From the Editor
A DUAL DREAM
Lights out at 7 p.m. in preparation for travel across multiple time zones. Waking up before dawn without an alarm. Training sessions at speeds most of us can’t fathom. This is the life of an elite triathlete. For Greg and Laura Bennett, this is the life they’ve adopted to achieve their goal — an Olympic medal for Team USA and Team Bennett.
The Bennetts’ singular focus on the Games is admirable. At our photo shoot in late May, on a rainy day in Boulder, they didn’t complain about the not-so-ideal conditions. No gripes about having to run on a muddy trail so that our photographer could get a realistic shot instead of the fake running photos you see in some magazines.
In a sport where some athletes blame the conditions or outside factors for every sub-par performance, ‘it was too rainy/cold/ hot for me today,’ the Bennetts evaluate performances in a no-nonsense way. Greg calls it being “factual and proactive when stress happens.” Their approach reminds me a lot of Dirk Nowitzki in this year’s NBA Finals. Nothing — not illness nor one of the best teams ever assembled — was going to deter him from winning a title.
The Bennetts have won plenty of titles, including Hy-Vee, Lifetime and Elite Nationals. But both Greg and Laura have finished the biggest race in draft-legal triathlon in the most heartbreaking spot — fourth. Fourth place at the Olympic Games, the event that awards three medals means you were oh so close to being on that podium and watching your country’s flag ascend toward the sky.
A number of factors have brought Laura and Greg to this point in their careers, and those obstacles and triumphs are what pushed them to set a big goal for 2012. No American has medaled in the Olympic triathlon since Susan Williams won bronze in Athens in 2004.
You can read the Bennett feature in the Olympic Primer section, which starts on page 40. This section also includes a time line of Olympic triathlon history, a glimpse at key races leading up to the London Games, a course map and profiles of the USA Triathlon National Team and Project 2012 athletes.
While 2012 is the focus for now, 2016 is on the minds of our junior triathletes. Two of the top junior men in the world, Kevin McDowell and Lukas Verzbicas, share a special bond as teammates and friends (read the full story on page 52). With McDowell’s Hodgkin’s lymphoma diagnosis earlier this year, Verzbicas, the top prep runner in the country and bound for a storied Oregon program in the fall, has shifted his focus back to triathlon for the summer. His goal: to win the medal McDowell was aiming for at the ITU Junior World Championships in Beijing.
Jayme Ramson is the editor-in-chief of USA Triathlon Magazine. Contact her at
jayme.ramson@usatriathlon.org.
MAIL BAG
Something to say about USA Triathlon Magazine? Email letters to the editor to
communications@usatriathlon.org with “mailbag” in the subject line. Be sure to include your name. Letters may be edited for length and grammar.
Making a Difference
I wanted to let you know how the magazine made a big difference for someone…
[This spring], I was at a triathlon party in Columbia, Md., and passed your magazine along to Robin Yoder, a woman who lost her leg last August to cancer (she was a triathlete before that, up to half-iron distance). Her story came across my desk a couple of months ago, and I wanted to give her a Speed Concept to inspire her to have a goal to do another one.
I also thought getting her story out will inspire others, as it has me. She had cancer when she was 17, and the treatment from that is why it returned last year. She’s been a cancer counselor for 20-plus years, giving back to the community and encouraging others to persevere. She’s an amazing woman!
We’re planning to do the sold out Athleta Iron Girl sprint triathlon in Columbia, Md., together on Aug. 21. When I was in Columbia [this spring], I ran the course and then sent her the GPS data/elevation so she knows what she’s in for. She’s up to the challenge and one determined lady! I just hope I can keep up with her in the swim, as her previous race times are impressive.
In any event, she contacted Melissa Stockwell after reading the article, and the two are communicating to help get the bike fit dialed in. I’ve had challenges finding anyone who has fit a Speed Concept for an above-the-knee amputee (no one internally thinks it’s been done).
Robin was recently featured in a Trek Women News monthly email, and here’s a link to her journal, if you want to read more about her:
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/robinyoder/journal. She just completed a 10k too with her family and a ton of friends!
— Leslie Prevish
CORRECTIONS
Missing Delaware
The region map on page 65 of the spring issue inadvertently had the state of Delaware blacked out.
Rankings
The 20-24 age group of the men’s triathlon rankings on page 102 of the spring issue were incomplete. See page 18 for the full listing of All-American and Honorable Mention honorees.
16 USA TRIATHLON SUMMER 2011
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