Race Coverage
Close Races...
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Monday, 19 February 2024 00:10
20th GRANITEMAN SPRINT COVERAGE - Sometimes the difference between winning and losing comes down to how fast one gets in and out of transition. On Saturday, 2018 Most Improved (Female) winner EMILY GAGE (Photo), seemingly recovered from her 70.3 effort the week before, recorded what might have been the finest performance of her tri career, winning Graniteman Sprint in 1:14:28, one of the event's Top 5 fastest times ever. Still, it almost didn't happen. Two-time champ CHERYL ZITUR, owner of two of the Clearwater times that are faster than Gage's, had launched in a later wave and was the only one who could rob Emily of the win.
Cheryl's run split would be faster than Gage's, and enough to close other gaps along the way. However, Emily spent less thime in T2 than Cheryl did, 24-seconds less. When Zitur crossed the finish line, the 1-2 outcome needed Uncle Randy's computer to uncover. Emily, as we know did win, but the margin was only 20-seconds.Could Cheryl have shaved 21-seconds off the 1:25 she spent in T2? It's fun to think about.
In any case, both women raced hard and well and both deserve genuine congratulations.
Emily (5th) and Cheryl (6th) cracked the gender-nonspecific overall Top 10, as did 2021 winner BETTE ROWLEY, who placed 8th in 1:15:18....
BROOKS GROSSINGER, according to our records, reached a major milestone last Saturday. Making good on his pre-race favorite status, he won the 40th mulltisport race of his impressive career. And as in the men's Olympic, the race for 2nd and 3rd was a close one. CORBIN DEICHMAN, 15, outswam and outran MARK HENRY and crossed the finish line ahead of the field. Henry, launching three minutes after the talented junior, had to finish less than three minutes after Corbin, and thanks to his superior bike split, one that narrowly closed all gaps, he finished with a time that was nine seconds quicker than Deichman's. Exciting stuff.
