Bringing back the Bluff

Rochester may not have a lot of steep hills of its own, but today TriRochester brought back a lot of limestone from the Winona bluffs at Trinona!

Wow! What a fantastic turnout by our club today for the Trinona Sprint and International distance triathlon in Winona, MN.  We had over a third of the club on hand competing or cheering and supporting those who were racing.

It was by no means an easy day.  The south winds quickly brought the temperature from 77 at race start to nearly 90 by the finish.  Nonetheless, our members put in great efforts and showed off some terrific racing.

Triathlon is not all about winning, but with results like today, we have to give some major props for the achievements of the club.  We took home 4 overall wins and in doing so broke 4 course records!  Those were the Women's Sprint, the Women's International, the Men's International Relay, and the Women's "King of the bluff".  We had many age-group placings as well and even swept all three places in one of the women's divisions earning us a bunch of those really cool Trinona limestone trophies.

Congratulations to everyone racing today and a big thanks to those who came out just to cheer us on.  Here are the full results.

Trinona Sprint   1/4 Mile Swim - 11 Mile Bike - 3.1 Mile Run
Name	Overall	Age Group	Swim	Bike	Run	Total
Travis Seeger	4/343	2/48	6:41	29:12:00	20:54	59:08	3rd overall bike!
Elton Mosman	8/343	1/32	6:27	31:22:00	20:46	1:00:58
Erich Heneke	10/343	3/48	9:35	29:18:00	20:09	1:02:00	4th overall bike/ 7th overall run!
Diana Koepp	11/343	1/31	5:05	32:33:00	22:00	1:02:04	2nd overall swim!, Overall win, course record!
Jason Fischer	12/343	2/32	5:38	31:22:00	22:38	1:02:28	7th overall swim!
Marie Harke	30/343	2/31	6:22	33:10:00	23:37	1:06:00
Joshua Grenell	51/343	11/32	7:07	35:00:00	23:52	1:08:45
Kelle Peterson	57/343	3/31	6:23	35:42:00	23:47	1:09:20
Mike Schmitt	77/343	17/32	10:06	34:19:00	24:22	1:12:10
Andy Koch	83/343	17/48	7:56	35:02:00	27:38	1:13:22
Emily Franck	102/343	4/35	8:09	39:46:00	23:32	1:15:29
Jorrie Johnson	107/343	3/17	9:19	36:50:00	25:43	1:15:54
Bryan Donaldson	121/343	26/48	9:13	35:29:00	27:05	1:16:33
Sue Braun	162/343	4/6	10:38	38:13:00	25:41	1:20:17
Jim VanOosten	197/343	12/16	8:39	37:46:00	32:01	1:24:00
Ed Maslowski	207/343	2/5	10:04	38:53:00	27:49	1:24:34
Kelly O'Hara	208/343	2/8	8:24	38:37:00	31:07	1:24:44
Jen Grenell	218/343	17/32		43:40:00	22:47	1:26:39
Phil Vickers	222/343	4/8	8:31	40:18:00	33:48	1:26:59
Ali Berry	234/343	6/9	6:55	44:34:00	31:17	1:29:25
Adam Aslakson	240/343	41/48	8:41	41:39:00	33:53	1:30:29
Katie Carlin	258/343	25/31	11:06	41:03:00	36:17	1:33:17
Amber Aslakson	260/343	22/35	9:06	44:32:00	27:13	1:33:25
Dawn Johnson	284/343	26/32	8:37	43:23:00	40:25	1:37:56

King of the Bluff (top 5 awarded)
	Place	Time
Ruth Brennan Morrey	1	7:07	Female Individual, Course Record!
Joe Moyer	3	6:37	Team / TriRochester

Trinona Olympic 1.5k Swim, 40k Bike, 10k Run
			Swim	Bike	Run	Total
Alex Hooke	4/292	4/12	19:10	1:02:25	38:25	2:02:23	4th overall swim/5th overall bike/8th overall run!
Ruth Brennan Morrey	12/292	1/8	27:27	1:08:52	35:57	2:14:35	4th overall run!, Overall win, Course Record!
Peter Somers	15/292	2/39	24:48	1:08:47	39:02	2:15:19	9th overall run!
Chris Coon	19/292	4/39	22:42	1:12:01	39:50	2:17:48
Jeremy Ekman	41/292	3/42	23:00	1:16:28	46:10	2:29:16
Peter Moeschler	48/292	7/39	26:16	1:15:00	47:13	2:31:46
Iain Anderson	52/292	5/42	25:05	1:16:14	47:59	2:33:15
Joe Ryan	70/292	8/32	32:11	1:18:55	43:30	2:37:00
Eric Cleveland	76/292	10/32	25:17	1:17:57	50:51	2:38:08
Sam Wiegand	85/292	12/32	32:29	1:12:55	51:45	2:40:35
Matt Hangee	93/292	13/39	32:20	1:17:28	49:22	2:42:22
Adam Starkey	139/292	22/39	26:49	1:21:49	1:00:02	2:53:01
Joshua Weigel	159/292	25/42	30:41	1:18:24	1:06:11	2:58:44
Andy Galbus	161/292	8/18	36:48	1:18:29	59:49	2:59:39
Jenn Schrandt	195/292	7/13	39:07	1:32:46	51:42	3:08:36
Justin Meunier	259/292	37/42	30:58	1:38:21	1:15:06	3:33:40
Pattie Ekman	274/292	4/4	34:54	1:44:17	1:20:13	3:46:37

