The Athena Exhibit

My Flavors.me

Wed, 13 Oct 2010 11:59:31 -0400

I connected Tumblr to my http://flavors.me page - http://flavors.me/austinstair

Commentary :: Weight Classes Aim to Balance Races

Wed, 06 Oct 2010 09:52:12 -0400

Commentary :: Weight Classes Aim to Balance Races :

Tara Parker-Pope from the New York Times’ Well Blog writes this week about Clydesdales and Athenas. Notably, she remarks that women are LESS likely to want to compete as larger athletes than men.

Not every runner embraces the weight group. Katy Moeller, 41, of Boise, Idaho, ran the New York City Marathon in 1999 weighing 220 pounds. Now she does most of her running on a treadmill, and has no interest in competing in a weight category. “I’m proud of being in the game even though I’m overweight,” she says. “But I don’t think I’d be super thrilled at seeing I’m No. 1 in the over-200 weight division.”
Men, however, tend to be more irreverent about the weight class. On the Clydesdale Facebook page, which has about 80 members, one runner recently posted an ad to find two more 200-pound-plus runners for a team race.
“No girly-men or Kate Moss-esque type runners need apply,” read the Facebook post. “We aren’t fast but we can lift heavy things like sofas and armoires.”

(thanks to @smcgee for passing this along!)

Commentary :: Body type can lead to assumptions about fitness

Thu, 12 Aug 2010 13:33:02 -0400

Commentary :: Body type can lead to assumptions about fitness:

by Shelly Greenfield (Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin)
August 11, 2010

From the Archives :: There's No Horsing Around For This Triathlete

Sun, 01 Aug 2010 08:01:44 -0400

From the Archives :: There's No Horsing Around For This Triathlete :

by Bill Ward (Tampa Tribune)
April 25, 2002

Blogs by Athenas :: My Patch of Grass

Sat, 31 Jul 2010 08:00:45 -0400

Blogs by Athenas :: My Patch of Grass:

Excerpt from entry :: 2010 is my first year competing in the Athena category. I decided to “embrace my Athena-ness” after a lot of soul-searching and self acceptance. In the early days of tris, I could be competitive in my age group and would occasionally get a trophy. The sport was small and obscure at the time so there was less competition. Now, I know my chances of placing in my age group are very slim (no pun intended). I came to the acceptance of becoming an Athena because although I do not do triathlons to get trophies, moving into a category where I could be competitive would help me get up in the morning to do that workout and push me towards my goals. My goals being to have fun and stay in shape.

"Attitude is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than what..."

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 15:31:32 -0400

““Attitude is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than what people do or say…””

- via Triumph Triathlon

Notes from fans :: Thank you!

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 20:32:00 -0400

Thank you so much for The Athena Exhibit! So happy I found you.

AnnieB, two time Ironman finisher, triathlon age grouper 14 years

—

TAE :: thank you AnnieB for writing and supporting the Athena Exhibit!

Blogs by Athenas :: The Athena and Clydesdale Closet

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 08:00:46 -0400

Blogs by Athenas :: The Athena and Clydesdale Closet:

Author’s description :: I started doing triathlons in 2006 as a challenge to myself and stereotypes about size and fitness. I always will weigh above 200lbs (currently, I weigh much more) and I am tired of having such a hard time finding the right kinds of technical clothing that fit my body and don’t chafe or fall down in races.

145 pounds = Athena?

Mon, 26 Jul 2010 11:30:10 -0400

145 pounds = Athena?:

I was looking for one more race to add to my 2010 docket. While I was perusing the St. Paul Triathlon’s website, I saw that women over 145 pounds are considered Athenas.

I am not sure what to make of this. My first thought was that it’s interesting how the men’s weight never goes down. My second thought was, let’s encourage our 147-pound friends to sign up for the Athena division at the St. Paul Tri!

Race Results :: Door County 70.3

Sun, 18 Jul 2010 09:00:42 -0400

Race Results :: Door County 70.3:

The Athena Exhibit’s founder and friends competed in this event on Sunday, July 18, 2010. The results should be available later that day!

"You don’t hear much about us, but we are out there, every race."

Sat, 17 Jul 2010 09:00:00 -0400

“You don’t hear much about us, but we are out there, every race.”

