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Tri it in the Wilderness,
Elliot Lake ON Sunday, August 21
Tri-It In The Wilderness
triathlon well received
By ROSALIND RABY
Local Sports - Wednesday, August 24, 2005 @ 17:00
While some people might not have welcomed the rain on Saturday,
several enthusiastic athletic-types thought it was perfect.
Entrants in the Tri-It In The Wilderness triathlon had some heavy
rain to contend with on their quest for the podium, but it was
somewhat ideal, not too hot and not too cold.
Organized by NorDev, the event is the third competition in the
Quest Enterprises/Chemnorth Endurance Race Series.
The annual event also celebrated a first with this year’s
event being an officially sanctioned race with Ontario Association
of Triathletes, the first time in its 18-year history.
The race, which includes a 1.5-kilometre swim, a 10-km run and
a 40-km bike race, also had to change its venue on Friday.
Originally slated for Spruce Avenue Beach, it had to be moved
to Westview Park, on Highway 108, because the Algoma Health Unit
closed Spruce Avenue Beach late Friday afternoon because of high
levels of E.
coli.
Organizers and volunteers came together quickly to set up the
new venue.
There were 28 entrants, 10 of which were teams of three. In all,
48 individuals took part in three divisions: men’s, women’s
and team competition.
Around 9:00 a.m., co-organizer Scot Reinhardt, called all the
competitors together to explain the new course and the rules,
now a requirement under sanctioned rules.
They mapped out a new course from Westview Park, to several marked
buoys and back again. From there, competitors went into the transition
zone to either change into their biking gear or tag their team
member.
Cyclists sped their way up and out of the park, north up Highway
108 to Panel Mine Road, turned around and cycled back to the park.
Once again in the transition zone, they either racked their bikes
and got into their running mode or tagged off a teammate.
The runners got a bit of a break with the venue change. The course
was about 800 metres shorter than a full 10-km run to the turnaround
near the former Stanleigh Mine on Milliken Mine Road and back.
The first individual competitor to cross the finish line was
Mike Coughlin of Sudbury with a time of two hours and 32/100ths
of a second.
The victory was especially sweet.
“I’ve been coming to this race for the past three
years, coming in third last year and the year before,” says
Coughlin. “To win first place is awesome, especially since
this race is now sanctioned. That makes it really sweet.”
As far as some of the changes on the course, he did not mind
it a bit.
“The rain made it nice and cool to run, although a bit
slippery. I had to watch my footing, but it was a great race.
“It’s my fifth year in the sport and I’ve been
able to build on my successes, and my failures.
“I just love the hills around here. They’re a real
challenge, but a lot of fun.
“Elliot Lake is cool.”
With the win under his belt, he plans to continue his coaching
business, as well as compete in more iron man races.
Second place went to J. Kosmerly (2:02:40) and third to Bill
Leonard (2:03:07).
The only female competitor, Laura Thaxter, came in with a time
of 2:33:34.
The top team, Megan Juuti, Mika Jutha and Leonarda Altieri topped
their race with a time of 2:01:41. Second place went to the family
team of Wes, Lindsay and Brian Killen at 2:05:43. John Girard,
Brad Matheson and Larry Brown rounded out the winner’s circle
for a third-place finish in 2:13:29.
Steve Matush continues to learn
at every event he attends and has graciously provided some insights
for our entertainment. Steve writes:
Rather, than blathering on about
the race, I thought I’d borrow John Leonard's idea from
his Joseph’s island posting and just submit a list of lessons
learned. After a couple seasons, maybe we should put all of our
accumulated wisdom together and publish it as “Racing Triathlons
for Dummies”!
Lessons learned:
If your front tire is flat in the
morning after pumping it up the night before – CHANGE THE
TUBE NOW. Don’t just pump it up, hoping that you had left
the valve slightly open. Otherwise you’ll be changing it
28km into the race.
Tightly gripping a wet CO2 cartridge
while inflating a tire has the same effect as sticking your tongue
to a steel post in mid-January. This would actually be kind-of
cool in a grade 6 science experiment way, if it didn’t hurt
when you tear the cartridge off (along with a nice chunk of flash
frozen skin)
Those funny markings on the pavement
are NOT ancient hieroglyphics. They are ARROWS, showing you the
CORRECT direction to run. If Dave Welch can finally figure this
out, then SURELY I should be able to!!!
Bringing the proper amount of food/fluid
on your bike is important. Bringing MORE makes you a target of
ridicule.
When Mike C says – “yes
we’ll be leaving right after the race”, what he really
means is “I plan to hang around for an hour to bask in the
rosy red glow of my latest victory”. J Thanks for the ride
back Jack! I owe you some gas money.
Hanging out with the Ironman crowd
can be detrimental to your financial health. After a couple hours
of exposure $5,000 for a bike and $1,500 for a pair of wheel starts
to seem entirely reasonable. Fortunately most spouses can clear
up these misconceptions very quickly.
Whenever you leave the race before
the draw prizes, you’re going to win something really good,
which will then be handed to someone else. No joke – apparently
I won a wetsuit while I was still in the parking lot.
And finally,
Small triathlons are a lot of fun!!!
Thanks to the really nice folks in Elliot Lake who put a lot of
effort into staging a really enjoyable event. It was a great course,
well run, and is very highly recommended!
Steve Matusch (you don’t
even want to know my finish time).
Overall
Results are not available
Click
Here for Group Photo
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