Avia Wildflower live!
The Slowtwitch ice cream truck is parked right in front of the transition area bike course exit. The race organization is threatening to tow it, but it's the only place we can get good reception.
Besides, this is Lake San Antonio, on California's Central Coast, and we figure sheriffs, and any tow truck, are at least an hour away from here. So, until we get in trouble, what follows is text by Dan Empfield, pics by Timothy Carlson, updates by Mark Montgomery and crew…
T minus 15 minutes: Welcome to Lake San Antonio, site of what has historically been the most important early season North American triathlon. The race started in 1983, as one of many activities comprising a "festival." When you came here in the early years, you attended an arts and crafts show, folk musicians and, oh yeah, a triathlon. It's still referred to as a festival, but the artsy craftsy stuff got axed about 20 years ago. It's five times bigger now, and it's all triathlon.
It's one of those rare years—you get them one out of every six or seven—when the weather is cool and rainy. Most of the time, it's just plain hot. Because of the unseasonally cool conditions, those who don't race well in the heat have a better chance. Bjorn Andersson, who won here two years ago, benefits from just this sort of weather.
There is a terrific field here. It's easier to talk about who's not here and, in particular, we're missing 4-time WF champ Chris McCormack and his Aussie countryman Craig Alexander. In both cases, it is our understanding they wanted to be here, but circumstances dictated otherwise.
The men's field is the real showcase here today, but the women are also well represented. Rather then duplicate efforts, I'll refer you to our Timothy Carlson, who handicapped the men's and women's races. Timothy is not going to be providing any coverage today, his job is just to take photographs, which we'll show you later.
T minus 10 minutes: Men and women pros are now in the water, warming up. Men will start at 8AM sharp, the women's wave will follow 5 minutes afterward.
T minus 5 minutes: The men are preparing to start. The early speed belongs, of course, to Andy Potts. Two years ago Terenzo Bozzone smoked this course, going 3:53:43. Look for him to try to stay close. Eneko Llanos is also here, and this trio of former short coursers will take the swim out quick. Gone are the days of long courser hegemony.
:01 The men are swimming. The water is cold, about 64F (that's cold for this lake at this time of year). And that's strange, because the Lake level is way down. Only one time have we seen it this low, and that was quite a few years ago. Of course, wetsuits are in use here, as they are every year.
:05 The front pack figures to swim this thing in about 23 or 24 minutes. Excluding Potts, who may swim it alone in front, reliable front packers today are Andersson, Brian Lavelle, Bozzone, and Brian Fleischmann among others.
:10 The women are swimming as well, 5 minutes in arrears of the men, and as with the men the short coursers represent the early speed. Julie Dibens and Leanda Cave will exit near the front, and former WF champ Becky Lavelle will be right there with them.
:18 (pic: women's swim start) This year, the drama will be on the bike. There is not a drop of wind, and the weather is cool. Rain is threatening, and it rained much of yesterday afternoon. If it is raining during the ride, the organization might be tempted to do what it did earlier in the decade, and make the riders dismount and walk their bikes across a metal bridge about 42 miles into the bike ride. But no word of that so far this morning. That "walk" did not keep Steve Larsen from setting a new bike course record of 2:15, but the record is a minute faster now (Chris Lieto set it last year) and not having to dismount would increase the chances of a new record this year.
:22 The reason the bike course record (2:14:00) is in so much danger this time around is this: Torbjorn Sindballe, Chris Lieto, Bjorn Andersson and Jordan Rapp are all going to threaten it. Never have this many uberbikers been on this course for this race at the same time. Add to that the good weather, and 2:11 or 2:12 is a possibility.
:25 The women during the bike ride, well, that's another story. Donna Peters set the women's record of 2:30:51 in 1992. Her overall time was 4:32 and change and it held until Sam McGlone finally broke it by a minute or so last year. But that bike record still stands. Erika Csomor might have a shot, because she'll have to ride hard to catch the early leaders. But that's a legendary record and, while the men's bike record is a fair bet to be broken, don't lay your money on the women's record going down.
:30 Now here's a headline: Potts doesn't win the swim! Andy Potts led the swim, but was sprinted by Aussie Clayton Fettell (a Kestrel rider, so we'll see at least one of these near the front of the bike ride for at least awhile). They came out in a smoking 22:04!
