Getting Punched By a Girl

by Russell Tibbits

Experiencing a euphoric sense of accomplishment after a physical feat like a marathon or triathlon is not unusual for me. Regardless of my time or rank, completing a grueling task is worthy of a few moments of self praise. On September 1st, however, the feeling of confidence and superiority lingered longer than most. Not only had I just completed The Austin Tri, my second triathlon, but I pulverized the time from my previous outing.

Indeed, as I drove home, my car floated under the sun that felt warm and bright. My dingy, aged floral- print couch enveloped me and comforted me more so than normal. I savored every bite of my lunch, which only that day tasted fresher than normal. I must have exuded a confidence when ordering it that shouted, “I have just moved mountains (essentially). Make my burrito with care today.”

Waking from my extended nap that afternoon and still feeling anything but modest, I logged on to the Austin Tri website to view my overall time and calculate the improvements in each event. I searched for my age group and, as I suspected, I surpassed last month’s times, in each event, by a sizable margin. Shaving time from each event while competing in a longer distance triathlon clearly left me with a high sense of self worth. And if my search of the Austin Tri website had stopped there, my sense of self would have continued to pat its own back for the great work I had done over the past three hours.

But my search didn’t end there. And while scrolling back to the top of the page, I realized that I had been beaten (more like trounced) severely…by 16 minutes…by a 14 year old girl. Being beaten by 16 minutes, in no way, signifies that, had I not tripped or dove in front of a car to stop the poor girl from getting hit, we would have been neck and neck at the finish line. To give you an idea of the extent of her domination, while I was finishing the bike portion of the race and sucking in gasps of air to wrap up the first mile of my run, she was most likely getting a free massage or eating complimentary pizza and ice cream. Who knows, she might have even watched me cross the finish line.

Regardless of how it actually happened, it is sometimes tough to swallow the idea that there will ALWAYS be someone who can do what you do better, smarter or faster than you; and yes, that includes 14 year old girls. It’s probably the better mentality to stay humble, appreciate the opportunities you get and appreciate the gifts you have.