Tri Beginner‘s Luck

We exist because we want you to Tri! We talk with coaches, professional athletes, beginner athletes, race and event directors and announcers, triathlon media, and other industry leaders who share their beginner stories, and what it takes to be successful in this sport - and life.

Tri Beginner‘s Luck is a sports podcast hosted by MichandaShines, with 193 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

MichandaShines hosts Tri Beginner‘s Luck, a sports show with 193 episodes published.

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  Episode #189

  Go Big or Go Home | Tom Scheer on Racing as a Clydesdale, DNFs, and a Guinness Record

  Jun 30, 20261h 14mS6

  He registered for 47 races, blew out his knee, got disqualified for a GoPro, got married, went on a honeymoon, and still came home with the record. Thomas "Tom" Scheer is a Naval Academy graduate, Navy Commendation Medal recipient, Ironman Kona finisher, and Boys and Girls Club board member who is now the official Guinness World Record holder for the most Ironman 70.3 distance triathlons completed in a single year. Tom has spent 20 years in triathlon as a Clydesdale athlete and the kind of person who stops mid-race to help a stranger fix their bike even when it risks his own cutoff. In this conversation, we get into what the chase actually cost: the injuries, the disqualifications, the 3.9 million Hilton points, and the harder truth of being a newlywed while racing nearly every weekend for 11 months. We also go back to where it started. A panic swim in Tallahassee in 2006 in a scuba diving wetsuit, imposter syndrome on the bike, and a Dairy Queen peanut buster parfait to celebrate. Twenty years later, he drove back to that same Dairy Queen and ordered the same thing. This is the last episode before the season break, and it ends exactly where this show has always aimed: with proof that this sport belongs to everyone willing to try. Want to race? We are giving away a free entry to the Alpha Wins Big Apple Triathlon in New York on October 10. Head to @TriBeginnersLuck on Instagram for details. And through July 19, use code TRIBEGINNERPOD26 for 10% off your registration. Join the Tri Beginner's Luck Community: Enjoyed this episode? The best way to support the show is to leave a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify! Follow us on Instagram: @TriBeginnersLuck Connect on Facebook: Tri Beginner's Luck Page Questions or Feedback? We want to hear your story! Send your questions to tblpodbiz@tribeginnersluck.com , and we may feature them on a future episode. Let's tri this!

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  Episode #188

  Last Out of the Water, Still on the Podium | Tommy Struzzieri on Confidence, Community, and the Big Apple Triathlon

  Jun 24, 20261h 2mS6

  What if the person behind your race experience has been living inside this sport since before they could drive? This episode brings you inside the world of a man who didn't just grow up loving triathlon but grew up building it, race by race, cone by cone. Tommy Struzzieri, USAT certified race director and founder of Alpha Win Racing, has worn nearly every hat in this sport: athlete, volunteer, age group All-American, Division I runner at Syracuse University, coach, and now the person making it all happen for thousands of participants across the country. His guiding belief, that there is a distance for everyone, shapes every decision he makes, from offering an open entry-level distance designed to welcome true first-timers to keeping race-day logistics as convenient and stress-free as possible. This season, Tommy is bringing triathlon back to New York City with the Big Apple Triathlon on October 10, 2026. Hear what it took, what it means, and what he hopes every athlete feels when they cross that finish line. Whether you're lining up for your first sprint or your first time standing at a starting line, this one is for you. Join the Tri Beginner's Luck Community: Enjoyed this episode? The best way to support the show is to leave a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify! Follow us on Instagram: @TriBeginnersLuck Connect on Facebook: Tri Beginner's Luck Page Questions or Feedback? We want to hear your story! Send your questions to tblpodbiz@tribeginnersluck.com, and we may feature them in a future episode. Let's tri this!

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  Episode #187

  From Shanghai to the Starting Line | Brandon Woolfolk on Depression, Purpose, and Becoming a Triathlete

  Jun 17, 202658 minS6

  Some people don't find triathlon. Triathlon finds them. It calls quietly for years until the timing, the spirit, and the courage finally align at once. Brandon Woolfolk is a certified personal trainer, nutrition coach, music artist, and founder of No Plateau Zone. This year, he said yes to a challenge that had been waiting for him since 2023. After years of distance running and obstacle course races, Brandon joined the Y Tri community in February and completed not one but two sprint triathlons in his first season. But the road to that starting line ran through three years living in Shanghai, a painful return home during the pandemic, a battle with depression, and a radio ad that quietly changed everything. In this Father's Day episode, Brandon shares what it means to pursue big goals in full view of your daughter, why community sharpens us when we go it alone, and what he learned about himself when his swim cap came off mid-race, and he had to keep going anyway. The only plateau is in your mind. This one proves it. Join the Tri Beginner's Luck Community: Enjoyed this episode? The best way to support the show is to leave a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify! Follow us on Instagram: @TriBeginnersLuck Connect on Facebook: Tri Beginner's Luck Page Questions or Feedback? We want to hear your story! Send your questions to tblpodbiz@tribeginnersluck.com, and we may feature them on a future episode. Let's tri this!

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  Episode #186

  The Army Couldn't Break Her. The Pool Almost Did. | Betty Collins on Faith, Fear, and First Triathlon

  Jun 10, 202655 minS6

  For over 20 years, Betty Collins led troops, mentored communities, and built others up from the inside out. So what happens when the person who is always pouring into others has to finally let others pour into her? Betty Collins is a retired Army master sergeant, cybersecurity professional, and founder of Fit for the King, a faith-based fitness initiative she started in her church over a decade ago. She grew up in the historic Snowden community of South Carolina with a lifelong fear of the water. This year, after being invited by a friend she met at a church retreat, she said yes to something she never imagined she would do a triathlon. What followed was four months of cold January pool sessions, private swim lessons, and a community of women who refused to let her quit. On May 15, at 63 years old, Betty Collins completed her first triathlon at She Tries Ion, swimming eight laps, biking nine miles, and running two more. She crossed that finish line not because she had conquered her fear, but because she discovered she was more capable than she believed. This conversation covers courage, community, faith, and what it looks like to start from the very beginning, again, at any age. Join the Tri Beginner's Luck Community: Enjoyed this episode? The best way to support the show is to leave a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify! Follow us on Instagram: @TriBeginnersLuck Connect on Facebook: Tri Beginner's Luck Page Questions or Feedback? We want to hear your story! Send your questions to tblpodbiz@tribeginnersluck.com, and we may feature them on a future episode. Let's tri this!

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  Episode #185

  They Canceled the Race. He Finished Anyway: Mike Nyman on Family, Community, and Racing Through Fear

  Jun 3, 202657 minS6

  <p>What does it take to come out of the water nearly last and choose to come back? Not once, but race after race, distance after distance, through graduate school, a pandemic, and the arrival of three children in 17 months.</p> <p>Mike Nyman's triathlon story doesn't begin with a perfect swim or a podium finish. It begins with a graduation gift, a best friend, and a pool race in Lynchburg, Virginia. From that sprint in 2013, Mike has grown into a five-time Ironman finisher, Team Varlo Virginia Region captain, and an athlete who still gets nervous every single time he...

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