Relay Olympic	Place	Swim	Bike	Run	Total
1  TriRochester	1/12	18:19	1:02:30	35:18	1:57:39	Overall win, Course record!
Kris Koepp , Joe Moyer , Robert Mitchell

Race Results - June 2nd - 3rd 2012

New Brighton Tri   Long Lake Regional Park  -  New Brighton, June 2, 2012
1/2 Mile Swim - 14 Mile Bike - 3 Mile Run
Kris Koepp 23/308    3/16 swim 11:50  bike 37:32 run 22:15  overall  1:13:05
Diana Koepp  46/308   4/7   swim 12:14  bike 41:57 run 21:57  overall 1:17:43
Wendy Nevala  185/308 6/12  swim 21:19  bike 40:06 run 27:39  overall 1:32:20
Bill Nevala 193/308  23/28  swim 21:55 bike 40:16 run 28:45 overall 1:34:18

Hillfest 200k Prescott, WI, June 2, 2012 website
One of the favorite elements to this ride is the Hill Challenges! Riders
and teams in the 200K distances will encounter 3 'races within the ride' in their chase for ultimate bragging rights. These three hills are timed separately and the rider with the overall lowest hill time wins.
GRIFFEE, Susan Rochester, MN 2 4:23 2 5:57 2 5:44 16:05
FERRELL, Tim Rochester, MN 28 4:42 38 9:10 33 7:58 21:50

Buffalo Olympic Tri   Buffalo, MN, June 3, 2012
Mike Ewen  81/387   4/17  swim 30:15  bike 1:06:59 22.2  run   44:34  overall 2:25:42

Minneapolis Half Marathon   Minneapolis, MN,  June 3, 2012
Amber Aslakson overall 2474/2774 age group 320/356 total time 2:39:13
Adam Aslakson overall  2508/2774 age group  165/172 total time 2:42:53

TriRochester Heads to Trinona

The Trinona Sprint and Olympic distance triathlon is next weekend (6/10/12).  TriRochester will be there in force with lots of members participating.  If you are new to the club or the sport and want to see what it is all about come on out with us.  (Perhaps you are doing the RochesterFest Tri the next week - This would be a good opportunity to get ideas on what you want to do there.)  We will have the club tent and refreshments for club members and families (racing or spectating).  Hope to see you there!

TriRochester Summer Picnic 6/17

All current members should have received an Evite to our Summer Picnic.  Here is the pertinent info, please RSVP via the Evite.  Due to the way I created the invitation I cannot edit it or resend notifications at this time.  If Evite can help me get this fixed I will send a message to those who have not yet responded.  If you don't have the original invitation you can also just RSVP to my personal email account ewen.mike@gmail.com or reply to this thread.

 

Host:  Mike & Barb Ewen   

When:  Sunday, June 17 at 5:00 PM

Where: Ewen's   1613 8 1/2 Ave SE Rochester, MN 55904

Come join us for the 2012 TriRochester Summer Picnic!  We'll get started about 5pm and wrap up whenever everyone leaves.  This should give all volunteers and participants in the RochesterFest Tri a chance to shower and change.  Friends and families are welcome.  The club will provide hot dogs, hamburgers, buns, condiments, plates, silverware.  Please bring your own drinks, lawn chairs, and something to share like chips, fruit, dessert, salad, etc if possible.  

Please RSVP to help us plan for the club provided food.  Thanks and hope to see you there!

Upcoming Club Activities

It is Memorial Day.  You know what that means.  It's time to start our Thursday Night Tri's at Foster Arend park.  The first TNT will be this Thursday, May 31st 2012.  Arrive early so that we can start our swim at 6:30pm.  All of the info is under EVENTS on the TNT page. 

