SUBARU OWNERS REBECCAH AND LAUREL WASSNER ARE 35-YEAR-OLD TWINS LIVING NEAR NEW YORK CITY. LAST AUGUST, THE DYNAMIC DUO FINISHED FIRST AND SECOND, RESPECTIVELY, IN THE 2010 NEW YORK CITY TRIATHLON. “After being named USA Triathlon’s Athlete of the Year in 2009 and spending 2010 sidelined with an injury, I’m back for 2011 with the goal of becoming the country’s fastest triathlete once again,” Rebeccah said. Since childhood, athletics came naturally. Rebeccah ran Division I cross country and track for Mount St. Mary’s College in Maryland, and Laurel earned a swimming scholarship as a walk-on at George Washington University. Both majored in accounting. “I knew I could make an impact as a pro, but focused instead on pursuing a career as a CPA,” Rebeccah said. “It took my sister overcoming cancer for me to quit my job and start something totally new.” As Laurel battled Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Rebeccah dedicated herself to her sports full time and began racking up wins. Laurel began training even as she recovered from chemotherapy. She is the first cancer survivor to become a pro triathlete and was named Rookie of the Year by USA Triathlon in 2008. LIFE AS A PRO The Wassners’ training regimen is not for the faint of heart – think 50-mile bike rides, exhausting open-water swims, and long runs on challenging terrain. During the winter months, the twins head south to Tucson, Arizona, where they train with their coach Cliff English, one of the world’s top triathlon trainers. Mental toughness is just as important as the physical training. “I work with a sports psychologist named Mitchell Green,” Rebeccah said. “He helps me mentally prepare for my upcoming races by going through the challenges of them, whether it be the terrain of the course, the competition, or the weather conditions.” Winning and self discipline go hand in hand. “There are days when the only person getting you out the door to train is yourself,” Rebeccah said. “Even though being a pro triathlete is a full-time job, days aren't structured like a normal nine-to-five work day. It takes a lot of focus to go out and hit all of the hard workouts – even if you are tired or there is something else you might feel like doing. You have to want to work hard.” Natural talent also plays a big factor. Nike, a sponsor, recently arranged testing for the Wassners at the Nike Performance Lab. “We had the highest VO2 max scores [a measure of aerobic fitness] they'd ever seen,” Rebeccah said, “and our results were exactly the same!” While there is a healthy amount of competition between the sisters, in the end they are each other’s biggest supporters. “When I'm racing Laurel, I want nothing more than for her to do well. When we are out on the course together, we look out for each other and help each other as much as we can.” It’s this level of commitment and mutual inspiration that could very well lead the Wassner twins to the 2012 Olympics. Read more about Laurel and Rebeccah Wassner at www.wassnertwins.com. LIFE AS A PRO The Wassners’ training regimen is not for the faint of heart – think 50-mile bike rides, exhausting open-water swims, and long runs on challenging terrain. During the winter months, the twins head south to Tucson, Arizona, where they train with their coach Cliff English, one of the world’s top triathlon trainers. Mental toughness is just as important as the physical training. “I work with a sports psychologist named Mitchell Green,” Rebeccah said. “He helps me mentally prepare for my upcoming races by going through the challenges of them, whether it be the terrain of the course, the competition, or the weather conditions.” Winning and self discipline go hand in hand. “There are days when the only person getting you out the door to train is yourself,” Rebeccah said. “Even though being a pro triathlete is a full-time job, days aren't structured like a normal nine-to-five work day. It takes a lot of focus to go out and hit all of the hard workouts – even if you are tired or there is something else you might feel like doing. You have to want to work hard.” Natural talent also plays a big factor. Nike, a sponsor, recently arranged testing for the Wassners at the Nike Performance Lab. “We had the highest VO2 max scores [a measure of aerobic fitness] they'd ever seen,” Rebeccah said, “and our results were exactly the same!” While there is a healthy amount of competition between the sisters, in the end they are each other’s biggest supporters. “When I'm racing Laurel, I want nothing more than for her to do well. When we are out on the course together, we look out for each other and help each other as much as we can.” It’s this level of commitment and mutual inspiration that could very well lead the Wassner twins to the 2012 Olympics. Read more about Laurel and Rebeccah Wassner at www.wassnertwins.com. 
OWNER SPOTLIGHT: SISTER ACT THE WASSNER TWINS
