I have more non-tri friends than fellow athletes. I talk about my training and races and bike lust on a regular basis. I tell stories that I hear here or other tri sites. I feel like an ambassador for our sport and like to share my passion. My work colleagues always ask about the races they’ve been hearing about as do clients. Some non-tri friends have attended my races, some send cards, most call.
In return, I also care very much about things that are important to them. A couple of buddies have some really obscure interests that I find fascinating. It’s about being a good friend and being intellectually curious about the world around you. If I run into an online article that one of my friends might find interesting, I send it on. During the Tour I get multiple emails everyday from friends who know I love it.
Maybe it’s about the cool people I’m lucky enough to know, but no one has ever given me real grief about the early bed times, the not getting trashed (who still does that?), the weekends spent training or my focus on the Tour during July. OR the NEW BIKE I’m getting.
Guess it’s all about balance. Or maybe because I’m not even close to elite that I have room in my mind for the rest of the world.
After watching my friends’ eyes roll back into their heads one too many times, I learned not to talk about tri unless they ask. And then I keep it brief, unless they ask more.
I like to see the expressions of disbelief, and hear, “you’re crazy” when I tell them about epic training sessions. It’s funny.
They don’t come to races, I wouldn’t expect or request them to get up that early on a non-work day. But if they did, I’l be thrilled. But, I’m not offended that they don’t. As long as I get a “Good luck” before, and a “How was your race?” after, I’m fine.
I don’t expect my non-tri friends to get it, live and let live.
What I hate is when my tri friends are brutally boring. At parties, I’m the only one enjoying a beer. It’s like torture for them to stay up past 10pm. We hosted a party a few weeks ago and I tried to share some very expensive wine that was given to me for some hats I made… I set a glass out and said, “try this, it’s amazing!” and no one would take a sip. GAWD!
I proceeding to drink two bottles of wine (I had one non-tri person there to share) and ended up breaking out blond wig and some peacock feathers to entertain myself. AT LEAST I HAD FUN!
I miss my non-tri friends A LOT on nights like that.
I have three sets of friends - my old friends from way back, my scuba diving buddies and my triathlete/roadie friends. I’ve never introduced them to each other because they have little in common with each other. I just wear a different hat with each group.
I feel like an ambassador for our sport and like to share my passion. My work colleagues always ask about the races they’ve been hearing about as do clients.<<
EXACTLY! I have a list of people here at work who have asked to regularly receive my race reports. We have a client who is a triathlete and we are thinking of doing a corporate relay with him at a race.
I have one very good friend who is definitely not an athlete, but she asks about my races (and more specifically about the travel). I give her a short overview of the actual race and then a detailed travelogue. The Italians at our usual Friday night restaurant now even ask about my training and racing and after Hawaii, I’d taken my photos to dinner for my friend to see and they were all wanting to look at the pictures too. One of them recently said, “I was dreaming you!” He’d had a dream and he and I were on the same running team. Too funny.
some of my friends don’t give a hoot…but many are awed by IM. They repeatedly ask the same questions (distances mostly). I find it amusing that I have evolved to the point where 140.6 is no big deal but is unfathomable to the common man. I’m almost a freak show for some people…
lame. Several of my tri friends are big drinkers. I mean that they drink alot. All of them are actually pretty scrawny. We usually fall asleep by 9-10 when we go out for a few, but we go at hard until then.
**Post:** Who needs friends when you have those beautiful mountains??:) You must get some nice mountain runs in.
The mountains are even better with friends to share them with. The snow’s getting too deep for mountain biking and need to stick to well used trails to do winter trail runs.
We got our first snow outside the mountians last week so the winter activities are starting. Starting this weekend the tri friends are doing snow shoeing and cross country skiing in the mountains instead of long rides. Same friends, same scenery, just new off season activities.
My best friend (more like a sister) is a runner (but JUST learned to ride a bike last year). She ALWAYS wants to talk about my training, hear about my races, etc. She watched IMLive like a hawk last year during CDA, called the boyfriend for updates every five minutes, etc. She’s totally into it.
