How the Long Road Began......

Hi, I am Gabrielle Walters a 50 year old triathlete who is now competing in my first World Triathlon Championships! I am a member of the Women's Triathlon Club. The club has been around for over a decade and I have been involved almost that long. In that time I have had the pleasure of getting to know and training with many amazing women who have accomplished many amazing things both athletically and personally. Following is a brief description of how myself and the others have found ourselves going to a World Championship.

In 2007 the Women's Triathlon Club had the opportunity to go to the National Triathlon Championships. It was the first year in many that the championships took place on the west coast. Around 16 women from the club went to Portland, Oregon to compete against hundreds of other women from around the United States. We were the largest contingent there. Three of us at that time qualified for the World Triathlon Championships in Canada. In 2008 Nationals was in Oregon again and this time we sent 20+ women to Nationals. Again we were the largest contingent. We went this time better prepared and better trained and 6 of us qualified for the Worlds in Australia for 2009.

Worlds this year will be in September of 2009 so we are now gearing up for the big event. My hope is that this blog will be a forum to share the story of this journey. Look forward to my next post and some photos!