I thought I missed racing. Turns out I missed this.

I didn't realize how much I missed having a training community until I created one again.

When I first got into triathlon, I trained with my husband and a group of friends. We spent years doing long rides, training weekends, races and, of course, coffee together afterward. There was always someone to ride with, someone to commiserate with when the weather was terrible, and someone who understood why you were getting up at 5 a.m. on a Saturday to ride your bike for four hours.

Then life changed.

Our friends started having kids, schedules got busier and, gradually, our training group disappeared. Gary and I kept training, but most of the time it was just the two of us.

I still loved triathlon. I still loved training. I still enjoyed having something to work toward and seeing what my body could do. But looking back, I realize there was something missing. I just didn't know what it was at the time.

That changed this year.

I had seven athletes training for Muskoka 70.3, and as the race got closer, I watched something happen that made me realize just how much I had missed that sense of community.

6 of the 7 ladies that raced Muskoka 70.3

The Crew group chat started to take on a life of its own. There were questions about workouts and race-day logistics, of course, but there were also jokes, celebrations, encouragement and plenty of conversations that had absolutely nothing to do with training. As race day approached, these women became increasingly invested in each other's success.

And then they raced.

What surprised me most was that the group chat didn't suddenly go quiet once Muskoka was over. It kept going as the other women in the group moved toward their own A-races throughout the summer. They continued to support each other, celebrate each other's successes and show up when someone was having a hard day.

Watching it all unfold made me ridiculously happy.

Because I finally understood what I'd been missing. It wasn't necessarily the training itself. I had never stopped training. It wasn't even the racing. I still love racing.

It was the people.

There is something really special about training for an endurance event with people who understand what you're doing. They understand why a three-hour ride can be the highlight of your weekend. They understand why you're excited about a workout that would sound completely ridiculous to most people. They understand the nerves that show up before a big race, the disappointment when a workout doesn't go as planned, and the satisfaction that comes from doing something you weren't sure you could do.

And they celebrate the wins with you because they know exactly how much work went into them.

The training matters. The finish line matters. But the people you meet along the way can be just as important.

That's a big part of why I created Your First 70.3.

I've spent a lot of time thinking about what I would have wanted when I was preparing for my first longer-distance triathlon, and what I've seen my athletes need as they take that next step in their own endurance journey. Because this isn't really about handing someone a training plan and saying, "Here you go. See you on race day."

Your First 70.3 is a six-month group training program for women who are ready to take on their first 70.3. It's specifically for women who already have some triathlon experience—whether that's a few sprint races, an Olympic-distance race, or a couple of seasons in the sport—but who are ready to take on a bigger challenge.

A 70.3 is a significant step up. You're training for a 1.9 km swim, 90 km bike and 21.1 km run, while also trying to fit that training into an actual life. You have work, family, relationships, other commitments and, increasingly if you're a more mature athlete, the realization that your body doesn't necessarily respond to training the way it did ten or twenty years ago.

So the goal isn't simply to do more it's to train with purpose.

I'll provide the structure and progression, explain the why behind the workouts, and help you understand how the different pieces fit together. The program includes progressive strength training and mobility work, weekly coach-led long rides through the winter, monthly Q&As or expert learning sessions, group open-water swims, group rides once we're into the spring, and the opportunity for a course recon weekend for those racing Muskoka.

But the part I'm perhaps most excited about is the community.

Because I want you to have women beside you who are going through the same thing.

Women who understand that sometimes getting the workout done is the victory. Women who will celebrate when you have a breakthrough, encourage you when things aren't going well and remind you that one bad workout doesn't define your training. And, hopefully, women who you'll still be talking to long after you cross the finish line.

That's what I saw happen with The Crew this year, and I want to create more of it.

I want your first 70.3 to be about more than getting to the start line prepared. I want it to be an experience you look back on and remember not just because you became a 70.3 athlete, but because of the people you met, the things you learned and the person you became along the way.

Your First 70.3 opens for registration in October, with the program starting in January.

We'll be training toward Muskoka 70.3, Tremblant 70.3 and Musselman 70.3, and I'm keeping the group intentionally focused so that it feels like a community rather than just a collection of people following the same training plan.

If you've been thinking, I think I'm ready to take on a 70.3, this might be the year you do it.

And you don't have to figure it all out on your own.

Want to be part of the Crew?

If you're thinking about taking on your first 70.3 in 2027, I'd love to have you join us. Join the waitlist to be the first to hear when registration opens in October and get all the details about Your First 70.3.