Race Coverage

The Happiest Days of Summer...

Monday, 17 July 2017 09:10

Photo (L-R) - Maggie, Christina, Diane

HEART OF THE LAKES (Long Course) - Sometimes it's the battles within a race, duels actually, and not what is happening at the front that are most exciting. At HOLT last Sunday it was clear shortly after they had exited T2, that SEAN COOLEY and CHRISTINA ROBERTS would win the race and claim well-earned state titles.

Their leads were simply insurmountable. 

Thus, the focus shifted. Who would place 2nd and 3rd? As it turned out, the battles for these spotswere epic. Not only that, the athletes who would would claim the following two places--4th and 5th--in both the men's and women's competitions would be pleasantly surprising.

While Sean was charging on to claim his 16th win since his relocation from North Dakota to Minnesota, and Roberts was officializing the 15th tri victory of her career, and her second W in as many weeks, MAGGIE WEISS and DIANE HANKEE, and NATHAN ANSBAUGH and JOSH BLANKENHEIM were dueling over 2nd place finishes. In both battles, it was the athlete in the come-from-behind positions--Blank and Hank--that would prevail.

For Josh, it would be his third strainght runner-up performance, all of them taking place in deep races, and it avenged his 2nd at Lake Waconia, when the run distance--four miles--was not long enough for him to catch eventual winner, Ansbaugh. HOLT's run is 5.3 miles, enough to catch-and-pass....

For Ansbaugh, the current men's Most Improved frontrunner, it was his sixth podium in six starts this season. In two of those races--Lake Minnetonka and Lake Waconia--he reached the Top Step.

Like Blank, Hankee was a minute out of 2nd place when she entered T2. She then whittled Weiss' lead until Maggie was finally in her rearview mirror.

At that point Weiss' focus probably shifted. Diane's lead was growing and KELLY TROM was closing fast. Holding on to 3rd had to become her priority.

For the second straight year, Maggie placed 3rd at HOLT, her eventual margin over Trom was 21-seconds. Like Ansbaugh, Weiss is her gender's current Most Improved frontrunner. For Trom, her 4th was clear proof that she can hold her own in shorter races with the fastest women in our region. 

Fifth place for the women was earned by ANDREA MYERS, 41, who is arguably racing even better in 2017 than she had in 2016, when she earned a Master of the Year nomination.

Returning to women's runner-up, Diane Hankee, she is racing lights-out this season. Now 40 and currently the leading candidate for MOY, Diane's resume features two outright victories, two overall 2nds and a 3rd.

Rounding out the men's Top 5 were guys who enjoyed breakout seasons last year in which they both earned Team Minnesota berths: ANDY WIBERG (4th) and JORDAN ROBY (5th). Both guys are racing like banshees right now. Andy's got one win and three other Top 4 finishes. Jordan has one win as well, plus four other podiums.

Two AG records were set on Sunday. With her 8th place overall finish, the phenomenal JAN GUENTHER, 58, loweref the 55-59W's mark from 1:57:27, a record that had stood since 2009, to 1:52:30. And LISA WHEELER, 66, took her own 65-69W 2016 best 2:26:34 down by 8:26! (2:18:08).

As ever, HOLT was an awesome event, a true celebration of healthy lifestyles and the wonderful quality of life we enjoy here in Minnesota. It was also a celebration of the friendships / comradery that make Minnesota's multisport community a cut above the rest.

For the MTN Guys, there is a special place in our hearts for an eight-day period in July, a short span that includes the Timberman and Heart of the Lakes triathlons. Those eight days are the happiest days of the year for us.

Tomorrow we will post coverage of HOLT's Short Course race. RESULTS

Photo R - The Tri Doctors - Sean Cooley and Nathan Ansbaugh.