Pensacola Beach Triathlon (05/14/2016) Despite numerous team athletes having participated in this annual event this was the first time the Pensacola Beach Triathlon was an official team race and it did not disappoint. Everyone was treated to a fantastic race thanks to the organizers, volunteers, and sponsors. A big shout out goes to all those who make this race possible! In contrast to a chilly start at Traditions Triathlon just a few weeks ago, athletes at the Pensacola Beach Tri were blessed with mild and calm racing conditions Saturday morning. The swim starts in waist-deep water and follows the shore before making a ninety-degree left hand turn into the home stretch. A fter lots of dolphin diving in a low tide athletes reached the flat run into transition. Many of the Gulf Coast Tri Team athletes chose to race in the elite wave and enjoyed a clear swim. The wind was eerily, and pleasantly, calm on the bike leading to some speedy bike splits. Even passing the wind funnels of the Portofino towers the bikes were steady in the slight crosswind. Slow swimmers and fast bikers sorted themselves out on the ten mile out and back bike. The course had a lane just for bikes both directions and volunteers and officials did a great job controlling traffic leaving the athletes with only one things to do, race. After a sharp left hook into transition off the bike athletes were left to fight out the overall finishing order on the three mile run. Temperatures were heating up but overall, for Florida in May, it was a pleasant but painful run through the quiet neighborhoods of Pensacola Beach. The postrace celebration and awards at Flounders left nothing to be desired with food, beverages, a playground for the kids, and of course, the beautiful beach. Overall, it was a good day for the Gulf Coast Tri Team athletes who took five of the top ten spots, including overall by Allen Stanfield, in the elite category. Caleb Earhart earned himself podium placement for the 20-24 grouping and Spence Cocanour (who also gets the “award” for most prepared with postrace beverages) topped the 40-44 age group while the one-two punch of Doug Jones and Terry Bailey took first and second respectively in the 60-64 age group. Finally, thanks to our sponsors who make amazing experiences like this one possible! Athlete Race Report - 6th Annual Traditions Triathlon (04/09/2016) Following a fun, social, low-input road race outing (no bikes, no gear bags, no wetsuits) on 03/19/2016 at the Azalea Trail Run, the team officially kicked off the 2016 triathlon season with its fourth team visit to Biloxi in April. Boston has a marathon, Augusta has a golf tournament, MLB starts its 162-game stretch, and Biloxi has Tradition’s! The 2016 weather conditions, save for the pre-sunrise ~40F mist, were a welcome improvement on the early-morning deluge of 2015 and the ~30F chill of 2013. The aforementioned mist would burn off soon after the sun rose with the opening of transition at 6:30am. [cuing this author athlete to stuff the gardening gloves back into the car which he dug them out of during the drive from Ocean Springs that morning] Beyond that, near-ideal weather conditions coupled with the fantastic directorship of Run-N-Tri Company (Lisa McCombs, Dean Morrow, Kevin Goveia, Luke Davidson) came together for a great 6th running of this annual event as reported here… The swim course features a counter-clockwise, upside-down triangle (scalene, obtuse… high school Geometry, anyone….?) in the 70F flat surf of Lake Traditions. Atop the rumors of indigenous alligators and snakes the added energy of “let’s knock the Winter rust off and start the 2016 season” made it a fun time socializing while sorting out the self-seed time trial start. Being self-seed this permits for a very smooth (and safe) flow of wetsuit-clad athletes through the 600 yard swim. The seeding also allowed the members of GCTT to playfully give one another a bit of jawing in regard to who is sandbagging or not… As it turns out, as far as GCTT was concerned, Chad Hon seeded correctly and blew the entire team away proving that a wetsuit as old as the youngest member on the team still can slip through the water. T1 includes a transition area flow from the Lake toward and into the “middle” of transition, which means that every athlete eventually covers the same transition distance once T1 and T2 are considered a “total transition.” A level playing field. The next trick is to skillfully maneuver to the mount line and up the small incline (which has nothing on the Grandman monster) en route to Traditions Parkway. Nonetheless, gearing down on the rig while racking your bike at 7:00am is a helpful tip. The bike course is a fast, efficient 8.5 mile out-and-back track which was blessed with negligible wind this year. Additionally, this is what amounts to a closed bike course — it is no exaggeration to report fewer than ten vehicles spotted on the bike course between 2013 and 2016, and 1-2 of those sightings may perhaps include a Subaru wrapped in Pantone 2925c