On Thursday, April 11, a group of 9 student triathletes left campus early morning headed for Mission Viejo, California. This trip was the first of hopefully many in which Dartmouth Triathlon competed at Club Collegiate Nationals. The Olympic-length race, consisting of a 1-mile (1650 yd) lake swim, 24-mile bike, and 6.2-mile run, was the culmination of months of planning, training and fundraising. Katie Walther, Tina Fernandez, Spencer Meek, Katie Cox, Lauren Heller, Kenna Franzblau, Jeffrey McAtee, Ben Hinchliffe, and Zoe Holmes all participated in the Olympic race. In addition, Spencer, Tina, Lauren, and Jeffrey competed in the mixed relay as well. Beating a field of nearly 1000 athletes, Ben Hinchliffe was the overall National Champion, winning the Olympic race with a time of 1:54:12!
Competing at Nationals was a meaningful experience for everyone involved, whether it was their first race representing Dartmouth or one of their last.
Ben Hinchliffe ‘27:
The USAT Collegiate Club Nationals has been my focus since the beginning of the fall term. It was a great goal to aim for and to motivate me through my training, and I also knew that the form I would have for the race would set me up well for the rest of my season. I began my dedicated build at the beginning of Winterim, training an average of around 16-17 hours a week. Whilst I love my training, that load was tough to fit in around school once the winter term began. On those days when I really did not want to train, the goal of nationals kept me focused and was a constant motivator to remind me what the sacrifices were for. Going into the race I knew I was in good shape. I felt fit but because it was still so early in the season, I wasn’t sure I would be very race sharp. Therefore, I was pretty apprehensive of my performance on the day. I knew I would have to rely on my experience of racing through the years to translate that fitness into race speed. Therefore, I tried to keep my pre-race routine as similar as possible, and set up a pacing plan which was specific to the course. I knew I was not going to be in the front wave because I didn’t go to nationals last year or the conference championships, so I would therefore not be able to see where I stood relative to my competitors during the race. This changed my strategy from racing to pacing; I knew I just had to pace my effort perfectly, rather than responding to racing dynamics during the race. After that there was not much more I could do than trust the process and give it everything on race day.
Crossing the finish line I was pleased with my performance. Since I was not in the front wave, I didn’t know where I stood. What’s more the results page wasn’t working for a while, so it wasn’t until Coach Katie told me that I knew I’d won. At that moment, I felt a mixture of joy and disbelief – it was a moment I’ll cherish for a while! The realisation of what had happened only really hit me later in the day though, whilst we drove back from our team post-race Chipotle trip!
I took a gap year after high school during which I focused on triathlon. I raced with the goal of getting my pro licence (which would allow me to race in the professional field), and achieved half of the qualification criteria. The race distance I focused on was the Middle Distance – or Half Ironman – and that’ll be my focus again this summer as I try and finish off the fulfilling on my pro criteria. Despite my background in the sport, the Dartmouth Tri Team has been an immense help this year. Not only in providing me the support and platform from which to race nationals, but also by helping me through my training and providing me with an awesome community of people who love triathlon as much as I do, out of which comes the support and motivation to continue to be the best athlete I can.
Katie Walther ‘24 (Co-Captain):
The opportunity to race at Collegiate Club Nationals and be accompanied by such a dedicated, hard-working team was incredible! As a senior and outgoing Captain, it was so rewarding to look back on where I was as a triathlete four years ago (a complete beginner) and where the team was as well; over the last four years, my co-captains and I have witnessed the team almost double in size, vastly expand our resources, skills, and aspirations, and become an integral part of the Dartmouth experience for our '25s, '26s, and '27s. Competing at Nationals is a goal we've long had, and our ability to do so this year demonstrates just how far this team has come and how many bright things are in its future! I feel so lucky to have been able to contribute to this growth and celebrate Dartmouth Tri's past, present, and future at Nationals!
Spencer Meek ‘24 (Co-Captain):
To get to Nationals was a dream that we hadn’t even known was possible until this year. After 10 years and exponential growth, this team is one of the biggest in the nation and we couldn’t be more excited for the direction we are headed. We owe it all to the support that our friends, family, alumni, and coaches have given us over the years and who helped us reach the race. To have the opportunity to represent Dartmouth at the highest level was such an honor and a culmination of my time here.
Tina Fernandez ‘24 (Co-Captain):
This weekend was the culmination of years of hard work. I joined Tri Team my freshman fall and have seen it grow to the biggest, and one of the most active, club sport teams on campus. I am beyond proud to see this team mature and develop every year. Going to Nationals this year, for the very first time in our team's history, is a testament to the dedication that our team puts into the sport day after day, the commitment of our executive board members, captains, and coaches. Training for Nationals was a months-long process that required discipline, as we were training at a high-level, and dedication to proper fueling, sleep, and injury prevention measures. As someone who hadn't done triathlons before Dartmouth, I have fallen in love with the sport, and it is something I hope to continue doing as long as I am able to. I feel extremely happy and proud of everyone who raced this weekend and elated to see the team bear the fruit of our efforts.
Lauren Heller ‘26:
Nationals was an awesome experience to bond with teammates and celebrate all of the hard training we have accomplished. It was really inspiring to watch so many other athletes our age racing at such a high level. The course was so beautiful and it was fun to ride on all of the hills. Also, competing in the relay was such a fun and unique experience and it was fun competing in a collective team event.
Kenna Franzblau ‘26:
Nationals was so so so awesome! It was the biggest race we've gone to together as a team and it was so amazing to race against so many other college athletes and teams. The energy at the race was electric and it was so fun to hangout with the team in California for a few days!
Thank you so much to all of our sponsor's for making this opportunity possible!