:32 (pic: Bjorn Andersson) Following these two leaders were two who we did not catch, we'll get them for you. But in 5th was Bozzone tracked by Lavelle and Andersson. They were out in 23:20. At 24:00 was a pack of 20 or so, and the rest of your early bike speed was in there: Rapp, Sindballe, Lieto.
:35 Clayton Fettell is a strong rider as well, so, he may be up there keeping Potts company. And he is not the only Kestrel pro in the field, Pip Taylor represents that bike brand in the women's race.
:37 The women are out of the water, but we are sorry to say we don't have swim results yet. We'll get them to you when we have them.
:40 The way this course works: You exit the water, and run up a long boat ramp. It is not uncommon to spend 3 minutes in transition, running up that boat ramp, then up a couple of flights of stairs to the parking lot, where the transition area is situated. So, if you weren't gassed during the swim, there's an opportunity to go anaerobic before you mount the bike. Then, after about a mile of nervous riding on a twisty, hilly, narrow service road at the lake's edge, you climb for a mile or more. This is called Beach Hill, and it's about 9 percent at it's steepest, and it's almost always at its steepest.
:43 (pic: Potts slips and falls, Fettell wins swim) What makes this race a bit difficult to cover is the lack of cell phone connectivity. That army of Verizon guys that follow you around? They're not here. Accordingly, our spotters have to, you know, spot, then run around with their cell phones in the air until they find a couple of "bars." Then we get a call, which goes something like, "Okay, Potts is ….. then …… Llanos is …… the Bjorn is still …… and there's your top 20, did you get all that?"
:46 Mile-7 of the bike course, and it's Potts in the lead. He's followed by Clayton Fettell, just :20 back. then, another :10 back is Bjorn Andersson.
:51 Following these just aforementioned riders, and this is just another :10 back of Andersson, is a pack of seven, and it contains as follows: Joe Gamble, Fraser Cartmell, Eneko Llanos, Luke Bell, Terenzo Bozzone, Reinaldo Colucci, and Torsten Abel.
:53 Next through, at that 7mi checkpoint, was a group @:1:20 from the leader Potts. This group included: Stephen Hackett, Hector Llanos, Joseph Lampe, Romain Guillaume, Chris Lieto, and Jordan Rapp.
:55 (pic: Colucci on the bike) Torbjorn Sindballe must have had a bad swim or an early mechanical, he is 1:10 down on the Rapp/Lieto group.
:58 The first women are through the 7mi checkpoint. Leanda Cave leads, followed by Spaniard Virginia Berasategui @:25. Pip Taylor is third, @:50 from the lead. Berasategui is apparently ripping through the field, that is, she is riding up to Cave, apparently, and that is not easy to do.
1:01 More women are thru @7mi, and we regret that we don't know who 4th place is. We're trying to find out. Fifth thru ninth is as follows: Kristen Peterson, Erika Csomor, Gina Kehr, Rachel Challis, Heather Wurtele.
1:06 More on this bike course. After Beach Hill you wheel your way around and out of the "Park" (the race is held in a barren, very unpopulated, Monterey County park). After you exit this park, which is populated by seasonal grasses, live oaks, and digger pines—and of course wildflowers—you ride a loop around Lake San Antonio. The first ten miles of the ride are hilly, but the hills are rolling. Still, they take their toll. Then, it's about 30 miles of terrain that trends generally flatter.
1:09 (pic: Berasategui bikes) That fourth place woman: it's Alexis Smith, nee Waddell. If there is a first family of triathlon in Monterey County, this is it. the patriarch is Les Waddell, Alexis' dad, and Alexis is a favorite. She's a free spirit, no telling what color her hair is going to be, she's smart, attractive, funny, and just a pleasure to be around. And this is pretty much her home course. She always competes well here. It's nice to see her so far up, she's having a crackerjack race today.
1:11 More on the bike course: After the flattish "back" side of the course, you arrive at mile-40, or mile-42, depending on where you think the hilly part starts. This is where Nasty Grade commences, and it's several miles @7 percent. But don't think it's over when it's crested. No sir. It's up and down several longish, steepish climbs, and you can pretty much state that this bike course is a bear from 42mi to 55mi.
1:16 Why do I write about the bike course? Because certain riders take a calculated risk, and in particular let's cite Bjorn Andersson and Steve Larsen. He won this race two years ago, and last year turned in a very respectable 4:05. He's always hovering around a course record, and last year, when Lieto got it, he pipped Andersson by only a few seconds (on the bike split). Other riders will ride this course more conservatively. I would look for Jordan Rapp to hang with Chris Lieto for 40 miles, trusting that the latter knows what pace to ride (this is Rapp's first WF). Rapp will not try to rip the hills, because he rides according to his power. Nevertheless, he might ride the hills at targe power + 20 percent, or so, depending on his legs.
