Trio of triathletes tackle Enticer Series

When almost 30 people showed up to the parking lot along Pau Pau Beach on Saturday morning to take part in the latest event in the Northern Mariana Islands Triathlon Federation’s Enticer Series in Marpi, many came prepared to tackle the test of will by putting their bodies through the swim, bike, and run courses.

As they entered the water, the armies of one relied only on their conditioning and training to get them through the multisport disciplines, but some were able to count on the bond of friendship as a total of seven racers joined the event as a part of a team.

The triathlete trio of Jackie Tessen, Jay Worrall, and Debbie Gerads was one of three teams that signed up for race day, and their experience was more about the fun than the finish.

The power of three first raced together during the flamboyant Labor Day running of the Try Wayne Tri II when Gerads glided through the water, Tessen traveled by bike, and Worrall winded down the beach path on the run.

This time around Tessen and Gerads swapped roles on the course, but Worral said that it was by design and more of change made by necessity.

“It’s just kind of the way it worked out. We all have various injuries right now and that’s how it worked out best. Next time we’ll all probably have different injuries, so we’ll see,” he said.

The three of them have varying degrees of experience in the world of multisport. While Worrall took part in a couple of triathlons in the mid-1990s, he said that it just wasn’t for him.

“I liked it but I’m not a good swimmer so I didn’t really stick with it,” he said.

He eventually did return to the sport with Tessen the newcomer. Her first ever event was in the TWTII, and she said that while she is still not a racer, that it was fun.

The youngest of the three, Gerads said that she did marathons before she got “old” and that she got into the sport because she was ready for a different challenge.

After a couple of jokes and a short laugh, Gerads explained that the three hashers may not return to the course together on Saipan as all of them are scheduled to take their act to the mainland in the coming weeks and months.

“We’re going to take it somewhere, we just don’t know where,” she said.

Gerads will be the first to go as she is slated to take off sometime within the next six weeks en route to Florida, while Worrall and Tessen are leaving sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas to the Gulf coast state of Alabama.

By sheer coincidence, they will each be living 30 miles from the common border, but that will not help Worrall and Tessen in October for the final event of the NMITF Enticer Series. The pair said that they will definitely be here to race, but Gerads said that she will probably be gone by that time so the dynamic duo will be looking for a new swimmer.

“The door is open. I’ll let them look around for a new partner so they can see what they’re missing,” she said.