You aren't crazy!  Its great to have a goal like a race to motivate you to get back in shape.  The Iron Girl Sprint Tri was my first triathlon and three years later I'm still hooked.  When I did mine, it came with a free training plan on Active which was very helpful since I had no idea where to start.  I don't think they do the freebie anymore, but I would highly recommend purchasing one of the training plans.  I think its about $30.  If Iron Girl still offers the mentors, sign up for that and you'll have someone local to go to with all of your questions - that person might even organzie some group trainings so you can meet others who are beginners.  Another great way to learn more about the sport is to check out your local tri shop or bike shop and see if they have any clinics.  My local bike shop had free "bike 101" and "tri 101" clinics.  You might even make a few friends at the clinic that you can train with.  I met a girl at one of the clinics who was training for her first race too and we are still racing together 3 years later.  If you have a chance to volunteer or just watch a race before you do one that will give you a good idea of what to expect on race day.  I hope to hear that you've signed up.  Iron Girl is a great venue for a first race.  Best of luck with your fitness journey which ever path you take.

Hello there!

I live in a small town as well and I have been training for my first sprint tri alone too.  I just signed up for it before really telling anyone I was doing it.  I think it was better that way because no one had the chance to try to talk me out of it or try to make me question myself.  It really has motivated me to work harder and do things I really haven't done.......such as swimming.  I found a local community college that has cheap "lap swim" hours and I have been doing that.  The first night I felt like a kid on his first day of high school.  I was SO nervous!  But I think training by myself has also given me alot of confidence that I didn't really know I had.  I am going for a bike ride with a friend tonight (she is going to do the bike portion) but other than that I have done it all on my own.  YOU CAN TOO!

But like the other poster said, check around.  You never know!  And at the end of it all, now matter where you finish in the standings........YOU will officially be a triathlete .

I say if it's something you want to do.......go for it!

Keep us posted!

Michelle

I can understand the time crunch with it being two months away and with you not having the background in the disciplines.  Not sure where you live but check to see if there are other events that you can use as a stepping stone like a 5k.  It really is a good place to start because it gives you a goal and most have a run/walk contingent so there really isn't any pressure.  You can add some biking to your training after that and you'll be well on your way even if you set the tri as a goal for next year.  That is exactly what I did.  I saw a triathlon advertised at the beach community I vacation at in August.  I thought it looked like something to shoot for.  I signed up for a 5k in September of last year and LOVED it!  And this is coming from someone who dispised running.  Then I thought back on that tri and decided to just go for it knowing I had plenty of time to train.

Check to see what is available.  I live in Rhode Island which in itself is a small place and there really are alot of these events around here so I have a feeling when you start digging you will find the same in your area.

Michelle

Signup, set your goal and do not look back.

One of the great things about triathlons is there's so many to choose from.  I did one Sunday that was indoors and was 15 minutes per leg.  There are other really short ones available too which are ideal for getting started.  You can also find other options like duathlon (run-bike-run) and aquathons (swim-run).  You should also have some sort of goal in mind for what you want to accomplish on the day.  If you don't care about your final time then just concentrate on finishing which takes a LOT of pressure off you and is actually a pretty common goal.  I still do that with my longer efforts.

I'll assume you're going to start with a sprint or smaller which is really good news for a busy schedule.  You can already do the 5k (it doesn't matter if you walk some, I've done and seen plenty of walking in my tri's).  If you haven't started swimming yet be sure to get some instruction because proper technique is crucial.  Twice a week for 4 weeks will have you cruising like Flipper.  The bike is usually something you can get by on without a lot of extra work, depending on the course.  Just half an hour on each twice a week will get you ready for a short tri.  If you can combine them together that's ideal.

For my summer schedule I'm usually out at dawn running with my dog.  It's just under 5 miles to work so I bike more than I drive.  I get in some swims where I can and it works well enough for me to feel confident in tackling a short course.  You don't need massively long training times to be able to improve.  More is better to a point, but you need time to recover too so start easy and just go from there.

I don't think you're that far from being able to reach your goal.  Go for it and let us know how it goes for you.

Andy