1:20 (pic: Jordan Rapp riding) The point is, there is early bike course speed here at WF, and there is late bike course speed. So, watch for Bjorn to try to get a lead and keep it, look for others to ride conservatively for the first 40, and close late.
1:22 Weather is always a player here. Monty says the wind has arrived, but is still light. It's cloudy, it's relatively cool, and this means it's a good day for bigger, thicker riders like Sindballe and Andersson.
1:29 We're 22 miles into the bike leg, and Bjorn Andersson has staked out his lead. He's 1:10 ahead of Potts, and that latter has been caught by, and is riding with, Joe Gambles and Eneko Llanos. Fettell has had his day in the sun, and has dropped back.
1:30 Behind these leading four are, @1:25 from the lead, a pack containing Fraser Cartmell, Luke Bell, Terenzo Bozzone and Reinaldo Colucci. @1:50 are Torsten Abel and Chris Lieto, and @2:50 is a pack containing Jordan Rapp, Torbjorn Sindballe, Ben Hoffman and Michael Cupitt.
1:33 The women's race, 15 miles into the bike ride, is not changing much. Leanda Cave is leading, but stalking her just 10sec in arrears is Berasategui. Pip Taylor is in third, and these three are clear of the rest.
1:35 (pic: Erika Csomor on Beach Hill) Monty reports the riding is "super legal." I take this to mean, legal according to the letter and the spirit of USAT rules, which is quite nice to hear, since the WF weekend races are not typically thick with marshalls.
1:36 Twenty-six miles into the bike leg, Fraser Cartmell has passed Andy Potts for second. Cartmell is doing very well here today.
1:37 Virginia Berasategui has taken the lead in the women's race. This, 16mi into the bike leg.
1:40 We're past halfway through the men's bike leg, and it's still very mild. The air temp is 63F, wind very calm.
1:46 Berasategui is no stranger to long coursing. She's the reigning champ at Ironman 70.3 Germany, she's been victorious at IM Lanzarote. She was 6th in Kona last year, but her bike splits in these races have been good, not overwhelming. Let's see if this today's performance is powered by adrenalin, or is this a speed she can maintain throughout all 56 miles?
1:53 Former (and still, occasionally) bike racer Chris Lieto has apparently flipped the pop top on his can. He's moved all the way through the field to second, trailing Bjorn Andersson by 2:30. Another :30 back is a largish pack: Terenzo Bozzone, Luke Bell, Andy Potts, Joe Gambles, Fraser Cartmell, Eneko Llanos, Reinaldo Colucci. Then, 1min behind that pack sit Jordan Rapp, Torsten Abel, and Torbjorn Sindballe. A further 1:20 in arrears are Matt Liego, Ben Hoffman and Michael Cupitt.
1:59 The men's race is right at the halfway point, that is, we're just about 2hr into the race (swim + bike), and we have another 2hr to go (bike + run). These musical packs will start getting very musical very soon. We're approaching mile-40, and that's where we enter the Double Jeopardy part of the course, where the scores can really change.
2:03 Wildflower is the sort of race that really tests your knowledge, and technique, your tactics, your patience. On the backside of the course were 2 and 3 percent descents where, if your gear was not big enough, you (if you're producing pro power) threaten to spin your gear out. Woe unto you if you're not part of a group. But these hills just in front of the riders, if you can't ride them at your target power, at your target cadence, then you've got the opposite problem: you're overgeared. So, did all these riders take all this into consideration before they started the race?
2:05 I did this race three times in a row, earlier in the decade. The first year, my bike's smallest gear was 39×23. The second, it was 34×23. The third year, it was 34×27, and finally I had the right gear on the bike. It was my best bike ride of the three, and the only one where I was able to ride my target power and cadence. Of course, these pros will be riding much bigger gears. Still, it's not uncommon to see pros riding up the hills at a power much too high relative to their overall power. Remember, it's not a bike race, it's a triathlon, where the bike leg is an exercise in who can whisper the loudest.
2:12 Still 63F, sun is starting to peek out, but you couldn't ask for a better WF day, at least so far. We're at the top of Nasty Grade, and we'll get you some splits. As I wrote before, this is not the end of the hills on this course or, as Winston Churchill might say, the beginning of the end; rather, the end of the beginning. Still, those in the packs who are just hanging on for dear life will be the first to go, and the split from here will tell you who these riders are.