driven by Joseph Bolton of Pro Cycle & Tri supporting the athletes by performing roadside miracles on otherwise race-ending mechanicals. For the flat-lander GCTT athletes there are a few rollers to keep the legs in check… As evidenced by GCTT athlete Allen Stanfield who claimed the event bike preme on what amounts to his hometown course — he rode like he was on rails, convincing his fellow athletes he could do the same with his eyes closed if need be. T2 can be tricky. Staying upright is always the goal. Turning and burning while entering Village Avenue West en route to the dismount is a delicate balance which requires a coordinated attack in order to maneuver the off-road run which follow. Looking back at T1 entry, this is when those athletes who have a “shorter” T2 feel the benefit of their longer, damp, bike cleat tap-dance through T1. It all evens out. The 3.1 mile run is FUN. Yes, F-U-N. With nearly 0.5 miles of “cross country-esque” terrain, an out-and-back segment measuring more than a mile of road (check in on the competition, encourage other athletes), and a finish in the middle of Traditions this course basically has it all. A couple tidbits of advice: watch for the pinecones on the trail at mile 2.5, consider a pre-race recon mission/warmup run along the 0.5 - 1.0 mile segment as this road changes shape every year it seems, the last 0.5 mile shot is basically an false-flat/uphill run so save a match to burn for late in the game. In the end, the GCTT resident track & cross country specialist, Joey Pocreva, would prove his mettle with a team-best run on the day. The finish and after-party at Traditions is where it is at. Abundant sponsor support and presence, tons of great food/beverages, and an overflow of sportsmanship while cheering in every single finisher — all in the heart of Tradition Village Center, a great place to be on a Saturday in Spring! In the end, congratulations to all finishers who toed the line on Saturday. The GCTT athletes enjoyed a fulfilling day in part due to all the moving parts involved. Thanks to the many volunteers, dedicated race director(s), loyal event sponsors, and energetic multisport community of the greater-Biloxi area for hosting this event. GCTT (and this author) highly-recommend this annual event, consider adding it to your race calendar for 2017… Finally, thanks to the GCTT sponsors which make this team possible. Looking forward to a fantastic 2016 season! *** editorial notes: - the lake at Traditions may or may not have a name, Lake Traditions? - the last alligator seen in said marsh was inflatable - “miracles” as termed may not be referenced for beatification or sainthood - an already fast bike course would be a veritable drag strip if ever re-paved - best post-race food & drink around — nom nom Results link: http://www.splitmastertiming.com/assets/2016/Traditions%20Division%20Final.pdf This weekend the Gulf Coast Tri Team ran the Azalea Trail Run 10k. This was the first time the triathlon team slotted a run-only event on the race calendar. The looming storms held off and made for a great event to kick off the season. Congrats to all the guys who raced - all landing in the top 95 of more than 1600 finishers. Looking forward to starting the tri season in a few weeks! ATR 10k - 2016 Stanfield Runyon Felty Moore Malone Harrison Self S. Roberts Steed Cocanour Storr Bailey Complete results - http://www.pcpacers.org/atr/results/2016/10k.html By Logan Roberts
It’s starting to become a tradition that, the first weekend of October on beautiful Pensacola Beach, the wind howls and the temperatures are 15 degrees cooler than the week before. This is a tradition that I personally like! The 2015 Santa Rosa Island Triathlon was perfect racing conditions. Around 7:00am, racers were lining the shores of the smooth and flat Gulf of Mexico. The gun went off and they took to the water in this wetsuit-legal swim. Along the swim route was plenty of support, if needed. As racers emerged out of the water, they ran through the soft white sand to transition 1. The bike this year may have intimidated some racers due to the wind, but just remember if it’s hurting you it’s hurting everyone else as well. Brian Fleischmann was the first to return from the out and back course through the beach homes and Gulf Islands National Seashore. The flow of athletes continued into T2 from the fast course. After a brief transition, we ran along Via de Luna and the homes on the Avenidas. The course was well marked and supported with two water stops on the 5K route. The course was fast but no one was as fast as Eric, who, hands down, clocked the fastest run split on the course. The finish line, I’m sure, was enjoyed by all. It let you catch your breath while standing in line for the great after party, beer, and food! The team had an excellent showing with 7 finishing in the top ten. I look forward to participating again next year as part of the Gulf Coast Tri Team! Great racing this past weekend by the GCTT members willing to race in blustery conditions. Here is how they finished up in overall results. 