Originally Posted: October 28, 2021
As a little girl, I grew up watching the Timberman triathlon in the Lakes Region of NH. I wasn’t a die-hard triathlon fan, or really familiar with the sport to begin with, but I watched because the course used to take triathletes quite literally through my backyard. I watched them saunter (or hobble) by each year with admiration. “Maybe someday I’ll do the sprint triathlon!” I thought to myself, watching my older brother win a jar of maple syrup in the sprint. “I guess I could do that if it meant I got maple syrup…” I continued to daydream. But just as I became old enough to participate, the race was discontinued. My Timberman daydreams ended. Or so I thought!
Years after my brother’s prize maple syrup had been consumed, I arrived at Dartmouth in pursuit of learning new things, loving a new community, and opportunities to challenge myself. On Tri Team, I found all of those things. Through a bizarre freshman year, my closest friendships formed with my fellow ‘24s on the team. On one evening out of *many* that we spent studying in Collis, Katie Walther ‘24 exclaimed “TIMBERMAN’S BACK!” as she read her email and reminded us of earlier conversations about racing together in NH. After cheering for a moment, my eyes widened when she mentioned that there would be no sprint race, only half-Ironman (70.3mi) distance: 1.2mi swim, 56mi bike, and 13.1mi run. I decided to go with the ambiguous “I’ll consider it...”
A few days later, with the unwavering declaration of support from our coaches, 15 of us were signed up to race 70.3 miles of slow-twitch fun. At that point, I couldn’t even wrap my head around a half-Ironman distance race.
Throughout the summer, I spent many hours each week swimming, biking, and running in preparation for the race. I loved experiencing “home” in a new way, exploring it as part of my training. Each week, I’d run track nights and bike hill repeats with my local triathlon club, Granite State Endurance Project, as well as swim with neighbors and family by my side.
As race day arrived, I felt prepared but nervous. With the encouragement and training plan provided by Coach Jim and Coach Katie, I had no doubt I could finish, but I grew apprehensive about timing, since my training bike rides were much slower than my goal race pace. When I finally toed the line, with Raif Olson ‘24 and Vaishnavi Katragadda ‘24 literally by my side, the day unfolded quickly, and each time I thought about what we were doing, I couldn’t help but smile (race photos prove it!). On the bike, I was able to shave an hour off of the time I had estimated for myself, and it was wonderful to see my teammates along the course. When I passed the sign for mile 50, I smiled in relief knowing that I had biked farther than I’d ever done before, and I felt capable of picking up the pace for the remaining 6mi back to transition. Once I laced up my sneakers and ate a few of my transition Sour Patch Kids, I was so excited to finish up the race in the run, the race leg that feels most at home to me. Through the misty 13.1mi, my legs felt like Jell-O, but I chugged along, glancing at the waves in Lake Opechee whenever I snapped back into reality. In the last 3mi, I realized I had energy left to give and kicked into the finish line. I’m not sure if I was more excited for the finish line or the finish line hugs awaiting me, as my speedy teammates so kindly cheered me in.
There’s a whole lot about my pandemic freshmen year experience that I could not explain to my young self, who sat by the side of the road cheering for Timberman athletes. But if I could explain to her that one day I’d be racing that realllllyyy long race and loving everything and everyone about it, I think she’d be pretty proud.
About the Author
Evelyn Hatem is a ‘24 from Bow, NH. She’s interested in environmental policy with the intent to major in Environmental Studies and Economics. She wishes that all race aid stations had Slushees, and when not SBR-ing, she loves to spend time hiking, dancing, and singing in the shower.