These practice triathlons are non-competitive, untimed, group workouts and are open to members and non-members.  (We like to think of the later as future members!)  All abilities are welcome, and if you are signed up for the RochesterFest triathlon or thinking of signing up, this is a great way to get in some practice at the race venue.  We will have experienced club members on hand to lead the TNTs and answer questions as well as watch your stuff while you swim, bike, and run.

After the TNT, we will get together at Whistle Binkies North for our monthly social (note the new location for this month).  Our plan is to get there around 8pm.  MEMBERS:  If you haven't gotten your member gift yet for 2012, you can pick them up at the TNT or the social.

Coming up next week, we plan to have a club group preview ride of the RochesterFest Sprint and Olympic bike course.  That will be on June 5th at 6pm and leave from the Foster Arend parking lot.  If you have never done the course before or just want a refresher, this will be a good opportunity.  Info is on our group ride page.

Kansas City Triathlon

On May 20th, Alex Hooke competed in the Kansas City 5150 Triathlon.  This race is a qualifier for the Hy-Vee 5150 championships in Des Moines, IA in September.  Alex's 7th place finishing the Age Group Elite division secured him a spot the championship race this year.  His 2:03:49 finish in Kansas City was faster than many of the pro triathletes earning him a ranking of 20th out of 707 finishers!  Awesome job Alex!

The 5150 series races are branded Olympic distance race with the standard 1.5k swim, 40k bike, and 10k run.  To be eligible for the Age Group Elite division athletes must submit a previous qualifying time.  From there, the top 15 overall finishers in this division at each of the qualifying races can earn a spot for the Elite Age Group division at Championship race in September.  The championship race includes some pretty sweet awards including a Mini-Cooper for the first place male and female finishers.  No pressure Alex, but we are dying to know if you can fit a tri-bike into a Mini-Cooper!

Earning Apples and smashing records in Sartell

Three TriRochester members traveled to Sartell for the 30th annual Apple Duathlon. The Apple is probably the most competitive duathlon in the state, if not the region. The coveted granite apples given for awards are not easily won. The race is a 5k/33k/5k duathlon in the town on Sartell, MN. Ruth Brennan-Morrey continues to smash course records, winning again this weekend. She says it was an exhilarating race, “Racing with a deep field of fast women today-what a blast it was! Just glad I wasn't in the port potty that tipped over from the storm! Yikes! Most impressive was 88 year old Bob Powers who finished the race with a huge smile on his face.” Jim Hannon also brought home an apple with an age group win. Eric Seppelt, new to TriRochester, also brought home an age group win.

Apple Duathlon  5K Run, 33K Bike, 5K Run    Sartell, MN
Name	Overall time	Place
Ruth Brennan Morrey	1:30:26	9/170     first place female/ top 10 on both runs
Jim Hannon	1:35:10	16/170   first place AG
Eric Seppelt	1:45:45	43/170   first place AG

NorthStar Tri

Congrats to Mario Minelli for winning (and for finding) a Tri while on travel in southwestern MN this weekend!  The NorthStar Sprint Triathlon in Estherville, IA featured a 300yd pool swim, a 12 mile bike, and a 5k run.  Mario gained a nice lead on the bike overcoming some smoking fast transitions by the second place finisher and built on that lead on the run to cross the finish line in first with 5:48, 30:10, and 18:19 swim, bike, and run splits.

Med City Marathon Weekend

It was one big weekend of running in Rochester.  This year's installment of the Med City Marathon brought out over 2500 runners for the different distances.  TriRochester had a strong showing both in and out of the race. 

We got the opportunity to talk to lots of people about triathlon and the club at our booth during the Expo on Saturday.  A big THANK YOU to all of the members who came to help staff the booth and spread the word about our club.  This was a nice setting to get to spend a few extra minutes talking to people who have thought about doing a triathlon, but weren't sure if they could do it.  For all of those who stopped by we sincerely welcome you to join us or contact us to find out more about the club or the sport, and we hope to see you at one of our "TNT's"

On Sunday, a bunch of us headed out to mile 6 on the run course with a truck load of water and Gatorade, ice, tables, chairs, rakes, trash bags, cow bells, banners and tent, and a gigantic old-school boom box to volunteer.  We started the day out right with some Peace Coffee and homemade scones thanks to Pattie.  It was a lot of fun and and for a bunch of people who's sport is an individual one, I think we really showed some great teamwork!  A big THANK YOU  to all of you too.  It was great to see the spectators out lining the road and cheering on the runners and it was touching to some of those spectators jump in and ask how they could help during the heaviest volume of runners. - One person even raced back to their house and brought us a package of plastic cups when we started running low waiting on a re-supply.  Way to go!

Now to the racing...

