Race Coverage
"The Bike Course is World Class..."
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Tuesday, 13 June 2017 19:10
ED. Here is the Winona Daily News' great coverage of last Sunday's Trinona Olympic & Sprint Triathlons. Enjoy.
By John Casper Jr. (Winonadailynews.com)
Up until about 2:45 a.m. Sunday, Daniel Bretscher wasn’t sure if he would be jumping into Lake Winona with the rest of the Trinona 2017 participants.
It wasn’t until he checked on his wife, due in about two weeks with the couple’s first child — a boy — to make sure the false contractions she had recently hadn’t turned into the real thing. He then hopped in his car, made the two-hour trek from his home in Northfield, Minn., then went out and held off Sean Harrington to win the international premier division in 1 hour, 59 minutes and 21 seconds. Harrington, from Santa Barbara, Calif., was 16 seconds back in 1:59:37.
“I’m really glad it worked out for me,” said Bretscher, 34, a professional triathlete who grew up in Indiana and has lived in Minnesota for only about 1½ years. “It almost didn’t happen. Being first-time parents, we think every false contraction is the real thing. Last night she wasn’t feeling great. I was planning to come down last night and stay in a hotel, so I canceled that.
“I woke up at 2:45, checked on her and she was OK, left the house at 3, got here at 5.”
At about 8:45 a.m. he was the first across the finish line near the Lake Park Bandshell. He was running on about three hours of sleep — good practice for what’s to come in a couple weeks — and not only does he get to take home a check and a trophy, but he’ll a heck of a story to tell his son someday....
It was the 51st win of a 10-year professional career. The biggest one came in 2014, when he won the Ironman Wisconsin, setting the course record in 8 hours, 31 minutes and 20 seconds. He’s also competed in the prestigious Hawaii Ironman as a professional and placed 31st.
But his knowledge of Minnesota triathlons is limited. He moved to Northfield with his wife, Katie, who was named the head coach of the St. Olaf women’s track and field team in 2015, and needed to stay close to home just in case the baby came sooner than expected.
So Sunday was his first time at the ninth annual Trinona. He was drawn to the event by the prize money — the top finisher received $1,000 — but was blown away by the bike course, which includes the climb up Garvin Heights Road, one of Bicycling Magazine’s “Top 100 hill climbs in the U.S.” and once served as a training ground for Tour de France champion Greg LeMond.
“The bike course is world class,” Bretscher said. “I love challenging bike courses and this is outstanding. I didn’t know such a course like this existed in the state of Minnesota.”
He was second, though, after the 25.85-mile bike ride but moved into first about two miles into the 6.2-mile run. The international course also features a .93-mile swim.
It probably will be his last triathlon of the summer.
“I hope to do the Ironman Wisconsin in September, baby and wife willing,” said Bretscher, who also coaches triathletes.
Brestcher is just the fourth men’s international premier division winner in the nine-year history of the Trinona. He ended the two-year run of Kris Spoth, who placed fifth in 2:05:47. Timothy Winslow was third in 2:02:58 and Ryan Long was fourth in 2:05:36.
Ruth Brennan Morrey, the top female finisher, was another first-time Trinona winner. Morrey, from Rochester, played soccer at the University of Wisconsin and ran in the 2000 Olympic Marathon trials. Morrey posted a time of 2:13:36, beating last year’s top female finisher Gaby Bunten (2:16:56).
Andrew Ernst was the top finisher in the sprint division in 54:44, while Lance Leo (54:49) and Mike Buenting (57:41) rounded out the top three. The sprint course features a quarter-mile swim, an 11-mile bike ride and a 3.1-mile run.
The top female finisher was Rebecca Gusmer (1:02:26), while Macy Iyer (1:06:22) was second and Leah Hanus (1:07:01) was third.
