潘清

Maybe when I was only seven years old， all the excitement， hyperactivity and frenzy erupted out of me when my dad crossed the finish line. It really showed me how his hard work and effort paid off and it sparked my curiosity. I wondered whether a small boy of my size could ever achieve something like that. I longed to feel the accomplishment of finishing a triathlon.

The thing about triathlons is they are three sports—swimming， biking and running—done in one competition. I was a small kid； I had never had much experience in any of the three sports and to imagine doing all three at once sounded impossible. I found myself saying this out loud and my father overheard me. He encouraged me and said I could train with him any time. Nearly trembling with excitement and fear， I accepted the challenge.

Training with my dad turned out to be very challenging， but it was a great way to spend time with him. So I agreed to train with him， and soon found out it was a big commitment. We would get up early for a morning jog， or go for a swim at the pool after school. I started to realize that my dad was competing not only with his fellow triathletes but also with himself， especially in a sport such as running. In running， it is mind over matter—I learned this watching my dad push himself despite the pain.

In endurance sports， optimism is necessary—the kind of optimism that enables you to ignore the next big hill and focus on the next small step. Each leg of the race keeps getting harder and harder， so to look at the next difficulty and take it on smiling is the key. Training sometimes feels arduous， but I never regretted getting out of bed and doing something. These are important lessons that my dad taught me.

After a few weeks of training， I was signed up for my first triathlon.

To begin the competition， I stood on the beach of a lake very nervously next to 200 grown men. It was 5：30 in the morning and I was up to my knees in cold water. I was out there， shivering with cold and nerves and lack of sleep， and someone fired a gun.

The gun disoriented me as I half waddled， half scampered， elbowing hairy man！arms for open water. Then I was off， swimming towards the impossibly distant buoy that marked my turn. I exited the half"mile swim and ran as fast as I could， barefoot and freezing， towards my bike. I fumbled， dripping wet， trying to mount it. Once on my bike， I found an exhilaration specific to cycling.

I went through the transition zone again and switched to my running shoes. Another important part of triathlons is to transition as fast as possible， so tying my shoes quickly is something I had practiced many times before. For me， the real competition began during the run， because now I could see each competitor as a target. No matter my position in the field， each racer was either chasing me or being chased. The running portion of the race boiled down to pain tolerance， and it was more mental than physical. One of my favorite quotes to keep from thinking about the burning feeling I had was“shut up， legs”. This was a quote from Jens Voigt， the famous German cyclist.endprint

Then I crossed the finish line. I took a breath. At first I was calm， but then began a celebration with other finishers. It could be that we were all blissfully insane， but I think it was really that we were all happy to have the same desire： to finish and endure a difficult race. No matter what time or place each of us achieved， the sense of accomplishment was there for all of us.

Looking back， I remember the bony， impatient seven#year$old on that cold day in Montauk who thought he couldnt do it. Now， that same kid is not only a huge fan， but also a training partner.

也许当时我才七岁，爸爸越过终点线的那一刻，所有的激动、亢奋和狂喜都从我的内心喷涌而出。这个场面让我切实地看到他的辛苦和努力是如何获得回报的，这激发了我的好奇心。我想知道，我这样个头的小男孩有没有可能取得一点那样的成绩。我渴望体验一下完成铁人三项赛的那种成就感。

铁人三项赛的精彩之处，就是在一次比赛中完成三个体育项目———游泳、骑自行车和跑步。我还是个小孩，对这三个体育项目中的任何一项都未曾有过多少经验，一口气完成这三项，光是想想似乎都觉得不可能。我不自觉地大声说出了内心的想法，被爸爸无意中听到了。他鼓励我，还说我随时都可以跟他一起训练。我既兴奋又害怕，几乎是颤抖着接受了这项挑战。

事實证明，跟爸爸一起训练极富挑战性，不过这也是和他共度时光的一种很棒的方式。所以，我答应跟他一起训练，而且很快就发现这是一个很大的承诺。我们要早早起床进行晨间慢跑，或是放学后去泳池游泳。我开始意识到，爸爸不仅是在跟其他的铁人三项运动员较量，也是在跟自己较量，尤其是在跑步这样的运动中。跑步是一项精神胜于物质的运动———看到爸爸不顾伤痛鞭策着自己继续向前跑时，我认识到了这一点。

在耐力运动中，乐观是必需的，就是那种让你能够忽略下一个大坡而专注于下一小步的乐观。比赛的每一段赛程都变得越来越艰难，所以微笑着直视下一个困难并且接受挑战至关重要。训练有时让人感觉很艰苦，但我从未后悔爬出被窝去进行训练。这些都是我从爸爸那里学来的宝贵经验。

训练了几个星期后，爸爸给我报了名，让我参加我的第一次铁人三项赛。

比赛开始前，我无比紧张地站在湖滨作准备，身旁是200个成年男子。此时是凌晨5：30，冰冷的湖水没过我的膝盖。我站在湖水里，因为寒冷、紧张和睡眠不足，身子直发抖，这时，有人鸣响了发令枪。

枪声使我失去了方向感，我半摇摇晃晃半连跑带跳地往前游，用胳膊肘推开那些男人汗毛浓密的胳膊，以获得开阔的水面。我就朝着属于我的那个远得不可思议的折返浮标游了出去。完成800米的游泳赛段后，打着赤脚、已经冻僵的我尽可能快地跑向了我的自行车。我浑身湿淋淋的，笨手笨脚地试图骑上自行车。刚一骑上车，我就感到了骑自行车所特有的一种兴奋。

我又一次来到了转换区，换上了自己的跑鞋。铁人三项赛的另一个重要方面是要尽快地进行项目转换，所以我之前已经针对这个环节练习了很多次快速系鞋带。对我而言，真正的比赛从跑步赛段才开始，因为此时我可以将每一个选手都视作一个目标。不论我身处赛场中的哪个位置，每个参赛者不是在追赶我就是在被我追赶。铁人三项赛的跑步赛段归根结底就是忍耐痛苦，与其说这是身体上的考验，不如说它是精神上的考验。只有那句格言“闭嘴，迈腿”才能让我不去想身上那种火烧火燎的感觉，这句话是我最钟爱的格言之一，是著名的德国自行车运动员延斯·福格特说的。

后来，我越过了终点线。我喘了一口气。起初我还很平静，但紧接着就跟其他到达终点的选手一起庆祝起来。我们可能都开心死了，但我觉得我们之所以真的都很开心，是因为怀有那份同样的渴望———坚持去完成一次艰难的比赛。不论我们每一个人用多长时间完成了比赛，名次如何，我们都获得了成就感。

回首过去，我想起在蒙塔克那个寒冷的日子，那个骨瘦如柴又没有耐心的七岁男孩曾认为自己不可能完成铁人三项赛。如今，还是这个孩子，他不但是铁人三项赛的铁杆粉丝，还是一位陪练。endprint