Race Coverage

If She Wants It...

Tuesday, 29 June 2010 06:15

"She's gonna be good," said the shiny-crowned guy with the toilet-seat haircut to no one in particular. He was standing at the final turn that led to the finish line. Rookie triathlete Jenny Shaughnessy (photo) was about to round that last corner, her victory on the verge of officialization. Turning his fringed cranium back toward the final hill, he squinted. There on the distant crest was a running woman. It was Jan Guenther, her style unmistakable. It would be at least a minute before she would turn the final corner.

Toilet seat guy was wrong. Jenny Shaughnessy is not "gonna be

If that is what she wants. Or will want? And if she loves triathlon, triathlon will love her back.

When Shaughnessy headed out of T1, some, including toilet seat guy, began to speculate about how quickly the top girls would catch her. How far back after the bike leg would she be? Would she still have a shot at a BOUS slot?

When she arrived in T2 ahead of the field it became clear that this girl, who was racing in only her 2nd tri, was already "good." If leading hadn't taken too much of a toll, she could actually win this thing.

And win she did.

Sure, she has much to learn. Sure, she needs to get faster on the bike. And she will learn. And she will get faster. Why? Because she is already so far ahead of the learning curve. Cathy, Kortney, Emily et al were not this far along when they were this new to the sport.

Next week at Minneman she'll face Cathy Yndestad, Julie Hull and Sarah Mercer, the three fastest girls in the state this year. Heck, Cathy is the fastest short course female triathlete in America. We can't wait to see how Jenny fares against this talented triumvirate.

Here are the Lake Waconia's Top 5 women:

1. Jenny Shaughnessy, 23, Minneapolis - Two starts, two wins. Her LWT time--1:35:44 is the 2nd fastest women's time ever on this course. (PS - Jenny has already accepted her BOUS invitation!)

2. Jan Guenther, 51, Mound - 1:36:58 - Matching her 2nd place finish of 2009, Jan has won this race twice during the last decade.

3. Julia Weisbecker, 44, Mendota Heights - 1:37:24 - A breakthrough effort. At 44, Julia has become a serious triathlete.

4. Brook Mutzenberger, 30, Eden Prairie - 1:38:09 - Her win here last year was her best performance ever.

5. Diane Hankee, 33, Lino Lakes - 1:38:26 - Like Julia, she beat several women on Sunday that she's never beaten before.

Photo: The #3 was worn by Julia Weisbecker--pronounced "Wize-becker," not "Wheeze-becker"--who finished 3rd. Spooky, huh?

LWT RESULTS