We entered Josh in a different triathlon this year, which turned out to be way more competitive and intimidating than last year's at the YMCA! We didn't do much preparation, hoping he'd stay focused like he did last year.
We should have figured out early that something was amiss when we were waiting in the pool area for Josh's age group to start the swim. Josh was jumping up the bleachers (not an easy feat!) despite us warning him that his seemingly endless supply of energy might get used up. I'm not sure if he was nervous or excited, but I know that he didn't listen to anything we told him about how the race would work.
We got worried when we saw kids in the 4-6 age group swimming proper freestyle down the pool very quickly! Josh managed to get in the lane with the only kid using a snorkel. The kid got off to a fast start, but Josh passed him on the second lap and we were feeling hopeful that he could finish in the middle of the pack.However, everything fell apart when he got out of the water and seemed totally lost as to what to do next. At one point I thought he was going to jump back in the pool! I was yelling from the other end of the pool for him to put on his shoes, and by the time he figured it out, the snorkel kid and everyone else had cleared out. So Josh entered the bike ride in last place.
I got to the bike trail just in time to see Josh try to pass another kid and wipe out in the grass. He got back on the bike, but several kids he had caught up with rode by while he was on the ground.
So he finished 30th out of 33 boys ages 7 and 8, and thankfully he did not get a trophy. We know for next year to practice the transition between swimming and biking, particularly the putting on of shoes!
