Author: Noel Hemphill
For many people, training and competing in one sport is enough. For sophomores Taylor Durham and Greta Jarvis, training in the three sports that make up a triathlon—swimming, running and biking—is a therapeutic accomplishment and rewarding challenge.
“It just feels so good to be in shape in all three disciplines,” Durham said.
Durham and Jarvis have strong backgrounds in sports, both having played for the Occidental women’s lacrosse team. After a year on the team, the two faced challenges due to injury and burn out. Still looking for a competitive and fun athletic outlet, they found their way into triathlons.
Triathlons, or “tris,” as they are frequently called by the endurance sport community, were established in France in 1902. The initial trio of events included running, cycling and canoeing. By the 1920s, triathlons had evolved to today’s current non-stop race of swimming, biking and running.
Today’s races range in distances from “sprints” with a half-mile swim, 13-mile bike and 3.1-mile run to the ultra “Ironman” length of 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.2-mile run.
Triathlons have become a popular sport for military members due to their intensity and challenge level. U.S. Navy Commander John Collins decided anyone who could finish the ultra distance triathlon should be given the name “Ironman.”
“I want to be the ‘IronWoman’ that proves them all wrong,” Durham said.
For Durham, triathlons were the perfect way to regain strength after difficult high school injuries in soccer and lacrosse. Low impact swimming and biking serve as physical therapy and cross training for the high impact running segment of the races.
“At the end of high school, I had lots of injuries,” Durham said. “I used swimming and biking to get back in shape, and then I realized how much I loved it.”
It was Jarvis’ competitive edge that led her to consider triathlons. When a coworker suggested Portland’s “My First Tri,” Jarvis signed up and gave it a try.
“I had so much fun, and I am hooked for life,” she said.
During their first year playing lacrosse with Occidental, Durham and Jarvis bonded over their mutual passion for triathlons and began training together, creating a two-member triathlon club. Though they have done some practice runs around campus, the pair has found it difficult to keep up their training while in college. Training facilities are hard to come by and it can be challenging to find time to work out alongside other responsibilities.
For the two to fulfill their goals of competing in Olympic distance triathlons of a one mile swim, a 25-mile bike and a 6.2-mile run, more support from Occidental would be ideal. Many University of California schools and smaller schools like St. Olaf College boast triathlon clubs for students.
“If Occidental provided transportation to different training locations, I would definitely take advantage of that,” Jarvis said. “I would also love to meet other students excited about racing and keeping in shape.”
Durham has found the triathlon community to be a major motivator. Men, women and children of all ages compete in the races and cheer each other on to the finish line.
“With a lot of sports there is an expiration date that you only have so long to play because of the toll on your body,” she said. “With triathlons, I was at about the same pace as a 75-year-old man who was running right next to me at the end of the race and I was really impressed. People think you have to scale it down as you get older but there isn’t a limit.”
Having strong goals in mind keeps the women fired up while training and racing. Although Durham and Jarvis have both found swimming to be the most difficult leg of the race, they use future races as means of improving on past performances.
“All the adrenaline and excitement really distracts me from fatigue,” Jarvis said. “I am just so thankful to be physically able to participate in events like triathlons, and I love pushing myself to the next level.”
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