Stuff

I have a confession to make: I own a $350 running watch. This probably shocks people who don't run ("$350 on a watch!"), is not surprising to people who do run ("yeah, that's about what my Garmin cost"), and probably also shocks triathletes ("they still make watches that only cost $350? Mine was $500...").
Despite this, one thing that I appreciate about running is that for all the dry-fit, GPS-enabled, i-pod ready nonsense, all you really need to run is a pair of shoes. I can pretty much run a marathon with only the clothes on my back.
The problem with triathlon is that there is way too much stuff. Then there is the stuff to make your stuff better, or fix your stuff, or tune your stuff, and then the extra stuff that you might need, but then again might not (seriously, I've never seen a sport with so many accessories for its accessories). As I rode this weekend (and yes, I did end up riding outside despite the cold), I made a mental list of all the stuff that I should probably buy. I mean, I have bike shoes, but not the little booties that go over my bike shoes to keep my feet protected from the wind. I have a long-sleeve wetsuit, but everyone in class just bought a short-sleeve one too. I have a bike, but it needs a tune-up, a new tube, one of my water bottle cages is broken, and I don't have a bike computer (I've been using my $350 watch, silly me). I have biking gloves for cold weather, but not the ones for warm weather because my hands don't go numb when I'm in aero...but then again, I might crash. You need a van (and a credit card with no limit) just to get to the starting line. I know that several people I know routinely lie to their spouses about triathlon purchases (no honey, this is the old wetsuit...no, I always had Zipp wheels...), and it's easy to see why...triathlon is the endurance addict's gambling habit.
Despite the fact that I'm excited about racing this year, and despite the fact that I really enjoy triathlon so far, there's something that seems sort of impure about going faster because you spend more or have more stuff. There's something that seems wrong about buying accessories for things that are essentially accessories (and about owing a whole slew of really expensive workout clothes that I can't even wear down the street to Starbucks). There's something that is primal about running...no stuff...just two men (or women) seeing who can go faster using only their muscle.