As this 2024 season wraps up, we asked our athletes to share their season highlights and how their training and racing has been going in our quintessential PNW fall weather. It has been amazing to watch everyone absolutely crush this entire year. Through all the ups and downs, we are so incredibly proud of their accomplishments.

 

Cherilyn Suiter

It’s so fun to watch Cherilyn thrive and enjoy her comeback to triathlon after a 20-year break. Her positivity and love for the sport shines through her connections in the sport. Following her training and racing journey on social media is a lot of fun to be apart of. Make sure to stay updated; Her son is making a documentary about her comeback! Stay tuned!

Season Highlight: In September, I had the privilege of traveling to Utah to compete in my first-ever full-distance Aquabike race, consisting of a 2.4-mile swim and a 112-mile bike ride. Completing this race was a huge milestone for me—finishing my longest swim ever (2.4 miles) and riding my longest bike leg of 82 miles. The Utah landscape was breathtaking, and racing in such a stunning location made it all the more memorable. It was a great trip that I got to share with my husband, making it even more special. Although I didn’t finish the bike leg due to altitude and dehydration, I’m incredibly proud of my effort. I can’t wait to go back to Utah and challenge myself to complete it next time!

How my Fall/Winter is going: After the Aquabike race, I decided to explore some new running challenges. I started by racing in the Snohomish River Run, where I shaved 3 minutes off my previous 10k personal record—what a feeling of progress! A few weeks later, I ventured into trail running with my first 5.3-mile trail race, which was an amazing experience and one I plan to repeat. This past weekend, I ran another 10k in Mount Vernon and, in a twist of fate, ended up running 7.6 miles after accidentally veering off course. It was a great way to get more mileage in, and now I’m gearing up for 2025 with plans for some more long-distance events!

 

Follow Cherilyn on Instagram and Facebook

 

Debbie Eckhouse

If you’ve met Debbie, you know that her joy for sport, triathlon specifically, is truly contagious. Even if you haven’t met Deb, fortunately, you can still feel the love through her authentic and inspiring social media posts. This year is Debbie’s first year as a professional triathlete. She has had a wild ride of a season, working through injuries, a demanding job, and having some super successful races. It has been inspiring to watch her work through her debut pro season!

Highlights of my end of season/fall were:

Ironman Canada – 3rd Pro female (first Pro Podium!)
Mt Baker Hill Climb – 1st female, 4min PB
Cougar Mountain 20mile trail race – 1st female, 4th with dudes
I went into recovery/vacation mode after the hill climb and slowly did a build towards Ironman Cozumel. I plan to do a proper recovery starting Monday! 🤣

Check out Debbie’s Professional Profile on the Ironman Pro Series website.

Check out Debbie on Instagram and Facebook

 

Chris Hughes

Chris had an ambitious goal to complete 5 70.3 triathlons this summer and he did just that! Consistency and determination paid off for him and it has been inspiring to watch him accomplish his goal this year. He continues to train and work on weaknesses to come back even stronger for next year’s racing!

 Season Highlight: Finishing 5 70.3s (Half Ironman Triathlon) and getting on the overall podium at Lake Whatcom Triathlon. 

Fall/ Winter Training Updates: My winter season has been filled with extra swimming and doing strength training at Evergreen Strength with my son. I find that taking long breaks from the rigors of training help set me up for the next year.

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Ethan Hunger
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Season Highlight: My season highlight was July 20th, when I burned over 12,000 calories in one day to raise awareness for food insecurity in Whatcom County. I completed just over an Ironman length triathlon along with a HIIT workout and a mountain bike ride. It took me over 15 hours and I was able to complete it despite being just 6 months removed from a partial PCL tear and a bone bruise on my tibia.
This photo is of me crossing the finish line in front of Stone’s Throw Brewery in Fairhaven.
My fall accomplishment: Completing my first ever official marathon. My July Ironman had set my knee back a bit and ultimately led me to be unable to train much for the marathon. In the two months leading up to the race I was only able to run 6 times and the longest training run I had was 7 miles. Despite the injury and lack of training, I was able to finish in 3 hours and 38 minutes. It took everything I had and I truly look forward to being able to train for my next one.
This fall I’ve been focused on training for next spring. I’ve already set the outline for next summer’s fitness challenge, (hint: it will have a LOT of swimming) so I’ve been working on improving my form and fitness in the pool. In the meantime, I’ll do my best to improve my strength and mobility until endurance season is back in session 🙂

