Balance - Jeannie Samson's Triathlon Blog

Rained Out Race, But Happy Face....

Tue, 29 May 2007 16:40:05 GMT

Yesterday, Memorial Day Monday, was supposed to be the CapTexTri in Austin. It's always a fun triathlon for me! We swim in downtown Town Lake, bike in the streets directly in front of the beautiful Austin Capital Building, and run a flat, fast 10k course to the finish at Auditorium Shores! Yesterday we were not lucky enough to compete due to heavy rains. The conditions in the water were unsafe, and the roads would have been too wet for the thousands biking around some tight turns. However, I had one of the funnest weekends I can remember. My friends Kathleen Ebert and Liz Supples were in town from Boulder, Colorodo to do the race. We spent a lot of time eating at Ausitn restaurants, seeing downtown, and swimming at Austin landmarks such as Deep Eddy Pool. We had such a blast together, they said the trip was worth it anyway. I also got to introduce them to my amazing husband and kids! I guess the race wasn't meant to happen, but I am counting my blessings to have a great family and close friends to be with in this short life. Have a great week!

Getting my Spirit Back.....

Sun, 20 May 2007 22:12:29 GMT

Last week I took three unscheduled days off - I just was dreading doing my workouts. It may have been lack of sleep, or tiredness - I am not sure. My coach (Siri Lindley) suggested I take a break and reconnect with my love and passion for triathlon. At first my mind was screaming "ARE YOU KIDDING - IT'S THE MIDDLE OF THE SEASON!" Then it made perfect sense - I did a lot of praying, and a lot of resting. The most important thing I did was spend extra time with my husband and kids. I also took the time to send notes I have been wanting to send, and helped people I have been wanting to help. Sometimes I am in my own little world - I forget to take time to nurture myself, my family, and my friends. I got back to training yesterday, and had a great weekend of training. I am ready to press on - sometimes we just need to stop and be still for a little while.

David's First Tri......

Wed, 9 May 2007 13:38:33 GMT

Last year my 10 year old son David began riding his bike along side me while I did several of my long run sessions. He was a little man on a mission - uncharacteristically quiet and focused for every mile of my run. We both knew we had found that magical something that words cannot describe. Here was something we both loved doing. There was no need for the typical parental nagging, and the occassional struggle to comminicate. Just quiet, trust, and love. Our favorite route was the 7 mile loop from the Mopac bridge on the Town Lake Hike and Bike Trail! After his bike broke in the fall, he did not go with me for several months. In March of this year his Dad bought him a new bike. It was then that David had a renewed interest in riding with me, and a strong desire to compete in a triathlon. For five weeks he did several swimming, biking, and running sessions to prepare for the Cedar Park Kids Triathlon. His goal was to finish, and to do his best! From the moment I saw the start of his swim, I was so touched I had to keep myself from bursting out with loud emotion. I let out many tears as he exited the water, but tried to focus enough to snap a few great pictures of this momentus occassion. He looked as if he was having a BLAST the whole time, and asked "When's the next one?" at least ten times that day. My husband Jude drove up from San Antonio with our daugher Shanti early that morning (Jude was in a soccer tournament the previous day) so they could be there also - that made the event even more meaningful for David. He is so proud of his accomplishment - my son is now a triathlete!!

Hard Training

Wed, 2 May 2007 08:25:40 GMT

The past two weeks have been extremely fun and challenging. I have had a high number of very hard workouts to get my speed going in all three sports. This past Sunday I did the Corpus Christi Triathlon, and WON the race!! My family and I went together and had a wonderful time. Look for a full race report soon!