This is my ninth season doing triathlons. I started with Danskin in 1999 and now I'm training for my first half ironman!

I’ve been involved as the team leader of the LUNA Chix since it started 4 years ago. I love being a part of the program because of the fantastic women I've met! I enjoy being able help women in their quest for success - answering questions on training for a first tri, gaining comfort in the open water, learning bike mechanics, or just getting out there!

I learned a valuable life lesson several years ago when my boyfriend and I were riding in Hawaii.  After having ridden 55 miles (of which 16 were climbing) and gaining 4500 feet of elevation, I grew tired of him telling me “We’re almost at the top”, only to NOT be at the top (this happened several times).  To make matters worse, a company will bus you to the top, and then drop you off so you can ride all the way down.  So I was enduring people screaming with glee as they flew down the hill, not needing to move their pedals at all. Having had enough punishment, I pulled over to the side of the road and cried.  Finally composing myself and getting back on my bike, I rode another two minutes and there was the summit.  The moral is:  NEVER GIVE UP!!!!

Favorite race:  Black Hills Triathlon - the shorter swim, longer bike and trail run are perfect for me!

When I’m not running, biking and swimming I’m sleeping, eating, walking the dogs, and working.

What most people don’t know about me:  My dream job is to be a back-up singer in a rock band.

This year will mark my fourth year as a member of the Seattle LUNA Chix Triathlon team.  I can honestly say that up until three years ago I equated the word triathlon with really in-shape athletes who spent all their time training and racing (how else could they squeeze into those little two piece racing suits?  There’s no way she’s eating carbs!)  Happily, I found out that my perceptions (or misperceptions as they were) could not have been further from the truth.  After watching my soon-to-be-husband (just a guy with shaved legs at the time) compete in a triathlon, a girlfriend and I got up the courage to sign up for our first  (just a “sprint” mind you) triathlon.  So with my mountain bike, a rented wetsuit and the goal of “just finishing,” I competed and, of course, finished.  When I crossed the finish line the sense of accomplishment was immense, and possibly delusional, as I promptly signed up for another race.  Since that first race, it has been a slippery slope: new bikes, wetsuits, drink mixes, sports gels and of course, body glide.  But with all the tri toys aside, it’s the people I’ve met and the feelings of accomplishment that keeps me coming back.  I am lucky to have had the opportunity through the Luna Chix team to make some wonderful new friends while helping women realize their own athletic potential.  I hope this year brings more of the same!   

I have been with the LUNA Chix program for four seasons now. I started the Portland TRI LUNA Chix team in Portland, Oregon in 2005 along with five of my favorite friends and triathletes. During the 2006 season, I moved to Seattle and joined the Seattle TRI LUNA Chix team for the 2007 season. I have had a wonderful experience with LUNA and wholeheartedly believe in their organization and the mission they are pursuing. LUNA Chix has been such a wonderful way to get women involved in sport and being active and has given me the rare opportunity of getting to know some amazing women from all across the country.

I have been involved in triathlon for five years after many years of playing soccer and enjoying numerous outdoor sports. Triathlon has become a passion in my life and may be one of the only sports where the beginners can actually participate and rub shoulders with the elite professionals of the sport. It is a humbling sport that takes intense training, discipline and multiple abilities. It is truly a sport for the type A personalities and those who wish to continuously strive to push their own limits. My favorite aspect of the sport is the camaraderie. On race day, people set their lives aside including their jobs, friends and their egos. For that one day, everyone works through their own issues, challenges and negative self-talk and each works as hard as they can to achieve the same goal of finishing, regardless of where they were 24 hours prior.

My favorite place to bike is in Coeur D'Alene, Idaho. I have worked hard to finish two Ironman races there and cannot wait to train for another. Riding there not only reminds me of my past accomplishments but reminds of those challenges yet to come. There is something intensely peaceful about riding your bike in the middle of beautiful mountains and lakes with very few people and establishments around. My favorite place to swim is the pool at my club. It is a saline pool where I can log some great training hours without a lot of people and a great environment for my winter training regimen. My favorite place to run is just about anywhere without a lot of traffic. I am a sucker for trails that lead to an incredible view. The routes on the Mt. Si relay were amazing and I would hit the Snoqualmie Valley Trail anytime! My favorite race is hands down, the Ironman. I love the challenge of pushing your body beyond its limits and finding out what the human body and spirit is capable of. It is so inspiring to see people who have the courage to put everything on the line just to finish such a feat.

Favorite LUNA flavor: Toasted nuts and cranberry. It has just the right amount of sweetness but with the flavor of granola.

>

3^rd Season with Luna Chix

Favorite Race: Seafair Triathlon, Seattle, WA

Favorite Luna flavor: Chocolate Peppermint Stick

I am your stereotypical “soccer” mom, except with my kids it’s soccer, basketball and softball! So when I’m not busy shuttling them to one of their games or practices, I am usually trying to cram a run, bike or swim workout in. I’m just like every other suburban “domestic diva” except I am usually dressed in workout clothes, have wet hair, no makeup and there is a bike hanging off the back of my car.  I love the sport of triathlon because I never get bored.

2008 will be my third season as a Seattle triathlon team ambassador.  I have been hooked on the sport of triathlon since my first event, Issaquah Sprint Triathlon in 2005.  It was attending weekly workouts and clinics my first season that set me up for a season of personal goal shattering.  I truly went from barely surviving a gym spin class, not even owning a bicycle and being able to only do a few laps in the pool to completing several sprint and one Olympic triathlons, not to forget several half marathons. 

The truly cool aspect, is that I am having a blast while doing things I would have only admired from a far in the past. 

My favorite triathlon is the Black Hills tri near Olympia-but really enjoy any event that gets me away from the urban jungle and out into the trees, near the ocean or along a trail.

My lowest point in this sport resulted in a long cry on a Lake Washington dock in the early morning hours, when no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t juggle work, family and this new sport that I had so enthusiastically embraced to the effortless level that I wanted.  It was a wake up call to not make every effort a “A” race and keep it fun! 

When I am not on my way to a race or a workout, I am an engineer for a medical device start up or spending time with my family!  I got to be a proud mommy, when my daughter completed her first duathlon at the age of 5! 

My personal goals this year is to keep the rubber side down, go on that perfect ride, and finish my first Half Ironman.--- oh yeah hang with you all – as we get out there and play!

Achilles Heel - Cinnamon Rolls!