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Magic Kona Coffee Beans...
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Friday, 02 August 2024 00:10
By Kenneth Downer
Instead of a typical blow-by-blow race report, this one simply shares a few vignettes from my experience at Ironman Lake Placid 2024 to convey a sense of the race and the atmosphere of an Ironman event. I hope you enjoy it.
Before the Gun.
• 3:15 AM. Coffee. The beans I grind are part of a quarterly delivery I get from Kona, Hawaii. My daughter and I toured the Heavenly Hawaiian Farms coffee plantation after I raced on the Big Island in 2019. I signed up for regular shipments to maybe keep that Kona spirit alive. I hope that perhaps those beans might somehow add a little something special to my race today.
• Standing with our toes in the moist sand on the starting beach of Mirror Lake, we listen as a local singer belts out the National Anthem with commendable skill. Her final words are drowned out as an Apache helicopter gunship roars out of the leaden sky and over our heads.....
Brewhouse #37 Preview...Updated...
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Saturday, 27 July 2024 00:10
37th BREWHOUSE TRIATHLON PREVIEW - We are expecting an awesome event to unfold this weekend at Island Lake. Here are our picks to set the pace at BH XXXVII on Sunday:
Olympic Men -
JOSH BLANKENHEIM - Josh set the men's course record --1:57:15--on BH's original Island Lake course, and he's returning to the event for the first time since setting that mark in 2019. He's been Duluth's numero un male triathlete since the retirement of Brian Bich a decade ago and we expect him to prevail on Sunday. A win would be his third on this course. So you know, the amateur men's record here is Jason Crisp's 1:56:49. Weather permitting, we predict that Josh will pop a sub 1:55 this weekend.
JASON CRISP - Jason wasn't on the registration list that Matt shared with us, but we'd be surprised if he didn't race. He's got a pair of 2nd place finishes this season and we predict that he will place 3rd on Sunday. We think he'll give Blankenheim and Spencer Syvertson a good push.
SPENCER SYVERTSON - Spence has upped his game this year, as he clearly demonstrated when he gave Preston Youngdahl a scare at Lake Minnetonka. We think he will give Blankenheim a similar race on Sunday, and like Blank, turn in a time that's faster than the current CR....UPDATE: Spencer torched the men's racerecord at Alexandria this morning (7/27)...
3rd Annual Chisago Olympic & Sprint - Preview...With Updates...
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Thursday, 25 July 2024 00:10
Photo - We couldn't resist posting this photo of Stephanie Peterson hangin' with Paul Bunyan. Who knew Paul was into corndogs?
CHISAGO LAKES OLYMPIC & SPRINT PREVIEW - Below are MTN's podium picks for next Sunday's Olympic and Sprint races:
Olympic Men:
TIM BONTRAGER - Tim is our clear choice to win this event next Sunday. Hs podium performances at Trinona, Door Country , Pleasant Prairie and Maple Grove were fast, and the guys that outraced him, all national class athletes, did so by small margins. We think Tim will rewrite the men's course record.
TEVIN NEEGARD - Off the radar last year, he's one of the faves this season to win the Most Improved Triathlete honor.
NOAH BILLINGS - Noah should finish no lower than 3rd, and could land in 2nd. He is the reigning Junior National chmpion and has already won three races this year....
PETER WIKMAN - In three Olympic starts in 2023, Peter recorded a win and two seconds. A podium on Sunday is very possible.
20th Chisago Half Preview...Updated!
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Tuesday, 23 July 2024 00:10
CHISAGO LAKES HALF IRON PREVIEW - Here are MTN's podium picks for next Sunday's race. We base our selections on last week's entrants list. It is possible, perhaps likely, that other podium contenders have registered since then.
Men:
SEAN COOLEY - Sean has won six halves in his stellar career, one of them here. HIs time was 4:06:52 on a warm non-wetsuit morning. He's placed 2nd at Chisago twice and has broken 4:10 on this course three times. He finished in the Top 5 at Des Moines 70.3 earlier this season in 4:07:57. MTN therefore believes that Sean Cooley deserves to be recognized as the favorite to win on Sunday.
MARCUS DUVAL - Marcus does not have Sean's long distance resume yet, but he is scary fast, especially in the water and on the bike. He'll need a big lead entering T2 if he wants to win. We think there is a podium step with his name on it. UPDATE: Injured. Unable to race.
JOE ADRIEANS - Joe's popped a 4:13 here in the past and is coming off a Top 10 effort at Des Moines 70.3 (4:15:19). A Top 3 on Sunday would be his third, having also done so in 2022 and 2017...
UPDATE: The women's race just got more competitive, as ELENA JASPER will be doing the half instead of the Olympic. Elena's PR is 4:47 and she'll likely go faster than that on Sunday. There's definitely a podum step with her name on it.
Alexandria Preview....
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Friday, 19 July 2024 00:10
ALEXANDRIA TRIATHLON PREVIEW – The fourth edition of this great event is on the horizon. July 27, to be exact. This means that you have time to enter, if you haven't done so already. So you know, Minnesota has numerous outstanding tri venues, and Alexandria's is near the top of that list.
Let's talk about the competition. Weather permitting, we think it will take a course record to win the men's race. That's saying a lot since COREY NYGAARD's record 55:54, set in 2023, was a full two minute improvement on the prior CR.
Well, Corey's back and intent on defending his title. And a peek at his scorecard tells us that he's poised to do just that. Nominated for Minnesota;s Most Improved Triathlete last year, Nygaard has won four of his last six races, in addition to nuking his previous 70.3 PR....
