September 2008 - Spokes Magazine

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DEPARTMENTS TRISPOKES by RON CASSIE ron_cassie@yahoo.com COACH TROY OFFERS THE AREA'S BEST MULTISPORT COACHING AND TRAINING PRODUCTS! Spinervals Cycling DVDs • Camps • Online Coaching • VO2max Testing Personal Training • Personal Training/Coach Business Consulting Visit www.coachtroy.com or call (410) 823-7000 EDITOR’S NOTE: This month's SpokesWomen column has been combined with TriSpokes so that we can bring you coverage of the 2008 Iron Girl Triathlon. DEDE GRIESBAUER, 37, WON THREE collegiate national championships when she swam at Stanford University. And she twice competed in the U.S. Olympic Team swim trials before heading to The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania to earn her M.B.A. She was never a cyclist; however, after business school she decided to try and ride across country with her boyfriend. “I had the summer off until I started my job on Wall Street and thought it’d be a lot of fun,” Griesbauer told SPOKES. “The biking stuck with me, but not the boyfriend – we broke up in Montana.” Griesbauer, then in her late 20s, added running to her skill set, and in 1997, competed in the Columbia Triathlon, her first multi-sport race ever. Eleven years later, Griesbauer returned to Howard County and won the third annual Iron Girl Triathlon on Aug. 24. Dede Griesbauer with her trophy. Griesbauer, who now lives in Boston, broke the course record as well, knocking out the 0.62 mile swim, 17.5 mile bike and 3.3 mile run in 1:22:37. She beat former U.S. Naval Academy triathlete Justine Whipple, 23, who took second in 1:24:50, and Laurel Wassner, 33, originally from Gaithersburg, but now of Hoboken, N.J. Wassner grabbed third in 1:25:19. In between her first triathlon in Columbia and last month’s race, Griesbauer, spent eight years as an equity broker in The Big Apple, training and racing when her scheduled allowed. But by 2002, she was competing more seriously and after qualifying for the Hawaii Ironman event she “was hooked.” Three years later, her coach, former world champion Karen Smeyers, asked if she’d consider quitting her job. “March 15, 2005 was my last day of work,” Griesbauer said, sitting in the grass and smiling after receiving her award from race organizer Robert Vigorito. She turned professional and has now competed in 10 Ironman races overall. In 2006 won the Ironman U.K. event. At the Iron Girl event, which continues to grow and registered 2,200 participants year, Griesbauer posted the second-best swim time, the third-best bike leg and third-fastest running split for a convincing victory. Nonetheless, the Iron Girl sprint distance is hardly her strong suit. “I’m definitely an endurance athlete and I once said I wouldn’t do anything shorter than a half-Ironman because I don’t want to embarrass myself,” Griesbauer said. “I came here because it’s a good workout, this course is tough and I wanted to turn it up a notch (speed-wise). I’ve felt like I’ve been getting in a rut doing everything at Ironman-pace and it can be hard to break out of that.” As far as the Iron Girl race itself went, she was happy with her swim. Although she said she wasn’t pleased with her wattage over the bike course, Geisbauer did manage to put significant distance between herself and Whipple and Wassner on the ride. “I tried to hold them off on the run.” Which she did, winning fairly comfortably despite taking a minute longer than either chief rival to complete the 5 K race around Centennial Lake. Perhaps more than any other triathlon race on the Mid-Atlantic calendar, however, crossing the Iron Girl finish line is about more than the professionals who claim the prize money or even the top amateurs. The Iron Girl races have wildly surpassed registration expectations, thriving as women of all ages set personal fitness and athletic goals through triathlon “without the guys getting in the way.” Iron Girl age-group champs ranged from 14 year-old Rebecca Dean of Ellicott City, who won the 12-15 age group in a remarkable time of 1:55:23 (but only two minutes faster than 12 year-old Alicia Bazell of Columbia) to Sadj Bartolo, 67, of Columbia, to 70- year old Margaret Regina of Reston. Britt McCormick, also of Ellicott City, was the top masters finisher in 1:38:02, and 52-year old Christa Johnson of Towson won the grand master division in 1:44:38. Rebecca Newton, 32, of Lexington Park, Md. was the top local amateur competitor, completing the course in 1:30:32. Megan Knepper, 25, of Fairfax, and Janelle McIntyre, 43, of Ellicott City, came in third and fourth, respectively amongst the amateurs, highlighting triathlete’s competitive ability across diverse age groups. Pat McNabb and Barb Van Winkle, both of Ellicott City, swept the No. 1 and No. 2. spots, respectively, in the large 55-59 age-group field. At Iron Girl, several athletes mentioned the women’s only race and venue that naturally generates camaraderie amongst female athletes while reducing the intimidation factor for women to “tri” the sport for the first time. The men are designated to baby-sitting, stroller duty, cheering and taking pictures which most seem more than happy to oblige. Its role reversal and everyone at the event, at least, seed to agree it’s a good idea at least once a triathlon season. “The race has just exploded,” said Bartolo, the former president of the Mid-Maryland Triathlon Club and a longtime competitor. Her husband, Bob, also Mid- Maryland member, sported a T-shirt for the event that read, “Real Men Marry Athletes.” “For the ladies,” she continued, “there is a comfort zone here, especially considering the large number because it’s so well run.” Bartolo was one of numerous athletes in the field who commended Vigorito for putting tightly-run events each season. Chip Warfel, Mid-Maryland president, noted that several of the club’s men, started at 5 a.m. to set up their tent and begin laying out the coffee, bagels, fruit, drinks and snacks. 16 September 2008
