1. Who are you?/Age/Occupation:
Marla Bleavins / 30 a.k.a. the “New 20” / Finance Specialist for the City of Los Angeles

2. Favorite Quote: “By Perseverance, the snail made it to the ark.” I think about this when I’m swimming. “Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage.”

3. Favorite Athlete: Olympic Heptathlete, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, she did seven sports and I’m only doing three!

4. Favorite Healthy Food: Any kind of seafood. Fresh salad with spring mix lettuce and Good Seasons Italian dressing.

5. Favorite indulgent Food: French Fries.

6. Are you training for your first triathlon? If not, which ones have you done?I’ve done Santa Barbara and Long Beach twice and Pendleton once before. I’m currently training for Camp Pendleton and the Los Angeles Triathlon.

7. What inspires you to do triathlons?
It is a great way to keep in shape and the sense of pride from crossing the finish line or even after a great workout is wonderful. Doing triathlons is also a positive distraction when other areas of my life are not going well. After all, a brick workout is better for you that downing a box of chocolates or binge shopping when your man ain’t acting right. I think…

8. WHO inspires you?
Kelly’s sanity and sense of calm is very reassuring. I love watching the handful of people who are 70+ at the triathlons. The day before my first tri, I watched the triathletes finish the Long Course at Santa Barbara. I was worried that I would be too tired to finish the run without stopping to walk. Then I saw a below-the-knee amputee running it in hard after 10 miles. She inspired me the next day.

9. What is your biggest challenge/fear?
I fear injuries or illness that would prevent me from doing a race at the last minute. The swim is the biggest challenge but fortunately I enjoy it the most.

10. Any advice for future TriDivas?
Just tri it!!

11. What do you enjoy most about training with the TriDivas?
The encouragement that I get from the other TriDivas really makes the difference. I remember wanting to stop and walk during a race and I looked down and saw that someone had written “Go Tridivas! Go Marla!” in chalk. That kept me going. Thanks to whoever that was.

12. What are your future goals? I want to do a Half Ironman eventually. I hope to continue doing triathlons into my 80s and encourage other women to do triathlons, particularly other African-American women.