This bike is the reason I do triathlons…

In the summer of 2015, I was just a runner.  I was training to participate in my first ever Marathon.  As was typical back then, I pushed hard in every workout.  I didn’t know any better, and that was just the way I trained.  Inevitably, my body eventually rebelled and I got injured.  I had a sore knee!

As part of rehabbing my knee, my physiotherapist suggested that I ride a bike.  She said this would help keep my legs strong and would avoid the stress of the constant impact that comes with running.  I didn’t have a bike, so I used my son’s bike, an entry level Trek road bike.

I took that bike to the local park that I still ride at today, and did endless laps around the lake.  My motivation was to stay in shape for my Marathon that fall, but I ended up loving those rides.  Riding that bike reminded me of the endless hours, that I spent riding bikes when I was a kid.  Even after my knee was better, I still rode the bike.

When riding a bike, you have time to think and during one of those rides, the thought of doing a triathlon came into my mind.  I even remembered this thing called an Ironman and thought … there is no way I could ever do one of those.  The triathlon thoughts never went away and that winter, I made the decision to learn to swim;  at least swim more than … I can “swim” enough to survive falling in a river.

The rest is history.  In June 2016, I completed my first sprint triathlon and now, I am a three time Ironman.  I owe all to a knee injury and this great little bike.