Excited to Tri

Hi everyone, I'm a 33 y.o. firefighter/paramedic and tri-newbie. I have stayed physically active all of my adult life, mostly weight lifting. Last December, a co-worker talked me into running a marathon. I had never been a big runner. Until this year the longest I had ever run was 7 miles and that was 14 years ago in boot camp. Well anyways, we began training this past January and in April we ran and finished the Cleveland Rite-Aid Marathon. The running was actually much more enjoyable than I thought it would be. However I did learn that even though I am not that old, I don't have the body of a sixteen y.o. anymore. The long distances took a toll on my knees. I'm good for about the first 15 miles and then the pain starts. I think the cross-training of triathlons will be better for my knees then the constant pounding of the long distance running. I have been trying to build a base for triathlons the last 8 weeks by swimming, biking and running twice a week and am getting very excited to continue training for the 2004 season. Right now I am planning on competing in a couple of sprints and at least one olympic triathlon in 2004. My buddy is also trying to talk me into running the Columbus, Ohio marathon this coming October. We'll see!
Good Luck this year everyone and Happy Holidays.
Brx