The finish line of the 2010 Gear West Duathlon. Photo: SS
This past Sunday, May 24th, was the running of the Gear West Duathlon in Orono, MN. This race is the first of the Midwest Multisport Series, so it always draws a deep field of solid racers. And this year didn't disappoint.
The race starts with a 5K run, where the majority of the run is on grass and trails (cross-county style). Then the athletes transition to a 28K bike (17.4 miles) across rolling hills towards Baker Park and back. The race ends with a 4K run across the same grassy trails from the first run, only without the first 1K down the road. And both runs end with a short but very steep hill that takes competitors back towards transition or the finish line.
This year, it was in the 70s at the start of the race, and very humid. The athletes were sweaty in no time! Thankfully, the group of kids working the water stop right out of T2 were shouting "Do you want to be splashed?!?" If anyone answered yes (which many people did), they got a cup of water thrown at their chest to help keep them cool.
The top spots went to a lot of familiar local names. Many of these athletes have already placed in local races earlier this year.
TOP 5 MEN:
David Thompson, 1:13:27
Patrick Parish, 1:15:39
Brooks Grossinger, 1:16:00
Joshua Riff, 1:16:12
Chad Millner, 1:16:47
TOP 5 WOMEN:
Cathy Yndestad, 1:26:10
Jenny Wilcox, 1:27:11
Catherine Lee, 1:27:45
Julie Hull, 1:28:46
Marlo McGaver, 1:28:54
Check out the slide show of images below, and / or check out Steve's Gear West Duathlon race report here.
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