Bend's Marshall Greene rides into the bike-to-run exchange while competing in the 44th edition of the Pole Pedal Paddle in Bend last year.

Jesse Thomas and Marshall Greene know that some younger 20- or 30-something athlete will eventually take over as champion of Central Oregon’s signature multisport race.

Until then, Bend’s Thomas and Greene will continue to be the elite individual favorites in the SELCO Pole Pedal Paddle as they settle into middle age.

Thomas, 43, appears to be the clear favorite in the 45th edition of the PPP on Saturday as the former professional triathlete goes for his fourth victory.

Thomas won the PPP last year when Greene took third after getting a flat tire on the bike stage. The race was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Thomas also won in 2015 and 2018.

“I’m just trying to, as gracefully as possible, transition into this mid-40s racing, where I don’t have the same control over how my body will react to training and everything,” Thomas said. “It’s a different phase of life, but I’m still competitive. And it’s fun to have somebody like Marshall who is in a similar boat, in a similar phase of life.

“Eventually, there’s got to be some young kid who comes in and blows us out of the water. I’m waiting for that to happen. There’s no way I’d want to race a 32-year-old me or Marshall.”

After dealing with a lingering Achilles injury, Thomas said he just decided this week that he would race. About two months ago, he said, he thought he had no chance at racing the PPP, as he did not run, ride his bike or ski from about October 2022 to March of this year.

“I had been really hedging on it because I didn’t want to do something to myself that would take a few months to recover from,” Thomas said. “But I think it’s going to be OK. I’m definitely in the worst shape I’ve ever been in going into the race, and a year older, man. I’m past the prime now so every year is a little bit farther on the downslope.”

Greene still looking for record-tying eighth win

Greene’s seven PPP wins puts him just one short of record-holder Justin Wadsworth, who won eight straight titles from 1989 to 1996. Greene, 41, has not won the PPP since 2017, in one of the closest finishes ever.

Saturday will mark Greene’s 15th time racing in the PPP.

“I don’t think I can win if Jesse’s racing,” Greene said. “And I think this might also be the year that some of the younger guys will be competitive. A couple of guys who raced last year for the first time, they were still a little ways behind, but they have experience now. I don’t think any of them can beat Jesse, though.”

Greene said he is motivated to match Wadsworth’s record, but he knows that even a somewhat-injured Thomas has a massive advantage on the 5-mile running stage.

“We’re pretty close on the bikes, but on the run, he is leaps and bounds ahead of me,” Greene said. “His running is so much faster that it’s hard to overcome that.”

Zoe Roy going for sixth straight win

Bend’s Zoe Roy set a record with her fifth straight PPP elite women’s victory last year, and now she is looking to make it six in a row.

“It’ll be fun,” Roy said. “There’s always lots that can happen between the start and the finish, so it’s never guaranteed. But I’ll do my best.”

Roy, 35, said she loves to race the PPP because it combines many of her favorite sports all in one race: alpine skiing, nordic skiing, cycling, running and paddling.

“It’s just all the things that I kind of do anyways, and I just get to string them all together,” Roy said. “And it’s just fun that the whole community gets involved.”

Roy said the hardest part of the race is always the finishing “sprint” into the finish area in Bend’s Old Mill District, which is actually nearly a 1-mile run.

“The last run is difficult, always,” Roy said. “It’s just always hard. It’s just prolonged hurting.”

The PPP is the primary fundraiser for the Mt. Bachelor Sports Education Foundation, a nonprofit that serves youth athletes in competitive alpine and nordic skiing, freeride skiing, freeride snowboarding and cycling.

What: Nearly 2,000 racers compete as individuals or teams on a 34-mile course from Mount Bachelor to Bend that includes alpine skiing, a 6.2-kilometer nordic ski, a 22-mile road bike ride, a 5-mile run, a 1 1/2-mile paddle and a 1-mile sprint.

When: Saturday, start times ranging from 9:15 to 11:15 a.m. First finishers are expected just before 11 a.m.

Where: Starts at Mt. Bachelor ski area’s West Village Lodge and finishes near the Hampton Inn in Bend’s Old Mill District.

Information: www.pppbend.com