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Jennifer, Jenna, Jessie & Rachel...

Thursday, 31 October 2019 23:10

MINNESOTA MULTISPORT HONORS - Here are the four women nominated for MOST IMPROVED:

JENNIFER FITZHARRIS-FUNK, 44, Minneapolis (photo top L)

JFF raced six times, with one win and four other podiums. She had impressive results in the past, but 2019 was special.

Dan, Mike, Brooks & Andy...

Wednesday, 30 October 2019 23:10

MINNESOTA MULTISPORT HONORS - Here are the four nominees, and their 2019 highlights, for MINNESOTA MALE MASTER OF THE YEAR:

DAN ARLANDSON, 53, BURNSVILLE (photo L)

- 1st Master / 3rd overall amateur / 10th w/ pros at Ironman Wisconsin - 9:20:31

- 1st Master / 5th overall @ Chisago Lakes Half IM - 4:20:39

- 13th overall / 3rd AG @ Ironman 70.3 Madison - 4:28:09

COMMENT:  A long distance specialist, Dan's resume is a bit thin, and his effort at Madison 70.3 was marginally competitive. But his performances at IMOO and Chisago were truly outstanding. In fact, his IM Wisconsin effort was arguably the Performance of the Year by a Minnesota male master....

"Doing Ironman Triathlons is Like a Disease"....

Monday, 28 October 2019 23:10

By Nick Serratore

Warning – This is a long post…

A little over a week ago I raced the Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawai’i and finished in 11:00:50. I was 143rd of 165 in my age group, 1,013th of 1,660 men, and 1,176th of 2,271 overall. My swim took 1:09:21, my bike took 5:13:06, and my run took 4:28:08 with the remaining unaccounted-for time in transitions. These are the facts… If you asked me before the race if I’d be happy with those times, I would probably say I wouldn’t be happy, but I also wouldn’t be surprised. After-all, going into the race I had been struggling with a high hip issue and I would guess that my slow run would be from that acting up and my less than stellar bike would probably be a mechanical issue. The swim would be accounted for by noting my lack of experience in ocean swimming. Turns-out, these weren’t the reasons for (what I feel) was my very average day at Kona. I raced a very conservative race and put my health above speed due to the high heat that day. However, before I get into my recap of that day, I need to thank the people who got me to that start line in the first place. Maggie L. Henjum and Alyssa at Motion MN! Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to run pain free for pretty much the whole marathon that day. Dr. Jim Barr at Helix Chiropractic for not only being a close friend, but also being the best chiropractor I know. Step Therapies for allowing me to use their AlterG Treadmill to rehab my hip. Now Bikes in St. Paul for all the tune-ups and work they’ve put in on my Cervelo P5. Chris Balser for dialing in all 4 of my bikes fits. Vicki Ostendorf for being my coach and getting me to this point. The other athletes that train through Tri Fitness – It’s an awesome community and I love every day I get to train with you amazing athletes. And most of all, my family and friends that have supported me in this journey, particularly my parents, Tony and Crystal Serratore, sister, Nina Deno, and brother-in-law, Nathan Deno, best friend, Jack Schuknecht, and fellow Ironman friend, Rachel, who were with me the whole week in preparing for the race. Here’s a quick recap of that day –...

Luke, Thomas, Tony & Pam...

Saturday, 26 October 2019 23:10

MINNESOTA MULTISPORT HONORS - Here are the offical nominees for 2019 GRAND MASTER OF THE YEAR:

LUKE HARNED, 67, Mahtomedi

Luke was one of three 65-69 men, along with perennial nominee (and former GMOY) Neil King, and Len Klun, battling for a GMOY nomination. Though Harned won his division in all five of his regional starts, setting AG records in four of them, his resume was perceived only slightly superior to King's. We would have loved to see a head-to-head confrontation between those talented athletes.

THOMAS ROHMAN, 72, West Haven

Also nominated in 2018, Thomas is redefining the performance standards in our state for men over age-70. He crushed the course records in all four of the regional races he competed in last season.

Heather Jackson Was Just as Nervous as Me....

Friday, 25 October 2019 23:10

By Tim Brown

Ironman World Championships Race Report - Wow! My one word review of the Ironman Kona World Championship. Unlike being disappointed after seeing a movie that received great reviews, Kona absolutely lived up to the hype. What an incredible experience. My not so short version review of the Kona experience is as follows:

A surprising AG win at Ironman Wisconsin (2018) secured the one available Kona slot and dictated some drastic revisions my 2019 race / training calendar. There would be less racing and more focus on distance endurance training. There would be no off season this year. I was surprised to have never experienced burnout during training leading up to Kona. IM training is a massive time sponge but Kona has always been a life-long dream and a fantastic motivator.

Anxiety started to build while packing for the trip. What have I forgotten? It is definitely a rollercoaster ride of panic and relief leading up to the race. But the bike arrived in good shape and it felt good to get on the course to alleviate some of the anxiety for this intimidating venue.

The hills on the bike course were more than I was expecting. It looks pretty flat on TV! It was very windy, as advertised. The heat and humidity were absolutely draining...