2 - Larson 4 - Moore 5 - Harrison 6 - Runyon 8 - Walton 9 - Earhart 10 - Rothfeder 17 - Malone 18 - S. Roberts 22 - Steed Complete results can be found here. http://gulfsporttiming.com/results.php?rid=evdDw&race=2015%20Santa%20Rosa%20Island%20Triathlon#/results::14438961768280 Great 2015 season, hope to see you all next year! Alabama Coastal Triathlon - 09/12/15 Gulf Shores, Alabama Meteorological Magic & Team Magic by Jared Moore What looked sure to be, at best, a soggy morning (or worse, a cancellation) turned out to be the most pleasant of conditions for this race in recent memory. The imminent rain showers that had been hovering over the area for the days leading up to the race literally departed moments before the scheduled start time. LITERALLY MOMENTS! I know a guy who knows a guy who didn't show up race-morning because he was so sure it would be cancelled due to weather. The time-trial lineup for the Tri-It-On sprint race took formation first for a 400-person train snaking up the beach. The Olympic-distance race of 250 commenced seamlessly after the final sprint-distance racer hit the choppy Gulf waters. Because this triathlete did not participate in the sprint race in Sandestin three weeks prior, little mention will be given to the random spattering of jellyfish tentacles that ignited face, hands, arms and legs like silly-string of electrical current. No substantive description will be provided on how incredibly soothing that mysterious patch of cold water near the shore felt on welted limbs. No, there will be no recount of a completely made-up estimate of the exact number of racers who hailed a jet ski ride back to shore to make the unjust, throbbing, painful stings stop. Certainly any mention of the 2 or 3 mild jellyfish stings this triathlete received during Alabama Coastal's 1500-meter, 2-lap swim would illicit a choir of protests from survivors of the aquatic invasion at the Battle of Sandestin. I'm not as sensitive as most people so the marine life didn't really bother me. ;) At the other extreme, the antithesis to these haters of the native, gelatinous sea-invertebrate is Doug Jones. Although the source of the rain showers had evacuated, there was still a fair amount of moisture on the roads. The bike course is designed for fast times consisting almost entirely of straight, open road. Mr. Jones held his open-road watts during one of the two turns on the course and unfortunately lost a great deal of flesh (and rumored bone fracture??). Well wishes for a speedy recovery, Doug! (again?!?!) Aside from Doug's misfortune, I think most everyone enjoyed the mostly great road-quality, flat, fast cycling course. As a testament to the quality of venue, the bike turnaround doubled as the run turnaround for a neighboring 5K event. The run course for this race is what has seared itself into the minds of many racers and is usually the determining factor for finishing placement. The 3-mile out-and-back on blacktop with the only respite an occasional, fleeting shadow from a passing car has melted many racers to a puddle of humility over the years. I will reluctantly confess that I distinctly remember one year struggling to muster enough willpower NOT to make hateful hand-gestures at the Sun. This year, however, was blithe. The temps capped out around 80-degrees, which allowed for some quicker run splits relative to previous years (overall winner clocked a 34:xx 6-miles). After the final racer had crossed the finish line, GCTT had claimed 2 of the 3 overall podium slots (head nod, Sam and Allen...and the state of Mississippi) and topped 6 age divisions. It was another great opportunity to enjoy racing along the Gulf Coast. On another note, GCTT offers sincerest condolences to the family of Tim Jenkins. Although he passed doing something we all love, the sting of death is heavy. May the memory and impact of his life carry on. Great team results at the Alabama Coastal Olympic distance race in Gulf Shores on Saturday. Way to go guys! 7 of the top 11 places, 2 in top 3, and 6 AG Winners. Sam Hudson - 2nd Overall Allen Stanfield - 3rd Overall Chad Hon - 4th Overall -1st AG 45-49 Master Champ Jared Moore - 5th Overall -1st AG 30-34 Logan Roberts -8th Overall - 1st AG 25-29 Andrew Rothfeder - 9th Overall - 2nd AG 45-49 2nd Master Matt Storr - 11th Overall -1st AG 35-39 Evan Malone -17th Overall - 2nd AG-35-39 Randy Walton -18th Overall - 1st AG 50-54 Kevin Self -20th Overall - 3rd AG 40-45 Terry Bailey -51st Overall -1st AG 60-64 Complete results in the link: http://www.amatteroftiming.com/images/results/2015/coastali-ag.html Saturday morning broke in what I call a watercolor sunrise. Muted shades of pink, purple, and blue with just enough clouds on the horizon to light up the sky. However, as we know, you can't really paint race morning. You can’t capture the nervous excitement that fills the air as everyone goes about their routines, and then slowly marches towards the start on the beach. The water was smooth. Smooth enough