Aug 14, 2011
04:34 PM
Fairfield's first female-only triathlon in late August
Women Only
Fairfield's first female-only triathlon in late August
In her quiet, French accent, Pascale Butcher rattles off her athletic accomplishments: first in the 2009 NYC Triathlon in her age group, top ten of the 2008 Vancouver world championships, and this past July she placed third in her age group in the Ironman competition in Lake Placid. On August 28, Butcher can put another notch on her belt, except this time she’ll be rooting from the sidelines.
Butcher is co-founder of TriFitness—her husband being the other ‘co’—and the brains behind their first-ever women’s triathlon. TriFitness started in 2001 with two classes and grew to what it is today, a brand-new Fairfield facility that offers multi-sport training.
Butcher has not always been a professional triathlete. A runner from the get-go, she spent her childhood jogging the hills of Aix-en-Provence in southern France; but in order to compete in triathlons, she had to get over her fear of swimming. “I’ve been through it, the panic attacks and all,” Butcher admits. Perhaps that explains her reason for holding a women’s-only event. “A women’s environment is less intimidating.”
Part of the proceeds will go to TeamBrent, created in 2005 to fight children’s cancer. Brent, a Fairfield native battled stage IV neuroblastoma as a three-year-old. Now a nine-year-old, Brent planned to attend triathlon training at TriFitness’s camp this summer and inspire everyone there. According to Butcher, he is “close to everybody’s heart.”
TriFitness offers a 12-week, pre-training program focusing on the cross-training aspect of triathlons. The triathlon will include a half-mile swim, a 12-mile bike tour, and a 3.1-mile run. The course skirts Long Island Sound, culminating at Calf Pasture Beach in Norwalk. The day “will be a celebration of health and fitness for women of all ages and shapes,” says Butcher.
—Gordon Rago
Colonial Era Clothing
Did Fairfield families make their own clothing in Colonial times?
Though all Fairfield landowners in the 1600s and 1700s were growing flax, which was commonly refined on a spinning wheel to produce linen, few Fairfield families were making their own clothing. Flax was primarily grown simply to produce the seed, which was then exported to Ireland, or used to make linseed oil. A key reason is that few average Fairfield families had the room in their homes to accommodate a big loom, so they bartered for their clothing. Some wool fabrics were made in Fairfield as well, though a huge amount was imported from England. Textiles came in through Boston and New York and brought to Fairfield.
The expense of wool (and silk) was so great at the time that it was advisable to have someone knowledgeable about clothing construction do at least the cutting out of the material. Men’s greatcoats were meant to last a very long time, so their manufacture was an investment. Likewise, skilled dressmakers were often employed to make garments if expensive fabric was involved. —Mike Lauterborn
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