By: Logan Pierce, editor-in-chief

Friday, Jan. 27, the five fastest finishers of the first-ever indoor campus triathlon met for the awards ceremony in the Wellness Center. Blake Shawn, David Swingle, Seth Johnston, John Interwicz, and Grace Wood each completed the triathlonwithin the first week of the semester.

David Swingle Photo by: Logan Pierce

Beginning Jan. 23, all triathlon contestants were required to swim 2.4 miles, which is the equivalent of 77 1/2 laps in the Wellness Center pool. They also had to bike a distance of 112 miles and run 26.2 miles. Distances were monitored and recorded on the Wellness Center equipment.

The five finishers’ names were placed in a hat for the drawing, with the first drawn name winning a 32’’ LCD Samsung television and the second drawn name winning an iPad 2.

David Swingle, IT programmer and PASA (Professional/Administrative Staff Association) president, won the TV.

Blake Shawn, CPO (Certified Pool Operator) and Wellness Center lifeguard, won the iPad 2.

“We all pushed each other to finish,” Shawn said, “The top five were all close, so we did it together.”

“I was surprised it was as doable at my age,” Swingle said, ”People shouldn’t let their age be a factor.”

Chris Leland, Wellness Center director, was surprised at how fast the first five finished. “I thought the triathlon would take at least two or three weeks to finish,” Leland said.

While the contest is over, the triathlon will be available throughout the semester to anyone with a Wellness Center membership. “The triathlon is a pilot program,” Leland said, “Whether it returns next year will depend on how much interest there is for it and how successful it is.”