Boulder 70.3 wins for Potts, Dibens
After his recent win at Ironman Coeur D'Alene Andy Potts showed that he can still go fast at half that distance with an impressive win at Boulder 70.3. Julie Dibens grabbed the win in the women's race after a dominating performance and then waiting 5-6 minutes before the finish line before eventually crossing it.
The men
Andy Potts was well ahead of his competitors as he exited the waters of the Boulder Reservoir in first position. Next out of the water were Stephen Hackett and Richie Cunningham, but they had lost already 1:12 and 2:09 on the speedy former Michigan University swimmer.
Potts pushed very hard on the bike but behind him a couple guys were able to turn it on even more. Combined with a fast T1, Hackett's 2:03:14 bike split allowed him to catch Potts just before they reached the second transition. Fastest bike split of the day though belonged to Brit Tom Lowe who charged from 13th position to 3rd with an impressive time of 2:01:10.
Potts eased away from Hackett during the run and was up by a minute after 10k. Hackett now actually had to deal with Tyler Butterfield who had charged past Lowe and caught the Aussie. Hackett had to let Butterfield go and make sure that no one else was going to catch him from behind. Meanwhile Potts stormed to another 70.3 title and showed that he is indeed fit and ready for the events to come. Butterfield crossed the line in second and Hackett avoided being caught by Cunningham for third.
The women
Rebecca Witinok-Huber and Julie Dibens led the women out of the water with a fairly comfortable lead over all other competitors.
Leaving the Boulder Reservoir area, Dibens then crushed it on the bike and by the time she reached the second transition her lead was already substantial. Angela Naeth was next in transition, about 4 minutes ahead of Witinok-Huber.
Dibens was running quite smoothly and spotters on course reported that no other competitor was anywhere close to the Brit. When Dibens entered the finish chute she slowed down and stopped shy of the actual finish line, chatting with family members and giving interviews for over 5 minutes before she actually crossed the line to take the win.
"I just wanted to make sure as many girls as possible would be able to earn money today," said Dibens to slowtwitch. "I just hung out with my family, enjoyed the time and wanted to prove a point. Making money in this sport is hard enough as is."
Related image gallery
A Boulder 70.3 winners gallery
ROHTO Ironman 70.3 Boulder
Boulder, CO / August 8, 2010
1.2 mile swim / 56 mile bike / 13.1 mile run
Top 10 men
1. Andy Potts (USA) 3:46:50
2. Tyler Butterfield (BER) 3:49:18
3. Stephen Hackett (AUS) 3:51:27
4. Richie Cunningham (AUS) 3:54:11
5. Paul Ambrose (AUS) 3:54:12
6. Tim DeBoom (USA) 3:54:40
7. Matt White (AUS) 3:56:24
8. Joshua Rix (AUS) 3:56:56
9. Tom Lowe (GBR) 4:00:06
10. Brian Schaning (USA) 4:05:06 * AG M25-29
Top 10 women
1. Julie Dibens (GBR) 4:19:46
2. Angela Naeth (CAN) 4:22:27
3. Jessica Meyers (USA) 4:25:09
4. Uli Bromme (USA) 4:26:58
5. Rebecca Witinok-Huber (USA) 4:30:37
6. Marisa Asplund (USA) 4:33:52
7. Karen Melliar-Smith (USA) 4:37:22
8. Brandy Rothman (USA) 4:38:46 * AG W35-39
9. Kelly Lear-Kaul (USA) 4:39:50 * AG W35-39
10. Amanda Durner (USA) 4:40:43 * AG W35-39
