Race Previews
Protectors & Servers and Toughmen...
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Thursday, 23 July 2015 06:10
MINI RACE PREVES - There are five races next weekend and we'd love to preview all of them. But alas, we cannot. We only know who is racing at two of those events--Saturday's Walker Tri and Sunday's Toughman Minnesota, formerly the Chisago Half and Sprint. The other three races are Uncle Randy's Shell Lake Tri in western Wisconsin, the Moose Lake Tri south of Duluth, and the long-running Hoot Lake Tri near Fungus Falls, which is actually "Fergus Falls," but Angie Hop calls it Fungus Falls. We certainly hope that all these races enjoy great weather, good turnouts and satisfied participants....
North Country Buzz & Other Stuff...
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Thursday, 16 July 2015 00:10
4th Annual BUZZ RYAN SPRINT - This super-cool event takes place next Sunday at Island Lake north of Duluth at a picnic park that appears to have been designed with triathlon in mind. The race is a great prelude to Brewhouse, which had moved to the same venue three years ago, but its primary goal is to lure newbies and introduce them to the multisport lifestyle. Here's BRS' Mission Statement: ...
Epic Possibilities...Updated...
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Wednesday, 15 July 2015 00:10
HEART OF THE LAKES PREVIEW - The 30th edition of this classic event, the State Tri Championships since 1996, promises to be super competitive. On the men's side, it is possible for this year's field to match a record that happened in 2009: Six men broke 1:30 in the long course. Since '09, only one guy--DKT--has dipped under the magic 90-minute mark....
Minneapolis Tri XIV Preview...
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Tuesday, 07 July 2015 06:10
LIFE TIME FITNESS - MINNEAPOLIS TRIATHLON - The 14th edition of this annual classic will take place at Lake Nokomis on Saturday. The event will feature a regional collegiate championship with at least 38 athletes racing, and an Elite Amateur competiton with a similar number (40ish) of attendees....
An Original...
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Monday, 06 July 2015 06:10
TIMBERMAN PREVIEW - Timberman, Minnesota's original "Destination Triathlon," will celebrate its 31st birthday on Saturday (July 11). Like most races, it struggles to get its numbers of yesteryear, but unlike most races, it manages to come dang close to doing so. This means that, despite current trends, Timberman is "hanging in there" better than most events. Still, the MTN Guys want to encourage anyone who has not committed to a race on the weekend of July 11-12, to make the trip to Sugar Lake. Especially those folks who have never done this "experience" before. It's not just about the race. You don't just pop in, race and drive home. At Timberman, you also swim, fish, golf, barbecue and pontoon (verb form), as well as eat and drink at Otis' Grill, which has an awesome deck and is located on the north edge of the transition area.
It's a "destination" event....
Big Numbers. Great Fields...
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Sunday, 05 July 2015 06:10
GRANITEMAN XII PREVIEW - Last year, Graniteman-Clearwater drew a little over 300 participants. This year, the event's 12th anniversary, that number will jump to more than 500. How cool is that, especially in today's racing climate?
We love to see this kind of stuff!
Another thing we love to see are competitive fields, and this year's G-Man Olympic (1.5-46K-10K), the first year for this distance, has an awesome field, especially on the men's side. Four of the Top 5 guys from last year's sprint race are returning and they are all stronger and faster than ever. 2014 winner Casey Miller is coming off a win at Average Jo. Last year's bronze medalist Larry Hosch just collected his first career win at ZTRI. Fourth and fifth place in 2014 went to Ryan Wippler, who also won his first career tri earlier this season, and Wade Cruser, who totally rocked out at Buffalo and Gear West, will be more competitive than ever, too. And they'll have to be, because this year's field will also include Brett Lovaas, who has 30ish...
