DeSoto Triple T Prologue

Race Info:

Friday, May 23, 5:00 PM
Individual Time Trial #1
250m Swim - 5 mi Bike - 1 mi Run

Saturday, May 24, 7:30 AM
Individual Time Trial #2
1500m Swim - 24.8 mi Bike - 6.55 mi Run

Saturday, May 24, 3:00pm
Team Time Trial (TTT) #1
24.8 mi Bike (Time Trial start, team drafting allowed) - 1500mi Swim - 6.55 mi Run

Sunday, May 25, 7:00am
TTT #2
1.2 mi Swim (Time Trial start, team drafting allowed) - 55.5 mi Bike - 13.1 mi Run

The thought of doing one race on a given weekend is daunting. 4 races in 3 days covering >140 miles in hilly Southern Ohio, well that's just nuts.

Why would anyone want to sign up for such a thing? The obvious answer is because you can. Because it's there. Because it is a challenge that, not unlike your first Ironman, seams almost impossible. But the Triple T is so much more than that. The DeSoto Triple T is not only a huge multi-day party, it is a celebration of what our sport is behind the scenes. Triathlon may be an individual sport on most race days, but every other day of the year for most athletes, this is a team experience.

Soon after I signed up for my first Ironman, I met my team in the pool. My behind the scenes triathlon team consisted of, among others, 2 Ironman veterans. Less than 6 months after we first met, my team was giving up every weekend to organize 100+ mile training rides so that I would never have to ride alone. They hit the pool with me 3 days per week and when the time came, they had a great going away party for me. They pushed me harder than I ever would/could have pushed myself. They were with me every step of the 140.6 miles last June.

This year, the tables were turned. One of my teammates has big plans to take Ironman Lake Placid by storm. One day, while doing a kick set in the pool and planning out his pre-Ironman racing season, Tony had a crazy idea: "Hey, why don't the two of us do the Triple T?" And that is how Team Undermedicated was born.

How do you train for a team event?

You work YOUR weaknesses, you work your PARTNER'S strengths. Every time Tony and I are on a bike ride together I struggle to keep up. Every time we run together, he struggles to keep up. We push each other every day. On average we do at least 6 of our training sessions per week together. Rain or shine, indoors or out. There were countless indoor trainer rides through the winter. Long runs in the snow. Three mornings per week in the pool (now 4). We traveled to Virginia together to do an early season Half Ironman, and then backed it up with a 10-mile running race the next weekend. The result of pushing each other? I am riding 1 mph faster this year, and he is running 1 mph faster. We both had personal records in the swim, bike and run portions of the Kinetic Half Ironman. And we are ready to push each other through 140+ miles in 3 days. Together.

And in 7 days we will load up the car with 2 bikes, 2 people, 1 dog, more gear than anyone could ever use, food, maps, and a whole lot of nervous energy...