Travelling is like triathlon.
A wacky statement if ever I heard one.

Obviously there are some major flaws in that statement and I realise that they are in fact completely different things. I also realise that my job as a triathlon coach may now seem questionable. And those of you that know me may wonder if I did indeed spend 6 years of my life competing in this sport – as the above statement may suggest that actually I have no idea what it is. But, thinking about it now there have been times when these two things have been similar as well as extremely different. There have been experiences when both carry a small thread of similarity, resemblances of key moments in very different situations. And that is why, I reckon travelling can be similar to triathlon.

Before I set off travelling I used to work at Tri Camp, coaching triathlon and training camps. Every spring for 10 weeks we’d take people swimming, cycling and running in the beautiful country that is Mallorca. All the elements of triathlon, but for now we’ll stick with cycling. For those of you that don’t know, Mallorca has a very iconic climb named ‘Sa Calobra’ (The Serpent) and is 9.7km long at a 6% gradient. It’s an incredibly beautiful climb, smooth roads and cracking views. It looks like a sca electric track. But it’s tough and can be very daunting.

Over my 5 years on camp I have ridden Sa Calobra over 50 times and I have shared blood, sweat and tears up that climb with more guests than I can remember. I’ve witnessed crashes, breakdowns and tantrums. I have cycled beside people as they ventured deeper in the ‘hurt box’, cycled beside people as they have pushed themselves to their limits. If I had £1 for every time I heard an ‘I can’t’ I’d be giving Richard Branson a run for his money in the richest man stakes.

And the thing is, most of ‘I can’ts’ actually can.

“Heather, I can’t do it. I can’t!”

Can’t or don’t want to? Can’t or too nervous to try? Can’t or just unsure of the unknown because it’s daunting? Can’t or just scared to try and fail? Can’t or panicking because you can’t see the top?
So tell me, can you actually physically not do it?

I’ve spent hours watching people battling with their own minds up that climb, as they focus on what’s in front of them and quite literally the mountain they have to climb. As they focus on how scary it looks, this new, steep and unknown road in front of them. As they forget that it’s just a road. As they forget that if I didn’t think they were capable of making it to the top then I wouldn’t take them to the bottom. As their confidence in their ability suddenly falters. As they forget that once they start the climb, start trying and get on their merry way they may actually embrace the journey and *gulp* enjoy it. They may actually feel proud at the top, proud of rising to the challenge.

But it’s all a bit daunting when you can’t see the top. When you can’t see round the switchbacks. When the road is winding.

‘But what if I fail?’ You tried, you gave it your all and that’s something to be proud of.
‘But what if I hate it?’ You now know you hate it and you won’t do it again. At least you won’t be left wondering.

The fear that they experience at the bottom, it’s in the mind, the fear of the unknown. It’s daunting is that big old mountain, but that’s what makes it worth the journey. And you never know, the view from the top might just make it worthwhile.

I have a friend who doesn’t do triathlon. She doesn’t do any exercise. Actually, that’s a lie, she once cycled 600m to the Nature Reserve for an ice cream, but anyway you get the gist. She’s got her own house, mortgage, and a good job. She’s got a good life and has done well for herself. And she’s happy. But she got restless, a bit bored and she wanted to do something exciting, something challenging. I told her to get a bike and come up Sa Calobra with me – that would be a challenge. She graceful declined (and it’s a good job because she may have died).

So she thought about travelling. I told her to go. ‘I can’t’ she said. Ah, that old chesnut.

Can’t or don’t want to? Can’t or too nervous to try? Can’t or just unsure of the unknown because it’s daunting? Can’t or just scared to try and fail?
So tell me, can you actually physically not do it?

She weighed up the pro’s and con’s and naturally, as is with ‘I can’t’, the scales tipped favourably towards the con’s. And she stood at the bottom of her Sa Calobra deciding whether she could pluck up the courage to rent out her house and leave her job, deciding whether she could abandon the security of the familiar, the security of the known. Deciding if she could climb that scary mountain in front of her. She knew she was capable but who knew what she would encounter on the road.

It’s all a bit daunting when you can’t see the top. When you can’t see round the switchbacks. When the road is winding.
‘But what if I fail?’ You tried, you gave it your all and that’s something to be proud of.
‘But what if I hate it?’ You just come home. At least you won’t be left wondering.

And that is why travelling is like triathlon. As a coach you get the ‘I can’ts’ all the time, especially in situations like Sa Calobra or before races. But the truth is usually you can. And recently I’ve met more and more people wanting to travel and they face the same ‘I cant’s’, granted the situation is completely different, but surely there are some similarities…right? Sometimes we have things that we really want to do, but it’s scary, it’s daunting because we don’t know what will happen. It might not be triathlon. It might not be travel. It could be numerous different things. And we could try and fail. And sometimes it’s that thought of failure, that thought of risking the security for the unknown that ensures we don’t even start.

Sometimes the mountain we want to climb is way out of our comfort zone. It’s a completely different experience, but who’s to say it won’t be worth it? You never know, the view from the top could make it worthwhile.

One persons Sa Calobra may be another persons decision to quit their job and go travel with only a backpack for company.

Either way, it’s daunting when you can’t see the top.
When you can’t see round the switchbacks.
When the road is winding.

It’s daunting is that big old mountain. But that’s what makes it worthwhile.