On May 4, 2012,
in If you weren’t around this blog in 2010 and 2011, I ran a really popular series that I affectionately called “Ten Questions With…” This interview series included interviews with some of the top professional triathletes, a bunch of age groupers, and some industry folks (see here for the full list). I totally enjoyed doing the interviews, and got to interact with some of the coolest folks around.
Well….I’ve decided to bring the series back.
And to kick off the series with a bang, I reached out to professional triathlete Sara McLarty. Sara lives and trains in Clermont, FL – home to the National Training Center and one of the more popular independent iron-distance races in the Southeast. She grew up swimming, and was an All-American at the University of Florida (go Gators!).
I could go on and on…..but why don’t we just get to the actual interview? So here we go…..Ten Questions with Professional Triathlete Sara McLarty:
——-
Professional Triathlete Sara McLarty
TriMadness: So congratulations on a solid race at St. Anthony’s last weekend. You had an amazing swim and came out of the water in 19:10. How did you feel about your race, in general?
Sara McLarty: Thanks, but it was a terrible result for me and I’m not happy at all. However, I am going up to Knoxville this weekend for the rev3 race and hoping for a better race!
TM: Like so many professional triathletes, you have a massive swimming… Read the rest
When you look at the landscape of professional triathlon this season, there are a handful of athletes that have had spectacular years. One athlete, in particular, who has performed exceedingly well is Austin resident Kelly Williamson. She started off the season with a bang, bagging victories at Rev3 Costa Rica and IM 70.3 Puerto Rico. Kelly’s season has continued to be strong, with a series of top five finishes, including three second place finishes (IMTX, Muncie 70.3, and Boulder 70.3) and a victory at Buffalo Springs 70.3.
Recently, TriMadness and Kelly sat down and discussed her season, her upcoming race in Kona, and her love of high quality craft beer.
This week’s installment of “Ten Questions With…” is with professional triathlete Kelly Williamson.
—
credit: LouisBPhotography.com
TM: Congrats on a stellar season so far this year! Six races with top two finishes is quite an accomplishment. What are you most proud of so far?
KW: Thank you! With regards to this season, probably the 2nd at Ironman Texas. While I knew I was capable of that performance, I would say that it came earlier in my ‘Ironman Career’ than I expected. I am also pretty proud to have put up the consistency I have thus far; given all the things that can happen in a race, that in and of itself is something to be proud of.
TM: You had a huge race in the Woodlands at IMTX, with a 29 minute PR (9:07 overall). … Read the rest
The recent focus of our ongoing “Ten Questions With…” series has been on age-group triathetes – the bread and butter of our sport. 99.9% of the folks that do triathlon are age-groupers. Everyday folks like you and me. They have jobs, families, other committments.
Chris Madden is an age-grouper from Florida. He’s only been involved in triathlon for a handful of years, but has realized some real success already. He is a smoking fast runner, but claims the bike as his specialty. His virgin attempt at Ironman netted a super fast sub-eleven hour result.
And so, hold on for this week’s version of Ten Questions With…Age Group Triathlete Chris Madden….
Age Group Triathlete Chris Madden exiting the water
TM: What is your “sports background”? Did you play any sports as a kid?
CM: Believe it or not and contrary to most people that enter the sport of Triathlon I have no sports background at all. Prior to picking up running 4 years ago the last time I ran one mile was in a 6th grade physical education fitness test. That mile felt like the longest 10 minutes of my early life. Team sports never attracted me as a kid and my primary focus was partying with friends through my high school years. In my early 20’s I enjoyed lifting weights, but spending hour after hour in the same gym everyday got old really quick.
TM: Aside from your… Read the rest
As you no doubt have read in myriad online posts, message boards, or in hard-copy publications, the Revolution 3 triathlon series has received significant positive feedback from age-groupers and professionals alike.
Rev3 held its inaugural race at Quassy Amusement Park in Middlebury, CT in June 2009. That race was heralded as a challenging course, a superb pro-race, and a spectacular race experience. Rev3 became a series in 2010 with the addition of races in Knoxville, TN (an Olympic distance and a half iron distance, the “Half Rev”) and at Cedar Point Amusement Park in Sandusky, OH (both a Half Rev and a Full Rev). Additionally, Rev3 offered Aqua-Bike races and kids’ races to really make the Rev weekend a true family experience.