2:19 Bjorn tops Nasty Grade in front, but, changes! Reinaldo Colucci is now in second, just 2:00 back of the big Swede. Then, 2:20 back of Bjorn (:20 back of Colucci) are Lieto, Potts, Gambles and Llanos. Another :20 back of that group rides Cartmell, Bozzone, and Bell. Jordan Rapp has broken free of Torsten Abel and rides :30 back of the Cartmell group.
2:21 (pic: Eneko Llanos on Nasty Grade) Reinaldo Colucci is a former ITU racer from Brazil. He's an Olympian turned long courser, and it remains to be seen whether he's just riding his power, or whether he's riding the hills like a bike racer (tactically), which is typically considered a mistake in a race like this.
2:25 After Nasty Grade is a long, sweeping descent. It's a very fast descent, and it's a little sketchy, because this is not a road closed to traffic. These lakes around here are used for boating and fishing, and all you need is to negotiate that curve at 55mph only to see a line of trucks in front of you hauling boats at 25mph. Let's hope and assume these folks don't run into any of that. Following this descent is another uphill, and what makes this bike course rough is that continual switch from ascent to descent. Me, I'd rather just get all the climbing over at once. That's not what happens here.
2:29 More on the boat trailers: they tend to be wide. So, if you have to go around them, on the descents, you're crossing the double yellow. That's a hanging offense in triathlon, and also not necessarily safe.
2:33 At mile-50 of the bike leg, Andersson continues to lead, by 2:20 over a group. Colucci was caught—very likely on the descent following Nasty Grade, though we do not know—and that group consists of Lieto, Potts, Ganbles, Eneko Llanos, and Bozzone. Colucci is now part of that group.
2:36 When Bjorn Andersson won this race, in 2007, he ran a 1:26:04. That will not get it done here today, if the bike course finishes like this. There are several in that chasing pack who are capable of running 1:15 or faster. But several of the several are on the rivet right now, hanging by the skin of their teeth. Bjorn's ride has taken the run out of some of them, nevetheless somebody is still going to pop a 1:15 or so half-mary.
2:38 Joe Gambles is a much better cyclist now than he used to be. He was 4th in the WF race Andersson won, and the big Swede outrode him by 9min on that day. Joe's hanging much tougher on the bike.
2:39 Let's talk about that chief technology officer who works here: Jordan Rapp. His part time job, when we don't have him coding to within an inch of his life, is pro triathlete, and between mile-50- and mile-53 of the bike Rappstar has ridden himself into 2nd place! The Lieto-Potts group is intact, but Jordan apparently chose this moment to do some damage.
2:41 Rapp, and Andersson, have been here at the compound for the better part of the past 2 or 3 months. This is Bjorn's umpteenth Wildflower, Jordan's first. Monty and I have been preaching "patience, patience" to Jordan, in the hope that we might instill a little fear into the 28 year old New Yorker. That sort of healthy respect for the course and conditions—whether Wildflower or the Hawaiian Ironman—often translates into rookie luck.
2:45 Having written the above, let us hope that we didn't get bad info. It seems hard to believe that Rapp could've ridden up the arse-end of that pack, and right through the front of it, without taking along with him some of its constituents. Nevertheless, that's what we've got on paper in front of us.
2:52 The bike leg is over, and Bjorn Andersson has arrived in first. About 2:20 down, Rapp follows, but the pack containing Lieto, Potts, Gambles, Colucci, Llano, Bell and Cartmell is on his heels. They're all out onto the run.
2:54 (pic: Potts on the run) We're having terrific difficulty getting the women's race updates, we're working on it.
2:55 Rapp ran right at 1:20 in the recent Oceanside 70.3. So, he's not a bad runner. But it will take a big run today to hold off those in the pack just behind him.
2:57 Extremely unofficially, we had Bjorn Andersson coming in off the bike at about 2:33:30 into the race. Subtract out his swim, you've got something like a 2:10 bike, perhaps even quicker. Let's see if that elapsed time is in fact correct.
3:00 The men are 75 percent through this race, in terms of elapsed time. 3 hours down, 1 to go. Fraser Cartmell is Scottish, so he'll have that charming accent. His website says he pulled out of Oceanside 70.3 earlier this Spring on the run "due to leg niggle." I'll have to find out what a niggle is, I'm assuming that's Scottish for discomfiture.
