Larry Giannetti

Porter County Member-At-Large
DeMotte

One early morning many years ago I noticed a large group of persons running through town (DeMotte Rotary Ramble) and thought, "I think I will run in that race someday." Never got off the couch much other than to go to work, mow the lawn, house repair projects, etc. Then, in 2001 I said, "This year I am finally going to DO it!"

I must say previous to 2001, I made one other attempt and was promptly told by the Health Club Kid, "I think we need to get you a check up from your Doc, Mr. Giannetti!". When I spoke to Dr. Kingma, I said, "Do you believe that kid? He actually said I needed a check up!". Dr. Kingma replied, "Ya′ know Larry, I have no idea why he told you to get a check up, but why don′t we get you up on the treadmill and give you a stress test".....11 minutes of walking later...I was off the tread mill.

In 2001, I participated in 15 races - including, by the way, the Rotary Ramble. In 2002, I participated in over 40 races including three Duathlons, one International Cycling Classic, and the Indianapolis Life Half Marathon.

In 2003, I plan on participating in at least 10 Gold Cup Races, Indianapolis Life AT&T 5K, Purdue University Grand Prix Sprint Duathlon, Apple Duathlon, Ambassadors for Children ′Race for the Kids′ 8K, Meijer′s YWCA Duathlon, Valparaiso YMCA Triathlon, USAT Mideast Regional Triathlon Championship, USAT Mideast Regional Duathlon Championship, and the USAT National Duathlon Championships. Also, in 2003 I have already participated in the AUL Bop To the Top Stair Climb and the American Lung Association John Hancock 1/2 Climb.

So far this season (2004) yours truly has been able to participate in a variety of racing events that were held in the States of Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, and Alabama. Non-Strider events participated in as of 4/20/04 include The Duneland YMCA Scurry Flurry, Riley Hospital for Children Bop to the Top Stair Climb, Park Forest Illinois Pancake Club Midwinter Cruise 5k, The USATF Masters Division National Cross Country Championship, Valparaiso High School Valentines 5k, Powerman Alabama Duathlon, Caesar Creek Ohio Duathlon, Valparaiso University Law School Ambulance Chase 5k, and most recently the Crown Point YMCA Hub Run 5k.

For the remainder of the 2004 season I plan on participating in as many Strider races as possible in addition to the ever so popular Indianapolis Life Mini Marathon, Chicago Marathon, USAT Mideast Regional Duathlon Championship ( 2004 USATMideast Region Board Member At Large www.USATMideast.com), Dannon Yogurt Naperville Duathlon, and the Valparaiso Triathlon.

During the 2003 racing season I was able to participate in 8 Duathlons in addition to the Strider and non-Strider road races. Of the 8 duathlons 6 were USAT Sanctioned events and had the possibility of counting toward a USAT National ranking. Five of the events did qualify and I obtained a USAT National Duathlete Ranking of 113th for the Male 45-49 Division, 36th for the USAT Mideast Region (Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, and Kentucky), and 4th for the State of Indiana. In 2004 I hope to improve upon my USAT Duathlon rankings and also obtain a USAT National Triathlete ranking. In fact sometime in the future I would like to qualify as a member of TEAM USA and compete in the ITU World Duathlon Championships. Of course one of my other 2004 goals is to improve upon my 9th place finish in the CRS Gold Cup Series. The most important goal of the season however is to enjoy participating in such events promoting overall health, sportsmanship, family, relationship building, community, and fellowship.

Contact Information:

E-Mail:

Phone: 219-916-0897

Updated: 1/24/2006