Take part in a triathlon

“Race day brought a host of challenges, starting with the swim. The strong currents and sunrise made visibility tough, turning sighting into a real struggle (definitely something you can't prepare for in a pool). I ended up swimming slower than I had hoped, which was a bit disheartening at first. Fortunately, I made up for it with a solid performance on the bike, where I pushed through and felt great about my pace. I also used this time to hydrate, refuel, and mentally prepare for the rest of the race. Then came the run, which was the toughest part due to the extreme heat and accumulated fatigue. With temperatures hitting 40°C from a heat wave that week, every step felt like a major effort. Luckily, I had planned for extra hydration, which proved crucial in those conditions.”

“The start was a “time trial” start which meant that we roughly lined up by swim speed ("If you’re fast be near the front, if you’re less fast be in the middle, if your’re definitely not fast go to the back"). I was near the back. Every two to three seconds they would send off another person. As I mentioned earlier, this was my first open water swim of any significant distance so the only thing I was interested in doing was staying calm and controlled. I was not shooting for any time. I was shooting for a feeling — I wanted to feel like I could’ve kept going once I got to the end.”

“I read horror stories about the starts on this sub about getting kicked and punched and was happy they were doing a time trial start 2 people every 5 seconds...nope that changed we were all starting at the same time....so I stood toward the middle back and when the gun went off I just went for it, I just swam like I was used to, I ended up doing some breast stroke because I was on top of other people trying to pass...it was wild...”