Gimme a break, Shakespeare!

Parting is such sweet sorrow - whatever, Shakespeare.  Let me rephrase - parting just plain sucks.  My friends Suzanne and Bob have just left for their move to Georgia.  I'm not feeling anything remotely sweet about my sorrow.

I met Suzanne over two years ago at the first meeting of Team Survivor Tri State.  Since then we have biked a bunch of miles together, survived swim drills with Coach Tom, and shivered at race start lines together.  Suzanne, who we call the Kenyan because she runs so fast (but yet hates running), has challenged me to be a better biker (she has calves of steel!), a better runner and a better friend.

Suzanne's husband Bob has been invaluable in my life.  The first race I ever did I came upon quite the conundrum. . . "Um, who holds this stuff for me while I race?"  (Jeff is my at home with the kids race support - I haven't found many races that offer childcare). Bob has evolved into larger than life team support for our group of girls.  Bob carries our stuff, directs to bathrooms, changes flat tires, offers moral support, water and food, cheers and takes pictures.  Last year our friend Carla was not racing and tried to help Bob out while some of us were racing.  Bob fired her, I think.  Somehow Bob know where we all are on a triathlon course and magically can cheer for us all while capturing photos. (And does all of this while munching some kind of snack.)

Racing and training bind you together so quickly.  To have someone stand next to you sweaty and joyful while you say "can you believe we did that?" is amazing.  It's a witness to the event and a snapshot for your memory that you can relive again and again. To me, its akin to how you need a witness to a hole in one in golf (which I have never had, unless you count mini-golf) or its just not quite the same. 

For many in our group, triathlon training lost its mystique when we just couched it in "girl time chatting."  It's easy to not think of it as training when you were getting together with your friends - you just also happened to be riding 20 miles.  Somehow those 20+ miles are so much easier when you are riding with others (maybe it's also the drafting!)

I've never had a close friend move away.  I guess I have been lucky.  I've come to realize how important in my life those people are who "just get me."  When I was younger I thought that I would grow into someone strong enough to face everything that life threw at me.  Instead, I think I grew strong enough to face my own weaknesses and know that sometimes you just need someone there to catch you when you fall.  Friends do that for each other. 

Suzanne and Bob, riding in Frenchtown won't be the same without you.  Please find us some good bike routes and races in Georgia - you can't get rid of us that easily. . .

-Jen

Posted by Jen on January 30, 2008 in Swim. Bike. Run. Repeat , Two Wheel Adventures | Permalink | Comments (2)

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