In 2011, the Rev3 race series will expand into two new venues. In February, Rev3 will host its first international races, in Costa Rica. The series will conclude the 2011 series with an Olympic Rev and Half Rev races in picturesque Anderson, SC.
It’s hard to imagine the pre-work and logistics that go into staging any triathlon race, let alone a premier race experience such as Rev3. Recently, Tri Madness sat down with Eric Opdyke, Rev3’s race director, to discuss race planning, the Rev3 series, and what keeps him up at night.
To learn more about Rev3 Triathlon, their 2011 race series, and to register for one of their events, check out their website here.
—
TM: How did you get into the business of being… Read the rest
For the next week or so, TriMadness will be enjoying the sun and fun of Puerto Rico. Instead of posting new content, we’ll be re-running some of our favorite posts from the last year or so. Enjoy!
——
It’s fairly easy to be impressed with professional triathletes. I mean, let’s face it…their job is to do what for most of us is a hobby. They get to swimbikerun all the time. They are super fast. They get to go to exotic places to race and train. They meet the rich and famous. They have huge entourages. OK, perhaps some of that isn’t true.
Nevertheless, when I look at the work that some of the professionals do, I’m utterly amazed. Take for example Hillary Biscay. A quick review of her race resume shows that over the past nine years, Hillary has raced in 46 Ironman distance races. That’s an average of 5 per year. In some years, she’s raced 7 Iron races. To me, that’s unbelievable.
Hillary came to triathlon with an outstanding pedigree in swimming. She was a top-flight swimmer at the University of Southern California, and even competed in the 2000 US Olympic Trials in the 200 Breaststroke. Her swimming background is demonstrated most every time she enters a race; at her two most recent races she completed the swim in just over 53 minutes each (coming out of the water third at IMKY and first at IMWI)
Now, sit back and enjoy this week’s “Ten Questions With…Hillary Biscay.… Read the rest
As you know, it’s age groupers that make up the vast majority of folks that participate in this sport. Although I’ve interviewed more than a few professional triathletes, recently however, I’ve wanted to focus on age groupers in my ongoing Ten Questions With… series. This week’s interview continues down that path.
Kim Schwabenbuaer is an age grouper (albeit a VERY good age grouper) who grew up in Pennsylvania and now lives in the general Pittsburgh area. She and her husband are both quite active – Kyle is an outdoorsman (check out the TV show he works for here), and obviously Kim is big into triathlon.
Kim crossing the finishline at Kona in 2008.
Kim attended Penn State back in the day, and ran both track and cross country as a walk-on athlete. Ultimately, Kim became one of the better runners on the team, and was captain of both the cross country and track teams. She studied Nutrition Science & Applied Fields, and while originally wanted to be a chiropractor, Kim now is a certified dietician, triathlon coach, nutrition coach and motivational speaker.
So…without further ado, allow me to introduce you to this week’s subject for Ten Questions With…Kim Schwabenbuaer!
—–
TM: How did you get your start in triathlon? Was it a natural progression after your running career at Penn State ended, or did someone motivate you to give it a try?
KS: Actually, after doing a few marathons I was looking… Read the rest
For the past couple of months most of the interviews in my ongoing “Ten Questions With…” series have been with professional triathletes. There’s certainly something about connecting with an athlete that does this sport for a living that’s pretty compelling to me. It’s not every day that you get to have an inside look at the top athletes in our sport. The interviews have been fun, and I think we’ve met some pretty cool folks together over the past six months or so.
That said, when you think about our sport, in a lot of ways it’s not the professionals that define the sport…it’s the age groupers. Folks like you and me. That’s one reason triathlon related blogs are popular. We like to learn about each other. What makes us tick. What makes (or breaks) our races. Who we are.
With that in mind, I’m going to shift gears a little and focus today’s interview on an age-group athlete.
Allow me to introduce Jeff Irvin.
