Laura Coombs

Laura learned to swim at the age of nine and competed with a year-round club until High School. She enjoyed swimming every day with friends and loved the team camaraderie. After High School she attended Cal Poly where she became fascinated with the sport of triathlon. “I wanted to try something new and find a way to keep fit. Triathlon seemed like the perfect option. So I started swimming again, ran once in a while and bought a bike after Thanksgiving. I signed up for Wildflower and had no idea what I was getting myself into. I didn’t really know how to train for it and it was by far the most challenging thing I’d ever completed.”

After that first race, Laura knew she needed some direction and coaching. A friend introduced her to the coach of the TriSLO Roadrunners and she has trained with the group ever since. “With proper coaching and by learning more about the sport, my race times improved and triathlon didn’t seem like such a daunting tast anymore. I love the challenge of blending all three sports and like to push my body and mind to new places.”

Laura has competed in many local and National races. At her first ‘big’ race at Collegiate Nationals in 2003 she placed 10th earning the rank of Collegiate All-American. After missing the whole 2004 season due to a foot injury, she came back for a strong 2005. After winning the local March Warm-Up triathlon at Cal Poly, she continued to rack up age-group wins at UVAS triathlon in Morgan Hill (sprint distance), San Jose International Triathlon (Olympic distance), and the Vineman Half-Ironman in Santa Rosa – her first half-Ironman. Winning her age group at Vineman secured Laura a qualifying spot for Ironman World Championships in Hawaii. Having never completed a full Ironman, Laura finished 7th in her age group in Hawaii with a time of 11:07.

Laura also enjoys all water sports as well as snowboarding, weight-lifting, hiking and climbing. 

Paul Terek |Laura Coombs| Bishops Peak Cycling