Race Coverage

Hosch Hammers...

walker-swim.gif6th WALKER TRIATHLON - Being the first of your gender to cross the finish line does not always mean that you've won the race.

Last Saturday, Matt Radniecki and Jacquelyn Bacigalupi (pronounced "bah-chee-gah-loop-pee," we think?) were the first man and woman to cross the finish line on the scenic western shoreline of Leech Lake's Walker Bay. They were, in golf parlance, clubhouse leaders. Talented athletes in later waves could rob the twosome, who shared the Winner's Circle the previous weekend at Heart of the Lakes Sprint, of their titles....

 

For Radniecki, who's enjoying a breakout season (2 wins), the wait lasted only 44 seconds. That's when 2nd-waver Larry Hosch sped across the line, recording his 2nd victory of the season. Not only that, Larry's time - 1:04:17 - lowered the men's course record, that had stood since 2010, by 53 seconds.

The battle for Most Improved nominations is going to be fiece this year and Larry and Matt are definite contenders. cheryl-win.gif

Taking the final men's podium spot was Hosch's BFF Andy Zabel. The friends spent the rest of the weekend on a boat (and the awesome paddleboard that Andy won in the post-race raffle) in a nearby lake, chilling out and consuming beverages containing hops and grain. Good times.

Bacigalupi was able to savor her 1st-place status for only 16 seconds before that pesky Cheryl Zitur (photo R) made her victory official. For Cheryl, Minnesota's 2014 Master of the Year and a frontrunner for another nomination, it was her 3rd consecutive Walker Tri win. The Worlds and Nationals medalist now owns three of the five fastest women's times in the history of the race.

Placing 3rd, and crushing her own junior CR, was Racquel Wohlk, 18, who'll be attending college in New Hampshire (Dartmouth? UNH?) next fall on, we believe, a nordic skiing scholarship. Cool stuff.

The Walker Tri, aka the Chase the Police Triathlon, drew approximately 220 entrants and enjoyed superb racing conditions. RESULTS

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