Thursday photo #214

This week has mostly been about Libby, which is just the way she likes it. She seems to be growing up before my eyes, having turned six years old on Monday.

The triathlon

Before Libby came along, my husband and I had both started to get quite into triathlon. We’d competed in a few, both sprint and olympic distance. I personally settled on the olympic distance. 1500 metres swim, 40km cycle and a 10km run. My times weren’t record breaking, but they weren’t bad either.

I’ve always been a keen swimmer and reluctant runner. I have a love-hate relationship with cycling, but I could certainly get by for 40km. And the thing with triathlons is they are a little addictive. So, when I had Libby, I was back to triathlon within three months. I did a couple of races, accidentally entered the British aquathlon championships (idiot) and pottered along. Then over time, triathlon fell by the wayside.

But my husband and I have both continued to be interested in the sport. I’m quite enjoying open water swimming at the moment and this year, we’ve entered our first triathlon for ages. He can no longer run, so my sister is doing the run part of the race for him and I’m doing the whole race. And seeing us so keen on triathlon has given Libby the bug.

The first of many

On Saturday, Libby took part in the Henley Kids Fun Triathlon. I entered her into the six to nine year old’s group, which meant swimming a length, cycling 1000 metres and running 500 metres. We persuaded her to swim backstroke, because although her front crawl isn’t bad, she tires herself out doing a whole length of it.

So, she set off doing a length of backstroke. Then it was into transition to get her t-shirt, shorts and cycle helmet on and she was off on her bike. I was quite surprised how quickly she went, she was tiny compared to everybody else. I ran round to the next transition area and by the time I got there, it wasn’t long before the tiny little figure in her massive t-shirt arrived.

And so, it was time for the run. 500 metres. Not far, but a long way for a tiny tot who has already swam and cycled. And off she went, bombing around the course. The only slight error she made was when she was given a cup of water near to the end. She had no idea what to do with it after taking a sip. Dropping it on the floor wouldn’t cross her mind, so she attempted to run to the end without spilling it.

Finishing the race was probably the happiest she’s ever been. They gave her a big, shiny gold medal and you would have thought she’d won the olympics by the grin on her face. She has definitely got the bug for the sport just like us and it will be the first of many.

Our Thursday photo #214

It was Libby’s birthday on Monday and she was desperate for a camera. So, that’s what we got her. I suspect you’ll be seeing a lot of her photos on the blog in the future, she seems to have an eye for it. But in the meantime, here’s one of her after the triathlon. Lia was outraged that she wasn’t allowed to do it, as you can tell. But I’m sure that next year, she’ll be racing too.