HER Tri Clinic
April 13, 2003
Manassas, VA

 Three of us decided to share our enthusiasm for triathlon with other women who were interested in trying multi-sport.  There were 33 smiling, wide-eyed faces watching, listening, and soaking up information at HER Tri Clinic, a one-day workshop for female newbies (and those with limited race experience).  The day was intended to give them the background, tools, and motivation to give it a tri.  Our themes for the clinic were: 1) Participating in triathlon brings Fitness, Fun, and Friendships and 2) Completing a triathlon provides a sense of accomplishment no matter where you are in the pack

 There were workshops in swim, bike, and run led by professional coaches.  We were in the pool for the swim session, and we did running drills outdoors.  Since we suspected that some of the women wouldn’t yet own bikes to bring along, the bike session included a demo on position and an outline of safety guidelines for training.  The owner of a local triathlon store did a show and tell on gear (from bikes to clothing to paraphernalia) and answered about a million questions that the women shot at him.  We three organizers spoke on training schedules, being coached by a pro vs. planning your own training, resources, nutrition, resistance training, and stretching (with a participation session). Our last session was a “talk-thru” of a race, including transition area setup and demo. Lunch was accompanied by a peppy and inspiring “You Can Do It” talk by Melissa Merson (who has long been an activist in USAT).  Rob Vigorito (President of the Mid-Atlantic Region and a Race Director) did our final wrap-up on participating in the sport and USAT membership benefits. Every participant received a handbook (our modification of a handbook we received from the Women’s Commission) and a goody bag filled with items from a supportive community.

The atmosphere was filled with excitement in anticipation of the coming race season.  We encouraged the participants to ask questions and share tips gathered from whatever race experience they had…and the open forum style worked well.  People spoke out often in the group discussions.  All participants received a list of contact information so they can network amongst themselves (and with us, we hope!).  We do think they’ve made some new friends already…and we’re looking forward to seeing most all of the ladies at the starting line this summer!  We, too, felt inspired by the day and are planning another clinic in a couple of months. 

Ina Nenninger
Sadj Bartolo
Anne Viviani

Anne Viviani's comments

We had Ken and Melissa Mierke who ran swim and run sessions.  The attendees were shown stroke drills to practice.  Also lane lines were taken away so the women  could experience a simulated in-water start.  Also they swam back and forth in a "snakelike" pattern to give them a feel for following and sighting on things.  The run emphasized the evolution running philosophy that Ken espouses where you run leaning forward minimizing or eliminating jarring heel striking when you run.  There was a bike demo to show fit and form.  And Mark Smith from Bonzai gave a talk on bike and other tri equipment.  Mark's talk drew the most questions .  Melissa Merson spoke at lunch. She brought her Olympic torch to show and gave a really good presentation about enjoying the sport and not obsessing about winning-just doing and enjoying.  Vigorito closed out the day talking about Julie Moss and putting on races. 

I hadn't realized it until Rob said it but I guess this was the first all women's tri clinic in the mid-atlantic area.   The women filled out evaluation forms which Ina and Sadj and I are going to look at during a victory lunch on Wednesday so I will have to tell you if our attendees felt as good about it as we did.

There were lots of goodies:water bottles, cups, swim caps, women's commission t-shirts (from Melissa), luna bars, coupons other hand outs.  Vigo promised to send some Columbia stuff after the fact.  Also we fed the ladies all day.  Good bread and fruit for a morning snack; pizza, crudites, fruit, cookies, lemonade for lunch and luna bars  for an afternoon snack.  

Ina and Sadj put together a booklet of info that they had distilled from the women's commission materials.  Ina (who is a marvelous web master and computer person)  put her version onto the computer and will pass it to the women's commision for their use.

We showed Celeste's video a couple of times during registration and the women were rapt.  They complained because someone was yakking and they couldn't hear.  I hope we can use it the next time too.

...There will be a next time.  We are talking about maybe having another one this year.