Jenny Kincaid Boone

Jenny Kincaid Boone has been running since she was in eighth grade. She competed in cross country and track at Fort Defiance High School (Fort Defiance, Va.) and at Roanoke College, where she was all-ODAC in cross country for four years. When her knees and legs aren't aching from the wear of years of competition, she hits the 19 to low 20-minute range for a 5K.

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When a knee injury sidelined Jerry Schenkel from running, he discovered another way to stay on his feet.

Schenkel of Roanoke County now is a competitive triathlete. And he says he’s a more well-rounded athlete for it.

Awareness and participation in triathlons is at a peak. More people seem to be taking up the swimming, biking and running combination sport, according to USA Triathlon. Membership in the association has risen each year since 1998.

Want proof of whether this trend is going on locally? Check out participation in the Outback Big Lick Triathlon at Smith Mountain Lake over the last few years. The number of men and women who finished this annual triathlon, which this year is Sept. 23, has increased steadily since 2003.

The participants largely are from Southwest Virginia, but there are a number who travel from other parts of the state.

There also are some local athletes who have discovered the benefits of training like a triathlete and joining in on the competition.

Training like a triathlete is how Schenkel got hooked on the sport. To stay in shape after his knee injury, he began swimming. Later, he tried biking.

“I sort of backed into it [triathlons]” he said. That was in 2004.

Now Schenkel’s joined the Virginia Triathlon Series, and he’s completed 10 triathlons total. His yearly goals include biking 2,500 miles, swimming 150 to 200 miles and running about 300 miles.

Schenkel, 61, trains every day and sometimes does two of the exercises back-to-back. That may involve taking a bike ride and immediately after parking the bike, starting out on a run. Other days, Schenkel adds weight lifting and core strengthening exercises for abdominal muscles at the Roanoke Athletic Club in Roanoke County.

Though there are benefits to running, Schenkel says triathlon training has forced him to focus on certain fitness elements that he may have overlooked when he was primarily running.

“In terms of body fat, my body fat is lower than when I was a runner,” he said. “And I’m stronger in my upper body.”

Swimming also gives him a good aerobic workout and biking, such as his regular Blue Ridge Parkway route, works different muscles, such as his hamstrings.

Switching up running, swimming and biking keeps another local triathlete, Shannon Summerlin, from getting bored.

In college, Summerlin swam competitively for the University of North Carolina, so she was used to pool workouts. But in the last several years, she wanted to switch up her exercise routine.

Summerlin, 33, took up triathlons, and now, her daily workouts may involve doubling with a cycling class at the RAC and a run on the treadmill afterwards. Her workouts total about two hours a day.

“When you’re using different muscles for different sports, it [triathlon training] helps prevent injuries,” Summerlin explained.

She’s also developed a knack for triathlon competition. Summerlin’s goal this year has been to win the state’s triathlon series. Winners are judged based on their place and time in at least four triathlons during the year.

Summerlin’s competed in five this year, and she placed third in the series last year.

She’s recently increased her triathlon distance, completing a Half-Ironman this year, which is the second longest race next to the Ironman. The Half-Ironman includes a 1.2 mile swim, a 56-mile bike and a 13.1-mile run.

But Summerlin suggests that beginning triathletes start off with shorter distance competitions, such as the sprint or the international races. The Outback Big Lick competition is an international distance triathlon, since it involves a 1.5K swim, a 40K bike and a10K run. Sprint distance triathlons usually include a .5 mile swim, a 12 or 13 mile bike and a 5K run, according to Runners’ World.

But it’s not as easy as some may think to learn how to compete like a triathlete. Many athletes, oftentimes regular runners, find swimming to be one of the toughest parts of the competition, Schenkel said. He even had to hire a swimming coach to help him learn certain competitive techniques, such as swimming in the open water with other people splashing around him.

“Swimming fast is a whole new ball game,” Schenkel said.

Tips for training like a triathlete from Runners World:

1) Practice swimming in a competitive group by inviting your friends to the pool to swim laps around you and to make waves.

2) Follow a bike ride with a run afterwards. It helps you get used to the transition from the bike to road during the triathlon.

3) If you’re training for a specific triathlon, choose one that’s 12 weeks away or longer so that you will have time to train.

4) Replace your easy run days with your swimming or biking workouts.

5) Swim and bike at least twice a week to develop the adequate fitness skills for these areas.

6) For specific workout ideas and a 12-week triathlon training plan, visit www.runnersworld.com

The Outback Big Lick Triathlon by the numbers:

Annual finishers:

Outback Big Lick Triathlon:

Saturday, Sept. 23 @ 9 a.m.

Smith Mountain Lake State Park, Bedford County International distance, which is a 1.5 K swim, a 40K bike and a 10K run.

Race fees: $55 for USAT members

$64 for non-USAT members

Online registration: http://www.set-upinc.com

Upcoming races:

Sept. 16: Uptown/Downtown Dash, Rocky Mount, www.historicrockymount.com

Sept. 16: Lynchburg 10-Miler, Lynchburg, www.commonwealthgames.org