Michelle Kales
Hometown:
Paducah, KY (I now live in Denver)
Education: I
graduated from University of Kentucky undergraduate in 1992 and Emory Law
School in 1995
Discipline:
Road and Triathlons (I'm also a long-distance runner)
Strengths: I
don't give up easily.
Former Teams:
DFT is my first cycling team. I belonged to a running team in Atlanta,
Georgia before I moved to Colorado.
Category:
4
Years
Racing: I've run marathons and half-marathons for the past 12
years. I started racing triathlons last summer, but 2010 will be
my first year to try road bike racing.
Objectives: I
want to gain strength and confidence on the bike, and learn to race in a
pack. I also miss being a part of a team and can't wait to have new people
to ride with.
Favorite Race:
I don't have a favorite road bike race yet. My favorite running race was
the Chicago Marathon in 1999 -- I qualified for Boston for the first time and
the weather was perfect.
Admirable
Athlete: Anyone that competes in an Ironman -- it is hard for me to
imagine that level of endurance. I also admire my brother -- he has
the most amazing lung capacity.
Unique Info or
story: I grew up in a small town where no one biked or ran or really
exercised much at all. It is still amazing to me that I like to race and
compete -- I'm not sure why I like it (my parents think I'm crazy), but I'm glad
I do!
Most embarrassing
(race) moment: My very first triathlon many many years ago -- in the bike
transition, the race volunteers were shouting "mount your bike around the
corner." I thought they were saying "bounce your bike around the
corner." Although I thought it was a strange request, I was afraid not to
follow instructions. After bouncing my bike for a few feet, I quickly
realized that I misunderstood them. It made me laugh so hard at myself
that I could hardly get on my bike.
