But at age 41, the Los Gatos­Monte Sereno Police captain recently experienced a first when she successfully completed an Ironman Triathlon. Forrest finished the grueling course in just over 13 hours—coming in 16th out of 48 competitors in her age category in the June 28 event in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

"It felt good. It felt better than I ever expected it to," Forrest said. With the temperatures in the low to mid-90s, many racers suffered from heat exhaustion as a result. "It was brutal," Forrest said. "But it was fun."

The three-part course consisted of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile run. "I would say the running was the hardest part," Forrest said. An avid cyclist, Forrest picked up running only five years ago, when she received treatment for problems with her knees.

"I knew that she had the strength and the training and the right mental attitude," said Palo Alto Police Capt. Brad Zook, a former co-worker and fellow Ironman participant. "She's a very positive person."

To view the course in its entirety can be overwhelming. "But if you break it down into each individual stroke and each individual step, it's doable," Zook said.

Zook, in fact, convinced Forrest to start running and participating in triathlons. He and his wife, Candice, had done triathlons for more than a decade, and Forrest said the couple, along with Palo Alto Police Det. Natasha Powers, pulled her in.

"It was just their energy and their subtle pressing that got me into it," Forrest said. She started competing in triathlons four years ago and decided to try Coeur d'Alene this year with the Zooks and Powers.

"I would watch the world championships in Hawaii on TV and I would think, 'God, these people are nuts,' " Forrest said.

"We sucked her on into the Ironman group," Zook added.

A longtime cyclist, Forrest was not anxious about the 112-mile ride. In the past, she had done the Montreal to Maine AIDS Vaccine Bike Trek, the Multiple Sclerosis Society's Tour de Jour, the 525-mile California AIDS Ride and the Great Race, also winning gold medals in cycling at the Police Olympics.

But Forrest said the hard part for her was the running—she was only able to race after she started receiving acupuncture treatments—and swimming. "I don't enjoy swimming very much," she said. "I'm not very good at it."

Despite those obstacles, Forrest started training in January. "I'm coached by a guy in Canada and everything's over email," she said. For six months, Forrest followed her coach's instructions, training twice a day for 18 to 22 hours a week.

"These past six months have been work, train, eat, sleep," she said. "It's very overwhelming to train for one of these. But during that time period, I can pretty much eat whatever I want."

"It's totally consuming," Zook said. "But her swimming and her running have really developed."

The actual event was tiring, Forrest said, but worthwhile. "The people and the support for the whole event were just awesome," she said. Forrest was joined for the last two miles of the race by a stranger who became her partner in encouragement. "There's a lot of competition, but there are a lot of people who go out there and do it for fun."

Also, residents of Coeur d'Alene were equally supportive. People stood in front of their homes, cheering, waving signs and spraying water from hoses onto the hot and exhausted runners

"I wouldn't be opposed to doing another one. I just don't know when," Forrest said, adding that the training took over her life.

But Forrest plans to continue cycling and participating in cycling for nonprofits.

"I try to get outdoors as much as I can. You see beautiful things," she said. "I certainly would prefer to do things for a fundraiser event. It is exhausting, but it feels good to raise money to give to a worthy cause."