With the Escape the Cape Triathlon coming into town this weekend, many people, such as Onset residents Tom and Linda Hannon, are gearing up for their first race. Others are just trying to improve on last year's time, like 83-year-old Wareham resident Gino McCarthy.

Nicole Stahmer said that last year McCarthy received some of the loudest cheers when he reached the finish line of his first triathlon.

"People were yelling 'he's alive' he's alive'," she said.

Stahmer, a physical education teacher at Wareham Middle School, met McCarthy at the Wareham Elks Club, where she also works.

"I've gotten to know him and I think he's just the coolest guy," she said. "He can always come put a smile on your face."

Stahmer, who is also running in the triathlon, said McCarthy calls her when he does his training and the two of them keep each other's training on track.

She said he works out exclusively at the Gleason Family YMCA, where he works at the front desk, and will do a 10 mile bike, a three mile run and one mile on the row machine when he works out. She plans on finishing the race then doubling back to cover the homestretch with McCarthy when he comes to the finish.

"He's just a great guy. Anyone would be lucky to have him as a friend," she said.

Tom and Linda Hannon live on the triathlon route in Onset and watched the race last year with their grandson.

"We had realized how bad of shape we had gotten in, so that gave us the motivation," said Tom Hannon.

The Hannons signed up for this year's race and began training on Jan. 1. Training for their first triathlon, they both had no idea how to start.

"We bought every training book you could imagine," Hannon said.

He said they faced many obstacles training for the race, including the brutal winter weather, training through injuries and a bad case of the flu. The Hannons didn't even start training outdoors until the first week of April. But in training for the race, Hannon said he has lost almost a quarter of his body weight. He learned how to swim too, by taking lessons at the YMCA.

"The great thing about Wareham is the Y, you can do an entire triathlon in there," he said. "It's the single best resource we've had."

Hannon said his brother-in-law and sister-in-law are also coming down to run the race and they'll have lots of family, neighbors and friends along the course to cheer them on.

Hannon said the collective goal for all of them is just to finish the race.

"My wife said 'It's a swim-bike-jog-walk-crawl race'," Hannon said. "It should be a great day."