Posts Tagged with: "Subic"

I was invited by Jun to be “saling pusa” with Coach Norman and his athletes for a day trip to Subic. The Shiv and I couldn’t refuse.

– with Coach Norman Pascual and his triathletes. Thanks for accommodating me! –

Plan was to swim 1.6km at Dungaree and bike 40km. I wanted to be home before dinner with the kiddos, so we opted to skip the 5k run.  (Yes, the life of a wannabe triathlete mommy comes with a lot of “tough” decisions.)

Much to my surprise, the open water swim was a pleasant experience. I loved loved loved every minute of it.  I enjoyed it so much that I don’t want to swim in a pool anymore. Hah!

When it came to the bike, I was nervous from the onset.  It was only the second day that I took the Shiv out on the road and, as I’ve learned the past week, riding this tri bike is completely different from my roadie.  (Just mention the word “aerobars” and I start sweating!) At the back of my head, I knew I needed to improve on my handling skills before I road the hills of Subic with the boys.  So, as I was climbing the first hill and wondering how the hell I was gonna descend them later on without killing myself, I chose to stay safe and I headed back.

When I got back to Manila, I felt so bad about the bike that I headed for the gym and ran my frustrations away. 7k intervals.  Aaaah, nothing like a run to wash all the worries away!

Can you guess where I’ll be over the weekend?  I’ll be at camp.  The Next Step Tri Camp with Dan Brown and Ani de Leon in Subic to be exact! I’ve been fortunate enough to have been invited to join as media partner.

How do I feel about it?  It brings back memories of my first 5km run.  I’m a bit excited but more nervous and anxious.  There a number of questions floating around in this clueless runners’ mind of mine: Do I really need a kickboard, pullbuoy, and paddle because I don’t have any and I’m not willing to spend on them just yet? How will I drink during the bike workout if I can’t let go of the handlebars?  Will I be the most pathetic swimmer in the lot?  And, last but not the least, why the hell did they ask us to bring anti-jellyfish cream?!   Okay, I know the answer to the last one, but please DO NOT tell me!

Anyway, I’ve tried to calm my nerves by 1) talking to my Team Hammer friend Bic, 2) tiring myself out with a 15km run @ 5:45 plus a hard strength training session at the gym today, and 3) a Cake Pop from Starbucks, but to no avail. Looks like I’m just going to have to dig deep and find that same gutsy, trying hard triathlete within me that appears once every year when I find the courage to join Animo Triathlons. Phooey, here we go.  Wish me luck tomorrow!

To learn more about The Next Step Tri Camp, please click HERE.  By next week, I’ll be posting photos (hopefully not embarassing ones) of my experience.