Race Coverage

Mature Teen & A Pair of Hankees...

Monday, 22 August 2016 05:10

PHOTO - A pair of Randys - Uncle Randy Fulton, St. Paul Tri founder/director, and his bud, Randy Liila, enjoying a perfect morning at Lake Phalen.

ST. PAUL TRIATHLONS - In the wind and rain on Saturday at the Lake Marion Sprint, two-time Junior of the Year candidate MITCHELL CLAYTON zigged when he should have zagged. The wrong turn resulted in a DNF.

Mitchell smiled and shrugged his shoulders. Do-do happens, right?

He immediatedly decided to race the next day at the St. Paul Sprint, where he hoped, as he had at the LMT, to come away with a victory. If he did, it would be his 4th W of the 2016 season. (Yes, he appears to be a shoo-in for another JOY nomination.)

Sunday wasn't yucky. In fact, weather conditions couldn't have been more ideal. Mitchell raced his heart out, but according to the results, he didn't win, although he came very close. Just 17 seconds separated him from the...

winner, a Wisconsin guy named ADAM McCLUNG.

Once again, Mitchell smiled and shrugged his shoulders. Very mature for a 19-year-old. Cool, right?

A similar margin separated the top two women in the Sprint, with ALI NORGEL besting JESSICA DEEGAN by 33 seconds. Exciting stuff.

Ali and Jess were impressive, placing 5th and 7th overall.

In the SPT's longer race, DAVID HOLDEN and DIANE HANKEE, not surprisingly, prevailed by huge margins. For Holden, 47, the win was his third in five starts this season. His fourth Master of the Year nomination seems very likely.

For Hankee, the win was her third of the season and 29th of her multisport career. Additionally, she placed 3rd overall. Only Holden, and her husband, Mike, finished ahead of her, albeit only by 43 seconds. Mike, a SWAT guy, had his most successful season in 2010, and on Sunday he raced like he did back then when Top 10 performances were the rule, not the exception.  RESULTS