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June 26, 2007
By MATT TUSETH/ Frontiersman
BIG LAKE - More than 50 men, women and children turned out in cool, wet conditions Sunday for the Frontiersman Big Lake Triathlon, which combined a 900-meter swim, 25-kilometer bike ride and 5-K run.
“It was a little wet, but fun,” men's overall winner Jason Lamoreaux said following the race.
Lamoreaux edged women's winner Shannon Donley by 35 seconds, clocking a time of 1 hour, 1 minute, 15 seconds.
Donley is the top female triathlete in Alaska and one of the top nationally, having won her age group last year at the U.S. national championships.
“She was pushing me the whole way,” Lamoreaux said.
Donley, in fact, was the first racer to hit the bike course, which snaked its way from Big Lake itself into Houston and then into downtown Big Lake. But Lamoreaux caught Donley midway through the bicycle portion, then held on for the win over the 5-K run.
Luke Kiskaddon finished third overall, two minutes behind Donley.
Amber Stull was second place women's class, finishing in 1:06:02.
The race was contested in light rain, which competitors said was a double-edged sword.
“I thought it was going to be cold, but it wasn't too bad,” Lamoreaux said. “Actually, it was better than if it had been sunny.”
Donley said the rain was only really a factor during the wheeled portion of the race.
“Running in the rain is no problem, but biking is a little tough,” she said.
Donley is preparing the 2007 national championships, scheduled for next week, and said she was pleased with her performance.
“I felt pretty good,” she said.
Donley injured her calf at the world championships last year, and has been recovering ever since. She said she could have gone faster Sunday, but didn't feel it would be wise to push herself so close to nationals.
“I felt pretty comfortable today,” she said.
While Donley and Lamoreaux are among the best triathletes in Alaska today, the race also featured two potential future stars of the sport.
Clinton Steger, 13, and his brother Eddie, 11, of Anchorage were the youngest competitors in the field and both beat several adults. Clinton finished 41st in a time of 1:29:06, while Eddie was four minutes behind in 43rd.
The brothers first got into triathlon at the suggestion of their grandfather, and now are avid participants in the grueling sport.
Clinton Steger said his goal now isn't to compete with the adults.
“It's tough,” he said. “Right now I just try to beat my brother.”
The competitive spirit amongst Clinton and Eddie is not going unnoticed.
“There's a rivalry,” the boys' mother Darcy said of the growing competition between the siblings.
Still, she said the competition helps both her boys get better at the sport.
“It's nice for them to have someone to train with,” she said.
While the two are now only trying to beat each other, both said they eventually plan to take their triathlon training to the next level.
“When I turn 18 I want to do the Ironman,” Clinton said, mentioning the Hawaii triathlon that puts racers through a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and full marathon.
Though he'll have to wait a couple more years than his older brother, Eddie agreed.
“Definitely,” he said.
Contact Matt Tunseth at 352-2265 or matt.tunseth@
frontiersman.com
Frontiersman/Big Lake Chamber of Commerce Triathlon
Sunday, Big Lake
Male - 1. Jason Lamoreaux 1:01:15, 2. Luke Kiskaddon 1:01:53, 3. Rob Conn 1:03:56.
Female - 1. Shannon Donley 1:01:40, 2. Amber Stull 1:06:02, 3. Jennifer Kohout 1:08:09.
Co-ed team - 1. Testostrogen (Crystal Rogers, Dale Haines, Dan Rogers) 1:14:29.
Male team - 1. The Brew Crew (Dillon Styers, Jordan Cole, Brendan Weimer) 1:18:29.
Individual - 1. Jason Lamoreaux 1:01:15, 2. Shannon Donley 1:01:40, 3. Luke Kiskaddon 1:01:53, 4. Rob Conn 1:03:56, 5. Bret Rosane 1:04:41, 6. Amber Stull 1:06:02, 7. Rodney Bolls 1:07:10, 8. Andy Underwood 1:07:17, 9. Steven King 1:07:47, 10. Jennifer Kohout 1:08:09, 11. Jason Phillips 1:09:10, 12. Katy Rosane 1:09:38, 13. Cameron Cartland 1:10:45, 14. David Purcell 1:10:51, 15. Joleen Smith 1:11:45, 16. Pan Todd 1:12:35, 17. Mark Samson 1:13:05, 18. Jim Anderson 1:14:11, 19. Crystal Rogers 1:14:13, 20. Kelly Van Hoek 1:14:25, 21. Julie Vogler 1:14:48, 22. Naomi Prater 1:15:26, 23. Rachel McCartan 1:16:49, 24. Peter Mejia 1:17:26, 25. Karl Swanson 1:17:40, 26. Katherine Franzmann 1:18:28, 27. Dillon Styers 1:18:29, 28. Alec Kay 1:19:46, 29. Jeff Campbell 1:19:59, 30. Aaron Morrison 1:21:12, 31. John Jones 1:22:15, 32. Dana Seagars 1:22:28, 33. Ramey Smyth 1:23:50, 34. Lindsey Goris 1:25:00, 35. Stacy Daylet 1:26:31, 36. Laura Johnston 1:26:32, 37. Ronda Lund 1:27:26, 38. Mary Janis 1:27:42, 39. Christine Carsten 1:28:08, 40. Carla Goldberg 1:29:00, 41. Clinton Steger 1:29:06, 42. Eddie Steger 1:33:08, 43. Cinda Devine 1:35:05, 44. Katie Broeder 1:37:57, 45. Peter Giannini 1:39:03, 46. Mark Laker 1:44:42, 47. Nathan Prince 1:46:38, 48. Janice Johnson 1:49:13.
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