FEATURES
Minnesota's Female Rockstars...
-
Friday, 22 November 2013 02:00
Team Minnesota - Women - Here is some of the rationale determining the 2013 women's Team:
1. RUTH BRENNAN MORREY - In 2013 Ruther established herself at America's premier female duathlete and one of our nation's best 70.3 racers. Her 4:15 at Augusta 70.3 and her podium at the Zofingen Long Distance Duathlon World Championship were highlights unprecedented in Minnesota multisport history....
POY Boy...
-
Thursday, 21 November 2013 00:10
(Photo - L - R - The ultra-studly trio of Brendon O'Flanagan, Bob Powers and 2013 POY winner, Matthew Payne.)
2013 Performance of the Year - Men - Why did Matthew Payne's 2nd place amateur finish at New Orleans 70.3 beat out two course record performances by Kevin O'Connor and his own (Matt's) runner-up effort at the Best of the US Championships, wherein he turned in the third fastest Olympic time by a US amateur this year, for the POY trophy?
Here's a couple of reasons:
- His time--4:05:52--is probably a state amateur record. We've scoured our results archives, dating back to the early 90s, when bikes were slower and coaching and material resources were primitive by today's...
Determining Team Minnesota: The Guys...
-
Tuesday, 19 November 2013 06:10
TEAM MINNESOTA - MEN - Here is a cursory explanation of how the 2013 men's Team was determined:
1. DAVID THOMPSON - With seven wins and only one loss to a fellow Minnesotan (Hedgecock at Pigman Sprint), DKT was, once again, the clear choice for the #1 Spot....
Race of the Year & Female POY.....
-
Monday, 18 November 2013 06:10
Triathletes Choice Race of the Year - The way this award is determined is as follows: Only events receiving 40-or-more votes are eligible for Top 5 placement. For those races, we divide the number of voters by the number of finishers to determine its percentage of voting participants. Typically a winning race receives support from 13-16% of its participants. Approximately 1100 * votes were distributed among forty-three races, six of which received 40-or-more votes.
From one-to-five, here's how this year's top races fared:
1. SUPERIORMAN - 56 votes/285 finishers = 19.6%
2. TRINONA - 76 votes / 705 finishers = 10.7%
3. BREWHOUSE - 41 votes / 377 finishers = 10.6%
4. YWCA WOMEN'S TRIATHLON - 96 votes / 949 finishers = 10.1%
5. MAPLE GROVE TRIATHLON - 51 votes / 1303 finishers = 4% ....
Feelin' the Payne...
-
Monday, 18 November 2013 00:10
Long Distance Athlete of the Year - To win this award, Matt Payne had to beat out fellow official nominees, Michelle Andres, Diane Hankee and Emily Kratz. Cathy Yndestad, who's LD resume received a boost from her late-season victory at the Soma Half in Tempe, Arizona, was not in the "official mix," but probably should have been. Certainly her resume was strong enough.
Why did Matt win? Or should we ask why did Michelle, Diane or Emily did not?
In either case, here's a peek into the Committee's rationale.
Payne's resume featured five long course performances, only one of which--70.3 Worlds--was uncharacteristically medium-dazzle. He won two halves, one in course record time and placed 2nd in another. In that one, he earned the POY award for turning in the fastest amateur 70.3 time ever by a Minnesota amateur male. Also, his ultra-distance debut--Leadman Bend 250--resulted in a 2nd place finish in 9:08:11. Hard to beat.
How did his fellow nominees stack up? ...
