I paid $10 for this picture! (and other tri costs)

I consider myself a somewhat frugal person.  Largely, this comes out of necessity as money has been really really tight, but recently I've had more flexibility and feel like I am slowly getting back on solid ground.  I still like to price compare and use coupons at the grocery store, and I keep the food budget for Tony and I below national standards.  How people make their financial decisions can be really personal, and I know that I spend money on things some people would never consider, while others spend in ways I never would.

All that to say, the cost to tri includes a monetary one, not to mention the time commitment and so on.  I think examining monetary costs is interesting and important, so after some debate, I've decided to plow forth.

Swim:
Suit: $25 - I didn't have anything suit wise that didn't fall into the camp of beach bikini, essentially nothing appropriate for athletic activity.  I saw sport suits run as much as $100, but I bought this one at swimoutlet.com for less and I have no issues with the quality of it.
Goggles: $7 - also purchased at swimoutlet.com
Swim Cap: $7 - I wanted a lycra one for practice... I was given a mandatory to wear latex one for the race.

Bike
The Bike (of course) - $850 - read my post on this!
A helmet - I had one, but could have been $40 to $200 (I bought mine several years ago, but I'm sure it was no where near $200)
Bike Shorts - $50 (also purchased at swimoutlet.com)

Run
Race (ID) belt - $8 - mine had a zipped pocket for gels, also an id badge.  I've been using this using this as a safety measure and gel carrier on my long runs as well.

Race:
Race Entry - $89 (this is with the early bird discount)
1-day USAT Membership - $12
MinnefotaMomentsPic $10

Total: $1058

What I didn't include were things I bought primarily for running such as new shoes and the garmin, partially because I didn't use either of them during the actual race, but also because I would have bought them anyway for just running.  Most of the stuff on this list can be used again and again, so this hardly reflects the cost of one tri - but it does show there is a fair amount of upstart costs to getting into the sport.  The bike is area where I could have spent less and may have had the money not been available, but also an area where I could have spent way way more (like more than my car more).

On this list of things purchased was this picture:

that's me - who knew?

I might not recognize myself if my name wasn't attached.   I look determined ... and dare I say - athletic?  

So the costs to to tri are high... but to me the experience was priceless.  Also, I'm so showing this photo to my hypothetical kids one day.