3:04 The women will be in off the bike quite soon, we do have a spotter on site for that eventuality. We'll then pick up the men's race 6mi into the run. Miles 2 thru 5 are notoriously hard to cover, as it's single track trail allowing for no vehicle save, perhaps, a mountain bike, and there's no cell coverage.
3:08 The first eight in off the bike consisted of a Swede, two Yanks, a Scot, an Aussie, a Spaniard, a Kiwi, and a Brazilian.
3:09 At mile-55 of the bike, Virginia Berasategui of Spain continues in front, but only :37 in front of Leanda Cave.
3:13 Following are Erika Csomor in third, @2:55 from the lead. Haley Cooper has ridden herself up to 4th, less than a minute off of Csomor. Then it's Heather Wurtele, 5:15 behind the leader. Where is Pip Taylor? No news yet.
3:19 Tyler Stewart is the next to come in off the bike, 8:20 back from the lead. Then it's Pip Taylor and Alexis Smith, then Rachell Challis.
3:23 We have our first sighting of a runner at mile-6. It's Andy Potts, and he's clear of the field. No one in sight behind him.
3:25 (pic: a terrestrial Chris Lieto and Terenzo Bozzone) By mile-6, you've had to do some tough running, and the race standings now reflect that. Here's the leaderboard @mile-6:
Potts
Bozzone @2:00
Colucci @2:08
E. Llanos @2:30
Rapp @3:00
Gambles @3:15
Bell @3:30
C. Lieto @4:55
3:29 We must have gotten some bad calcs about the ride splits. The race org is showing Andersson at 2:17:08, Rapp at 2:17:51. Chris Lieto rode a 2:18:11. These appear to be the fastest splits of the day.
3:32 What sort of organism is Andy Potts? He went from world class swimmer to one of the sport's best runners in the span of about two years. He's too big to run distance this fast, and he came to the sport too late to run this fast. And now he's proven an ability to run any distance fast. When you run away from Eneko Llanos and Terenzo Bozzone with this sort of ease, that's hard to understand. Either he's running too fast, or this was a race you really wish McCormack and Alexander—and maybe Rasmus Henning—would've attended. I can't think of who else might've had a chance today, assuming Potts keeps this up.
3:35 (pic: Jordan Rapp running) It is my understanding that Craig Alexander is expecting his second child, and that McCormack is not here today because of a niggle.
3:38 At mile-9, Potts is running in one direction, former WF champ and course record holder Terenzo Bozzone in the other. Potts is just adding to his lead, which is now 3min over second place Eneko Llanos. Colucci is third, but only :10 back of Llanos. Bozzone has cracked, moving Jordan Rapp up to 4th. Rapp is 1:20 back of Colucci. Joe Gambles is only :10 back of Rapp. Bozzone is shelled, :25 back of Gambles, and :15 in front of Luke Bell. Probably, in the time it's taken me to type this, Bell will have overtaken him.
3:43 On this course, you exit the dirt and run pavement the rest of the way. There's a turnaround—a cone—that is about 10 or 11 miles in. You whip around that cone and you're in the home stretch. The last time a former world class swimmer was winning this race this late, it was back in the 90s. The athlete was Andy Carlson, a former 15:39 (from memory) 1500m long course swimmer. Andy had a nice lead, but somebody forgot to put the turnaround cone down. Monty (our chief spotter) got 4th that day if I recall, and Andy probably would've won the race, had the cone been placed. He ran around 15 miles that day. Heck, he might still be out there running.
3:49 This is shaping up to be a race for second (Llanos and Colucci), and another race for fourth (Rapp and Gambles). The last mile is down a steep hill. You really don't want to have to fight for a place during that last mile, because you'll have to run very fast down this 7 percent grade. The median recovery time for those who don't have to sprint down this hill is 3 days. Otherwise, your quads will be hurting for weeks. Two's a crowd on the last mile, best to drop your "company" on the last hill prior to that descent.
3:55 Another member of the Slowtwitch Family, Lars Finanger, is out here today. He swam an (uncharacteristically slow) 25:50, and then rode a very credible 2:23:14. He's been here at the Compound for the last week. He built up a new custom Elite Carbon Razor the day before he left for WF (two days before the race) and it seems that bike agrees with him. I can't remember Lars ever having a better bike ride.
3:59 (pic: Andy Potts) Andy Potts has just won the Avia Wildflower Long Course Triathlon. His time was 3:59:45. Anything under 4-hours on this course is very good. That's rarely been achieved.
