48   JULY 2012

CheckIn

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Following a fierce 2011 seasonhighlighted by two Ironmanwins, multiple podiumplacings and a top 10 in Kona,Heather Wurtele was eagerto kick off 2012 on a highnote. Unfortunately, illnessderailed her race in Abu Dhabi,and she struggled in theexcessive heat and humidityat Ironman 70.3 Galveston. Butthe ever-optimistic Wurtele isembracing the months aheadwith a “nowhere to go but up”attitude in hopes of improvingon her 2011 eighth-place finishin Kona.e four-time Ironmanchampion (St. George 2011 and2010, Lake Placid 2011, Coeurd’Alene 2008) lives, travels andtrains out of a tiny RV (lessthan 100 square feet of livingspace) with her husband,fellow pro Trevor Wurtele, andtheir cat, Manah.e couple isheading into their fourth yearof calling the RV, where theyspend all but a combined fourweeks annually, home.By Holly Bennett

TIGHT QUARTERS: We started

living in the RV to save money when

we were still working full-time. Trevor

worked from 3 p.m. until midnight for

a currency exchange, and I worked

normal hours as a researcher. He’d

get home in the middle of the night

and try to quietly change 2 feet from

where I was sleeping. I’d get up at 5

a.m. and try to tiptoe around and eat

breakfast. That was pretty horrible.

Since we’ve been living out of it and

just training and racing it’s been

much better. We love our home!

SNUG AS BUGS IN A RUG: We feel

really cozy and secure in our bed.

It’s surrounded by windows and

walls on three sides. When we do

stay in a normal bed we feel like

we’re going to fall off. It’s like we

need an adult crib!

KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES: 

Some people at the Galveston race

had one of those deluxe RVs with

four pop-outs. We were admiring it

and they saw us and said, “Hey, are

you the Wurteles? We feel so guilty

that our little weekend getaway RV is

so much nicer than your home!”

CALL ME MA’AM: Being mistaken

for a dude gets kind of irritating.

People don’t actually look at you

sometimes, they just sort of glance

and get a sense of your height

[Wurtele is 6-foot-2] and assume

that you’re a guy. They’re like, “How

can I help you, sir?” And I’m like, “Um,

actually …” And then they realize my

voice is higher pitched.

LOFTY ACHIEVEMENT: When

I started triathlon there was this

perception that the fast women

were these tiny things. If you were

tall and you didn’t look like that, you

couldn’t possibly be a successful

pro. But that’s really not true. The

long-lever swimming is a benefit,

and height definitely helps with

power on the bike. And if you look at

the top men there are some tall and

really fast guys. So it’s something

that I perceive as an advantage and

always try to stay positive about. I

like being a role model for tall girls.

When you’re in high school and

you’re a foot taller than all the guys,

you can really get insecure. I get all

sorts of e-mails about that. It’s been

motivating for me to have a lot of tall

women say, “Wow! It’s so awesome

to see you winning Ironmans!” Yes,

tall chicks can be fast!

HEATHERWURTELE

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