Triathletes travel from afar for sold-out Chippewa Challenge Indoor Triathlon
Michigan State junior Ben Moss pushes himself on the pedal bike during the Chippewa Challenge Triathlon on Feb. 24 at the Student Activity Center.
Just minutes after sunrise on a cool and windy Sunday morning, athletes from Central Michigan University, the Mount Pleasant community and beyond kicked off the first wave of events in the ninth annual CMU Chippewa Challenge Indoor Triathlon.
Hosted by the CMU Triathlon Club, the event took place from 7:30 a.m. to noon Feb. 24 in the Student Activities Center.
Seven competitors swam in the first round of the swimming portion of the triathlon. The spectators’ states of dress ranged from boots and a thick hooded sweatshirt to a speedo in the case of one competitor waiting for his turn.
Participants of the triathlon varied widely. CMU students, students from surrounding universities and universities as far away as Chicago, and community members all competed in the triathlon together.
CMU alumnus Mike Simon, a 1999 graduate, has participated in the indoor triathlon every year the event has taken place.
“It’s laid back and yet it’s competitive,” Simon said. “This one is a good one to see where you need work.”
After the first wave of the swimming portion, competitors move on to the next part of the triathlon. For this part, athletes used stationary exercise bikes. For the final third of the triathlon, athletes ran on the indoor track about the Student Activities Center basketball courts.
With the running portion as the final part of the race, the track area was often noisy with the shouted encouragements of onlookers and the triathlon club volunteers. The runners were often loudly encouraged each new lap they ran and were met with a continuous chorus of encouraging shouts during the last minute or so of the race.
Mount Pleasant residents Valerie Muniz (Left) and Dayna Johansen (Right) pedal on exercise bikes during phase two of the Chippewa Challenge Triathlon on Feb. 24 at the Student Activity Center.
One of the volunteers helping keep score for the running portion of the triathlon was Hannah Heldt, a graduate student from Midland. She volunteered at last year’s Indoor Triathlon and helped athletes transition from one part of the race to the next.
“I love to encourage people and cheer them on,” Heldt said.
St. Johns senior Lyndsay Pung shared Heldt’s attitude about encouraging the athletes as they compete.
“It’s fun to see everyone get pumped up to cheer on strangers,” Pung said.
David Trimas, a University of Michigan senior, was one of the many athletes with friends cheering him on as he finished the triathlon in a fast sprint.
“I heard everyone cheering and I just gunned it,” Trimas said.
Trimas hadn’t competed in a triathlon since he was in high school and this was his first indoor triathlon.
Concordia University (Illinois) freshman Karissa Walters competes in the swimming portion of the Chippewa Challenge Triathlon on Feb. 24 at the Student Activity Center.
Makai Lynn Randall, a CMU senior from Kenai, Alaska and vice president of the Triathlon Club, said the event sold out for the first time this year.
“We’ve got 80 racers this year," Randall said. “We really locked it down this year.”
Ginger Vanderkelen, 76, who lives in Mount Pleasant also competed in the triathlon. She competed in outdoor triathlons and this was her first time competing in the Triathlon Club’s indoor triathlon.
Vanderkelen started competing in triathlons at age 73 with her two daughters and granddaughter who like to compete in triathlons.
“It’s a lot easier than outside," she said of the indoor triathlon.