4:00 More Lars: He wears the same size shoe I do, and I tried his Avia "Conrad Stoltz" shoe while he was here. Very nice. Those guys at Avia seem to be nailing the lightweight trainer category, both lightweight structured cushioned, and lightweight neutral. Lars is an account rep for us, and he also works for Retul. Lars was here giving a Retul explanation to those in a FIST workshop. I like the paradigm of the smart, utilitarian, pro athlete (not that there's anything wrong with the other paradigms of pro athletes, it's just the way my preferences run).
4:05 Darned cell coverage. We're waiting for who got second. We should have the next several places for you momentarily.
4:07 Eneko Llanos held on for second place. It went like this:
Andy Potts: 3:59:45
Eneko Llanos: 4:03:05
Reinaldo Colucci: 4:03:15
Jordan Rapp: 4:04:55
Joe Gambles: 4:05:10
4:09 Evidently, there were two sprint finishes. Trust me, when you have to sprint at Wildflower, it hurts to push on your car's foot pedals on the drive home.
4:11 Slowtwitch reader nebmot writes on our Forum: Hey Dan, can you get the IM Live race coverage contract? your coverage is BY FAR better than whoever does theirs. Thank you for the compliment. I do not believe an invitation to do IM's coverage is forthcoming. However, we will be making a rather major announcement about Slowtwitch live coverage on Monday.
4:15 Lieto said, after crossing the finish, "Bike course had no tailwind, all headwind or no wind. I had to burn a lot of matches to make up that minute and a half I lost in the swim. Tell all the Slowtwitchers: the swim does matter!"
4:19 From Jordan: "I took the bike easy, because you all [Monty and I] told me not to go until the hills. I waited, and even then I didn't make up much time on Nasty Grade. But then, at the top, the group in front waited. I didn't want to let them recover, so I pushed it hard into transition. Then, on the run, I just kept steady. Joe Gambles passed me at mile-11, but I passed him right back and then sprinted the downhill. Oh, and tell Jill I love her." [So, Jill, consider that message delivered]
4:24 The balance of the top-10:
Luke Bell: 4:06:48
Chris Lieto: 4:06:48
Terenzo Bozzone: 4:07:46
Ben Hoffman: 4:12:14
Romain Guillaume: 4:13:24
4:28 Potts run was a 1:14:38. The day's second fastest run was 3:01 slower, so, that's a spit-kickin' Andy gave everyone. Also, it's my guess that the front pack was traveling at a clip a bit over the heads of some who were in there. But, that's where the race took place, in that pack, so, who can fault anyone from riding in it?
4:31 The next 10 were Nicholas Thompson, Matt Lieto, Fraser Cartmell, Scott Curry, Greg Remaly, James Cotter, Trevor Wurtele, [Slowtwitcher] Lars Finanger, Ain-Alar Juhanson, and Torten Abel.
4:32 Where are our women spotters? I guess they're spotting women, but keeping the information to themselves. Hopefully, we'll have something for you soon.
4:35 The swim start was a killer, according to a lot of pros. Sixty-five male pros, Andy Potts taking it out hard, and the first buoy comes up on a hurry. A lot of them got jammed up at that first buoy. "Monty was just telling me, go out hard, get on somebody's feet, and know it's going to settle down," said Rapp, who might've had his best ever swim in a triathlon. "So I did, and I was just waiting for it to settle down. I had to wait awhile, but, it eventually did, and I was able to swim in the line the whole way."
4:42 (pic: women's winner) Virginia Berasategui of Spain wins the Avia Wildflower Triathlon in right around 4:35-flat. That's a very fast time, and I'm not aware of a better performance in her career. Bravo. I'm assuming this 4:35 is a "real" 4:35, and not a "clock" 4:35. Remember, the women started 5 minutes after the men.
4:43 Leanda Cave comes home second, in 4:40:10. These are, apparently, the actual women's finishing times.
4:44 Erika Csomor is third, about :20 behind Leanda Cave. Tyler Stewart comes 4th in 4:43:50.
4:48 It is now time for us to switch gears, and starting working on the coverage story, the backstory, the story in photos, the apre-race story, the margarita story, and the other stories to tell about the Avia Wildflower Triathlon. So, we're going to sign off, for now, we'll see you at the Slowtwitch home page, and on the Reader Forum. Visit Wildflower's results page for a comprensive list of finishers. Thanks for tuning in!
