BILLINGS, Mont. – Blazing the trail for the first time in MSUB athletic history, women's triathlon begins its inaugural season Saturday, August 31 at 8 a.m. as they compete in the Southern Hills Triathlon in Hot Springs, South Dakota. The Yellowjacket roster includes Madisan Chavez (Crow Agency, Montana) and Maddi Terwilliger (Billings, Montana). Both are relatively new to the sport but have proven willing to take on the challenge Saturday at Angostura Recreation Area. Other competitors expected to appear include triathlon student-athletes from Black Hills State University as well as local unaffiliated participants.

Triathlon head coach Kevin Bjerke has had just one full week of practice to get the 'Jackets ready for their first race, but is optimistic about how much participating in Saturday's triathlon will help the program get off the ground.
 
"We haven't gotten too technical with practicing transitions yet mainly because neither of the girls have much experience with road bikes," Bjerke commented on the team's progress. "Right now they are just getting used to their bikes with flat pedals. We've been working quite a bit on technique in the pool but for biking I'm just focused on doing some work with fitness and letting them get comfortable. With the running aspect, we are getting in a lot of miles and working hard in practice. We've been doing three to four hours a day of training and a pretty good mix of swimming, biking, and running over the last week. I feel pretty good about how they are handling things and their fitness level heading into this weekend."
 
For those unfamiliar with the sport, triathlon consists of three legs. Athletes will begin with an open water swim in a clockwise direction. Buoys to the right of the participants mark the route and each swimmer wears a swim cap. As they reach the transition area, athletes will strap on helmets as they prepare to follow the course by bicycle. Saturday's race is non-draft legal, a rule which will be opposite of all remaining races on the schedule. After biking the course, a second transition sets in motion a 5K run to finish the event. Full USA Triathlon rules can be found HERE.

"There's always that huge unknown about how they will handle the mass of people in the water and this first race will be pretty low key which is good and can kind of ease some potential nerves," said Bjerke.
 
In the sport's first season, the Yellowjackets expect a learning curve as they progress through the season. Both Chavez and Terwilliger have limited triathlon experience, but Chavez competed in the Big Sky State Games to begin preparation and Terwilliger was a member of the MSUB cross country team last fall, potentially putting the 5K run at the top of her strengths.
 
"At this point I'd say Madisan is a little bit more ready for the season given that she committed to MSUB several months ago," said Bjerke. "She's really taken what I've given her this summer as far as training and ate it up which is good. Maddi officially joined the team just a few weeks ago and is really in the process of building up her endurance for triathlons. I've been stressing the importance of patience for both of them for at least a few weeks at the beginning of the fall season."
 
Saturday's race is at Angostura Recreation Area, a large reservoir with potentially chilly water temperatures and a few rolling hills. The next race on the schedule is the NCAA West Region Qualifier on September 15 in Belle Fourche, South Dakota so after Saturday, the team will have two full weeks to assess results and prepare.
 
"Being pioneers of a new sport brings with it responsibilities and I've been impressed with how well both Madisan and Maddi have represented themselves and the University thus far," Bjerke said. "They've become ambassadors for the sport and they've responded really well, always eager to come to practice and learn. It's been a lot of fun so far."
 
Yellowjacket fans are encouraged to follow MSUB's newest varsity sport on MSUBSports.com and on twitter @MSUBTriathlon. Results of Saturday's race will be posted HERE.