Dean Bolt on the Hot Seat

Dean is the president of HEAT and the driving force behind getting the club started. He’s married, has two children and is a Forensic Engineer for St. Paul Travelers in his other life. Although he understands the idea of balancing triathlon with the rest of life, he claims he’s not always successful with that. Dean turned 50 last season and had a great year in the new age group! A serious runner since 1989 and a triathlete since 1993, he’s always loved trail races, but he finds himself moving more toward duathlons and triathlons. To date, his proudest athletic accomplishment has been his part in getting the Hartford Marathon started. As far as racing, he says, “Finishing a couple of Half Ironman races and the 2004 Off-road Nationals without killing myself is about as good as it gets. I hope to keep doing new races and challenges each year.” Have a great season, Dean, and thanks so much for all your work in making HEAT a reality!

What inspired you to start a triathlon club in Connecticut?

The past few years, I’ve noticed two things as I traveled to races around New England. First, there are several visible clubs at races with lots of folks who meet before and after the race and cheer for each other. Second, our area racers seem to win or place in their share of races, but have to travel to Springfield or Boston to race for a team.

What was the response when you first suggested a new club?

The response was very enthusiastic from every triathlete I talked to. Initially, Jamie Sullivan, Gabe Jiran and Cathi Koehler helped pass the word at races and to friends. People were excited, but for different reasons ranging from having a race team to finding others to train with.

What's been the biggest challenge so far?

The variety of expectations makes it tough to figure out what the club really wants to be when it grows up. What started as a very simple idea of getting a shared Web site and some cool uniforms quickly grew as the need for a formal organization became apparent. Getting through the organization and incorporation process has been a great way to see the depth of the commitment to this idea as people like Gabe Jiran (Legal Beagle), Cathi Koehler (scribe and enthusiasm), Rafael Martinez (Treasurer) and many others have taken on important roles in the process.

What's the main thing you hope HEAT will accomplish?

This is a great sport which should be shared. I want HEAT to provide an organization for beginners to learn how to do multi-sports, for experienced athletes to share ideas for improvement and for the top tier to push each other toward higher achievements. I would like this to be a group we can all be proud to be part of while having fun.

As it evolves, what do you hope HEAT's role will be in the local tri scene?

I hope to see us get to the point where we can take a role in the success of the local training races. It would be great to select several CT races and make them part of a HEAT Grand Prix point series. It would be great to bring in some homegrown talent such as Karen Smyers to put on a clinic or to help us with a “Tri Camp” for a long weekend. It would be great if some of the local talent could be wearing our uniform in National Competition as they qualify to wear the USA Team uniform.

Has starting the club cut into your training time?

Any time you get involved in the “other side” of the sport, you end up giving up training time. The reward with my time spent on the Hartford Marathon is seeing all those runners each October in a race I helped start. I expect this to grow and thrive and the training lost will be a small price. Besides, where would we be without a good excuse for a bad performance?

At what races will we see you wearing a HEAT uniform this year?

I am hoping to compete in Duathlon Nationals in June if my schedule permits. Other than that, I want to do Fairlee, Niantic and Griskus. After a very long season and lots of races last year, I may be less structured this year. I would also lean toward races other HEAT members do.