You may already know him. Many of you follow his blog (http://www.danglethecarrot.blogspot.com/) – it’s very popular. In fact…that’s how I got to know Jeff. He’s typical of many age groupers…he got his start in triathlon not terribly long ago, but has been totally bitten by the tri bug. He juggles long work hours with training. He has a family. He has friends. Sound familiar? It should. He’s just like you.
Jeff started his journey towards triathlon as an overweight, pizza eating, beer guzzling… Read the rest
A few weeks ago, I interviewed one half of this dynamic tri-duo, Amanda. When I approached Amanda, I really wanted a package deal – I wanted to be able to interview both Amanda and her husband Michael. Luckily enough for me, either I had big enough puppy eyes, they felt sorry for me, or that big wad of cash I sent their way garnered me an interview with both parts of this epic triathlon couple. (of course I’m kidding….at least on the cash part).
Michael was born in North Carolina (I knew I liked him for a reason), but didn’t stay long – he grew up in New Mexico. He attended the “real” UT – University of Texas. It was there that he discovered triathlon.
Michael and Amanda split their time during the year between Austin, TX and Boulder, CO. Both are highly engaged in social media – you’ll find them both on Twitter almost every day.
And now….today’s version of “Ten Questions With…” I present Michael Lovato
—
TM: So your race season kicked off a few weeks ago in Galveston, and you suffered a calf strain during the run. How is the recovery going?
ML: Now that it has been five weeks since racing Galveston, I have had a lot of time to recover; but to recap the rehab process a bit, I can say that it was a fairly quick recovery. While I don’t have a lot of experience with injury, I feel that I have a pretty conservative… Read the rest
You may not have heard the name Mandy McLane much before…but trust me, you will.
Mandy has only been a triathlete since 2008, but quickly rose to the top of the charts in the age group ranks. This season, Mandy is racing her first as a professional triathlete. She saw unparalleled success as an amateur – winning a World Championship at the 70.3 distance, a USAT national championship, and several victories as an elite amateur. Basically, she’s one hell of a good athlete.
Not only is she a successful athlete, but Mandy is also a successful businesswoman. She owns her own company, called Freedom of Speech. She’s a Speech Language Pathologist – what some of us might call a speech therapist.
Juggling a professional career with professional triathlon seems like a huge challenge, but we’re confident that if there’s anyone out there that can do both, it’s Mandy.
So today’s version of “Ten Questions With…” is with pro triathlete Mandy McLane…..
—–
TM: You’ve only been participating in triathlon for a few years. What compelled you to take up the sport?
MM: Post college I was just running to remain fit. I was getting bored with the monotony of running day in and day out. I had swimming and running background, so I figured I had a foot in the door already. So with the suggestion from a friend I decided to try triathlons. From my very first tri, I fell in love.
TM: In college you were a track athlete… Read the rest
Amanda Lovato is one half of triathlon’s most famous couples. She grew up in Maryland, attended Old Dominion University before transferring to the University of Knoxville. She’s had a great career thus far, both as an amateur and as a professional. Her specialty is the 70.3 distance, with a notable victory at Ironman 70.3 in Pucon.
Amanda and her husband Michael split the year between Boulder and Austin, TX.
And now, sit back and enjoy Ten Questions With…Amanda Lovato.
Photo courtesy of Competitor.com—–
TM: Tell us about your race in Puerto Rico. You had to withdraw due to breathing troubles. What happened, and are you feeling better now?
AL: Yes, thank you. I am feeling much better now. I have been suffering with Hiatal Hernia since 2005. Since I have not taken care of it surgically, I take series of medications to help control it. However, I ditched all of my medication last November thinking that I could control it naturally with diet. Obviously, I was wrong. The hernia causes a lot pressure on my diaphragm which sets off a reflex reaction with my breathing. After my poor performances at Costa Rica and Puerto Rico I am back on my medication and feeling better than ever.
TM: When you travel for a race like Puerto Rico or Rev3 Costa Rica, how much sightseeing and exploring do you get to do?
AL: When I travel to an exotic place like Costa Rica or Puerto Rico I don’t get to sight see as much… Read the rest
