OC triathlete takes second in competition

Eric Nordstrom travels 24.5 miles in competition

Oberlin triathlete Eric Nordstrom swam, biked and ran his way to second place in his age group in the Clif Bar Challenge Series Championships Saturday.

Nordstrom, a fifth-year Double-degree student, has competed in around 30 triathlons over the past three years. The official times aren't in for Saturday's competition, but Nordstrom's time was approximately 90 minutes.

Nordstrom was not the only athlete with Oberlin ties involved in the competition. Grounds worker Pete Hastings and his son Ben teamed up in a dualthlon. Pete Hastings did the cycling portion of the two-event competition and Ben did the running. Jim Poirson, a town resident and winter biathlete also competed in the triathlon.

The triathlon includes a half mile swim, a 20-mile bike ride and a 4-mile run.

And in between, triathletes have other struggles, such as putting on the proper clothing for each event. The course Saturday was wet, which meant pulling on socks over wet feet between the cycling and running components. "You have to actually practice getting changed," Nordstrom said.

Nordstrom is a captain of the Oberlin swimming team and he's also run track in the past. But his favorite component of the triathlon is biking. Having three distinct sports rolled into one is the real appeal of the triathlon. "It makes it tough to get burned out on it," he said.

During the season, Nordstom typically trains four to five hours daily and he's competed at every distance up to a half-iron man. In each of the three years he's competed, Nordstrom has qualified for the national meet. But in each year, he's passed it up in favor of other competitions.

"The fact that I can hold my own in all three sports gives me a fourth sport," he said.