Follow Ethan on Instagram

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D.J. Austreria

Season Highlights: My Chuckanut 50k  race was terrible, over 2 hours slower than the year before.  I had injured myself a couple weeks prior,  but it highlighted how much fun I like to see familiar faces on the course.  I had surrendered to the course, but walked in.  The photo of me is at Glenn’s aid station.  A lot of the Triathletes in town were there.  The other highlight of the day was the group I trained with waited 2 hours at the finish line for me to come in.
Training and racing the Galbraith Supreme was a long, fun day. I don’t have any photos. I plan to do it again next year.
The 2 triathlons I managed to get to do was the Lake Whatcom Olympic course. The highlight there was I was doing post race massage and Matt, my co-worker, said congratulations you won your age group. I have the photo of the Podium and I even bought some on the course prints from Ben Groenhout.
Bellingham Off-Road Triathlon was fun, the highlight there was a bunch of the Thursday morning swim crew were there racing.
The promotional video featured on the Bellingham Off-Road Triathlon Instagram and Facebook account was probably more difficult for me than the race, it was so nerve racking. I’m really happy to have done it.
Training Updates: The Summer and Fall  have been personally tough but the winter is looking good and there is again a lot of chatter about training and racing  the Chuckanut 50k. I look forward to some consistency again.

Follow D.J. on Instagram

 

David Larpenteur 

David has had a season of crushing local triathlons and taking on some epic cross country running races this Fall and Winter. We can’t see what will be possible for the rest of winter and following year! Go David!!

David Leading the Way

Season Highlight: I have a new season highlight from today, I placed 3rd in the Masters division at Club XC Regional Championship. I went out fast for the first mile running a 5:05 but then settled into 5:25 ish pace for the next 4 miles. The course was so muddy and beat up in some sections with the men’s race being the last race of the day but this kept it fun and interesting.

My biggest accomplishment of this fall/winter season: Getting through this XC season healthy, it’s been an ongoing effort to keep my former overuse injuries at bay. Still have one more XC race in three weeks which is Club XC Nationals.

 

 

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Alicia Jenkins-Browder

Finishing the last of the Triple Crown of 200 races at Moab 240 with my crew/pacers, My dad Jeff Jenkins, Husband, Gavin carrying our dog Lola, Crew Chief, Sabrina Houck, Brother, Trevor Jenkins, and friend , Lucas Matson. (Give photo credit to Anastasia Wilde).

 Season highlights:
  1. Crossing the finish line of Moab 240, the last of the Triple Crown of 200 mile races, with my family and friends that had supported me during that race. I told them that they all had to run through the finish line with me as their support and help were integral to me finishing the race. I ended up in 1st place female for the Triple Crown and made so many memories with friends and family that helped me during all the races
  2. Summiting my first volcano, Glacier Peak, with my friends, Sabrina Houck, Kristen Hannon, and Allison and Ben Minehart. It is SO cool that living in Bellingham allows us such easy access to these kinds of cool adventures.
Fall/winter activities: 
  1. Fall/winter is spent mostly volunteering at local events such as Girls on the Run, and leading group trail runs in Bellingham on Thursday nights. The days get shorter and connecting with others and giving back to our community is a great way to stay motivated throughout the dark days of fall/winter.

Follow Alicia on Instagram 

 

Nikki Buurma

Fall and Winter Update: It was a busy fall! At the end of September I raced my favorite race the Mammoth Trailfest triple crown. I completed a 50k, 26k and dragon’s back ascent over the course of the weekend. This race keeps growing and getting more competitive and it’s great to see so many amazing athletes line up! I placed 12th in the triple crown with a cumulative time of 11:49. The following weekend we ran up Church mountain with a few friends and got married at the top! A very special place for such an important day.

    Then on Oct 26th I raced my first ever 100miler at the Javelina 100 in Arizona. It was 100deg and managing heat and pacing properly were key. I finished 22nd female in 20:33, very close to the goals I had going in and I’m very happy that my first attempt went well and I learned so much for next time. I’m also happy that I recovered quickly and was able to run a 5:58 mile with the cross country kids I coach in their time trial as well as line up to race PNTF Xc championships with my Bellingham Distance Project teammates just 2 weeks after Javelina. I have 2 more Xc races left for the year and eagerly awaiting lottery results to see if I get in to some big dream races next summer.

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Sarah Ellis

Season Highlight: My season highlight was probably winning my first ever swim race at the Whidbey Island Adventure swim. I knew I was a good swimmer but I didn’t know how i would stack up against “real” swimmers. And on that day, it went really well. I think another Season Highlight was swimming the fastest out of everyone, Men included, at the Lake Whatcom Triathlon. Finally, I ran the fastest I ever have off the bike at the Lake Stevens Tri, Getting a 10k PR!

Fall/ Winter Activities: This fall I like to take up the local Cyclocross Series, Cascade Cross. Cyclocross allows me to have a different mental and physical training stimulus and I love it! I will also do some running racing as I seriously need to improve my running game if I ever want to become a semi-professional triathlete. I am also planning go to on some epic Ski trips with my partner! I am excited to blend training with skiing this winter.

