Y
OUTH
ES
NEWS
SAYS
ouCh! What a day
By Camille morales started to hurt and I knew I wouldn’t be able
age 12 to run as fast as I knew I could. As I passed
golden, Colo. some spectators I heard one of them say “Oh
“Oh Jeez!” was the only thing going my God, did you see that girl’s knees?” It was
through my mind as my bike and I slid across then that I started to realize how badly I was
the road. I had been so excited for the USAT hurt.
National Championship race all year long. I After I crossed the finish line I felt really
had been training really hard all summer and proud of myself, but then the pain got
was ready to race my friends from Florida much worse. My parents and sister came
and Wisconsin. Like the first lick of an ice over to hug me and cry with me while the
cream cone, my race started out great. As I ambulance guys bandaged me up. Mr. Gilbert
raced from the beach and dived into the lake, from USAT was really nice and came over to
all of my feelings of nervousness floated make sure I was OK. After hearing my story,
away in the water. I swam fast and straight, he gave me a really sweet new Rudy Project
and my transition was just as speedy. helmet and said I won the “courage award”
Before I knew it I was flying through the for the day. It made me feel really good when
bike course. After the first of two laps, I my other competitors and even older racers
knew from my time that I was fighting for came over to make sure I was OK. My family
the win. It was the second lap of the bike took me out for ice cream on the way to the
where my luck changed. On the far side of hospital. I needed a few stitches to close up
the course a boy who was riding ahead of the gash in my knee. That night while I was
me fell going around a turn. I tried to cut the laying in bed I already started thinking about
same turn close so I wouldn’t run over him, my next race. I guess that means I really do
but when I did I hit a dip in the road and lost love triathlons!
control. I fell off my bike and skidded across
the pavement to the other side of the road.
My knees were pretty bloody, but after “Oh
Jeez!” my next thought was “Camille, get
back on your bike and go!”
I started riding again, but quickly found
out I wasn’t going as fast as I was before. As
we discovered later, I had actually gotten a
flat tire when I crashed; although I was so
focused that I didn’t even realize that my bike
was just as hurt as I was until … I rode up to
another sharp turn and took it as I usually
would. I expected to glide around the turn
but my bike had other ideas. Because of the
flat tire, my bike slid out from under me and I
met the pavement face to face again.
An official pulled me to the side, and I
thought he was going to make me stop. I
yelled, “I want to keep going!” and so he
had me put my chain back on by myself as
he held my bike up. As I took off again the
spectators were nice and cheered for me.
But I knew I had one more U-turn ahead
on the course, and I wondered if my bike
would be able to do it. My speedometer read
only 2mph as I tried to make the turn, but I
still fell anyway (three times in one race – I
wondered if that was a record!). I pushed
myself back up and rolled back to transition.
My dad found me coming out of transition
and asked me if I wanted to stop, but by
that point I had decided “What’s another
1.2 miles?” During the run, my knees really
youth and Junior triathletes – share your triathlon-related essays, artwork, etc. with USA Triathlon. Email us at
communications@usatriathlon.org with “creative entry” in the subject line. Have your parents help if needed!
94 USA TriAThloN WINTER 10
USATYouthWinter.indd 94 12/9/09 3:53:13 PM
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