to fool you into thinking it was going to be an easy swim. It was the quintessential calm before the storm. Even the warm up swim gave no indication of the fact that the glassy gulf concealed thousands of jellyfish ready to light fire to our limbs. The first two swim waves went off without a hitch. The start to the third wave was the same. The course swims out into the Gulf for about 100 yards before turning east and running parallel to shore. We soon found out that the first buoy was where the chaos began. Every stroke seemed to ignite pain somewhere on the body as jellyfish were everywhere. Joey was apparently immune to all of this as he was first out of the water AND still had energy to show off his dance skills at the awards ceremony (video evidence is somewhere). According to some spectators on the beach it looked like a sinking ship as people scrambled to hang onto paddle boards and signaled life guards. Nonetheless, those who made it through the swim were still rewarded with a great race. In contrast to the swim the bike was smooth with a forgivingly calm wind. The course is deceptively rolling but one that is still capable of producing fast times, as demonstrated on this day by Allen and Matt. The run, as expected in August, was hot and humid. Fortunately a large part of the run course is shaded giving everyone at least some respite. The only hill on this lightning fast and flat course is coming out of the tunnel after crossing under highway 98, which really only counts as a hill in Florida. Gulf Coast Tri Team members tore up the course leading to some great overall finishing times. In the end GCTT took home first and second place overall, 5 of the top 10 spots, master’s champion, and 5 different age group awards. It was a great race and one that reminded me that I participate in triathlons not to feel fast, or because they are easy, but because each is a challenge in a different way. - Aaron Sunfish Triathlon – Meridian, MS – 7/11/15
This weekend the GCTT made its debut at the Sunfish Triathlon in Meridian, MS. This mid-July race typically brings HOT temperatures and this year’s race was no exception. Even the water temperature was a balmy 92 degrees. This also marked the 29th running of the very popular Sunfish Triathlon, attracting a fast field of participants from all over the Southeast. The race started with a 1/3 mile swim in beautiful Lake Bonita followed by a 17 mile bike through some very deceiving hills. The event finished with a steamy 5k run around the lake. A great feature of this race was the $100 cash prize awarded for the fastest participant in each of the three disciplines so even before the starting gun went off the competition was heating up. Rob, Allen, and Sam would all be chasing the swim split since Joey would not be competing (according to Joey it was Rob’s for the taking). Matt was planning to crush the field on the bike. In the absence of Eric the run split would also be up for grabs by the runner who could survive the heat with a swift run. When all the dust settled Sam would take home the cash for the fastest swim edging out Rob by only 21 seconds. Matt narrowly missed the top bike split by the tiniest of margins (8 seconds). The run split was taken with a blazing fast time (albeit questionable, story for another time) of 16:44 by an unknown from Louisiana. Even with a stacked field the team placed 7 members in the top 22, and 4 in the top 11! Allen would yet again cross the finish line first and take the overall win with a smoking fast time of 1:10:52. This race along with Heatwave marked Allen’s second top podium finish of the year. Johnny grabbed the Grand Masters Title to keep his hot streak going. Doug rebounded from his Texas injury by taking home the Senior Masters trophy. Several others also took home hardware. Full team results are as follows: 1st – Allen Stanfield, Overall Champion 6th – Sam Hudson, 1st AG 8th – Caleb Earhart, 1st AG 11th – Johnny Harrison, Grand Masters 16th – Rob Felty, 1st AG 21st – Matt Storr, 5th AG 22nd – Kevin Self, 5th AG 30th – Doug Jones, Senior Masters 64th – Terry Bailey, 3rd AG Awesome job of racing in what proved to be a very fast field!!! Complete results along with video of each participant crossing the finish line can be found here. Post-race activities included frosty beverages and pizza as well as the always “healthy” Popeye’s fried chicken. A good time was had by all! Next team race will be the all popular Sandestin Tri on August 22nd. -Kevin Sunday, June 28, 2015 Chattanooga Waterfront Triathlon (Chattanooga, TN) USAT Southeast Region Age-Group Championship 2015 being the third year in existence for the Gulf Coast Triathlon Team (GCTT) and following a great, inaugural team road trip to Central Florida in 2014, GCTT set forth in making plans for crafting such an undertaking into an annual event for the team. The result of sifting through various race databases, exchanging numerous e-mails, and coordinating a listing of seventeen (of the twenty-two) team members and two team