Sensitive?

I had a great weekend. With 3 hours of solid effort on the bike on Saturday and 1:45 of tough running in windy/hilly conditions yesterday, I should be feeling over-the-moon and ready for Clearwater...

Heck, I'm a Navy Diver...A "tough guy" as it were. I can shiver all day and drink all night and then repeat again the next morning. Well, actually, I have the alcohol tolerance of an 11-year old girl.

Nevertheless, I'm a pretty confident fellow. So, it's been interesting as I track my response to an event that occurred 8 days ago.

Last weekend (8 days ago), I took the Navy Physical Fitness test. It's nothing overwhelming (some push-ups, sit-ups, and a 500 yard swim). I finished my swim in 9:08. While not my fastest swim, it was a solid effort for me.

That evening, I was having dinner with my Executive Officer and her family. We were discussing the swim and I mentioned my time. That's when it occurred. Initially, it was just a slight smirk, but then it was followed by outright condescension...From my XO's 11-year old daughter! As she put it, "That's slow. I can swim 500 in 7 minutes." Wow!

I love to say I dismissed her comments, but I gotta be honest. After all the additional work I've poured into my swimming the past 10 months, it's REALLY frustrating to know that an 11-year old girl can still kick my butt. Heck, I've been working on my swimming since 1998 (when the girl was only 2 years old)!!!

Oh well...As I always say, triathlon teaches humility. Even for those of us who ARE racing the World Championships in 12 days.