Written by TED CLARKE
Citizen staff
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Friday, 18 July 2008 |
Jaylene Paivarinta, a Prince George mother of three young girls, shown completing her swim at the Desert Half-Ironman in Osoyoos, will be among a group of about 100 athletes racing in Sunday’s Prince George Citizen Triathlon/Duathlon at West Lake Provincial Park. (Photo by Michelle Boshier)
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But if she had it her way, Jaylene Paivarinta would love it if somebody in scuba gear would clear her a path through the weeds before she takes the plunge into West Lake for Sunday’s race.
Paivarinta remembers her open-water swim experience on the sprint course last year and it took some getting used to. Not only did the former Prince George Barracudas Swim Club member have a crowd in the water with her, but she also had to cut through the weeds.
“West Lake is a little intimidating because of the weeds,” said Paivarinta, one of 103 entrants in Sunday’s race (9 a.m. start).
“You’ve got your face in the water trying to fight off all these swimmers, and there are the weeds staring right back at you. It’s kind of mental, you just have to out it out of your head.”
As of the deadline Wednesday, 103 entries had been registered on-line. The race starts Sunday at 9 a.m. with the mass plunge into West Lake. The sprinters will swim 750-metres, ride 20km and run for 5km, while the Olympic-distance athletes swim 1.5km, ride 40km and run 10km.
“I like that this race is in town, it’s just a great event because you know people and they’re cheering you on,” Paivarinta said.
Paivarinta pushed the limits of her endurance two weeks ago in the Desert Half-Ironman, from Osoyoos to Keremeos. The cycling part of that race starts with a 12-kilometre climb up a mountain pass. That Half-Ironman included a 1.9km swim, 90km ride and 21.09km run.
“The bike is challenging in Prince George, but that ride in in Osoyoos was brutal,” Paivarinta said. “I didn’t realize how tough it would be.”
Paivarinta would have liked to have had longer to recover, and debated not racing on Sunday, but her friend and training partner Michelle Boshier, a duathlon (bike and run) entrant, convinced her to sign up. Paivarinta’s Half-Ironman experience has inspired thoughts of tackling the ultimate triathlon challenge -- the Suburu Ironman in Penticton.
“I secretly do want to do the Ironman, she said. “I never thought I would do a half-Ironman and when I finished I thought, ‘I never want to do that again.’ But I could do the Ironman. It would be something cool to do one day. I’ve watched it before and the people who do it are so inspiring.”
Her bike times have improved significantly now that she’s swapped her mountain bike for a road bike in races. She admits running is not her strong suit and she’d have to improve that before she signs up for the Ironman punishment that includes a 42km run, after a 3.8km swim and 180km bike ride.
“I was close to last in my age category in Osoyoos -- I really have to work on my running,” she said.
Paivarinta is a former rugby player who keeps her sprinting legs energized playing for Load ‘Em Up/Tillmann’s in the Prince George Women’s Soccer Association. Even though the mother of three young daughters is likely in the best shape of her life, there are times she feels she’s lagging behind some of the other players on her soccer team.
“I get out there playing and I still feel I should be doing more training,” she said
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 07 September 2008 )
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