This was my first swim with this series. I did the Olympic Distance triathlon a few ago, and last year, I was
the 'momentary winner' of the 21K Veterans category. The faster runners were
misled into running more, while I followed my
Garmin 310XT and short-term memory of the race-route. Matt and I went for breakfast, so I was unaware I bagged the Ironman Timex watch, until emcee Ross
Sarpani alerted me on Facebook.
This year, I swam the 3K at the Tanjung Beach Lagoon in
Sentosa Island. As I completed a wetsuit swim yesterday, I had better sense of
the water this morning. My wave, comprising the oldest age-group flagged off at
8.30am. The first pack of seven ‘invitational only’ swimmers set the pace of
the race, as each category was dispatched. I had a very comfortable swim, using
the front-crawl and the occasional, breast-stroke, defensive posturing when a
few rampant and random swimmers wafted into my field of movement. My breathing
was consistent, and I focused on my ‘feel’ of the water, and practiced my
navigation/sighting. On my second lap, stray jellyfish stung me on my left
cheek (which is still throbbing now) and the top of my left foot. As annoying
and disruptive the stings were, I had to focus on completing the remaining
three laps (which was fast becoming over-crowded). Upon my exit from the water, I felt positive and pleased, and appreciated
the offerings of cups of SIS protein recovery drink. The volunteers did a commendable
job, without drama or injury.
After our shower, we chilled out at the beach-bar over expensive lemonade. The pack of sun-kissed swimmers (Triathlon Family members from Monday Night Swim, and Saturday's Lagoon Swim) envied Matt and Agatha’s avant-garde healthy breakfast of muesli, berries and
yoghurt in a glass. Teryn earned a 3rd place for her category, which
was a subject of interest.
It was good training day for me. Races constituted my training skeleton program (under time-trials/strength sets). Our Fearless-Leader (Saturday Swim) Matthew Wong suggested that the distance could have been longer, which I was delighted by. I enjoyed catching up with old friends, mainly those who
have kept up with the active lifestyle of endurance sports. I was pleased for
those who completed the race in formidable time, despite having undergone
healthcare treatment. Who says surgery can keep a good person down?
Photos: Richard Leong
2 comments:
Nice meeting you again at the Tri-Factor swim, Enrico! Been awhile! As we discussed, keeping up fitness without incurring injury becomes a major concern as we push on in age. And I had a scary experience of hyperventilation during last Sun's swim as well! But it's hard to put down the love for exercise, even if I prefer training to competing and hardly race these days - hence the rare encounter with old tri friends. Best of luck! ... Calvin
Thanks for the mention. Des and gang are doing a great job!
I missed the days of swimming with you guys in the backyard.
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