Friends, from ages 24 to 68, train for Iron Girl Triathlon

When Mary Rhode participated in her first triathlon last summer, she did it alone. This year, she talked her friends into joining her.

"I kind of nagged them until I had enough people to do it with me," she said. "All these women are totally capable of doing it, so I just told them how fun it was."

Now a group of about 11 women, ages 24 to 68, have signed up to participate in the Iron Girl Sprint Distance Triathlon in Columbia on Aug. 24.

They will run 3.4 miles, bicycle 17.5 miles, and swim for 1,100 yards in open water.

"We're all in it together, helping each other succeed and...