Saturday, October 22, 2005
Triathlon Day
Saturday I had a total of 3 hours of video chatting with my mom, George and Daniel. Since summer I’ve been too busy to get online much, so I’ve missed instant messaging at school and video chatting on the weekends. It was good to see their faces and hear their voices again.
Some more pictures from the triathlon.
The triathlon was at 海の道 (umi no michi) in Fukuoka. A beautiful park.
Our little spot in the park. Everyone in their spandex and bare backs. I felt so modest!
We finished!! My team members are Asagami (left) and Kiyomi (right).
Me and my bike.
A big group of us.
The home stretch. This is the last part of the run and the finish line ahead.
My triathlete friends!! Remember I met them in Narao in June?!? I was so happy to see them again! Shige on the right didn’t race today because there were too many people and he’s training for a Worldwide Iron Man Triathlon in Australia next year. But he cheered us on!
And this is me and Naomi!!!!! We were both the third racer in our relay group so we were biking at the same time. She yelled “Hi Sierra!!!” from her bike as we were going around a curve. Of course, she passed me very quickly in that first lap and I never saw her again, but that also means she didn’t lap me!!
And this is Naomi on the cover of Triathlon Magazine.
Isn’t she cute? This weekend she is at the World Championships in Hawaii!!
Then there was another party that night. Here’s the plate of sashimi with fish head included!
Kawazoe drinking amaizake (a sweet rice alcohol). I don’t like sake, but this stuff was good! They passed the cup around to table until it was all gone.
After the race I was exhausted. I don’t just mean tired. I was unable to keep my eyes open no matter where we went or what we did. I chose to sleep rather than take a shower before our party. Although it wasn’t much of a choice, I just couldn’t get up. The whole week before the triathlon I had slept very little—I had just gotten back from Okinawa and was really busy at work and at all my after school activities. It wasn’t just the triathlon that did it, but a whole week of sleeping late and getting up early (5 a.m. on the day of the race), then pushing myself so hard at the triathlon.
Sunday night after our party in Fukuoka, I went back to Omura with Kondo-san. I stayed at his house with his wife because the next morning I had to get my driver’s license in Omura. I slept in the car from Fukuoka to Omura and when I got to the Kondo house I finally took a shower and a hot bath. I don’t usually take baths, but in Japanese homes the bath is filled and heated every night. Almost like a one-person hot tub. It looked so wonderful so I had to partake!! Then Kondo-san gave me ice for my knee (it was hurting a little from the bike) and I stayed awake just long enough to be polite before I crashed in their daughter’s bed. I slept so hard I can’t remember anything except when I woke up I was finally well rested!
Kondo-san had work the next morning, but his wife made me breakfast and invited me to her “stretch class” at 10 a.m. We had a great time driving up to this beautiful building in the mountains of Omura, looking at the cosmos and enjoying the drive.
The building was a log cabin!!
I had no idea what to expect at this “stretch class” but it was almost like yoga. There was annoying music playing in the background, but in generally the stretches and exercises were very relaxing for my worn-out body. I was very content.
These are the yoga ladies. I loved this room.
Kondo-san was great. When I was with her, I felt like I was home. We got some ice cream before she finally dropped me off at the testing center that afternoon. She invited me back to Omura to hang out sometime. I hope I make time to go.
I’ve got scuba in an hour so I have to race off.
All my love, Sierra
