Iron Girl has camaraderie we need
PLEASANT PRAIRIE - Traci Gibb was the fastest woman at the Iron Girl sprint triathlon Sunday, crossing the finish line in a blazingly fast 1 hour, 3 minutes, 12 seconds. The 31-year-old from Jackson just crushed this race.
But there were other reasons this event is so great besides showcasing how fast an athlete can be. It's also an example of how strong and powerful we can be.
Less than a half hour later, Virginia Lawrence of Trevor cruised to the finish line.
And she's pregnant, in her second trimester.
“I did better than I expected,” Lawrence, 37, said with a laugh.
With the blessing of her midwife, the knowledge of what to do (and what not to do), and the support of her family — her four kids and Dan cheered for her throughout the race — Lawrence took it easy when needed and raced with caution.
“I went slower than normal. That was the goal today: safe and smart,” said Lawrence, a physical therapist. “My goal was just to complete it and say I did it. And set a good example for my kids.”
This is why we race. For a millions reasons, as personal and unique as our stories and journeys to get to the nervous starting line. And this year, more than ever, just because we can.
After Iron Girl was forced to shut down like most races in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it returned this year, still amid concerns with the emerging delta variant. It was a welcome return and a well-run operation.
Iron Girl is a women's-only sprint triathlon of a half-mile swim, 11-mile bike ride and 3.1-mile run; the duathlon is a 1.75-mile run, 11-mile ride and 3.1mile run. With the support of the Rec Plex in Pleasant Prairie, this event has been a fixture of the racing community for women of all ages and abilities who use the summer to train for swimming and then cap off the season with a triathlon.
Iron Girl race director Abbey VanValkenburg, who is also project manager at Race Day Events based in Fitchburg, tried everything to go on as planned at
The Iron Girl triathlon drew 623 participants to the event Sunday in Pleasant Prairie.
the end of the summer of 2020, but soon after that information was publicized, Kenosha County shut it down.
It wasn't a shock; nearly every triathlon was shut down with the rest of racing in 2020. Sadly, some of them haven't returned.
Iron Girl usually draws 950 to 1,000 racers a year. The pandemic and the uncertainty it causes is still affecting this race, but this was a good turnout. It had 623 registered participants Sunday.
“It is down about 300 people,” said VanValkenburg. “It's interesting because our other events have actually been higher than normal. We've been kind of discussing why Iron Girl has been so low. I think a lot of it is attributed to, for many these women, this is their very first triathlon. With COVID, and the unknown, they just decided training this year just wasn't the year for them.
“It's still great to see many ladies still decided to take it on this year with so many unknowns and the unknown spring. We are very happy with that turnout.”
Sara Klemme of Sun Prairie was one of those first-time triathlon racers. She joined neighbor Karen Dwyer and the Wisconsin Farm triathlon league, and signed up because Iron Girl was Dwyer's first tri 11 years ago.
And they started training over the winter.
“Well I have a pretty Type A personality, so having a goal was good,” Klemme. “But staying consistent was really challenging. I have a new appreciation for people who do IRONMAN.”
For many athletes, there's strength in numbers when you join a team and sign up for a challenge.
“You're not going to get up and go to the pool at 5 a.m. in the winter,” said Klemme.
“We both to go. We just … both go,” said Dwyer, laughing.
For others, racing solo is just fine, too. Anna Duensing of Milwaukee raced her second Iron Girl. While she's 14 years old and headed to high school, she's a strong swimmer and navigated the sunrise well.
“It was kind of rough because it was really sunny,” she said. “I just looked at the buoys and the platforms.”
Iron Girl is just a well-thought out, well run race. Race Events staffs it with 15 employees, there are numerous helpful and supportive volunteers and the Rec Plex campus is the perfect setting. Local law enforcement protects the course, which is closed to vehicles. It's well marked and there was plenty of space to race and transition between the three sports.
Endurance House, a Delafield bicycle shop, was also there to handle any bike issues.
Iron Girl paid attention to little details that made the race exceptional. Finishers got a red rose with their medals, a bag lunch from Corner Bakery, and top swag, with a nice T-shirt and back pack. The Expo has good vendors with bargains.
The race itself is also designed to be less intimidating, at least as triathlons go. While the swim is long at half a mile, the water is smooth like a swimming pool compared to the wavy open water swimming usually found in lakes. The bike and run are on flat earth. There's a lot of space for spectators to find moms, daughters, wives and sisters.
For the athletes themselves, there's nothing like crossing a finish line with people cheering and your name announced on the microphone, especially in a race like this with so many nurses and teachers who don't get thanked enough for their work.
But in an event like this, in which racers cheer for one another on the course while racing, it's the camaraderie and community we need, always. And now more than ever.