sponsors would not disappoint — a fun-filled trip to Chattanooga, Tennessee for Team Magic’s annual Chattanooga Waterfront Intermediate Distance Triathlon! Per usual, the organization of the Team Magic events is second to none. Packet pickup, transition layout, bus service to the swim start, and athlete village traffic flow are all very easy to navigate thanks to race directorship’s fine attention to detail combined with an energetic volunteer force. These would actually prove to be the simpler aspects of the entire weekend. Seemingly more effort was expended on planning out how to conveniently transport, entertain, and lodge (in no particular order) seventeen bikes, nineteen men residing across the entirety of the Gulf Coast and a complement amount of transition bags and race gear, a portable chiropractic table, a rental U-Haul trailer, and a fifteen-passenger rental van. So, with an eclectic spread of digital music and a healthy mix of tales to pass the time the team set out for the Scenic City on Saturday for this Sunday event. Beyond the routine of packet pickup Saturday afternoon would include half the team enjoying the city’s bike rental program while the other half scoping out portions of the 10k run course; all followed by a feast at Mellow Mushroom and bookended by some scheming around the local Sunday beverage sales restrictions. Sunday morning would bring near-perfect racing conditions: a down-current swim in the 80-82F Tennessee River, 65F air temps, negligible wind, clear skies, fantastic road conditions featuring U.S. Highway 27, and a generous amount of shade along the TN Riverwalk run course. The swim course is a unique point-to-point swim which has somewhat become a hallmark of the Chattanooga events (70.3, Ironman). Athletes were arranged in order of estimated swim time, submitted upon entry to the event. GCTT landed around the same grouping of bib numbers (115 - 150 range) which also made for a familiar set of bikes, gear, and athletes in the same vicinity of transition. As above, the swim was comparatively fast given the down-river direction and a favorable water flow. Athlete traffic in the water was ideal and easy to navigate. Just as soon as the entire team was in the water GCTT athletes were slinging themselves out of the water and up the steps into T1. The bike course is a challenging ride along Highway 27 as it courses North followed by a quick button-hook turnaround and back Southward toward the city. The back half of this ride made for some fantastic views of the city coupled with some exhilarating speeds (40+ mph) on the bike. A quick exit ramp jaunt and it was screaming into T2 in preparation for the 10k run. The run course is a deceptive event for this race. Apart from the 10k distance being too long to “fake it and hope to make it” like many sprint events (5k runs), this course features some uphill running during the meat of miles one and five. Beyond that, there is the set of stairs at the 0.5 and 5.5 mile markers. These hills and stairs made for an challenging run, but a run which really is/was fun especially considering the great aide station support (cold towels, water hose showers, supportive volunteers), the abundant amount of shade, the elevated wood plank path through the heavily-wooded areas, and the counterflow athlete traffic which allowed for scoping out competition and cheering other athletes along. The post-event festivities were great. A well-coordinated results display (paper posting and computer screen scrolling), a great selection of food and drink, and a scenic venue which allowed the entire team to enjoy the beautiful weather. When the final tallies were in, this event would prove that it deserved to be the Southeast Region Age-Group Championship — this was a competitive field. The GCTT athletes made some proud podium appearances with seven awards for the haul: Pocreva — 1st AG, Southeast Region AG Champion Larson — 3rd AG, 10th overall, fastest run of the day Stanfield — 3rd AG Hudson — 2nd Masters Rothfeder — 2nd AG Walton — 1st AG, Southeast Region AG Champion Harrison — 1st AG, Southeast Region AG Champion Full results can be found here: http://www.amatteroftiming.com/images/results/2015/cwt.html Rounding out a fun weekend trip, GCTT enjoyed the remainder of Sunday: relaxing at the outdoor sundeck of the hotel, checking out the various eateries in downtown Chattanooga, using the 24-hour bike rental passes until the last possible moment, some competitive games of ping-pong at Clyde’s On Main, entertaining sing-alongs of some of GCTT’s favorite songs, helping some young co-eds with the portage of their watercraft to their cars, and much, much more… Thanks again to the fine team sponsors who make these sort of events possible for GCTT and to the folks at Team Magic for hosting such a fantastic race. Special thanks to Joseph Bolton of Pro Cycle & Tri and Ryan Nobles of Coastal Chiropractic for making the trip with the team, their insight and company made for a great event!
|
Archives
October 2019
Categories
All
|