FEATURES

Christina's a Hall of Famer!

Thursday, 06 April 2017 23:10

The Brainerd Warriors Hall of Fame will induct five individuals at the April 24 all-sports banquet in the Brainerd High School gym.

Christina Roberts, Sarah (Houle) Oehrlein, Kurt King, Tom Lyscio and broadcaster Colin MacDonald will be inducted....

Effervescent Triathlete...

Wednesday, 05 April 2017 23:10

"Langkos," a Greek name meaning "knowledgeful," is much easier to pronounce than "Schievelbein," a German deal meaning "boot leg". This is one of the reasons we were pleased when Linda Scheivelbein married Mr. Langkos two years ago. The main reason we were happy, of course, is that getting married made Linda, who is naturally happy and efferscent, even happier and efferescenter.

Linda smiles all the time. (We used to wonder if she was able to close her mouth.) We love that about her. We also love that she adores the Rolling Stones, boutique coffee and shopping at Kohls.

Linda is an outstanding triathlete. Though her AG--50-54W--is arguably the most talented female division in Minnesota right now, featuring such national class studdettes as Cheryl Zitur, Julia Weisbecker, Christel Kippenhan and the conspiculously absent Heidi Keller Miler, Ms. Langkos certainly, as they say, holds her own.

Check out some of her competitive highlights. Her 2015 season was especially outstanding....

Two That Got Away...

Tuesday, 04 April 2017 23:10

Rural Minnesota has certainly produced its share of top flight triathletes. David Thompson, winner of more than 100 multisport races in his career, was raised in Appleton, population 1400ish.

Then there's fellow pro Matt Hanson, who lives and works in Storm Lake, Iowa, but grew up in West Concord, Minnesota. About 800 people reside in that village.

And there is Chris Leiferman, also a pro, who grew up in Truman (pop. 1100ish) and went on to make a name for himself since moving to Boulder, Colorado. FYI, Chris placed 2nd last weekend at Oceaside 70.3.

Hanson, who loves tacos and Tom Petty (Who doesn't?), hasn't raced on Minnesota soil since 2008. He was AGer back then and his results did not portend the future he is now enjoying. He was a pretty good amateur back then. His best effort was a 5th at New Bri. He's a first tier pro now.

Similarly, Leiferman had limited success as a Minnesota amateur. His did win one race, Square Lake Half in 2008, and podiumed at a pair of Life Time Series events. His results then did not suggest that he would become the decorated pro he is today.

But he has. And we think that is totally cool.

Here are some of the racing highlights of these talented Minnesota expats: ...

From Surrey to Sauk Rapids...

Monday, 03 April 2017 23:10

What's the difference between a "wanker" and a "tosser?"

Only people from the UK know for sure, so we plan to ask Rob Madgwick the next time we see him.

Rob is a 52-year-old Englishman who has resided in Sauk Rapids for the last several years. He's originally from the small city of Haslemere, the southermost town in Surrey. To get from Haselmere to London, you can take the "South West Trains." If you would rather drive, the A3 is just a few miles west of town.

Haslemere is a beautiful town that looks a bit like Sandford, the perennial "Village of the Year" in the awesome movie, "Hot Fuzz."

Rob is not just a British guy who looks like an older version of Ed Sheeran and lives in a suburb of St. Cloud, where he works for a company called Blackboard, Inc., which, we were disappointed to learn, does not actually manufacture blackboards. We'd tell you what the company does, which is totally cool and totally comprehensive, but it's pretty complicated, so we invite you to visit its website (blackboard.com) and/or FB page.

"Madge" is also a decorated multisport guy. His duathlon resume is particulately impressive. So much so that he was included in the Master of the Year discussions in 2016....

Prolific & Dapper....

Sunday, 02 April 2017 23:10

Our highlighting of Minnesota's 60+ multisporters continues with today's featuring of PETER LANCASTER. He's 62, a Minneapolis resident and a highly respected and accomplished lawyer. He's also a nice guy who wears cool designer glasses and looks awesome in suits.

Though fellow sixty-genarians like Greg Taylor, Neil King, Len Klun, and a few others, seem to get more media recognition, Lancaster nevertheless stands out, thanks largely to the fact that he is a very prolific racer. He loves to compete and has been blessed with the kind of health that allows him to race ten-or-more times in a season. So, when the dust clears at season's end, Lancaster will likely have racked up more divisional wins than most, if not all, of his AG counterparts.

Check out Peter's highlights for the last two seasons:

2016 -

- 1st AG @ Lake Minnetonka

- 1st AG @ Graniteman Big Lake Sprint

- 1st AG @ Hopkins Royal

- 1st AG @ Square Lake Short Course

- 1st AG @ One Last Tri Sprint ....