I thought my story could be of interest and i welcome comments.

I am a 60M who has been participating in triathlons since 2002. Probably 50+ olys, perhaps six halfs, three IMs. Retired from teaching in 2020. Covid shut races down for two years and last year it took me an extended period to recover from contracting covid myself. I dragged myself through a race undertrained and was only able to train meaningfully for the last race of the season. It went better than expected and i was stoked for this season. I finally had a chance to train like a pro and i did.

The first race went very well. The second race (this past weekend) did not. Well it did, up to a point. I found myself coming out of the water with people i am usually minutes behind. The bike is my strongest discipline and in short order i was flying up the road, passing people i normally don't pass until later, or never pass. It felt like i had a very good chance for a PR. Perhaps ten minutes after the turnaround i started feeling not so well, like chest congestion (smoke is not an issue where i am). I hoped the feeling would pass, but it got progressively worse. I had to slower and slower and s-l-o-w-e-r. My chest started hurting very badly. I debated pulling over, but opted to tick the pedals over to transition. (I'm not sure i did the right thing, but i thought i might get a faster medical response there, rather than pulling over and lying in the grass.) It was perhaps 20 minutes to get to transition. I was not going much faster than a slow jog. Along the way onlookers asked if i was okay. I said no each time.

I walked my bike from the dismount line to the rack, then walked to the announcing area and flagged down medical staff. Suffice to say it was the spectacle you imagine. Pain 8-9/10. Tri top ripped off, paddles to the chest (though no shocking ..apparently the internal electrics were okay as was my pulse and b.p.), ambulance called. It was perhaps an hour later when i was rolled into a catheterization lab. Blockage abraded, one stent applied. Being assessed a "low risk" to leave after 24 hours, i was discharged the next day. Things have settled down and i have a chance to reflect and wonder if i will be able to get back to my sport. At the hospital several medical professionals on the cardiology ward said there was no reason i couldn't get back to my sport, in time. In fact, this was encouraged and in two cases unsolicited, including from the cardiologist and later his assistant (who is an avid runner and was very curious about triathlon). I am also fortunate to have a brother who is an ER doctor and echoes the sentiment.

A few things about me: i have never smoked; i have no allergies or conditions; there is no history of heart disease in my family; i take no meds (well i do now); i drank socially but gave up alcohol six months ago; i have had borderline high blood pressure for decades but my b.p. has come within normal range since foregoing alcohol; i have a sweet tooth and probably ingest more sugar than i should; i am not diabetic. In consultation with my GP, i have been on a plant-based diet for the past four years. She knows i am an athlete. I supplement B12 and iron. I get a blood panel every year. Everything is well within healthy ranges. Doc says, "Whatever you're doing keep it up." This is the part where i wish i had known then what i know now.

I probably have the normal amount of plaque in my arteries for a person my age. The biggest contributor to these deposits is cholesterol and in my life i have consumed my fair share of animal products, the only source of LDL cholesterol. Unfortunately, once deposited, plaque is there for life ..unless it breaks away and subsequently forms a clot and induces a heart attack or stroke, which is most likely when we are subjecting our bodies to stress. Triathlon qualifies.

It's rare for anyone to do everything right, and i don't claim to, but i think most of us do more things right than the general population. I am lucky to be here. The one regret i have is i wish i had given up eating animal products earlier, like decades earlier. My arteries would be a lot clearer and my cardiovascular health better for it. For me now it seems like a no-brainer.

Thanks for taking the time. I welcome your thoughts.