The first time I participated in a triathlon, I wanted to stop. As I plowed up hills (who picked this course?) on my heavy mountain bike, women who passed me would encourage me on and yell "you go girl"! As I ran--no, plodded--down the trail, sometimes slowing to a walk, the women coming from the other direction would cheer me on telling me I didn't have much further to go.
And as I finally and unbelievably crossed the finish line, those who finished earlier stood around the finish line hooting and rooting for those of us bringing up the rear. I wanted to stop, but they weren't going to let me. The support and companionship of a womens triathlon is an incredible push, especially for beginner triathletes.
When organized triathlons were first held in the 1970's, the competitors, male or female, were often hard-core athletes who were previously competitors in college swimming, distance biking or marathons. Triathlon participants were looking to be the fastest and garner a spot on the podium.
But there was another breed of competitor, especially among women: an "ordinary" female who enjoyed being active and liked a challenge. These were the women who started organizing triathlon events specifically for women that weren't just about winning, but meeting the challenge and enjoying the effort.
The first womens triathlons were being organized in the US and Australia in the late 80s and early 90's. Now womens triathlons like the Danskin Triathlon Series boast some of the greatest participation rates in the world. In 19 years that the Danskin series has been around, it has grown from 450 women participating in three events to 25,000 women swimming, cycling and running in eight races in different cities.
Other womens triathlons have since been created like the larger Luna All-Women's Triathlon and Irongirl Series all the way to smaller local womens triathlon events. There is probably a women's triathlon held in a city not far from you.
The growth in womens triathlons reflects the growing number of women competing in this sport. As of 2007, USAT, the official governing body of triathlon in the US, reported that the percentage of its 100,000-strong membership that is female has grown from just over a quarter to just over a third in the past eight years.
But why participate in a women's only triathlon? For many women, competing in a triathlon not so much about the results. The fun is in the training and racing and seeing how you improve. You're judging your body by how it performs for you, not by how it looks. For many womens triathlon organizers, the race is about a celebration of women's fitness.
Women's events also offer camaraderie as much as competition in this multisport event. When you are new to this involved sport, it is comforting and inspiring to being able to talk to others with the same life issues and challenges as you. Womens triathlons that welcome beginners also give a lot of instruction on what to expect so you aren't trying to figure it out while you race.
Women's triathlons offer standard race lengths (sprint length at 500m swim/20Kbike/5krun or Olympic length at 1k swim/40k bike/20k run). Many offer slightly shorter lengths (such as .25 mi/8 mi bike/1.5 mi run) so first timers and those who are still a little out of shape, can get their feet wet.
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