Follow Sarah on Instagram and check out her blog, The Tri-Fueled Life 

 

Dale Nelsen

We haven’t met anyone with the same passion and love for running as much as Dale. He is ALWAYS getting out there. Literally almost every weekend he is either racing, pacing, or accompanying his kids on 5ks. He makes everyone around him want to run in these local races. He paces multiple marathons every year just because he loves to be around that race environment. Dale shares what these events are like on his social media. He not only runs though, but he also takes on our local triathlons with a true passion for endurance sports. Dale reminds us that you can still race hard and have a lot of fun while doing it. He inspires everyone around him to take on a local 5k or an International Marathon. We love Dale and his tenacity for racing all year round!!

Season Highlights: I ran the party pace at Big Sur just to take it all in!! So much fun and so many views!! Ran a sub-6 hour 50k at Hamster Endurance. I got to run some loops with a lot of great people and got a 50k PR. Not hard since my other 50k had 12,000ft of elevation gain. Love where we live and being a part of this team.

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Eric Olson

Eric is one of our OG Team Bellingham Athlete Ambassadors. He is a professional mt bike racer and is always getting out in the community to race and volunteer his time for the love of the sport and people. He’s coaching for Galbraith Gravity for their entire race series.  Eric has a bubbly personality and lightens any room he walks into with his cheery attitude towards life. He always makes the most out of a dreary race day and knows how to lighten spirits with his truthful, yet sarcastic humor. We love having Eric on Team Bellingham, he is never shy from the next adventure on the schedule or getting to meet new people in the community.

My fall highlight/accomplishment: Winning the Lake Padden NWGP and the NWGP season overall, winning the first Cascade Cross at Hannegan and getting 3rd at CX State Champs at Woodland Park. 

I’ve also been working on my interview skills with my Banana Interview Series.

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Michael Finley

Michael Finley is a true testament to dedication and hard work. His pursuit of excellence, both on race day and training days, inspires everyone around him. Whether facing challenges or celebrating race day victories, Michael approaches each moment with a deep passion for his sports. It’s clear that his success comes not just from talent, but from an unwavering commitment to growth and improvement. Go Michael!

Season Highlight: Solid ride in the Mount Baker Hill Climb; tuning up for the Big Hurt.  I hadn’t done the Hill Climb since 2021. Took the overall win at Big Hurt after trailing 11minutes out of the kayak leg.

Fall/Winter Training: Looking forward to some trail running over the winter.
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Emily and Dusty Caseria

Dust’Em are our power couple on the Team. They both are extremely kind and thoughtful individuals with a true passion for adventures of all kinds. They, quite literally, are Adventure Racers. While this might not be their focus every single year, they take on all sorts of racing, whether it be mt biking, swim-runs, duathlons, or paddle racing. They are extreme athletes in the best sense and have some of the best attitudes on the racecourse.

Emily: My race highlight from the year was competing on an awesome, Bellingham based, 5 person female team at the Bend 24hr Mountain Bike Race in July. We won our division!

Dusty: America’s Toughest Race” – Expedition Oregon 2024

I had the privilege of racing with 3 good friends in the 2024 edition of Expedition Oregon, also known as “America’s Toughest Race”.  This edition of Expedition Oregon actually spent more time in Washington than Oregon. It was a super fun course with a variety of challenges. Our team worked well together and had a strong race start to finish. We had teams from New Zealand, Estonia, and Sweden not far behind, but we managed to get out hard on stage 1 (a ~90 mile mountain bike stage near Mt. Hood) and stay out front the remainder of the race. The course was very technical and engaging, with multiple rock-climbing stages, challenging orienteering at night, a bike-rafting stage where we transported our bikes on our packrafts and then carried our packrafts on our bikes, paddling class II whitewater in the dark, and paddling up to class V whitewater during the daytime.  Our team completed the nearly 350-mile long, nonstop race in 87 hours, taking first place.
Fall Update: Emily and I recently participated in the GBRC Turkey Trot.  Emily was 36 weeks pregnant with twins at the time and was unsure if she could even finish at all.  Somehow, just finishing the relatively flat 5k course under the 90-minute course cutoff was no less satisfying than crossing the finish line of a big multisport race.  It helped us realize the importance of local events for all people participating…not just the ones who are racing for a spot on the podium.  We had a great time out there, and the fact that we weren’t up near the front didn’t seem to dampen the experience at all.

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Want to join Team Bellingham? Stay connected on the Pacific Mutlisports Social Media pages for Team Bellingham application announcements! Read about all of our ambassadors and find their social media on the Athlete Ambassador page!