ones right at the top of podium” talked about after the event. “The whole triathlon experience has far surpassed any expectations that I might have had, including turning pro,” Geisbauer said. “I thought, maybe when I turned pro, that may this might last a year or two at most. Instead, it’s going surprisingly well, and I’ve been enjoying it all along. “This was my last race before Ironman Hawaii. I’ve got seven weeks to train and see what I can do there this year.” Heading back to Centennial Lake and run transition area. Julie La Fee, campaign manager for the Maryland Chapter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Team-in-Training program, said they had 35 athletes competing, including about half who were first-time competitors. “The woman have been so friendly and helpful with each it’s been amazing,” La Fee said. “They’ve been training about 2-3 times a week together and it’s been about getting everyone in the group to the finish line.” La Fee also noted that the Team-in-Training group for this event raised $96,000 in four months along with preparing for the race. Alicia Berg, 30, of Baltimore, said she was motivated to do the race because of a friend who is undergoing treatment for Lymphoma. She did much of her training with Melissa Proctor, 29, also of Baltimore, and for both it was their first triathlon ever. “It was a great experience,” Berg said. “I knew it was going to be hard and I’m a terrible runner, but I was determined not to walk at all during the race. They told us in our training to imagine that quitting would be like it would be quitting on the person we knew who was undergoing treatment and that’s how I looked at it. I kept pounding the whole way.” Proctor said she felt like she was well-prepared for the race, highlighting a mandatory open water swim at Gunpowder State Park and several cycling and running trips around the course. “I go to the gym and run a little, but I’ve never done anything like this,”Proctor said. The Annapolis Iron Crabs was another of several area clubs on hand and they had about a dozen women competing said Brie Lang, 30, and Jeanette Linder, 45. For Lang, it was her second triathlon and she’s already planning to compete next year in the longer Columbia and Cambridge Eagleman triathlons. She said that for women of any age, triathlons can be “very intimidating for women,” and she found inspiration in both the women much younger and much older than herself. She called the Iron Girl event, “empowering.” For Linder, it was her fourth triathlon, and her husband, daughter and mother-in-law showed up in support. She said that for many women, riding on razorthin tires and at speeds much faster than they may have been used to, along with the open water swimming, can be daunting. “But I think after you train and you do this, you think ‘What else can I do that I’ve never done before.’ It’s a feeling of confidence, joy and the sense that one’s boundaries or possibilities have been pushed out further. It’s a feeling that nearly all the athletes “even the Sign Up for Metabolix/Erickson Tri Team The Metabolix/Erickson Tri Team will begin accepting submissions for the 2009 season beginning September 1. The deadline for submission is October 15. All submissions should be e-mailed to team manager Krista Schultz at krista@metabolix.net and must include the following: An up-to-date race resume through 2008; A proposed race schedule for 2009; A personal statement regarding training philosophy and how you became involved in competing; Photos, either competing or in tri attire (podium shots are fine). Elite Tri Team members receive bicycle, wetsuits, footwear/apparel and nutrition sponsorship. Travel stipends and race reimbursements are offered to all approved races. Erickson Retirement Communities is a leading national developer of full-service retirement communities and headquartered near Baltimore, Md. Metabolix is a full-service wellness company that provides an array of customized health and wellness programs from clinical weight management to corporate wellness programming. Schultz recently took top honors at the Luray Triathlon, finishing as the top Elite Female in a time of 2:26:40 on a hilly and challenging course. After a solid finish at the Steelhead Half Ironman two weeks ago, Schultz returned to her strongest race - the Olympic distance, in preparation for her Best of the U.S. competition in October. Teammate Chris Martin took top honors in the Elite Men’s Division at the North East Triathlon in a time of 2:01:10 This performance was on the heels of his recent sub-nine hour Ironman last month at the Quelle Challenge Roth in Germany. A mother finishes with her son. August 2008 17 September 2008 17
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September 2008 - Spokes Magazine

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