Spence Smith

Triathlon is fast growing sport right now. I know in the Nashville area the tri community is growing like crazy. People are catching the tri bug and it’s really fun getting to see so many people take the plunge.

But with triathlon being such a new sport still for most people, there’s a lot of confusion as to the lingo surrounding triathlons.

The question I get asked is what the distance of a FULL triathlon is. Kind of a funny question and yet a logical question in it’s inaccuracy.

Because Ironman Championship in Kona, Hawaii is on TV, most people think this particular race is the only triathlon race there is or that it is what all triathlon races are made of. This isn’t the case. In order to go to Ironman in Kona, you have to qualify in the top three spots of your age group. There are just over 30 Ironman races in the world each year and all are qualifying races for Kona.

On with the race…

A triathlon is three sports. Swimming, Biking and Running. In that order. So when a person asks… “is it a full triathlon?” Yes… all triathlons are full because they have three sports. What people are really asking… “are you doing the ironman?”

The answer is not every triathlon is an ironman.

Ironman is just the longest of the triathlon races.

There are four different triathlon distances. The longest and toughest being the Ironman (2.4 mile Swim, 112 mile bike, 26.2 mile run) then there is a Half Ironman (half of the Ironman distance) then there is the Olympic distance (1 mile swim, 25 mile bike, 6 mile run). The shortest triathlon is called a Sprint which is roughly half the distance of an olympic distance triathlon. Truth be told. If you are a strong triathlete, sprints can be really tough. Because they are really short, you have no time to make up ground on who is ahead of you and not room to slack off to beat those who are behind you. Long distance race give you a little breathing room to make up time and to pace your self well.

Also, Olympics and Sprints will vary in distance by a mile or two on the bike and run and vary a little on the swim.

So… I’m hoping you are getting a mental picture. For those of you who know marathons and half marathons. There is only a marathon (26.2 miles) then the half marathon(13.1 miles). Then 10k’s (6 miles) and 5k’s(3 miles) typically. But if your friend says…”I’m running a 10k this weekend.” You probably aren’t going to say… “is that a full 10k?”

And there you have it… a simple little explanation from dear ole me…

Make sense?

Wanna tri with me?

Every year I make a plan for what’s next in the year ahead. Most people do this in January, but I seem to keep my life calender in a fall to fall rotation. Mostly because when triathlon season is over in September then it’s time to figure out what happens between September and May when Triathlon season starts up again for us in the Nashville area.

Since finishing Ironman Louisville, I’ve been able to take much need rest and travel to get a couple of tours started for Compassion. It’s been refreshing, energizing and focused. So… I have a plan for the athlete side of me. This plan is in no way a reflection of anything else going on in my life like work, family, friends, travel, etc… this plan is just one part of my life.

So here it is… This next year will be my 4th year training for triathlons and every year I have focused on one of the three sports more than others so I can learn that sport and get a little faster in it. First it was just doing a sprint. Get in the water, hop on a bike and hope I can run after all of that. The 2nd year I had caught the triathlon fever so I focused on the swimming. I biked and ran when I could. This past year, I signed up for Ironman Louisville and focused more on the bike. This next year… it’s all about the run and improving my times over all for all three sports.

Running has probably brought me through the toughest times in my life but is also my toughest sport. I really enjoy it and most days I love it, but I don’t exactly float on air when I’m in my full stride.

Knowing what I need to do to meet my goals, I’m going to run a half marathon in early December but possibly one in November or January.

This plan will take me through the holidays as they are a rough time to train with all the Christmas parties and eating going on, not to mention training in cold weather isn’t something I’m very eager to do. It’s ok though. I’m determined to see it through.

That brings us into January. January starts 5 months of more intensive training to be ready for the summer.

Summer of 2010, I will probably do at least 3 maybe 4 olympic distance triathlons a couple of sprints and one half Ironman. I was supposed to do two half ironman races this past summer but my travel schedule didn’t allow for it. So I’m going to go back this summer and tackle one. The one Half Ironman I’ve decided on is Vineman Half Ironman. It’s in wine country…. Need I say more?

For those of you following along, A half Ironman is…wait for it… half the distance if an ironman. 1.2 mile swim, 56 miles on the bike and 13.1 run. Sound fun? Come on…

I like having a plan. It helps me meet my goals and allows me to stay focused.
So… there you have it.

Do you have goals for yourself? Wanna tri with me?