Triathlon at Retirement

It is a big undertaking to go to a world championship overseas, and I am not only talking about the training and sport performance. That is the part I can, and do, control. It is everything else; flights, bike transports, getting the right information, food choices in unfamiliar settings etc. This is the third time I am in a triathlon world championship, and it is following a familiar pattern of chaos and panic.   I got caught in a massive flight delay and had to wait in an airport for over 24 hours. After standing in a line for over 4 and a half hours in the middle of the night, I got another flight the next day, and I went to a hotel to rest. Most hotels were booked so I took what I could get. The hotel had no food. Lack of sleep, lack of food and on my feet for too long is not a good prelude to a big race. It is what it is. I flew early and recovered in time. I got my luggage and bicycle undamaged and on time, many did not. This has happened on every world championship. To make thin

 The last few days, I have migrated over to Sweden again. The travel was difficult, I got caught up in the recent flight cancellation chaos, caused by bad weather in New York area, air traffic control shortage and I don’t know what. I got stuck in Houston for over 24 hours and stood in a line trying to get new flights for over 4.5 hours. This was at night. Overall, the travel was not good for my fitness level. Eventually I did reach Sweden, bone tired of course. On the positive side, I did not get sick. I tried to catch up on training right away, but sensibly. I do not want to get sick or injured, and after a major exhaustion event like this, the risk is high. First day, I tested my Swedish road bike, a Trek Madone I bought in 2010, a very good bike. A short 12-mile ride at a slow pace proved that I, and the bike, was still working. Then I put on my wetsuit and swam for about 15 minutes in the local lake. Saturday July 1, 3 days after arriving, I raced in Challenge Vansbro Sprint