| Date of Birth: | 12/9/76 |
| Height: | 5' 7" |
| Weight: | 125 lbs |
| Specialty: | 1/2 IM but Full IM maybe in the future |
| Athletic Background: | Before triathlon swimming and track/XC |
| Strength: | Bike |
| Category: | Pro |
| Team: | Team Hotel San Jose |
| Tri Club: | Austin Triathletes |
| Year of First Race: | '90 |
| Name of First Race: | Ironkids Triathlon (Roanoke, VA) |
| Memories of First Race: | I was 14 and had a running injury so I started riding my bike. My mom suggested we go for a trip to the race together (I grew up in Potomac, MD). It turned out to be a fabulous idea because not only did I win the race but I won and all-expense paid trip for myself and two family members to the National Ironkids Bread Tri Championship at Sea World in San Antonio! |
| Personal Best 1/2 Ironman: |
Name of Race: Blackwater Eagleman Date: 2004 Results: 4:19 - 2nd overall to Natascha Badmann |
| Personal Best Ironman: |
Date: 2000 Time: 10:45 Results: 2nd place AG 20-24 |
| Personal Favorite Triathlon race? |
It's a close tie between Ironman Hawaii and the Escape from Alcatraz. Why? You cannot compare a race with the fittest people on the planet on the majestic, fragrant island of Hawaii to any other. It is an entity within itself. However, I have never experienced a more unique or exciting race as the Escape from Alcatraz triathlon. Complete with plank jumping, 58-degree water, beach running, and sand stair climbing there is never a dull momen |
| Personal Best 10K Run: | Time: 34:22 |
| Personal Best Marathon: | Time: 2:48:36 |
| Personal Favorite Swimming Location: | "The Cove", La Jolla, CA |
| Personal Favorite Cycling Route: | Mt. St Vrain climb to Estes Park in Boulder, CO- a 2-hour climb that never seems to end! |
| Personal Favorite Running Location: | Mesa Trail - Boulder, CO |
| Personal Favorite Running Race: | Pikes Peak 10k or Rockville, MD (all downhill!) |
| Personal Favorite Movies: |
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| Ambition In Life? |
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| Personal Favorite Quote: | "No pessimist ever discovered the secret of the stars or sailed
an unchartered land, or opened a new doorway for the human spirit." Helen Keller |
| What are the three biggest things that have impacted your life? |
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| Most Embarrassing Moment in Triathlon: | Dropping out of the 2003 Ironman Wisconsin due to dehydration
after leading the race for more than 8 hours. I was lying down on the side of the road waiting for the ambulance
with a huge TV camera lens in my face! I still have to take revenge on that one!! |
| Role Models: |
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| Advice for new triathletes: | The first few weeks of anything new can be awkward, frustrating and painful. Whether it be in learning to drive a manual car for the first time or training your body to swim continuously for a full mile, often times it is the mind and not the body that can keeps us from succeeding. Be willing to be patient and have confidence that what was once uncomfortable will soon bring you joy. |
| Webmaster note: | Desiree came on the Austin scene with a flourish by winning the Pace Bend Road Race (bike)
breaking away solo from a top field of the best women cyclists. No one knew who she was! Who is this Desiree Ficker?!
Now we know her as one of the most gracious and elite of the Triathletes of our region and even from the whole United States.
It was hard to track her down for this interview, as she is a globetrotting multi-sporter doing her thing all over the planet.
Rick Kent © Austin's Triathlon Source |
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Austin's Triathlon Source Copyright © 2008 Rick Kent All Rights Reserved |
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