Featured Over 50 Athlete – Tripp Weeks

Meet Tripp Weeks, this week’s over 50 athlete. Tripp is an entrepreneur based in Atlanta. Tripp is all about exploring how staying fit can be a fun adventure! Read his story.

One of Tripp’s most fun traits is his endless curiosity – about how things work, about how to improve things, about what makes people tick. This curiosity, together with some engineering talent, has made Tripp an inventor. His inventions include:

• A hydraulic elevator that operates off of household water pressure so his wife can access her closet in the attic.
• A doggie door that opens automatically when dog wants to go out.
• A series of small catwalks through parts of his house so that the cat can have some fun and explore safely, out of range of dogs.
• A firing range in his basement, where he trains self-defense, active shooter and armed intruder engagement.

His next project? A pneumatic door that opens and closes like the doors on “Starship Enterprise.”

Tripp never met a stranger. No matter where he goes, his genuine interest and positive outlook draw people to him. For example, Tripp met a 70 year old man while running a 31 mile trail race. By the end of the race, Tripp learned his story (he was making a comeback from a heart attack), made a new friend and crossed the finish line with him.

Tripp was active through his earlier years, but not in endurance sports. Tripp’s wife, Kim, began running marathons, and Tripp decided to take on the challenge himself. Tripp ran his first marathon in 2011 in Las Vegas at age 48. He has now completed two 50K ultra marathons and the hardest ultra in Alabama, a 60K race called Mountain Mist. (yes, the same one Andrew Powell has completed 11 times.)

Tripp brings his sense of fun and adventure and love of a challenge to working out. With a marathon under his belt, he signed up for a half ironman triathlon (1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike and 13.1 mile run) and then focused on full ironman races (2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and 26.2 mile run). Tripp completed three full iron distance races in 360 days –  Louisville, Beach to Battleship and the North American championship race at Mt Tremblant Canada.  At age 52 now, Tripp is taking it easy this year with one, maybe two half ironman races and training for his second attempt at a 50 mile ultra. He and his wife, Kim, are also active strength training through Warrior Pride Cross Fit.

Tripp says he finally has his nutrition “dialed in.” He consumes 3 Sapphire and tonic’s with two limes, a little wine, fettuccini alfredo and steak the night before a long training run or a race. I have personally seen him stop at Burger King for a sausage biscuit during a 21 mile training run. He fuels exclusively on fast food for races, after issues at Ironman Louisville. “No more space food,” he says. Tripp eats burgers and pizza during Ironman events. He cooked his own bacon and eggs for breakfast on a camp stove at the swim start of his most recent Ironman because Burger King was not open yet.  He says it was great fun to hear the other athletes say “I smell bacon…”  (I can’t say I endorse Tripp’s nutrition program, but it seems to work for him!)

Why does Tripp train?  “Fun, socializing, feeling good, looking good, keeping up with my wife and my dog Bella!”