Never too old to give it a tri
76-year-old takes up endurance sport
dwayne.grant@news.com.au ALF Lakin is bound for the world triathlon championships in Holland – which is quite a feat considering he couldn’t swim 25m two years ago and hadn’t ridden a bike in more than six decades.
The 76-year-old qualified for September’s world titles after finishing second in his age group at the Australian championships to continue a love affair with triathlon that blossomed at an age when many blokes feel tired just watching someone else run.
“I couldn’t swim a lap of the small pool and hadn’t ridden a bike for about 65 years,” Alf said of his form when a chat with a triathlon coach at a gym inspired him to become her oldest rookie.
“I got a bike from Kmart, although I fell off it a couple of bloody times. Now I’ve got a $1000 racing bike ... and those young guys are flying past on their $10,000 bikes but I don’t get nervous. I just want to do my own thing.”
That includes focusing on the triathlon’s sprint distance of 750m swim, 20km bike ride and 5km run, which takes him up to two hours to ALF LAKIN ON HIS CLUBMATES complete – minus any hiccups.
“The first race I went in I ran straight past my bike (in transition) and my wife was screaming at me that I’d missed it,” Alf says of Karen, a Masters athlete herself.
“I actually tried out my first wetsuit the other day ... I looked like Ian Thorpe, not that I can swim like him.”
Alf completes a 60-90 minute training session each day of the week bar one, many with his Team T-Rex Triathlon Club teammates.
“They’re all so young I could be their grandfather,” he says of a crew ranging from teens to 40-somethings.
“They’re very supportive but keep calling me a legend and I hate that word. I see a legend as different to me.
“A couple have even been over to do the Hawaii ironman (3.8km swim, 180km bike, 42.2km run).
“I haven’t thought about doing that but one day I’d love to do a half ironman. It’s only a thought in my head.
“No one has ever said I’m stupid for doing this. It’s more ‘Good on ya’ and let’s face it – a lot of people my age are just sitting down to watch TV or have a cup of tea.”