We had a bunch of members running the various Med City distances.  The 5k runners lucked out and avoided the deluge rain storm that rolled through Rochester mid-day on Saturday.   On Sunday, for the 7am start the temps were a little lower than the average high for this time of year, but bearable.  As late morning rolled along it was getting pretty hot, but luckily the race did not have to be cancelled or shortened.  Nice job all of you runners!  Here are the club results.

Marathon
Name	Final Time		Place
Rob Mitchell	2:55:18		2/427
John Freemore	3:43:38		55/427
Joe Ryan	4:00:24		108/427
Ed Maslowski	4:50:35		277/427
Tim Ferrell	5:18:17		346/427
Relay Marathon				Final Time			Place
Hot Tub Time Machine : Daniel Roellinger , Eric Heneke , Samantha Roelinger , Kathy Heneke  3:44:17							13/85
Team Napton : Beth Napton , Darin Napton , Kris Oppegard , Jon Robelia            4:06:28							29/85
Lean Dreamers : Michael Graif , Brent Scharpman , Gene Astolfi , Broc Graif       4:14:21							36/85
Chicks on the Loose : Sue Braun , Robyn Walker , Tammy Watson , Macayla Walker      4:42:13							64/85
Angels : Robert Ellis , Tanq'y Richardson , Kelly Peterson , Rachel Leger        4:45:44							67/85
Half Marathon	Final Time		Place
Peter Somers	1:23:08		7/881
Joe Moyer	1:30:39		13/881
Chris Coon	1:31:20		15/881
Eric Cleveland	1:37:47		39/881
Jason Fischer	1:38:02		40/881
Susan Griffee	1:40:27		52/881
Emily Franck	1:47:37		113/881
Sam Wiegand	1:50:28		149/881
Iain Anderson	1:55:00		198/881
Ed Younk	1:55:59		218/881
Paige Reeves	1:57:05		239/881
Nick Rogness	1:56:50		241/881
Kristina Sinnott	2:00:47		306/881
Alicia Cory	2:03:56		373/881
Andy Koch	2:07:58		417/881
Adam Aslakson	2:43:14		801/881
Amber Aslakson	2:43:16		802/881
5k	Final Time		Place
William Hartman	32:00:00		120/234
Dawn Johnson	38:01:00		183/234

May 17th to 20th Race/Event Rundown

Our members fanned out across at least three states this weekend participating in a variety of events.  If you look closely and look back at the Stay out of the Sun report (also this weekend) you'll see that a couple of members raced three times!  So, lots of results to go over.  Ready?  Here we go:

Medtronic Twin Cities 1 Mile - May 17, 2012

Andy Becker               5:45

Jen Schrandt               6:32

Adam Aslakson          8:55

Amber Aslakson         9:15

Blaine Triathon May 19, 2012

New this year and taking over as the earliest MN Tri with an outdoor (by one day) the Blaine Triathlon consists of a 0.3 mile swim, 16.7 mile bike, and a 3.5 mile run

Josh Weigel 3^rd AG/ 15^th overall

Root River Tri May 19, 2012

Kayak  6.5 Mile Kayak, 8 Mile Bike, 3 Mile Run

Andrew Galbus - 5/43 overall, and  3/6 AG -  Kayak 1:18:54 bike (fastest overall)   26:43  run 24:02  overall 2:09:38

Fargo Marathon May 19, 2012

In 2010 Runner’s World magazine rated Fargo the “best value” marathon in America and the 8^th best overall. This race features bands at every mile and a concert at the end. In its 8^th year, it is a Midwest favorite. http://www.fargomarathon.com/

Judy Weller 4:34:03

Brute Challenge, Arcadia WI 19 May

by Paige Reeves

“Brute” – of or relating to beasts. Yep! The Arcadia Brute Challenge ride is the first of three WI Triple Crown cycling events - best reserved for those who are willing to go a little savage and let the inner brute out to play. Riders can tackle 50, 100, 150, or 200k rides on this one. I opted for the 100k, but the gadgets read 65.5 miles at the finish line. The local high school served as a spacious venue with plenty of parking, locker room showers, and cool cafeteria dining post-ride; welcome amenities on a repressive hot day that had some riders working 12 plus hours. The course is well marked and the field friendly. Misery loves company and there is plenty to go around. The course winds through rural Wisconsin and riders enjoy post-card scenery in between feats of strength. The climbs are relentless in both grade and length. We tried to audit the spray-painted percentages on “Hip Breaker” against our gadgets but by then our eyes were glossed over with imagery of some soft cool place to land while we fell into a primal rhythm of breath – push – pull – breath. When you climb with all you can muster for a full five minutes and realize you are but 1/3 to the top of an ascent, the acceptance of partially walking some hills becomes an easy pill to swallow. Rest stops were well stocked and staffed, and helpful SAG wagons appeared throughout the day to offer support. I recommend the ride for anyone who wants a crazy fun adventure – like climbing 10,433 feet over 132 miles like TriRoch animals Joe Moyer, Dan Harke and Mike Ewen did. With ride time averages between 12 – 15 mph, it’s best to go into this one without pace goals and a brave heart. Glad to have survived it. Jersey Earned. 

