I jogged, as I knew that I was going to be one of the slower swimmers, and i wanted the fast ones in front of me.

I am not a fast swimmer, and was quickly outpaced by all but one swimmer. However, once I got to the transition area, the advice about the shoelaces actually paid off, as I left another competitor behind me there. The bicycle component was the trickiest part, as we did have to deal with the traffic on two out of the three roundabouts. Buses are wild enough to ride in, but riding a bike around them is even more challenging. I did manage to pass another competitor, and not get passed by anyone. I was moving up!

I made it back to the transition area unscathed, and feeling good. Park the bike, ditch the brain bucket, and off on the 1.2 km run. As much as I run almost every day, I plod along for an hour or more, and speed is not my forte. This was the equivalent of a sprint for me! I surprised myself and passed two more women on the run component, and didn’t get passed by anyone else. Wow, colour me surprised! Out of 9 women competing, I think I came in fifth, and that was after being eighth after the swim!

I pushed on for the last bit and tagged Bruno’s hand. He took off for the water and the rest of his part of the race. I watched the action with Ken, and also made sure that Bruno could get his bike from the rack easily (the mountain bike tires tend to get a little caught, and there is a danger of pulling the whole thing down). It was fun to watch, especially since it was such a short race and had such a varying degree of skill, experience and fitness, so there was always somebody coming or going.

I am happy to say that Bruno and I did more than survive. We did not come in the top three teams, but nor were we in the last three. We did more than participated, we competed. And best of all, we had a good time, with our families there to cheer us on!

Ken and I walked the 2 mile trip back to the marina, and stopped for a hamburger at the “Wall Street Roundabout”. Someone had recommended it to us, and it wasn’t too bad! The proprietor was very pleasant, and he even has frequent buyer cards that give a free cheeseburger if you buy ten.

Well, if cruising is about new experiences, this was certainly a new one for us. Ken’s first tri that he’s watched, and my first to participate in. Granted, it wasn’t a full one, but this was a start. Now for the ½ Marathon in two weeks!