Race Previews

Haag, Roberts, Grinaker, Walker....Updated Yet Again...

Wednesday, 24 August 2016 05:10

SUPERIORMAN PREVIEW - KORTNEY HAAG has seven half IM wins on her resume, including here in 2015 when she set the women's course record (4:43:08). Once again, she will enter the race as the favorite.

On paper, Haag's stiffest challenge will come from a woman who hasn't raced the 70.3 distance since her only attempt at the in 2010. Her name is CHRISTINA ROBERTS, and her time at Liberty was 5:16:42. She placed 7th.

Kortney knows that the 2016 version of Christina Roberts is much faster than the 2010 version. Roberts was ranked 2nd on Team...

Minnesota last year and has won three of the seven races she's entered thus far in 2016. One, maybe two, of those victories will very likely be considered for "Performance of the Year."

If Christina were to legitimately upset Kortney, Minnesota's most reliably successful half IM female racer, on Sunday, that would be a BIG deal, and will certainly be a part of the POY discussion.

MAJOR UPDATE! We just learned that HANNA GRINAKER will be racing. Hanna's first half IM produced a 4:47 despite riding long. Looks like three women (at least!) will totally rock the North Shore on Sunday!

ANOTHER MAJOR UPDATE: Canada's premier amateur long distance triathlete NICOLE WALKER has registered. Her major amateur WINS in 2016 include Texas Ironman, Florida 70.3 and Racine 43.1!

For the men, defending champ / CR-holder MATTHEW PAYNE is on the start list. Injured at Nationals, we aren't sure if he'll be able to race. We hope he can. (UPDATE: On FB, Matt let us know that he WILL race.)

If The Pain Train is good-to-go on Sunday, he should not only win, but rewrite his record. His issues at Nationals will provide additional motivation. He'll be pushed by the "usual suspects," guys like three time Superiorman winner SEAN COOLEY,  DAN ARLANDSON, PAUL ROCKWOOD, DAN MORWOOD and PETER SOMERS, as well as Superiorman newcomers STEVE MORRIS, NATHAN ANSBAUGH, JOHN HEINLEIN and ANDY WIBERG.

We also anticipate the fall of several divisional CRs, especially on the women's side. We predict that ANDREA MYERS, 40, a possible 2016 Master of the Year nominee, should lower ANN SUDOH's 2012 MR, and SHERI SCHROCK should shoot down her own 60-64W mark.

We're psyched. SM V is gonna be Epic.

Last year, DIANE HANKEE won the SM 41.5 outright. We're confident that she'll win the women's race, which would be a milestone: her 30th career victory. Heck, she might even win the whole thing again.

Our gut tells us that the men's winner either hasn't signed up yet, or had done so since we received the list of entrants. RACE WEBSITE

ANOTHER UPDATE: MITCHELL CLAYTON, winner of four races in 2016, has entered the 41.5. Yes, he's our pick to take the men's title.