by Dylan Jewett
On a bright and sunny day, Cal Poly Humboldt triathletes lined up early in the morning to race against the top teams in triathlon. Cal Poly Humboldt’s Triathlon Team finished up their competition season for the year after competing in the West Regional Championships in Fort Worth, Texas on Oct. 26 and in the USA Triathlon National Championships in Tempe, Arizona on Nov. 8. At West Regionals, the team placed third overall in Division 2, with triathletes Averill Payne and Poppy Edge individually placing 8th and 9th.
The triathlon team’s performance at West Regionals was enough to earn them a spot on the podium for the first time in the program’s history. Triathlon Head Coach Kinsey Mattison said that as long as the team grows, trains and maintains focus, things will just keep getting better.
“We continue to take steps up and are headed in the direction that we want, which is eventually being on the national podium,” Mattison said. “So, this was a big step in that direction.”
According to Averill Payne, a sophomore on the triathlon team, regionals are more difficult for the athletes than Nationals due to the stress of qualifying for races.
“There’s such high stakes, and we haven’t raced against the people at that race before,” Payne said.
After a two-week break between races, the team packed their bags and headed to Fort Worth, Texas, to compete in their final race where the team came in fifth place overall. Triathletes Payne and Edge also received All-American honors after the race for their performance.
“Seeing them move up so much from where they were last year is very encouraging,” Mattison said. “This group will just keep getting better and better.”
After falling short in past races, Edge made it a personal goal to reach the top 20 at Nationals. This time, she accomplished her goal and came in 19th overall. With this achievement pushing her forward, she sees bigger things happening for the future.
“If I set my mind to something, I can do it,” Edge said. “It’s really motivating me; like next year, I want to just do that much better.”
With the season now at an end, the spring semester allows time to train the triathletes, maintain the team’s strong momentum and preserve the close-knit team culture. The team wants to keep the positive environment and push each other to perform at their best for the next competition season.
“I think we work really well together,” Payne said. “At least this season, we’ve been able to push each other so hard, which has been a lot of motivation. We’re such a close team, we just enjoy each other’s company.”