Race Coverage

Self-Supported Adventure...

christinasmile.jpg

Awesome photos by Philip Skulte / Visual Captive

 

By Christina Roberts

Outpace 70.3 Race Report - We were supposed to be racing Ironman 70.3 Des Moines last weekend. But instead of sulking about our lost opportunity, Coach Anthony (of Outpace Coaching) graciously offered to host a team Outpace 70.3 triathlon at Lake Ann in Chanhassen.

Anthony, who on that day played the role of coach, race director, aid station manager, and swim buoy, brought his athletes together for a mock race to give us an opportunity to either test our fitness, try to hit race pace goals, or just get out for a solid training day. It was a choose your own adventure course which was set up as loops for the bike and run so that athletes could choose a distance that aligned with their desired workout for the day. ...

Read more ...

"I Do Not Have Time To Get Bored"....

christelsign.png

ED. Christel is a professor at Bemidji State University and a three-time nominee for Minnesota Master of the Year.

By Christel Kippenhan

I'm kind of curious about how my friends are dealing with the current situation.

Living by myself has never bothered me, and it still does not bother me, even if there are days I do not interact face-to-face with anybody.

But, I'm also still working, and I'm still interacting with my students, yet remotely. In addition, preparing my class content for remote delivery is very time-consuming, and I think the last time I worked this many hours in a day or week was when I was working on finishing up my dissertation. So, I do not have time to get bored or missing things I otherwise would do....

Read more ...

Winter Doesn't Have to Suck....

 

By birkiepeter.pngPeter Wikman

I’ve always struggled with winter. Some felt better than others, but without miss I would find myself resentful by mid-January, counting the days until it was spring.

I can definitely say this winter was much different... Between early November and late-Feb I put in about 600 miles (mostly at Hylands) on the sticks, and never once felt hesitant or unmotivated to get up in the morning and go.

All this built up to The Birkie, which did NOT disappoint! I was worried about the weather in the build up to it, but my biggest struggle ended up being the “first time, last wave” experience that everyone goes through as a rookie at this amazing race. I guess sometimes races are meant to test your fitness AND your patience 😅. That aside, the experience was filled with perfect weather, amazing trails, great sportsmanship, and hills for days. Couldn’t have asked for a better first cross country ski race, hopefully of many...

Read more ...

Successful Defenses....

JOELWINTER.png

By USATRIATHLON.ORG

MINNEAPOLIS — Joel LaFrance (Plymouth, Minn.) and Jan Guenther (Long Lake, Minn.) successfully defended their overall national titles Sunday at the USA Triathlon Winter Triathlon National Championships, as 23 athletes earned victories in their age groups. The run-bike-ski competition served as the official kickoff to USA Triathlon’s 2020 National Championships calendar....

Read more ...

"I Was a New Person"....

 

erintwice.png

By Erin Ladendorf

Two finish lines. Two completely different days. Two moments in my life where I learned how to dig deep and find a new layer of who I am and what I can accomplish.

The picture on the left is at Lake Placid. I had the worst month of my life leading up to it. I had my heart broken and had to scramble to even find a way to get to this race. I was alone and sad and so broken. This course was no joke. And mile 80 of the bike I crumbled. My body and my brain had given up. I went into T2 thinking I was going to turn my chip in and quit. But I pulled myself out of that funk and forced myself to start the marathon. I figured even if I walked a marathon it was better than quitting. And I took it one mile at time. Sometimes I walked. Sometimes I ran. But once I got to mile 25 I cried the whole way into that finish line. Because I did what I came to do. I pushed my sadness and bullshit aside to see what I had deep down inside of me. And it was so fucking cleansing. I got rid of a lot of baggage that day...

Read more ...

"Izzy's First Tri is in the Books"....

 

By izzyywca.pngJennifer Martone

YWCA Indoor Triathlon #2 - Every Sunday, my 16-year old daughter and I have a standing swim date. Rain, sunshine, blizzard, or ice storm, we rarely miss our Sunday time at the Y (my office is just 2 blocks from YMCA Gaviidae, so this is our pool of choice, and the poolside hot tub and sauna make it more enticing in the winter months).  We are recreational freestyle swimmers...no flip turns, very “marginal” form, and plenty of back stroke, pull buoys/kickboards, and we’re basically there to get in an easy no-impact workout on a running day off. It’s great bonding time for us, and an opportunity to let the hot tub jets offer us a free massage. 

A few weeks ago, after one of these swims, my daughter said to me “Mom, can you sign us up for an Indoor Tri?” Music to this mom triathlete’s ears. Izzy is a high school cross country runner and has recently found biking on our kinetic trainer in the basement to work well as a cross train day. As a dabbler in all 3 disciplines, she felt ready to take the Indoor Tri...

Read more ...

2024ChisagoSquare
2024LakesCountrySquare
GWHalf2024
2024GLT180
2024GMClearwater180
Timber180-2024
2024HRT18-
2024Chisago180x300
MooseLT180x