I love bags. Not like purses and clutches so much, but great big duffel bags. Specifically, I love the transition bag I got for myself last summer and all the pockets and packing possibilities it contains. It’s huge. There’s storage for two helmets, two pairs of shoes, sunglasses and there’s a special space for my USA Triathlon member card. Plus, it has a waterproof wetsuit compartment and just happens to come in Boston University scarlet and white. I also like to think of myself as a great packer. So, on that note here are 25 of the many things I will be taking with me to Collegiate Club Nationals this April.

1. My bike (kind of necessary)
2. My trisuit, specifically the one I bought after I ruined my first one in a crash
3. More gels than are necessary
4. Every piece of clothing I have with Boston University on it
5. Gatorade powder
6. Shoes (sneakers, running shoes, bike shoes, etc.)
7. Helmet
8. Wetsuit
9. More training miles than I can count (but my Garmin totally can)
10. Speaking of which … my Garmin
11. Way more self-confidence than I had in high school
12. IT Band Syndrome
13. Split ends from how dry my hair gets while swimming
14. The scars on my leg from the crash that ruined my first trisuit
15. Asthma that is much less severe than it was three years ago
16. The knowledge that the work I put in is all worth it
17. The complete works of Jorge Luis Borges (I have a paper due when I get home)
18. The experience I gained from my first nine multisport events
19. Less than stellar swim form
20. The determination to swim anyway, even if I’m one of the last out of the water
21. Years of memories from family dinners, to road trip sing-alongs, to post-race ice cream, and even that time we got pizza delivered in the parking lot when we got locked out of the van
22. A sport I hope to be doing until I’m in the oldest age group
23. A connection to my school and city that only comes from running and riding through it for hours on end
24. My teammates

    … who are also my friends

    … and my roommates

    … and my family

25. SOCKS, like lots and lots of them

Hopefully it all fits in that nice bag I bought.

Follow live coverage of the 2017 USA Triathlon Collegiate Club & High School National Championships at usatriathlon.org/usatcn17coverage.