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Winner's Circle Molly Hayes
 Winner at
Hy-Vee Triathlon (1sth Female 75-79)
MAP helped me to 1st place on July 17th, 2007 at the
Hy-Vee Triathlon in
Des Moines, IA
NEWSPAPER ARTICLE:
COFFEE WITH MOLLY HAYES
BOZEMAN DAILY CHRONICLE. Thursday, August 2, 2007
Triathlete Molly Hayes looks forward to “aging up” at the end of the year, so that she can compete at the 75-79 level in her customary six to seven annual Olympic-length triathlons.
A registered nurse for 55 years, Hayes says she covets the idea of ranking as high as second nationally. But “Montana Molly” is already almost as well known at the USTA-sacntioned events as she is at local athletic competitions. Strangers regularly tell her she is their inspiration. Besides three more triathlons this year, Hayes will compete at John Colter Run and the Lewis & Clark half marathon.
Before running the weekend's Bozeman Classic, Hayes talked with the Chronicle about her recent races, her goals for 2008, and meeting other “veteran” triathletes.
On the triathlons she's considering for 2008
Because I haven't seen the southern states and because I love salt-water swims, I'm looking into doing a swim in North Carolina. The other one that I haven't told (Molly's husband Tom) about is in Lake Erie. It's called the Great Escape and you jump off a ferry boat and you swim a mile to land.
On one more full marathon
I've done four and I've always wanted to do one more. If I'm not doing anything big (next) October, I'll do the Lewis and Clark. But my husband's listening, so I'm not going to talk about it.
On her favorite triathlon vacation
Definitely the Lobsterman. We did that last September in Freeport, Maine. I had seen pictures of that in one of my triathlon magazines: The Lobsterman, it was a full-page ad and they were swimming in molten butter.
On her admirers
At the Hy-Vee (in Des Moines, Iowa), I was walking over to the awards stand and some lady came down through the bleachers, saying, “Montana Molly. Are you Montana Molly?” “Well, yeah.” She said her son was in the race, and he asked her to find me. She was 61, and she knew I was racing 75-79. She said, “I've always been an athlete and how do I get started? What do you take? What do you use?” We talked for like 10 minutes.
On couch potatoes
I don't like their complaints. I'm a nurse. I just say suck it up. Overcome that little, trivial pain, and just do it because, if you're exercising you heart and lungs, you're doing your body a big favor. If you're just lazing around, saying I can't do this. I don't want to do that. Then you won't, and you won't stay healthy. I'm not very sympathetic.
On a lifetime of fitness
Exercise has been a way of life for 50 years. I'll keep doing that so my challenges are always there. When summer runs and triathlons are over with, it's not darn long until Abridger starts their good ski races and I love that snowshoe race. I got lost last year on it. Instead of 5K, I think I did 22K. I ended up way out by Brackett Creek. I just like exercise. It's good for me, so I just keep doing it.
On other triathletes in her age group
I've stayed in contact with the women that I meet at nationals. You see these women at nationals every year, no matter what happens to them. A husband might be in a nursing home with dementia. And here's this little 84 year old lady “Well, I just damn well left him, that's all. He wouldn't know it anyway.” When you go to the big events you see these other people competing, and then, it's like, yeah, I'm not so weird.
--- Conversation with the Chronicle's Mike Kiefer. For full transcript of the interview, visit Sports@dailychronicle.com
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