打败心中的假想敌 全力以赴去尝试
52fw.cn 04-28 次遇见
26 The Try-athlon
勇于尝试者三项
(By Heather Klassen)
(希瑟·克拉森)
Out of my way, short stuff. I have to train!
“闪开，小矮子。我得去训练了！”
Addie braced herself against the kitchen counter as her older sister,Miranda, blew by, just a blur of motion in a swimsuit, bike helmet , and running shoes.
艾迪靠着橱柜，她的姐姐米兰达一阵风似地闪过。艾迪只看到了她穿着泳衣和跑鞋、戴着自行车头盔的模糊人影。
As the back door slammed behind Miranda, Addie's father appeared in the kitchen.
后门在米兰达身后砰的一声关上了。艾迪的爸爸来到了厨房。
Is your sister going to train for her triathlon ? he asked.
“你姐姐又去练铁人三项了？”他问。
Addie shrugged. "I guess," she replied. Addie certainly didn't keep track of Miranda's schedule. Miranda had always been annoying, but since she had started training for the triathlon, she was even worse.
艾迪耸耸肩，回答说：“我想是吧。”她确实没有对米兰达的作息安排了若指掌。米兰达一直很烦人，但是自从开始铁人三项训练以后，她更是讨厌得要死。
Miranda thinks she's so great just because she's doing that triathlon, Addie couldn't stop herself from blurting out.
“米兰达以为自己练铁人三项就了不起了。”艾迪不禁脱口而出。
Well, Addie, why don't you do it, too? her father asked.
“那么，艾迪你也去试试怎么样？”爸爸问。
Addie stared at him. "Me? Do a triathlon?" Miranda had trained and trained for this race for months. "How could I do that?"
艾迪盯着他：“我？铁人三项？”米兰达已经为这项比赛一遍又一遍地训练了好几个月了，“我时间不够了呀。”
Can you swim? her father asked.
“你会游泳吗？”爸爸问。
Addie laughed. "Of course I can." Addie swam every afternoon, chasing her friends and racing them across the pool.
艾迪笑了：“我当然会。”每天下午，她都在泳池里和伙伴们比赛，追着他们嬉戏。
Can you run?
“你会跑步吗？”
Sure, Addie replied. Every evening after dinner, Addie ran outside to meet her friends. They ran while they played tag and kickball.
“当然会了。”艾迪回答。每天晚饭后她都跑到外面去见朋友。他们玩捉人游戏或是踢球时，总是跑来跑去的。
Can you bike? her father asked.
“你会骑自行车吗？”爸爸又问。
Dad! Addie exclaimed. "You know I can bike! I keep you company every morning while you bike on the trail for exercise."
“爸爸！”艾迪喊起来，“你知道我会骑自行车的。每天早晨你在乡间小路上骑车锻炼我都陪着你啊。”
So look, her father said, pushing the triathlon informational flyer across the counter toward her. "For your age group, the distances are just half of Miranda's age group. A 100-yard swim in the lake; that's like four times across the pool. A three-mile bike ride; that's less than the distance we go every morning. And a one-mile run is only four times around the high school track. You could easily do this."
“所以你看，”爸爸边说边把桌上的铁人三项比赛宣传单推到她这边，“你的年龄组的比赛距离不过是米兰达那组的一半。在湖里游100码(编注：约91.4米)也就相当于在泳池里游两个来回。三英里骑行比我们每天早晨骑车的距离短多了。还有，一英里的赛跑不过是学校跑道上跑四圈的距离。这些对你来说都很容易。”
Addie didn't feel quite as certain about that as her father did. She thought about the triathlon all afternoon while she swam in the pool and all evening while she ran around outside with her friends.
艾迪并不像爸爸那样有把握。下午她去游泳时一直想着铁人三项的事，晚上跑去和朋友们玩耍时也一直琢磨是否要参加。
Before bed, Addie bumped into Miranda in the hallway.
睡觉前，艾迪在走廊里碰见了米兰达。
Boy, am I beat, Miranda said, stretching and yawning . "All this training is really wearing me out .
