Race Coverage
Gophers Keep Winning...
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Monday, 02 July 2018 23:10
By Garrett Williams
High Cliff Triathlon - The University of Minnesota sent ten Gophers out to High Cliff State Park in Wisconsin to compete in the third race of the Midwest Collegiate Conference season. While many had been in low spirits after the cancellation of QuarterMax Triathlon in Missouri, the group regained momentum and went on to all have great races. Once again, the team took the overall collegiate title, with the men placing first and the women second.
The race started off with a short 0.5 mile swim, which featured some very shallow water. Tim Bontrager described using his height to simply walk the last portion of the swim, watching with amusement as other swimmers struggled around him. He was among the first pack, along with strong swimmers Nik Pardoe and Zach Dahlseng, with JB Nosko close behind.
On the women’s side, Sophie Rabino and Eleanor Chomiak were the first Gophers out of the water....
Scheel and Myers Keep Winning...
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Friday, 29 June 2018 23:10
PERHAM TRIATHLON COVERAGE - Our prediction that Fargo's BRANDEN SCHEEL would not only win the 15th annual Perham Triathlon this morning, but do so in record time, was correct.
But is was not correct enough, for which we apologize. In our preview, we wrote “we think that Scheel will crack 59-minutes, perhaps a 58:45.”
On that mild, but thick, northland Saturday morning, Branden popped an extraordinary 58:22! He did so by outrunning the next fastest runner by almost 40-seconds per mile, and doing so after crushing the bike leg. His pace was over a one mph faster than the next fastest rider. The ultimate result was a 6:11 margin of victory over runner-up and close amigo, COREY NYGAARD.
Corey also placed 2ndbehind his bud at Chain of Lakes last May.
The Minnesota Multisport Awards committee includes border-state athletes whose resumes feature at least three outstanding efforts on Minnesota soil in its annual deliberations. Scheel has already raced twice this season on the east side of the Red River, both times producing runaway wins and new course records. He needs only one more great performance in Minnesota, probably at Young Life in Detroit Lakes, though we hope he will race here several more times this year.
Thus far in 2018, Branden has three record-setting multisport wins in four starts. The non-winning performance produced a 2ndat Chattanooga 70.3, a national race. The MMA Committee is watching him closely, thinking that a Most Improved nomination and a spot on Team Minnesota may be in his future....
Madison Delivers...
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Thursday, 28 June 2018 23:10
By Emma Adriaens (triad.tradrieans.com)
Early June now marks 70.3 Wisconsin, and I was pumped to be able to race again this year. Coming into the race this year, I was looking forward to being able to toe the line with the plan to execute all three legs of the race. Instead of only the swim and the bike like last year due to some refurbishing (hip surgery). This year I was tuned up and ready to race! Friday before the race we loaded up the truck with everything we would need for racing and training purposes - including pre-made food a'la Chef Joe, because you never do anything new before race day.
Friday marked the usual road trip antics - coffee, snacks, snacks, and more snacks.
We rolled into Ironman Village immediately upon arrival in Madison. Priorities people!
I checked in, found my best friend's hubby to drag him through all the pre-race rituals because it was his first half Ironman, found my spot in transition, and thanked every volunteer that crossed my path. Let's be real, these races don't happen with out the amazing organization of some stellar volunteers. Whether it's the full Ironman or the half Ironman - you can bet your bottom dollar that Madison, Wisconsin is going to deliver...
Becky is Back!
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Tuesday, 26 June 2018 23:10
LAKE WACONIA TRIATHLON - BECKY YOUNGBERG (photo L) had not raced in a multisport event since September 2011. When she appeared at Lake Waconia last Sunday, the question on the minds of some, certainly ours, was "how close to her former self would she perform." She had won the LWT in 2011 in the solid time of 1:35:37. We recall that race.
What an exciting competition that was. HEIDI KELLER MILER led through the first two phases. Becky was next, just over a minute back. In her rearview mirror was MICHELLE ANDRES, only a dozen seconds behind. To win, Becky needed to overtake HKM while holding off Andres. She did those things, and when the dust cleared, the podium was: 1. YOUNGBERG - 1:35:37, 2. ANDRES - 1:35:46, 3. KELLER MILER 1:35:54.
Could Becky match her 2011 time at LWT '18? Tall order, right? This is her first race back after a seven-year layoff. She's bound to have some rust. And she was 37 back then; she's 43 now.
And where would a 1:35 land her in the standings? It would have placed her 6th in 2016, 4th in 2015, 2nd in 2014 and 2013.
In the end, the new Youngberg did not race like the old Youndberg, the woman who had amassed at least 36 multisport wins in her pre-hiatus years. She raced better, which is to say, faster. ...
Barkin' With the Big Dogs....
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Sunday, 24 June 2018 23:20
LAKE WACONIA TRIATHLON - The three-hundred-plus athetes that showed-up last Sunday at picturesque Lake Waconia Regional Park came with their fingers crossed, either literally, or metaphorically. Morning weather reports weren't encouraging, and most feared that lightning would either abbreviate the event, as it had done at Liberty two weeks prior, or cancel it completely, as it had at Lake Minnetonka eight days ago.
The sky had morphed from blue to grey as race time approached, and there was mist in the atmosphere. But no lightning.
The race started on time, and everyone got in-and-out of the lake, onto their bikes and into the the beautiful hinterlands that encirlce Lake Waconia. It was raining now, but not heavily. The sky remained quiet. No thunder, that harbinger of yuckiness and stoppage.
In fact, the weather was actually quite accommodating, for the athletes, at least. It never rained hard enough for the roads to get greasy. It was gentle enough to keep athletes cool and comfortable, which ultimately led to fast times.
That JOSH MORK completed the bike course first clearly showed that he is ready to bark with the Big Dogs in our region. Most had expected to see MATT PAYNE, who they would later learn had crashed, or two-time LWT winner PATRICK PARISH, or WADE CRUSER, to be the leaders out of T2.
Mork had been running for nearly a minute when Wade and 47-year-old masters course record holder KEVIN O'CONNOR hit the pavement. Then came Parish. All three of Josh's pursuees brought formidable running creds to the table. Was Josh in way over his head? Or could he hold off some, or all, of these talented guys? ...
Mankato Triathletes Rock Out at Fairmont...With Embarrassing Update...
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Sunday, 24 June 2018 23:10
FAIRMONT TRIATHLON – Times suggested that conditions were not optimal for the 165 finishers at the Fairmont races on June 16, an event that draws athletes almost equally from northern Iowa and eastern South Dakota, as well as Minnesota.
Leading the way on the Olympic event was 2017 Green Lake Sprint winner SPENCER SYVERTSON, a member of the Minnesota State Maverick's tri team. His margin of victory was huge, just over ten minutes.
The women's Olympic champ was another successful Mankato triathlete, KRIS ANDERSON, who also won by a substantial margin. Kris isn't the only talented triathlete in her family. Her 15-year-old daughter, GRACE, has shown great promise over the last three seasons. We expect her to contend for Junior of the Year nominations in the near future. Grace raced in the Fairmont Sprint and placed an impressive 4th overall in the women's competition....
