TRURO - When Kelly Cormier heard about a triathlon club forming in Truro, she just couldn't pass up the chance to join.
The Bible Hill resident had been thinking of trying the sport for a while and this was her chance to act. Now, she's glad she did.
"I've learned a lot," Cormier said. "It's been a great experience."
She and the other 10 members of the group are set to compete in the Shubie Dooby Tri Sunday at Shubie Park Campground in Dartmouth. About half the group will be doing the sprint distance (750m swim, 20km bike, 5km run) while the others will compete in the Olympic distance (1,500m swim, 40km bike, 10km run).
The field features 215 athletes from across the Maritimes.
"I'll have butterflies in my stomach, even right now just thinking of it. But once you get going it's going to be a great time and a great experience," said Cormier, who expects to have plenty of friends and family in attendance to cheer her on.
The group has been training together for the past eight weeks, four nights per week. Members have also added in their own personal training sessions and have squeezed in several more on weekends, including forming their own mini-triathlon in Little Dyke to practice.
With each athlete coming from different backgrounds, the group has been coached by committee as everyone lends their expertise on each of the three disciplines. Especially those with triathlon experience.
"They can expect a lot of fun," Truro's Mike Moyles said of the first-timers. "You've been doing all this training and you finally get to your first race it's kind of like a big party."
"The race is always the celebration of all the work you've put in," added group member Jody Mattie.
The sessions have been a hit with those taking part.
"One of the attractions of it is it's also known as multisport and it tends to reduce the number of injuries you have," Moyles said. "If you get sore in one department then you can do one of the other disciplines."
sports@trurodaily.com
