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"I Tried to Make Things Exciting"...
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Friday, 24 August 2018 23:10
By Ryan Collison
Young Life Triathlon Race Report - Well MTN Guys, your 1-2 predictions were right for Young Life! I tried to make things exciting, but Dave just had an awesome run in him this weekend.
Going in, I really respected Dave’s run speed and I knew that I would have to get off the bike 3 min ahead of him and have a solid run to win.
The swim and bike went well. I spend most of the bike ride appreciating the traffic control car staying far enough ahead of me to not provide a draft, but close enough to keep an eye on me and keep traffic under control. How often do we hear about the traffic control interfering at Ironman races or the Tour? These guys got it right! A very nice detail highlighting just how well run this local race is!
Coming into T2, I knew I had a gap and felt good....there was a chance! After the first mile I just couldn’t get the turn over I needed to have a fast run, but how much gap did I have? Could I just hang on? ...
Maple Grove Name-Dropping...
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Thursday, 23 August 2018 23:10
MAPLE GROVE TRIATHLON PREVIEW - It's hard to believe that the Maple Grove Triathlon will celebrate its 9th anniversary tomorrow. But its true.
Those who have done this race know that it is awesome. It is well-attended and staged beautifully at a truly world class venue....
A Superior Race....
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Wednesday, 22 August 2018 23:10
SUPERIOR MAN TRIATHLON - The 7th edition of this decorated (three-time "Race of the Year") event is next Sunday, and we can't wait to get there. It is truly an exciting event, and the competition, especially in the half IM, is awesome. Did you know that an amateur men's state record was set there last year--MATT CYMANSKI's 4:01:40--and a women's amateur state standard--NICOLE WALKER's 4:25:05--was set there in 2016?
It's true, and how cool is that!
Do we expect those records to tumble on Sunday? We are reluctant to predict that, but it could happen. HANNA GRINAKER (photo) popped a 4:28 at Chisago, and was on pace to go that fast, or faster, at Liberty when weather surgerized the run course.
With her IM debut just weeks away, we suspect that Hanna will target the men, not the women, on Sunday. Her goal will be to catch and pass as many credentialed guys as possible. We're predicting a sub-4:30 for her, and a spot in the overall Top 5-7.
Grinaker's boyfriend is 2017 MInnesota Triathlete of the Year SEAN COOLEY, who has already won Superior Man FOUR times. His personal best here is 4:04:21. Can he take the CR down next weekend? Sure. In our opinion, he's the one Minnesota guy who, at this point in time, has a legit shot at cracking the 4-hour mark.
We're hoping that the weather will cooperate on Sunday--current forecast is for temps between 60 and 72, with light winds out of the NNE--so that more Superior Man magic will happen.
Here's some of many things we hope to see: ...
Lakes Country Turns 19...
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Tuesday, 21 August 2018 23:10
LAKES COUNTRY TRIATHLON - The 19th edition of this sprint triathlon will happen next Sunday, and if you haven't done it yet, we suggest that you give it a try. Simply put, it's a very cool event.
Approximately 150 athetes had enrolled when the race director allowed us to look at the registration list. That was last week. So, as with race management, our hope is that the LCT gets a nice late push, and that 200-or-more athletes line the beach at Whipple Lake next weekend. Last weekend's races had encouraging attendances, and we hope that Lakes Country will continue that positive trend.
Now, who do we think will win in Baxter next Sunday? Based on the list we saw, our picks are Sauk Rapids' WADE CRUSER and local standout JACQUELYN BACIGALUPI (photo). We're picking Cruser even though he would have raced the day before at Maple Grove. And though the Maple Grove/Lakes Country weekend marks his fifth consecutive week of racing, a period he kicked off with a PR at Chisago Lakes Half, and followed with three (maybe four?) straight victories, we are betting that his speed and fitness will triumph over the fatigue that a more mortal athlete would experience under similar circumstances.
Cruser is definitely cruising for a Triathlete of the Year nomination, thus guys like SEAN COOLEY and PATRICK PARISH better up their games if they want to prevent Wade from taking the prize....
Branden & Becky Keep Rockin'....
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Monday, 20 August 2018 23:10
YOUNG LIFE TRIATHLON - Fargo's BRANDEN SCHEEL (photo) continues to rock socks. Of the seven triathlons he's raced in this season, he's won five of them, four on the Minnesota side of the Red River, and all in course record time. In his two non-winning efforts, he placed 2nd (amateur) at Chattanooga 70.3 in a personal best 4:12:51, and cracked the Top 10 at USAT Sprint Nationals.
The young man's most recent win happened last Saturday at the 15th annual Young Life Sprint in Detroit Lakes. Once out of the lake and on his bike, the race for first was over. He could have jogged to the finish line, saving himself for his next race. But he didn't. Instead he threw down a 16:41 5k run split.
The result was a time of 56:54, giving him a 7:25 margin of victory over runner-up THOMAS LOEGERING of West Fargo, who, as they say, aint no slouch. Tom won this race in 2017.
Scheel's time lowered LINCOLN MURDOCH's 2009 sprint course record by a hefty 1:51.
Third place went to accomplished junior JACK HENNEN, 18, of Cambridge.
For the second straight year a girl named LUNDQUIST won YL's women's sprint title. Last year, that Lundquist was named TAYLOR,17, who went on to win the 2017 Junior of the Year award. This time, though, Taylor's sister SIMONE, 15, took the title in her sibling's absence. (Taylor had already enrolled at Black Hills State University, and was following Simone's race progress on her "device" in her dorm room.)
In '17, Simone placed 2nd, her time was 1:13:32. She was almost three minutes faster this time. She was challenged by KEIRSTEN COOLEY, 29, of Fargo,who finished 21-seconds behind Lundquist....
