The second annual Cortez Burst Triathlon kicked off the Fourth of July celebration at Parque de Vida on Monday with 78 competitors from around the Four Corners.
The number of triathletes more than doubled the total of 38 from a year ago. This years triathlon raised $1,600 toward free Cortez Recreation Center passes for families less fortunate and to people with special needs.
The Cortez Friends of Recreation, which is an endowment fund that was created with money left over from building the rec center in January 2004, donated the rec center passes.
We had a lot of people say it was fun, said Marc Meyer, the Cortez Burst Triathlon chairman and Cortez Friends of Recreation board member. I think the team event will get better next year. I think the team event is unique because I dont think a lot of triathlons have a team event. The kids were great, and I think their numbers will get better next year. Overall it was pretty successful. The city was great.
Classes included both boys and girls for kids and men and women adult classes, and an adult team class made up the triathlon. Swimming took place at the remodeled Cortez Outdoor Swimming Pool. The 15-older mens and womens adult classes swam 500 yards. The kids 6-10 and 11-14 classes swam 50 and 100 yards.
The adult 11.5-mile bike race was routed through town on Mildred St. to Road M, to Lebanon Rd., to Road P and then back to the original route of Mildred St. coming back to Cortez. The kids bike routes went through Parque de Vida with the 6-10 age group biking one mile, and the 11-14 year olds peddling two miles.
All of the running was done at Parque de Vida. The adults ran two miles, which is roughly two laps around the park, and the 11-14 and 6-10 classes logged one mile and a half mile, respectively.
The team sprint class followed the same guidelines as the individual adults. As many as three members were allowed on a team.
Heather Foster and Marty Mckean won the team class in a total time of 1:21:03.8. Their event times were 8:31.249 (swimming), 16.876 (Transition 1), 37:40.708 (bicycling), 17.131 (T2) and 34:17.847 (running).
In the 6-10 kids class, Jake Yackle, 10, represented Cortez well by winning his first triathlon by nearly a two-minute margin over the second-place finisher. Yackles total time of 19:44.4 was greatly helped by his blazing bike speed of 6:35.465, while transitioning at 10.184 into the running event. He is a nationally renowned competitive youth mountain bike racer. Last year, Yackle won the 10-up USA Cycling National Championship in Sol Vista. Although mountain bike racing is Yackles main focus, cross training in triathlons is something hed like to continue in the future.
Swimming is the hardest because I dont do it very much. We just started practicing a couple weeks ago, Yackle said. The transitions were fine, they were pretty fast. (The bike race) wasnt hard. We (Yackle and his father Kevin and brother Nye) go bike riding every day. I liked it. It was fun.
Yackles other times were 3:02.981 (swimming), 53.390 (T1) and 9:02.423 (running).
The kids 11-14 class saw 12-year-old Skyler Yarbrough, of Cortez, win in 37 minutes flat. His times were 5:07.691 (swimming), 1:54.072 (T1), 13:19.172 (biking), 27.840 (T2) and 16:11.249 (running).
The womens adult class got a first-place finish of 1:16:26.0 from Durangos Julie Thibodeau, 38. She crushed her class with almost a seven minute difference from second place. Thibodeau swam in 11:47.572 with a transition of 1:01.594, biked in 37:28.214 with a transition time of 40.523, and ran at 25:28.181.
Cortez Rec Center fitness trainer and Cortez Burst Triathlon board member Rayna Hale, who also created the idea of the Cortez Burst Triathlon, competed in the adult class. It was the 53 year olds first triathlon and Hale took eighth in an overall time of 1:35:04.0 to represent Dolores. Hale felt the 2011 edition of the Cortez Burst Triathlon was successful.
We couldnt be happier, she said. The setup is perfect. It shows really well in the transition areas. Not being a triathlete, to change your clothes, its a challenge. The funnest thing about it is everybody just had such a good time.
Hale feels adding different age classes is something the Cortez Burst Triathlon will look at for next year.
What Id like to see changed is the age categories. Im 53 and competing against younger people, said Hale. I think that is something were going to look at is different age categories. We had a guy in there that was 78. How fair is it for him to compete against the guy who won in his 30s?
The mens adult class winner was Randy Stueve, 39, of Durango. His overall time of 1:02:16.7 was a blistering 13 minutes better than the runner-up. Stueves times were 8:31.460 (swimming), 54.970 (T1), 31:48.262 (biking), 24.574 (T2) and 20:37.527 (running).
Cortez Parks and Rec director Dean Palmquist, 45, is no stranger to triathlons, as he has been competing in them since his college days. Palmquist took fourth in the mens class in 1:16:20.1, which is up four minutes from his time a year ago.
The people really encourage one another throughout the course, Palmquist said. You always have competitors encouraging each other. Its really about reaching a personal goal. We want to try to encourage more people to participate.
The Cortez Burst Triathlon recognizes the Cortez Rotary Club, Rec Center and Police Department for helping setup the course and keeping it safe.
Timing for the triathlon was recorded by Milliseconds Sports Timing. Athletes wore ankle timers and finishes were recorded into a computer.
For those who would like to register or find more information about next years Cortez Burst Triathlon, please log on to http://corteztri.weebly.com or email [email protected]. To volunteer, contact Meyer at 560-4956.
Reach Bobby Abplanalp at [email protected]