- Victoria Rennesund, Athena Triathlete (Article in St. Petersburg Times)

Blogs by Athenas :: Plus+ Runner

Thu, 15 Jul 2010 13:36:41 -0400

Blogs by Athenas :: Plus+ Runner:

Author’s description :: Hi, I’m Sallie, and I’m The Plus Runner. And walker, hiker, biker, swimmer, triathlete, kayaker, soccer player. You get the idea! If you’ve landed here, it’s probably becuase, like me, you’re a Big Girl. Big is relative – you may be a size 12, or a 22. You may have never run a day in your life – or you may run every other day. But whatever the case, you’re here because you’re looking for something to help you become more active.

Blogs by Athenas :: The Athena Project

Thu, 15 Jul 2010 13:34:16 -0400

Blogs by Athenas :: The Athena Project:

Author’s description :: This blog is about being a Fat-thlete and all the glorious challenges it presents. It’s about one girl’s quest to compete in her first 1/2 Iron-distance triathlon, Wildflower Long Course, on May 1, 2010 and then a FULL iron-distance (Vineman) on July 31st 2010. Behind every great plus-sized athlete is some combination of emotional eating, unfortunate genetics, too many happy hours, and a crappy desk job. Welcome to my world. :)

Blogs by Athenas :: Jen's Athena Blog

Thu, 15 Jul 2010 13:32:00 -0400

Blogs by Athenas :: Jen's Athena Blog :

Author’s description :: I started this blog to document my Ironman Couer d’Alene 2007 training experiences. I finished. It rocked. So I signed up for another one in Lake Placid 2008 and finished that in the pouring rain. About 13 hours of rain, and it rocked again. But I am more than just an athena ironman triathlete…

Blogs by Athenas :: The Athena Diaries

Thu, 15 Jul 2010 13:30:00 -0400

Blogs by Athenas :: The Athena Diaries:

Author’s description :: This blog is about my journey as an asthmatic, hypothyroid, plus-sized endurance athlete. It’s occasionally interrupted with things that have nothing to do with that or whining about my weight and horrible eating habits. If you get nothing else here, I hope you realize that most people can do more than they think they can (David Horton).

F.A.Q.'s About Athenas

Tue, 13 Jul 2010 11:44:00 -0400

by Jen Koper, a St. Paul, MN-based Triathlete

What the heck do Greek goddesses have to do with a triathlon? Athena (and Clydesdale) are divisions for “big” athletes. These divisions were created to encourage athletes of all shapes and sizes to race.

What are the requirements? The only requirement for registering in these divisions is a minimum body weight of 150 pounds for women. This is an on-your-honor registration for most races; I have not been to any that had weigh-ins, although it remains a possibility. And I suppose you could be challenged if you won or if someone was snarky about it – I imagine it to be like drug-testing winners. This is a pretty basic requirement and it says nothing about body type or fitness level, so triathletes in Athena division really do come in all shapes and sizes, including those of us who we shall politely call “above their ideal body weight,” as well as athletes who are tall, stocky, and well-muscled; and both novices and amateur elites.

Why would I want to race Athena? There are several advantages to racing Athena, mostly because Athenas often start earlier in the race schedule. For races with a long range of starting times, that can be significant. 1) You have cooler temperatures – particularly advantageous if the day is hot or if you don’t handle hot weather well. 2) Because of the earlier start, aid stations are fully stocked so there is little to no danger of running out of Powerade or having the ice water sponges packed up by the time you get to them. 3) Again because you start earlier, you are less likely to be one of the last people on the course. 4) You are still eligible for awards (some races have separate Athena awards, some races group you back into your age group category). 5) You’ll have less time to wait around getting nervous about the race! 6) You carpooled and your ride home is faster than you, so you want to make sure they don’t leave without you.

Why would I not race Athena if I could? There are a few things you may consider: You may want to race near someone in an age group category (someone you’ve been training with or who has a similar pace). You may want to start later in the morning and warm up more. You may want to take a nap before you start. You might even be embarrassed about signing up for Athena – to this I say, “Pshaw!” You will be in the company of great athletes and friends.

Can I always race Athena? It does vary from race to race. Smaller races may not have an Athena division, likely because there’s not that big a range in start times or a small field of competitors.

Austin Stair Calhoun competing in the 2010 Life Time Fitness...

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 17:04:00 -0400

Austin Stair Calhoun competing in the 2010 Life Time Fitness Triathlon in Minneapolis, MN.

Life Time Fitness Triathlon - July 10, 2010 The Athena wave...

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 16:47:00 -0400

Life Time Fitness Triathlon - July 10, 2010

The Athena wave preparing to begin the Olympic Distance event.