Race Previews

Kort vs. Michelle....

Tuesday, 05 June 2012 03:40

(Photo - Defending Liberty Half champ, Michelle Andres, looking badass in black.)

Race Preview - Minnesota's Long Distance Opener, the Liberty Half, is Saturday and the MTN Guys are psyched. It is the women's race that intrigues us the most. We believe that the duel between defending champ Michelle Andres and 2009 Pigman Half winner, Kortney Haag will be epic, and determine the victor. And the runner-up. We're not suggesting that there aren't other competitive girls in the race. There are. We'll mention a few in a moment.

First, let's talk about Michelle. She has been training like a banshee lately, sometimes approaching 30-hours a week. That's serious! Her target race is Ironman Wisconsin and she's determined...

to have a breakout performance, perhaps even win the amateur crown. Liberty may be the only race she enters before IMOO. She's very fit, very strong and her muscles know how it feels to win at Liberty. Her PR at the Half distance is 4:42:46; her best time here is 4:48:10.

Kortney, on the other hand, is coming back from a serious injury and has been unable to run consistently for the last two months. Her 3rd place finish at Buffalo Olympic last weekend was encouraging. She too, has Ironman Wisconsin, her IM debut, as her target race.

While Michelle may appear to be more ready to pop a fast race on Saturday, it needs to be noted that Kort (photo R) has a superior resume at this distance. Check out these stellar performances:

- 1st @ 2009 Pigman Half - 4:49:37 (rain, extremely windy)

- 2nd @ 2011 Pigman Half - 4:37:54

- 2nd amateur / 6th overall woman @ 2011 Austin (TX) 70.3 - 4:40:00

- 3rd @ 2009 Chisago Half - 4:25:54 (Short courses; her performance was the equivalent of a 4:33-34; this was Haag's half debut effort.)

The question is, how fit is Kort right now. And how fit does she need to be to beat Michelle at the 7th edition of this classic event? We predict a close race; the closest women's race in the history of the event.

Liberty's course record is 4:41:53, set by Marlo McGaver back in 2006. Weather on Saturday is expected to be clear, warm and dry, with afternoon temps reaching the high 80s. Winds should be negligible. Heat could be a big factor, especially during the run. We're reluctant to predict that a new course record will be set.

We could see sub-5-hour efforts on Saturday from talented girls like Lydia Novotny, who placed 4th here in 2011 (5:08:45), Jen Lenarz (2nd here in 2010 in 5:03; she clocked a sub-5 at Door County in '10, too.), Julie Mac (McMonagle), who's PR is 4:54, and a few others. Note: Liberty's courses are challenging and only seven women in the race's first six outings have cracked the 300-minute barrier.

We'll discuss the men's half and preview Liberty Olympic later in the week.