THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 17, 1995 TAG: 9509130029
SECTION: REAL LIFE PAGE: K1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KERRY DOUGHERTY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 71 lines
ANNE FERRELL TATA and Becky Lyle exchanged sweaty high fives after they crossed the finish line at last Saturday's Outer Banks Triathlon in Manteo.
By the time they completed the 1,000-meter swim, 15-mile bike race and 3.1-mile run, these novice racers from Virginia Beach were sweating from their hair, eyebrows, chins, elbows and knees.
But they were grinning.
``I had two goals today,'' gasped Tata, wiping perspiration from her eyes with her damp forearm. ``I wanted to finish. And I didn't want to walk.''
As they were talking, a seasoned competitor approached - cool, collected and sweat-free. He paused to advise them that walking for a minute or two during the 5K footrace could prove very refreshing.
``I often find that if I walk for a minute and dump a little water on my head, when I begin to run I pass everybody who had just passed me,'' he said, knowingly.
As he walked away, Lyle giggled and good-naturedly muttered a single word: ``Wimp.''
Walking was not in the game plan for this determined duet who have been training for more than a year for today's Sandman Triathlon at Virginia Beach.
After a story about the two appeared in The Virginian-Pilot, the organizers of the Manteo race persuaded them to enter that one first.
``It's a great tune-up for Sunday,'' Tata said.
Apparently. Organizers of the Outer Banks Triathlon said at least a third of the 300 racers last week hailed from Hampton Roads. Most were warming up for today's Oceanfront race.
Like the Sandman, the Manteo triathlon combines swim, bike and foot races. Unlike the Sandman, the Manteo swim is in the calm Albemarle Sound. The Sandman's swim is the same distance - but in the unpredictable surf off 22nd Street. The current and wave action makes the ocean swim the hardest part for most triathletes.
``I'm a little worried about it,'' Lyle confessed.
But the Manteo race had a longer and more difficult bike component - 15 miles instead of 14. And bikers there are forced to compete with cars for the road. Plus the cyclists have to navigate a steep bridge and long causeway buffeted by sharp crosswinds.
``I worried about everything today,'' Tata said as she cooled down. ``During the swim I was afraid somebody would swim over me and drown me. During the bike race I was worried I'd fall and get run over. And during the run I thought I was going to have a heart attack.''
``We're definitely back-of-the-packers,'' she admitted. ``But just finishing, having done it, feels great.''
The enthusiasm of this twosome - who were good tennis players, but not competitive runners, swimmers or bikers a year ago - has energized the Sandman.
``We've had so many people call to enter this year's race,'' race organizer June Barrett-McDaniels said. ``People are saying, `Hey, if they can do it, so can I.' ''
More than 400 people are registered for the race. At least 50 have never competed in a triathlon.
To encourage first-timers, the Sandman is giving everyone an award this year.
Lyle and Tata - now seasoned triathletes - are not eligible. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
STEVE EARLEY/Staff file
Becky Lyle, left, and Anne Ferrell Tata used the Outer Banks
Triathlon to train for today's Sandman competition.
by CNB