Staff Writer

The most difficult portion of the Tri for a Cure triathlon may be getting a chance to participate.

The third annual triathlon to raise money for the Maine Cancer Foundation begins at 2 p.m. Sunday when the first wave of swimmers will dive into Casco Bay off Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse in South Portland.

Race director Julie Marchese said it took eight minutes to fill available slots through online registration and she hopes more than $700,000 will be raised for cancer research. The field of athletes has expanded from 700 in 2009. All participants are required to raise at least $250 for cancer research.

Marchese said between 950 and 1,000 women will participate in at least one part of the triathlon, comprised of a 1/3-mile swim, a 15-mile bicycle ride through South Portland and Cape Elizabeth and three-mile run that loops through Spring Point and the Southern Maine Community College campus.

Holly Benoit, a Scarborough resident and one of about 100 cancer survivors to take part in the triathlon, will lead the Holden Hope team. The team, named in part for the insurance agency owned by her husband, John, aims to raise about $4,500, she said.

“It sends a great message about the hope and courage and getting back on your feet again. Look one day at a time and be positive,” said Holly Benoit, who will ride the triathlon’s bicycling leg.

Team Holden Hope will have changes this year; Benoit’s daughter, Margaret Benoit, has struck out on her own to ride and run two legs of Tri for a Cure. 

Running has been a longtime passion for Margaret Benoit. Last Saturday she ran the TD Bank Beach to Beacon 10K, and she took up bicycling in part because her parents became avid riders as her mother recovered from breast cancer and a broken leg about three years ago.

Holly Benoit, 51, said her daughter was one of her biggest advocates as she recovered from cancer. It was a time Margaret Benoit recalled as frightening and lonely.

“I did not know what to think,” she said. “I didn’t know if I could handle it.”

While the Benoits may not touch the water Sunday, a group of first-time triathletes discovered their worries about swimming in Casco Bay were ill-founded as they enjoyed a training session near Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse last Saturday.

Biddeford resident Joddie Fournier said the first swim in a wetsuit reinforced what she is capable of doing.

“The fear is there, but your body is very strong, and you come back to shore,” Fournier said.

Fournier is part of a group of friends who signed up to support Lyman resident Stacy Forcier, 38, who was diagnosed with breast cancer last fall and underwent a bilateral mastectomy.

Forcier said the swim is the most challenging portion of the triathlon for her, but the event fosters camaraderie as much as it may stoke competitive fires.

“I have never been an athlete, and the power and support is incredible,” Forcier said.

The training session was the last of three held through the summer to help new triathletes acclimate to the water and the triangular swim course marked with buoys. Forcier said volunteers in kayaks are there to help, and newer swimmers are encouraged to stay to the side and rear.

Cape Neddick resident Shelly Bitetti, 48, said she has never been comfortable in water, but was as encouraged as her friend, Fournier, after the training.

“The swim scared me off,” Bitetti said. “But it is very comfortable once you get in.”

Bitetti joins her daughter, Sheena Bitetti, who has participated in all three triathlons.

Sheena Bitetti said she takes a competitive approach to the events – it is in her nature.

“I always wanted to do one,” she said, “and the atmosphere is amazing on race day.”

Forcier’s goals are simpler – she wants to finish and raise $2,000 so she can be guaranteed a spot in next year’s field.

“Cancer does not get the last word,” Forcier said.

Marchese, who is also a cancer survivor, said the 2011 triathlon spots will still be hard to come by and the field will not be expanded.

Maria Evangelou, 48, a Wells resident who signed up in support of Forcier, said her goal is also to finish.

“I’m kind of a plodder,” she said.

No matter the pace or urge to compete, Shelly Bitetti said training has taught her she is capable of more than she imagined.

“If you think you can’t, think again,” she said.

For more information on the third annual Tri for a Cure, including course routes, spectator parking information and how to support individual athletes through donations, visit www.mainetriforacure.org.

Staff writer David Harry can be reached at 282-4337, ext. 219