SendTheStars: My First 10K and One Amazing Event

A couple of months ago my running buddy asked me to be on a relay team with her and her husband for the Chattanooga Waterfront Triathlon. The Waterfront Triathlon has been going on for a long time in Chattanooga and has become a pretty big event. They wanted me to be the runner on their relay team. The only problem was that it is a 10k(6.2 miles) and up to that point I had never run that distance. I was immediately nervous about running, but I was up for the challenge. Looking back on it now, even though it was a lot of hard work, I am so thankful that they asked me to be a part of such and amazing event.

This past Sunday, the day of the Triathlon, I woke up early and drove to Chattanooga were I was meeting up with my teammates. The interstate felt empty and it seemed the whole world was still tucked away in their beds. It wasn't until I got off the exit to head downtown that I started to see some signs of life. I immediately started seeing bikers all decked out in their riding gear warming up for the big event. This was it, the day I had been preparing for and I immediately started to feel nervous. Soon after I spotted the first bikers all of the action of the day started to unfold before me.

It was 6:30 in the morning and it was already starting to feel humid and sticky outside. The approaching heat of the day did not seem to phase all the athletes making the final adjustments at their transition areas. I immediately felt like I was in a completely different league of people. I felt so humbled by the fact that I was so nervous about running 6.2 miles, when so many others were preparing to swim, bike, AND run. There were people of all ages, shapes, and sizes. For some, it was just another triathlon, but for others it was their very first, and for me, well, i was just excited to be even a small part of the action.

The day started out early and when it was my turn to run I gave it all I had. It was a long, hot 6.2 miles but I made it to the finish line and that is all that mattered to me. Headphones were not allowed during the event so I had to run without music. At first I thought it would be difficult without my beloved running tunes, but it was awesome to hear and share encouragement with other racers along the way. I think that it made the run more endurable because I felt connected with the other racers. It was awesome knowing that I was surrounded by people who had just swam for almost a mile, biked 26 miles, and were now running along side of me.

Overall I was really impressed by the whole event. My teammates did an amazing job and I felt so proud to be a part of their team. All of the other racers were such and encouragement to me. It was awesome to see so many people out there fighting to accomplish a goal they had set for themselves. I would LOVE to participate in this event again and one day, hopefully, complete the entire triathlon on my own.

Here are some pictures from the big day!