Race Coverage

"...The Hardest Course I Raced This Season."

Monday, 09 September 2019 23:10

SQUARE LAKE SPRINT RACE REPORT - Sunday Sept. 8th 2019 was what was most likely my final Triathlon of 2019 unless I sneak a travel trip in some place? I decided 3 days before the race to enter Square Lake Sprint Triathlon as a way to end what has been a great 2019 season for myself and for my daughter Bella who has 4 junior female course records this season and a bunch of podium finishes including some overall wins! Bella did not race since she is now into high school cross country season.

Race morning the calm before the storm! I woke up and looked at the weather said well it’s not raining, awesome! But then looked at the temperature and said burr! I’ve raced Duathlon in cold weather, but I’ve never raced Triathlon in cold weather like this, where the water is much warmer than air temp! I will admit I was not sure about this race and kept asking myself why did I sign up for this 3 days ago? But the venue at Square lake park is beautiful! The lake is one of the nicest lakes we swim in around here!

For Square lake Triathlon the athletes self-seed themselves based on how fast they swim, so I was going for the win and put myself up front maybe 4th guy into the water? My friend Jon who is an excellent swimmer went when I did as well and my goal was pace and sight off him, well that worked for a bit but coming back to the beach the buoys were off, there was no on-shore structure we could see and sight our way back in so I was all over the place and ended up coming to shore down beach from the entrance to transition and had some extra running to do....

Mork & Youngberg Keep Winning!

Sunday, 08 September 2019 23:10

SQUARE LAKE 70.3 - JOSH MORK's victorious 4:09:52 at Chisago in late July was his half IM  personal best, and stands as the fastest time at the distance by a MInnesota male this season. Josh is justifiably proud of that effort, but he's quick to point out that his "personal record" and his "personal best" are not the same thing. 4:09 is his fastest time, but his 4:11:39 runaway course record at Square Lake last Saturday is, by far his best 70.3 performance. ...

High Fives!

Friday, 06 September 2019 23:10

By Unny Nambudiripad (https://unnypn.org)

HOPKINS ROYAL TRIATHLON RACE REPORT - On Saturday, August 31, I completed my second triathlon. It went fantastic!

I chose to do the triathlon to feel alive, healthy, and full of vigor, to celebrate life with friends and family, and do my best. And I was very successful in all of those!

Of course celebrating with others involves their active participation! Thanks to Jil, Roshani, Sheff, Lola, Krista, Devan, Brahma, Neil, Phillip, Bernie, Victor,  and my oldest brother Guptan. Three folks that I helped recruit and completed alongside me were Julie, Mike, and my other older brother Krishnan. Thanks to all of you for participating by cheering me on, sharing food after the event, competing with me, running, swimming, or biking with me in the the last few months, and giving me high fives during the race.

Regarding the high fives…the other triathlon I did was this same one four years ago. Near the very end of the race, somebody I didn’t know held up their hand to receive a high five and I gave it. Later that day, I thought that this is not something I would have done when I competed as a runner when I was a teenager. In those years, I thought little of fitness, the social or psychological benefits (though I did gain much in that regard), and focused entirely on getting faster and competing well....

Focusing on the Small Things...

Thursday, 05 September 2019 23:10

By Simone Lundquist (twosisterswhotriblog.com)

YOUNGLIFE TRIATHLON RACE REPORT - It started to hit me this past weekend that the season was starting to come to an end. The morning was a little bit cooler and there was a breeze in the air that reminded me that fall is right around the corner. For now I’m just going to try to hold on to the last moments of the tri season and summer.

This past weekend I was able to compete at Young-Life Triathlon in Detroit Lakes, MN. It was the type of race that brought in fantastic volunteers, (175 to be exact) a great venue, and a group of athletes that were excited to be there. The race completely filled up, which is always exciting to see, and the race directors got to show 300 plus people how wonderful young life is and why they should come back next year.

When I first walked into the registration area to get body markings I heard my favorite song playing called Oh Come to the Altar. This calmed my nerves significantly and I knew that it would be a good race from that point on. Before race start I got to reunite with some friends that I hadn’t seen in a while and just enjoy my time talking to the fellow athletes beside me. I loved meeting all the new faces and seeing just how many people were there to race and enjoy themselves throughout the day....

Fun & Fast Times...

Saturday, 31 August 2019 23:10

HOPKINS ROYAL TRIATHLON - Saturday morning at Shady Oak Lake. Cloudy, mild temps (low 60s), negligible wind, flat lake. Add the new transition layout and you have ideal conditions for a triathlon, the kind that result in fast times and a spate of rewritten age group records.

ANDY ZABEL, arguably the frontrunner for the 2019 Most Improved (male) award, was the clear favorite to take the men's overall title.

The women's gold medal race was less predictable, though. 2017 champion ANDREA MYERS, who had excelled on this course in each of the previous three years, had experience on her side. Here stiffest challenge on Saturday would come from rising rookie star CARYN HERRICK.

Zabel and Herrick were later registrants, thus they were among the last starters in the event's time-trial format. Myers was an early starter, which allowed her to appear to gap most of the field, women and men alike, from the get-go. We've seen this before. Andrea finishing well ahead of her rivals, then having to wait to see if others would overtake her in the final results.

Myers husband SCOTT was the first athlete to cross the finish line. ERIC ROESNER and KEVIN GREIMEL were in next. Then Andrea crossed the finish line.  Ultimately, Scott would have the 5th fastest time of the day, Eric would place 7th, and Kevin, a two-time Top Fiver here, would finish 8th.

Andrea's time on Saturday was 1:11:27, a personal best on this course, a performance she could be proud of. But would it be good enough for the win? ...

Runaway Win Caps Blankenheim's Season...

Tuesday, 27 August 2019 23:10

By Mike Aulie (brainerddispatch.com / cool photo by Steve Kohls)

BAXTER -- Josh Blankenheim of Duluth improved on his second-place finish of last year to post the fastest time in the Lakes Country Triathlon and Baxter’s Jacquelyn Bacigalupi repeated as the top female finisher Sunday, Aug. 25, at Kiwanis Park in Baxter....