Triathlon
On this page, I will share information about my OTHER passion, competing in triathlons and duathlons. You might say that I have one foot in the garden and the other on the track.
Meet my incredible coach ,Coach Troy Jacobson. If you want to be stronger and faster than ever, and injury free check out his informative sites and consider Troy as your coach–www.spinervals.com and www.coachtroy.com. I was honored to be a guest on Coach Troy’s podcast. Click here to give my interview with Kevin Patrick a listen.
For sound advice on nutrition for endurance training I turn to Dr. Rick Kattouf , Author of Forever Fit and Founder of TeamKattouf, Inc. For some great information on fuel for optimum performance go to www.teamkattouf.com. Pictured here waiting for our carb loading meal before Du Nationals in Richmond, Va. are (L-R) Rick Kattouf, Gail Kattouf , Ashley Halsley and Jim Aust.
This photo is from the USAT Duathlon Nationals, Richmond VA. We qualified for Team USA and Duathlon Worlds in Rimini, Italy on September 28, 2008!!!
Columbus International OLY Distance
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AT THE RACES
2008 Race Report
Event Overall Place Age Group Place
Duathlon Short Course World Championships 9/27 –- 10th
USAT Age Group Nationals 9/20 -– 12th :Q Team USA!
Great Buckeye Challenge OLY Distance 8/24 1st 1st
Cayuga Lake Tri/Sprint Age Group Nationals 8/3 7th 1st
Columbus International OLY Distance 7/20 1st 1st
Wendy’s Sprint Distance 6/15 2nd 1st
Deer Creek Sprint Distance 6/8 1st 1st
Tri For Joe 5/18 2nd 2nd
OSU TRI 5/4 3rd 1st
Duathlon Nationals 4/27 – 4th
December 17, 2008 I hope everyones off-season training is going well. Have you been working on technique as well as your aerobic base? Perhaps you are catching up on the numerous things that got put on hold during the race season? This was an interesting and uplifting article that I thought I would share. It’s good news for our sport. http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/20081212-9999-1s12fitness.html
Special note for Columbus, Ohio tv viewers
My husband Jim and I appeared on Daytime Columbus with Gail Hogan on Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2008 to discuss Cross Training & Life Balance as well as Duathlon Worlds 2008 in Rimini Italy. Gail and I hope to do several segments on the topic of multi-sport training so keep an eye on my calendar and tune in whe
n you are on your treadmill or indoor bike trainer! Some of the topics we cover are:
CROSS TRAINING & LIFE BALANCE
Benefits of Multi-Sport/Endurance Training
Empowerment
Discipline
Determination
Stress Relief-Fun!
Improved Health
Multi-Sport/Cross Training Advantages
Injury Prevention/Strength Development/Fat Burning
Duathlon World Championship - Italy - September 27-28, 2008
It was a thrill of a lifetime to compete for Team USA in the 2008 Duathlon World Championship, in the lovely coastal town of Rimini, Italy. What an honor to be racing among the top duathletes from around the globe and hear people yelling “Go USA” as you ran or biked by! The Opening Ceremony and the Parade of Nations, where over 50 countries participated, gave you the feeling of being part of the Olympics. It was a fun time for athletes to meet and visit with other members of their own team but also to connect with the athletes from different countries. The course was flat and the bike was fast (both were a touch long!). Team USA had 220 athletes and was the largest team at the World Championship. We garnered 11 medals (3-Gold, 4-Silver, and 4-Bronze). I was delighted to be 10th in my age group (5th American), while Jim was also very pleased to be 15th in his age group (3rd American). Enjoy the photos!
Age Group Nationals - September 13, 2008
What a thrill to compete at USAT Age Group National Championship at Haag Lake, outside Portland OR with the top competition in the country. All the big “girls” and “boys” in the sport came out to vie for a spot on the USA team to compete in triathlon worlds on September 13, 2009 on the Gold Coast of Australia. The top 16 per age group would qualify and I was overjoyed to make the team with my 12th spot in the 45-49 age group (moving up to 50-54 next year—the only thing to look forward to with advancing age!!). The bike and run courses were challenging with lots of rollers and some tough turns which ma
de me nervous, and had me wishing for better technical skills on the bike. The afternoon was highlighted by the elite race featuring 2008 Olympic Team talent such as Julie Swail Ertel, Laura Bennett, and Matt Reed. I hope you’ll share in some of excitement with these photo from both the age group and elite races as well as the inspirational Endurance Film videos!
Right: Tracy finishing the bike and securing her spot on Team USA for Tri Worlds 2009!
SPRINT NATIONAL CHAMPION -August 3, 2008
My husband Jim and I enjoyed participating in the USAT Age Group Sprint Nationals: Cuyuga Lake Traithlon, at Taughannock Falls State Park in Trumansburg, NY (near Ithaca) on August 3, 2008. The course was beautiful starting with the swim in the sparkling Cayuga Lake (one of the Finger Lakes). The bike through wine country was a rolling course, with a challenging uphill directly at the start! Then the run wound through the park and featured a turnaround at the falls– which are 3 stories higher than Niagara.
Over 600 athletes participate
d in the race with many age groups (including ours) containing 30-40 triathletes. Numerous All-American’s came out to rally for national titles. I was thrilled to be named the Sprint National Champion for the 45-49 age group. This was fortunate as I was actually second in my age group and then moved up to first when the first place speedy Jeanette Shelow-MacDougall was moved up and named Overall Master Champion. She was awesome and second female overall. I was delighted with 7th overall female.
Jim pulled off a fantastic 5th in his age group (50-54) with this being only his 3rd triathlon ever—preferring the duathlons. The swim isn’t his favorite leg but he made up by having the fastest 
bike leg in his age group.
The race director Jane Miller and her staff and volunteers did an amazing job organizing the event and being readily available for help and tons of cheering and support.
Ithaca was beautiful with a fun farmer’s market on Saturday featuring several perennial and shrub nurseries as well as cut flower vendors. I couldn’t resist buying a gorgeous tillandsia (a type of bromeliad) to bring home.
What a fun and rewarding race weekend!
