By
Brian Penso
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Ettlich, Fischer train for Ironman
Just imagine a day that starts at the crack of dawn with a five-hour bike ride, followed immediately by a one-hour run in the stifling desert heat.
That's more exercise than most people do in a week, let alone a day.
Unless, of course, you're a member of the Tricats, which means you will finish off your day by swimming for about an hour at a rigorous pace.
Most people would get tired just thinking about it.
The UA Tricats are not like most people.
Training
The Tricats are student triathletes, who compete in triathlons worldwide.
A triathlon competition begins with a swim, then leads right into a bike ride and ends with a run to the finish line. Distances vary based on the competition.
"When you do it, you learn it is more mental than physical," Tricats president Jenna Fischer said.
The Tricats are in training year-round to prepare themselves for the Southwest College Championships in Rocky Point, Mexico and the Wildflower Collegiate National Championships in California.
Besides training for these two championships, a few Tricats are currently in training for the California Ironman competition, which will take place in May 2001.
This year, the team president and vice president - Fischer and graduate student Dan Ettlich - are training for this prestigious event.
The Ironman competition consists of a 1500-yard swim, a 40-kilometer bike ride and a10 -kilometer run in succession.
"Training is the most important part of the Ironman competition," Fischer said.
During the week, Ettlich and Fischer work out two to three times a day.
"Being in training for the Ironman is very difficult because it is so hard to organize your schedule so you get all of your work done, while extending your body to its physical limit," Fischer said.
Their weekday workouts are nothing like the weekend workouts, though.
A typical Saturday consists of a five-hour bike ride and a one-hour run immediately following the bike ride.
Fischer and Ettlich then allow their bodies to rest for a while with a short nap and then they go and swim for around an hour.
Sundays are no day for relaxation, either.
Ettlich and Fischer begin their Sundays with a two to three-hour run, immediately followed by at least an hour in the weight room.
"It is all about endurance, training and perseverance," Fischer said.
Open to all
As grueling as it may sound, Tricats is a campus club sport which opens its trainings to any interested person.
"We are an open club of around 60 members," senior Tim Coker said.
Still, the club looks to expand the sport to more people throughout Tucson and the University of Arizona.
"We want to foster multi-event sports into the community and into our college," Ettlich said.
While people have no problem trying to play popular sports such as basketball and tennis, they seem reluctant to try different types of sports like running, biking and swimming.
"Our goal is to introduce and expose as many people to the sport of triathlon and hopefully we can make people appreciate each of the sports we compete in," Fischer said.
One goal of the Tricats is to encourage people to try different things and expand their horizons to different types of sports.
"Anyone can do it," Coker said. "It just takes hard work like anything else."
Because the Tricats are a club, competing is not required. This allows members to enjoy themselves without worrying about their skill level for competitions.
"We take in all members and train together," Coker said.
Funding
One major problem the Tricats face is funding. .
The Student Recreation Center sponsors the Tricats, but funding is limited to around $2,000 a year.
The sponsorship is not enough to pay the Tricats - it costs more than $4,500 for the team to travel to California for the Collegiate Championships, never mind any other event.
In order to raise money, the Tricats do extensive fund-raisers within the community.
"Our goal is to raise around $3,000 in fundraising," Ettlich said. "One of our favorite events to do is the Dick Tomey (Pony Express) Run."
In addition to fundraising, the Tricats raise money through dues, which are $25 a semester.
Even with the funding from the Student Recreation Center and personal fundraising, the athletes have to pay for their own entry fees in competitions. The fees vary from $12 to $80 per race.
