Strong female representation a hallmark of local triathlete community

HARVEYS LAKE — Even in just the second year of its existence, the Back Mountain Triathlon has already established itself as a race that draws in the very best athletes in the sport.

Last year’s inaugural race had a loaded roster of competitors duking it out to see who could reach the Lake Noxen Elementary finish line first — names that boast tons of experience, tons of miles traveled and a variety of accolades.

When it comes to this race and the type of elite athletes that run it, the Back Mountain Triathlon is hardly just a man’s game.

“We have some really amazing female triathletes in this area,” said Kristin Buchholz-Quigley, a top-five finisher in last year’s women’s race at the inaugural Back Mountain Triathlon. “It’s so great to be out there with these women.”

Buchholz-Quigley has a ton of experience in the sport. She won the women’s competition at the Wilkes-Barre Triathlon in 2015, and has competed in triathlons and Ironman races all over the country.

She pointed out that the amount of female triathletes that are popping up at these competitions has increased significantly in recent years.

“From a competitive side, it’s gone up a lot — we’re seeing more and more women get into the sport and are doing really well,” Buchholz-Quigley said. “It makes me work harder.”

The bar was set high in 2023, as Alex Leandri blazed through the course in 2:18.26 to win the women’s competition at the inaugural Back Mountain Triathlon.

That time doubled as the fifth-fastest finishing time in the entire competition, counting both men and women in a combined pool of 126 triathletes.

Olivia Dalton and Kelly Adamshick finished in second and third place, respectively, with Ann Balonis taking fourth place and Buchholz-Quigley rounding out the top five with a time of 2:33.55 that she managed despite having to travel back to the lake from Alaska earlier in the week to compete.

Buchholz-Quigley noted the camaraderie and friendship between many of the female competitors has likely made them all better triathletes. She and Adamshick have been friends and training partners for years, and Buchholz-Quigley joked that she was cheering on Balonis even as she passed her on the course.

“We’re friends and we really support each other,” she said. “You could train together, you could bounce ideas off of one another.”

In total, 29 women took on and completed the Olympic triathlon course last year, with additional female competitors participating in the relay race and the Aquabike course.

This group spans training backgrounds, experience levels and age: the oldest female finisher was 65-year-old Barbara Bell, while the youngest competitor in the full Olympic-length race, Emily Mahler, completed the course at just 20 years of age.

“Females of all different ages and body types are running triathlons now,” Andrea Butchko said. “Representation is huge, age makes no difference.”

“It helps me realize that, at 41 years old, the best is yet to come,” Buchholz-Quigley added.

Butchko currently serves as the director of the swim portion of the Back Mountain Triathlon, and is a past competitor herself in numerous triathlons, including the Wilkes-Barre Triathlon. Like Buchholz-Quigley, Butchko has been involved in the sport for a long time and has been witness to the way the sport has grown in regard to female involvement.

“When I first started in high school, the majority of my training group was men,” Butchko said. “Coming back to the area, there are so many more women in training groups, there are even some women-only groups.”

The Back Mountain Triathlon has proven a big spectator draw, and plenty of young girls were among fans watching as competitors made their way around the course a year ago.

Any one of them could be the next great local triathlete, so Butchko emphasized the importance of showing them that, with some hard work, there’s no ceiling on what they could achieve.

“I want them to see the race and think, ‘If they could cross the finish line, I could too,’ ” Butchko said.