“好家伙，我累惨了，”米兰达伸着懒腰，打着哈欠，“这些训练可真把我累得够呛。”
Addie rolled her eyes at Miranda and headed to her room.
艾迪冲米兰达翻了个白眼，然后走向自己的房间。
While Addie and her father cycled along the bike trail the next morning, Addie thought about the triathlon. Maybe I wouldn't even have to train that much, Addie thought. Swimming, biking, and running are things I do every day.
第二天早晨，艾迪和爸爸沿着自行车道骑行时，心里还想着铁人三项比赛。她想，或许我根本不用训练那么久，毕竟游泳、骑车和跑步是我每天都做的。
As she and her dad wheeled into the drive way, Addie made her decision.
当她和爸爸骑到车道上时，艾迪下定了决心。
I want to try the triathlon, Dad, Addie said. "But don't tell Miranda, OK?"
“我想试试参加铁人三项比赛，爸爸，”艾迪说，“不过别告诉米兰达，好吗？”
That's great, Addie, said Dad. "And don't worry; it'll be our secret."
“太好了，艾迪，”爸爸说，“别担心，这是我们俩的小秘密。”
I don't want Miranda bugging me about it, Addie thought, because I'm sure I won't win. But I know I can try.
艾迪想，我可不想米兰达因为这事儿来烦我，因为我肯定不会赢，但是我会全力以赴的。
Addie swam, biked, and ran a little more than usual the next two weeks to get ready.
接下来的两周，艾迪游泳、骑车和跑步的距离都比平常多了点， 以此为比赛做准备。
#p#分页标题#e#
The morning of the triathlon dawned cool and clear. Addie and her father left after Miranda and biked over to the high school. The triathlon would begin at the lake, then continue on the bike trail, and finish on the track.
铁人三项比赛的那天早晨，天亮后天气晴朗凉爽。艾迪和爸爸等米兰达离开后，才骑车去了学校。比赛将从湖边开始，然后上自行车赛道，最后在跑道上结束。
Addie's stomach lurched when she saw the hordes of kids clustered on the lake shore. I can do this, she coached herself as she moved toward the water's edge.
艾迪看到湖边聚集了成群的孩子，心里有点打鼓。她一边向湖边走，一边给自己打气：我可以的。
Short stuff! Suddenly Miranda stood right in front of her. "What are you doing here?"
“小矮子！”米兰达突然站到了她面前，“你来这里干什么？”
I'm going to do the triathlon, Addie told her sister. "Or at least I'm going to try. I figure that's why they call it a triathlon, because all you have to do is try."
“我要参加铁人三项比赛，”艾迪对姐姐说，“至少我要去试试。我明白了铁人三项之所以被称为铁人三项，是因为你所需要做的就是去尝试(编注：铁人三项中的tri-与try同音)。”
Addie waited for her sister to say something snide or snarky .Instead, Miranda smiled.
艾迪等着姐姐说一些讽刺或刻薄的话，但是恰恰相反，米兰达脸上露出了微笑。
I'm so glad you're doing this, Miranda said. "I wanted you to all along, but I knew if I suggested it, you never would."
“我真高兴你来参加比赛，”米兰达说，“我一直都想让你参加比赛，但是我知道，如果我建议你参加的话，你是坚决不会参加的。”
Addie stared at her sister. "So that's why you acted so great about training and everything?" she asked. "You figured I might try if you acted like I couldn't do it?"
艾迪睁大眼睛看着她。“所以你才将训练和所有的一切都表现得那么了不起？”她问道，“你知道只要对我使用激将法，我就一定会尝试？”
Exactly. Then Miranda did the most surprising thing of all. She reached over and hugged Addie. "Now hurry," she said. "Your age group's up for the swim."
“没错。”米兰达接下来的举动令艾迪大吃一惊。她伸出双臂拥抱了艾迪，说：“快去。你们年龄组的游泳比赛马上就要开始了。”
Still stunned by her encounter with her surprising sister, Addie positioned herself next to the other kids at the edge of the lake, ready to try her best in her first, and maybe not last, "try-athlon".