Girls just want to do triathlons

A couple of weekends ago, Andrea Bernotavicius competed in a triathlon.

She swam a half mile in the Schuylkill, biked 15-plus miles in Fairmount Park, and ran a little more than three miles on Martin Luther King Drive.

But Bernotavicius, 49, of Williamstown is no Ironwoman, by her own estimate. She entered the Aug. 3 SheROX Triathlon Series, her first, to see if she could at least finish. (She did, with a time of just over two hours, 11 minutes.)

"I wanted to do a triathlon before I was 50," said Bernotavicius, who works in human resources for a Center City law firm. "After you get older, you want to prove more things to yourself. Mentally and physically, you want to stay younger, so you push the envelope."

More women than ever are going that distance. Female membership at USA Triathlon, the sanctioning authority for thousands of events, has soared from 19,038 in 2005 to 40,962 this year. Women now make up about 38 percent of the 100,000-plus triathletes who belong to the group.

"For some of them, it's a sports experience," said Maggie Sullivan, director of the Danskin Women's Triathlon Series, the grande dame of women's triathlons that dates to 1990. "But for most of them, it's a life experience in a sports venue."

The triathlon, it appears, has become the "it" goal for growing numbers of women.

The all-female event in particular serves as the latest midlife pick-me-up - more natural than Botox, less expensive than a fancy car (or Botox).

Larry Redrow, vice president of CGI Racing in Glassboro, described the tri as the new marathon - the previous ultimate for women. Its Philadelphia Women's Triathlon, which began in 2006 with 600 racers, fielded 1,400 triathletes last month, he said.

Baby boomers are especially enamored of the three-sporter, looking to show the world, or at least the spouse and kids, a little "I am woman, hear me roar!" empowerment. Or rather, "See me run! And swim! And bike!"

Besides, triathlons are easier on the knees.

"These aren't 20-year-olds," said Susan Rheingold, 42, of Center City, a mother of a 10-month-old and an oncologist at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia who has done tris since 1999. "These are moms with kids."

Rheingold said she liked the sport in part because events often benefit cancer charities. Now she's a mentor, and recruited Cyndi Wildes, 46, a nurse at the hospital, to SheROX. (Capped at 1,500 entrants, twice the size of last year's field, it sold out.)

"I was running, not very fast, not very far," said Wildes, of Aston, who ran the 10-mile Broad Street Run before.

Her goal was to improve her endurance and find sports less punishing on the joints. A tri fit the bill.

"I'm not a competitor," said Wildes, who trained every other day. "It's all about what I can do. Not about anybody else." She clocked a 2:26:01.

It helps that friends and family - including her children, ages 8 and 10 - think it's "pretty cool. . . . I've had people say I am an inspiration to them."

Chantal Remé, 44, of Clifton Heights has run since childhood. After a few marathons, a tri was the next challenge.

Remé, a veterinary nurse at the University of Pennsylvania, ran SheROX in less than two hours. "The majority of us are amateur athletes," she said, "and out there to have a good time."

The social atmosphere is a huge draw. "It's sort of Kumbaya," said Skip Gilbert, chief executive officer of USA Triathlon.

Largely, that's due to the less competitive atmosphere at women's tris compared with coed events. SheROX, in its second year, dials down the intimidation factor by matching novices with mentors and holding clinics that cover details such as what type of bra to wear and how to transition from one event to the next.

Danskin, which operates eight races that attract 23,000 participants, has "angels" in the water to offer encouragement, and it pays Sally Edwards, a Hall of Fame triathlete, to finish last "so none of our women have that dubious honor," Sullivan said.

Susan Holden, 34, of Yardley ran her first tri in 2006 with Danskin, a year after completing treatment for breast cancer. (It has a Team Survivor category.)

Since then, Holden has done others, including the New Jersey State Triathlon. She's entered in the Danskin tri in Sandy Hook, N.J., next month.

"I never thought of myself as an athlete," said the mother of three and part-time fitness instructor. "And here, I did it.

"It was very, very empowering," she said. "I carried that across the finish line - anything is possible."