For the most part my other friends are reasonably interested. They always ask about training, races, etc - but they don’t want every little detail (and I don’t blame them!)! They were SUPER supportive last year leading up to CDA and wanted to hear all about it afterwards. None of these people are athletes.
On the other end of the spectrum is another friend (that I am sort of drifting away from) who TOTALLY doesn’t get it. For the most part it doesn’t really bother me… but I AM glad that I have friends I can talk to about it!
I would never expect my friends to come to my races, but I would be thrilled if they did. I haven’t done a local race in quite a while, but if I did I’m sure my best friend would come watch if she could. The rest of them would NEVER get their asses out of bed that early! 's ok … they can buy me a beer afterwards!
My sister, like a lot of other non triathletes thought that all triathlons were IM distance. She was actually pretty disappointed in me to find out that I don’t do IM races 8-10 times per year.
Since she also knew my traveling schedule as far as leaving and comming home from these out of town races she must of thought I did these IM races in about 2 hours or so. I’m such a disgrace I know.
Yeah, Im in Chicago now for school (originally from around Edmonton) and we just got some snow and butt ass cold weather from Alberta:) Snowshoeing…are you cross country skiing too? Looking orward to being back in Canada for the holidays-the snow isn’t that bad, just gives the workout a new dimension:)
I had a girlfriend complain that because I swam, biked AND ran, I showed lack of commitment.
She was right. She’s gone.
My lunch table thinks that it’s pretty cool that I have six bikes in my garage for all sorts of reasons; that I get up at dawn to see the sunrise through the early morning forest mist; that I can swim and surf all day without being tired (they think); that I can pretty much eat whatever I want and not gain weight; and - most importantly - I can hang out with fit, strong women, and my wife doesn’t get jealous*
They just wouldn’t want to do it, themselves.
** “When you’re done with your race, you’ll be too pooped to pop anyway.”*
I don’t talk about my athletic life with very much with other non-athletes; they just don’t get it! My parents are the same way: they came to my marathon, but only because that was a huge deal (smaller, shorter road races they don’t care) and I don’t discuss much with them, except when I get hurt and need doctors appts and insurance info… my brother is a swimmer so I have someone to discuss that with, but he doesn’t get the running.
Friends who don’t swim run or bike, we talk about other stuff.
I guess I see my athletic life as something I do for ME and I have plenty of training friends and coaches to talk about it with. When I’m with other people, I think it’s good for me to talk about something else so the training and racing doesn’t consume me more than it already does. Most of them are aware that I run/swim, but that’s all they do know… I’m out and back before 99.9% of the people on this campus, so no one really knows anyway and that’s how I like it.
i don’t really talk about it with them, it’s nothing they care too much about (a 30 second blip here and there is enough. like, “man, my f’ing leg is killing me from those stupid hills”. that’s enough and it makes them laugh, anymore than that is a real snoozer).
they do know when i race, and one married couple, friends of ours, showed up one time (to which I was shocked and overwhelmed that they did, it was sweet). that is the only time–i don’t expect any of them to come, hang out, and be bored to death.
my brother in law said, “let us know when you do a real triathlon, and we’ll come.” well, whatever. i’ve ran marathons, do smaller tris, and did a 1/2, no brother in law to be found…lol. i tempted him with beer, still, no show. doesn’t bother me, but i do think he would enjoy the bikes and the beautiful ladies. there is plenty of eye candy, that’s for sure. one of these years he’ll show. lol!
KC, my boyfriend’s family is constantly trying to get him to stop doing Ironman races. They’re like, “You win at the shorter distances, can’t you just do those!” followed with, “but girls beat you at the Ironman!” HA HA!
It kind of freaked them out when I did an Ironman. His sister-in-law said, “So do you cook?” TE HE! Now his brothers try to beat me at everything. No casual running with these guys. I’m not competitive about it or anything.
My family seem to be OK with it now that IM CDA is in their backyard, they seem to get understand the whole thing a lot more that it’s in their local newspaper and on the news.
P.S. let’s send pics of tribabes to your bro and see if that helps him
