Race Previews

Crawfish, Jazz & a Paycheck...

Saturday, 18 April 2015 00:10

DANI FISCHER, who was ranked #2 on Team Minnesota last year, won the USAT Duathlete of the Year award and was named AOY HM, will make her pro debut at New Orleans 70.3 tomorrow, and the MTN Guys are anxious to see how she fares. She's only raced once at 70.3, but demonstrated that it may be her best distance. In that single event, which was the 2014 USAT Long Distance Championships in Grand Rapids, Michigan, she won handily in a time--4:23:37--which proved to be the fastest legitimate half IM clocking by a US amateur woman last year.

A strong cyclist and an even stronger runner, we suspect that Dani's pro career will resemble that of Ruth Brennan Morrey's. In other words, we think she'll learn fast and develop quickly. Like RBM, she'll probably start WINNING major events in her second year of pro racing (2016), maybe sooner.

Ruth's first half as an amateur, like Dani's, produced a victory and a sizzling time (4:21!). Ruther's first pro half--Mallorca '13--was a "valuable learning experience" and she had to settle for 12th place, albeit with a terrific 1:18 run. Eight halves later, one of which was a podium effort (2nd at Augusta), she outraced British superstar Rachel Joyce for her first major win (Kansas 70.3).

Most pros need much more than a year to establish themselves as podium contenders. Ruther's rise to that point only took four months....

And we think that Dani's career trajectory may parallel RBMs. But we don't think she will have to settle for a 12th place finish tomorrow in The Big Easy. In fact, we think she has a shot at a Top 5, perhaps even a podium. The field is large and very solid, full of emerging pros like Laura Siddall (GBR), Sarah Piampiano (USA - runner-up here in 2014), Danielle (Kehoe) Mack (USA) and sub-9-hr Ironwoman Ashley Clifford (USA). Veteran Lauren Goss (USA) is our pick to win. Weather permitting, the time should be very fast, in the 4:15 range. (Current CR is Samatha Warriner's 4:16 in 2010.)

We suspect that Goss, Piampiano, Siddall and Hallie Blunck will finish in front of Fischer. The question is: can Dani out-race the other 20-25 girls in the pro field? If she betters her 4:23 PR, we think she'll do just that. There's a $30,000 prize purse that pays six-deep. Sixth place takes home $1K.

Earning a paycheck in her first pro race would be awesome, don't you think?