Real Talk: I’m a Blind Triathlete

Trust is this weird concept. It’s this idea that we’re supposed to put some amount of faith in someone else—usually somebody that we’ve known for a while such as a close friend of family member. Or we put our trust in people, like doctors, that are trained and credible. Blind trust is when you put your faith in someone who you might not know as well. Typically, this isn’t the smartest thing to do. But I have blindly trusted people to get me from point A to point B more times than I can count and it has taken me places I never thought I would go.

I am a triplet and was born very premature. As a result of my early entrance into this world, I lost most of my vision. I have been legally blind all my life due to a condition called retinopathy of prematurity. I’ve never been one to let things stop me. I worked hard all through school and I’m currently studying communications as a sophomore in college. I’ve always been very active. I never wanted to be left behind. The transition to high school was a difficult one for me; I felt stuck. I didn’t feel like I was making forward progress. I decided that I needed something that I could make progress with. I started to run, and I haven’t  looked back. I ran all through high school. I did multiple 5ks, 10ks, two half marathons, and I just ran my first marathon where I qualified for the Boston Marathon.

But this isn’t a story about running.

During the summer between high school and college, a friend of mine asked me if I wanted to race a triathlon with her. My response was something along the lines of “Well, if you can find a tandem bike, I’m down.” I didn’t think we’d actually find a bike. I had toyed with the idea of doing a triathlon at some point, but didn’t expect that to be now. My friend and I were both runners. She’d guided me on a training run once too. She was also a colligate triathlete, so she knew what she was doing. I should amend that: she knew what she was doing as a solo athlete.

I want to pause and break down how a blind athlete completes a triathlon. We use a guide for the entire race. On the swim, we’re tethered at the waist or thigh using a piece of bungee, we ride a tandem bike, and then we run with a tether that is either held in our hands or connects us at the waist. I prefer to use a tether that connects me at the waist because it allows me to have full movement of my arms.

My first triathlon was a lot of fun and a huge success, but it was obvious that I had a lot to learn. The swim was in a pool, so we didn’t even swim tethered. Our tandem was a borrowed bike so even if I wanted to, there wasn’t much of a chance I’d be able to keep training. A couple months went by and I decided this was still something I wanted to do. This is where the blind trust comes into play. If I was going to do this whole triathlon thing I needed to see if there were other blind people doing it too. I mean, I couldn’t be the only one, right?

When I Googled blind triathletes, the first article that popped up was a New York Times article about a guide. I continued my search and the name of this woman kept coming up. I decided that I needed to get in touch with her because she probably knew way more than I did about triathlon and how blind people compete. I found her on Facebook and sent her a message not really expecting a response. I checked my phone after class and had a message and friend request from Caroline, the guide from all of the articles (full disclosure: Caroline is my big sister! —ed.).

My first triathlon was how I started in tri, but connecting with Caroline is how I started in tri. She was able to help me find people that could help me find a bike, she connected me to organizations that supported physically challenged athletes, and she introduced me to other physically challenged and blind triathletes that are now some of my best friends. I did the work; she helped me make the connections.

Triathlon is more than just swimming biking and running. Triathlon as a blind athlete takes trust like no other. Oftentimes I meet guides to train with that I’ve never met before. Caroline and I got into the pool and onto a tandem within hours of meeting each other for the first time. Of course, “blind trust” is a pun here because I am blind, but it’s real too. I wouldn’t be where I am now competing on the national level as a paratriathlete if I hadn’t blindly trusted some random chick that I read about online.

Okay, is Ashley not THE COOLEST?