Paige Reeves- 100k
Marie Harke- 150k
Ann Moyer- 150k

Joe Moyer- 150k
Dan Harke- 200k
Mike Ewen- 200k

http://www.spreetouring.com/index.php

Land Between the Lakes Triathlon May 20, 2012

0.25 Mile Swim, 14 Mile Bike, 4 Mile Run

http://www.finalstretch.com/triathlon-events/land-between-the-lakes/info/

by Matt Hangge

On Sunday, May 20^th, I took part in the “Land Between the Lakes Triathlon” in Albert Lea, MN.  My Grandparents still live in Albert Lea, so this was a great opportunity to go and visit/stay with them, and get an early season race in. 

During the week, Final Stretch sent out an email that the water temp was measured at 70 degrees, and this did not change when it was checked again on the morning of the race.  After temps in the upper 80s on both Friday and Saturday accompanied by winds close to 30 mph, things were much milder on Sunday morning.  The conditions at race start were temps in the upper 50s with the wind out of the NW at 10-15 mph.  The water was actually pretty comfortable when you were in it and moving around. 

The swim was a counter-clockwise triangle.  When looking straight out from the shoreline, the water was moving almost perfectly right to left.  The longest segment of the triangle which ran parallel with the shore was swum entirely with the current.  I’ll take that any day, as I need all the help I can get.  The other segments of the swim route weren’t too bad.  The current wasn’t overly strong, and the surface wasn’t very choppy at all. 

The bike was a square lollipop route where we headed north for a few miles (crossing I-90), did a clockwise square, and came back the way we came.  The roads were completely dry and smooth, and all of the turns appeared to have been swept clean fairly recently.  The wind was a slight factor for about the first half of the ride (on the north and west bound roads), but coming back with the wind behind you was really fast.  The temperature was perfect on the bike, neither too hot nor too cold the entire time.

The run was 4 miles that were fairly flat on a mix of pavement and gravel.  The gravel roads were not loose at all, and I had no issues with footing. The route was very windy with a lot of blind turns as it followed the lake shore for the first half.  I think I only saw 4 or 5 people the entire time I was running until I was closing in on the finish line, and there were long stretches where I couldn’t see anyone else.

It was starting to mist lightly towards the end of my run.  By the time I had my things collected and was walking to my truck, it was what I can only describe as a “heavy mist”, if there is such a thing.  As I was walking, I overheard Mark from Final Stretch on the radio saying that the last biker was on Mile 12, so everyone managed to stay dry at least through most of the bike.  I packed my truck, walked back to the nice shelter area at the park, and swung through the food line.  I stood around for a bit watching awards while I ate some crackers, fruit, and a tiny little hamburger. 

Overall, I was pretty happy with how this race went.  As always, Final Stretch did a great job of keeping things organized and on time.  There were plenty of volunteers throughout the course managing traffic and directing/cheering on participants.  Everyone was very friendly and energetic.  It was also nice to see that they listened to feedback from last year and addressed the transition area situation in a fairly creative way.  I would definitely do this race again if it works with my schedule and would recommend it for anyone that is looking for an early season and/or smaller event to kick off their TRI season.

Gear West Duathlon May 20, 2012

2.83 Mile Run, 28K Bike, 2.51 Mile Run

This weekend the course record for the Gear West Duathlon was smashed by TriRochester member Ruth Brennan-Morrey. This early season duathlon attracts the best of the best and she bested them all. Even though this was a big accomplishment, Ruth reports “the BEST part of today's Gear West duathlon had nothing to do with my race. It was watching Mark finish his first du, finishing in the middle of the pack, and exerting all his heart to finish (after a major spinal fusion 7 months ago!). So proud of that boy”.

Full results http://www.pigmantri.com/jmsracing/results12/gwest12b.html

10/263   1/20   Ruth Brennan-Morrey run 16:06- bike 45:19- run 14:49  overall 1:17:52

138/263  21/27   Mark Morrey run 22:26- bike 53:44 19.0- run 22:08 overall 1:40:29 

258/263  20/20   Dawn Johnson  run 37:30- bike 1:10:18- run 35:18 overall  2:26:19