Athletes were going nowhere fast Sunday morning at the UNC Wellness Center at Meadowmont. Still, they made progress toward a better understanding of triathlons.

The "Splash, Spin, and Sprint Indoor Triathlon" went a long way toward demystifying multi-sport events and mitigating fears that they are only for the elite.

"One nice thing is that you don't have to bring all of that equipment," participant Michelle McLelland said. "Plus, you don't have the cold weather out on the bike ride."

Around 40 participants competed in three events without ever leaving the Wellness Center on Sunday. Distance, not time, was the gauge as competitors amassed miles swimming laps in the facility's pool, cycling on stationary bicycles and running on treadmills, with a goal to cover as much distance as possible for each of the three, 15-minute legs.

Dave Williams was the overall men's winner, swimming 57 pool lengths in the allotted 15 minutes, then covering a theoretical 10.03 miles on the stationary bike at a 40 mph pace, and finishing with a 5:48 mile pace for 2.58 miles in the final 15-minute leg. Ken Younts (12.22 total miles) finished second overall, with Frazier Keck (10.23 miles) in third place among the males.

"The hardest part was that there was no wind on the bikes," Williams said, "so I got really hot on the bike."

Among the women, it was Jacquie Zinn, 51, covering 33 pool lengths, 8.58 bike miles, and 1.69 treadmill miles for a 10.74-mile total and a women's overall victory. Chris Tommerdahl (10.27 miles) finished second, while Kathy Hunter (9.14 miles) earned third place.

"The hardest part was probably my swim," said Tommerdahl, 22, "but that's because I was next to Dave Williams the whole time, and that was making me feel like I was going slow.

"I was just happy not to fall off the treadmill," she added, "because I've never run on one before. It's hard to motivate yourself when you're not actually going somewhere."

Participants were sorted into six-member waves that began every 20 minutes in the Wellness Center's indoor lap pool. Competitors had 15 minutes to complete as many lengths as possible by way of any swimming stroke.

After a five-minute transition, each wave had 15 minutes to bike as far as they could on Life Fitness stationary bikes in the facility's cardiac rehab area, followed by a final five-minute transition and a 15-minute run or walk on treadmills. Winners were based on total mileage amassed throughout the three events.

Owned and operated by UNC Hospitals, the Wellness Center at Meadowmont is a 52,000-square foot medical fitness facility, offering a 25-yard indoor pool, indoor track, aerobics studios, cardiovascular and strength training equipment, free weights and a multi-purpose room for indoor basketball and group exercise.

While competitors had their own challenges to contend with, event director Monette Williams said event coordinators' and volunteers' toughest challenge was moving people from one stage to another.

"The toughest part was just making sure that everyone [transitioned] in under five minutes," she said. "Logistically, that was the hardest part."

Monette Williams was thankful for the level of volunteer help with the event.

"The turnout here has just been amazing, especially the volunteers," she said. "We have a volunteer for around every two participants."

And those participants reflected a wide variety of ages, abilities and goals.

"Liz [Watt] is our dietician," UNC Wellness Center lifestyle enhancement director Kathy DeBlasio said. "She's actually very pregnant, but she's competing today. We also had an 86-year-old woman competing today, and a 78-year-old man."

"I saw the announcement and I knew I could do the bicycle and walk," said Olga Eyres, the 86-year-old participant. "I wasn't sure if I could swim for 15 minutes though. I went to the pool a couple days ago to see if I could, and I could, so I decided to do this."

"A lot of the women here did the course we offered leading up to the Ramblin' Rose Triathlon," DeBlasio said.

"We also have a lot of folks who were injured," Monette Williams said, "and we also have a good number of folks who just walked in, saw the [flyers], and didn't even know what a triathlon was."

"I've got a couple injuries, so today wasn't really about timing," Denise Vanderwoude said. "I did alright in the swim, but I was two minutes late getting on the bike because I was struggling with my bathing suit. I just walked the treadmill. Being here is the biggest part of it."

Overall, Tommerdahl, the women's second-place finisher, was first among the 20-29-year-old set, with Nicole Robertson (8.79 miles) in second place and Logan Rae (8.76 miles) rounding out the top three. In the women's 30-39 bracket, Kathy Hunter (9.14) took first, with Michelle McClelland (6.02 miles) second and Liz Watt (5.18) in third place.

Susan Trimmer (8.54 miles) earned gold in the women's 40-49 division, with Susan Murray (8.24 miles) taking silver and Amy Brown (5.62 miles) winning bronze. Behind overall women,s winner Jacquie Zinn (10.74 miles) in the 50-59 bracket, it was Sharon Van Horn (8.57 miles) in second and Margaret Campion (8.33 miles) third.

Olga Eyre (1.75 miles) stood alone as the victor in the ladies' 80-and-older division.

Overall men's winner Dave Williams was also first among 30-39-year-olds. Ken Younts and Frazier Keck finished 1-2 in the men's 40-49 bracket, with George Wayson (10.23 miles) third. Among men 50-59, Pete Guild (8.78 miles) was first, followed by Jeff Hunter (7.29 miles) and David Moore (7.10 miles).

Don Knowles (7.00 miles) earned gold in the men's 60-69 division, with Steve Vanderwoude (6.63 miles) taking silver and Mike Collins (5.66 miles) bronze. Frank Wilson's 6.54 miles were good enough to claim top honors in the men's 70-78 bracket.

Monette Williams said the event unofficially finishes up the multi-sport season for the fall at the UNC Wellness Center.

"Triathlon training clinics will probably start up again next March or April," she said, "and we may actually hold another of these in the spring if there's enough interest in it."

Enthusiasts can warm themselves over the winter months with the notion that the next multisport season is only a matter time away, not distance.

Randy Young can be reached at chnsports@nando.com or by calling 932-8743.