FEATURES
Get Over It...
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Monday, 25 July 2011 03:00
By Bonnie Getreal
Into every life, a mutant demon dog must fall. Why is it every time I get attacked by a dog while out on my bike, I am riding up a hill, into the wind and completely gassed?
Thankfully, this dog wasn't like the last one- huge and fast- this was a pug nosed ankle biter that I imagined throwing like a football back into the yard. But still. My heart raced when I caught sight of it tearing across the grass, trying to gnaw me in crude protection of it's family; me, the grotesque intruder obviously intending to slaughter his beloveds. Such a good little dog. I'm sure they will miss him terribly..
Racing Stuff...
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Tuesday, 19 July 2011 03:10
* RACINE STUFF - Elite St. Paulian Sam Janicki (photo) made his half IM debut at Racine 70.3 on Sunday. After satisfying swim (28:33) and bike splits (2:18:46), Sam admitted that his run time (1:39) "needs a lot of work." Still, his 4:29:38 was a very encouraging rookie effort. He placed 27th overall / 12th amateur and 4th in his 25-29 AG. Don't be surprised if The Sam-inator anchors his next half with a 1:20-25 run.
FYI, he's scheduled to race at Chisago next weekend.
MTN congratulates all the Minnesotans who accepted the Racine 70.3 challenge. And please stay tuned for Jennifer Martone's race report, which will post later this week...
Mid-Season Report Card...
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Tuesday, 19 July 2011 03:00
(Photos L - R - Junior stars Brandon Onopa, Caleb Vukovich, Greta Danielson and Hannah Strom.)
We thought it would be cool to do some "Mid-Season Report Card" posts, even though the season is actually two-thirds over, which makes us sad.
As for the Report Card stuff, what we plan to do is acquaint you with the athletes that, at this point in time, appear destined to receive MMA nominations next autumn. But anything can happen tomorrow. New names on the scenes. Sub-par efforts. Injuries. Stuff like that....
New Races, Old Races & Other Good Stuff....
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Friday, 15 July 2011 03:00
* HENRY'S TRI - Saturday's inaugural Tri For a Cause in Crosby promises to be a goodie. Despite the crowded weekend schedule, the event, which was founded by a really nice guy named Henry Praska, should pull about 125 participants.
The clear favorite for the women will be Michelle Andres (photo L), who has won three of the five multis she's done thus far in 2011. The win would be the 10th of her impressive career.
Picking the men's winner is a bit tougher. Based on current enrollment, our pick is Greg Rhodes, who has raced sporadically in Minnesota since 2006. He did race twice last year and his results were impressive: 2nd at Lakes Country and 6th at Brewhouse. However, we wouldn't be surprised if guys like Grand Forks' Sean Cooley, Nevis' David Lewis and Duluth's Rod Raymond or Marc Malinowski decide to pop over to Memorial Park on the western shore of beautiful Serpent Lake on Saturday. If this happens, Greg may have to settle for a ....
Mulhawks, Skort Chasing, Turtle Saving....
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Wednesday, 13 July 2011 03:00
* LOVING THE "DO" - Brandon Onopa is one of our favorite young people. Smart and gentlemanly, he was obviously brought up by world class parents.
We've known him since he was very short. Now he's very tall and attends college in Pennsylvania.
We also knew him when he had a very conservative haircut. But now he sports a combination mullet and mohawk. A Mulhawk. Or maybe a Mo-lett. Accent on the first syllable.
Whatever.
Brandon's do is not only insanely cool-looking, apparently it is also performance enhancing. (The YndeCam photo L does not do his haircut justice. He was suffering from "helmet head.") He debuted his fast coif at Life Time-Minneapolis last Saturday and wound up placing 13th in the Stud Horse division, a.k.a. the men's Elite Amateur competition....
