Being around excellent athletes, with great gear and high energy is no surprise that soon into the sport you also want to do better.
I tried everything before upgrading my ride. Better nutrition and day to day habits, got in better physical shape, added aero bars to my bicycle, everything was about how to get better and being able to reach my goal.
You will hear all kind of things, the bicycle doesn't make te rider for example....and yes it is true, but oh man it does help a lot.
Back in the days I used to bring my bike for a tune up every 2 -3 months. While my Trek Aluminum bike was being serviced I started chatting with the mechanic who was also the shop owner. He was telling me the real reason why people decide to upgrade and thats when everything started to make sense to me.
Triathlon is a demanding and intense sport where you will suffer, right suffer. Don't take this the wrong way, yes you suffer but you like it and thats the whole point, thats how endorphins are released into the body and thats is how you get to the finish line. The reward is so big that most times we go back to training and looking for their next race and the next improvement in our gear.
"People often think they want to upgrade to improve their time with a more confortable, lighter weight and faster bike. The reality is that we upgrade to reduce the time our body will suffer"
Shocking and at the same time so real.
It was not too long after this conversation that I started to look into options to upgrade my ride and started to realize how many options and how much I was missing. The process was lengthy, full of doubts, multiple opinions, every one wanting to help you choose what they felt was best, etc.
I ended up buying a brand new 2013 Felt B16 which to be honest felt great and overall made a great bike......for 6 months of use.
I purchased this bike from an authorized reseller in California. Everything went really well, on time and with no surprises until I realized there was an enormous box I needed to carry from the shipping facility now into my house. I used a PO Box for the delivery so when I realized the size of the box I started to feel anxious about moving it, unpacking, assembly, etc.
I had friends in the space who helped me a lot getting the bike to where it needed to be for my first ride. Transportation was easy, good luck I had the right size SUV to fit the huge box. So im home now with this amazing bicycle that still needs to be assembled, you would imagine this is a simple task as stores often advertise "Bike will come preassembled, do it your self, simple, check our video tutorial, etc" BS. There is no such thing as simple for a first time buyer. I ended up spending extra cash at the local store for them to put this together.
So this took an extra 3 days to be done which was ok, I was in no rush. When I showed up to pick up the bike, the mechanic asked me where I wanted the seat and the height for the aero bars.....well once again I was clueless and lost.
This is the first time it was brought to my attention that a bike fit would be required and guess what that didn't come cheap nor as simple as you could imagine. There are tons of options out there for bike fitting.
By the time I was able to get a fitting business aligned with my schedule, budget and expectations I was already 10 - 15 days into the process. All this can be expected but when you don't know, each step in the process is a BIG surprise. Im the kind of person that would rather got to the same restaurant every Saturday and not be surprised by a new menu, food taste or poor service. I bet there are a lot of athletes like me out there and really hope this helps navigate the complex process of becoming a triathlete.
Finally, the day to test and ride my bike arrived. I had a bag of mixed feelings, excited and nervous to mention some. It takes a while to train your body and mind to understand how triathlon bikes work, what is the right body posture and everything that comes with riding a complete new machine. Even when it can look similar to a road bike, trust me is completely different.
The day went well, what I believe was going to take forever came very natural. By the end of the training session I was feeling strong, fast and furious. I was ready to get serious and start training like a pro.
To be continued (Part 2/3)