Race director Scotty Graber was pleased with the turnout of the debut of the Colorado Spring Series. "We went from 125 participants last year to 250 this year," he said. Having the cooperation of sunny weather and a lake temperature 18 degrees warmer than last year added to his satisfaction.
Of those 250 participants, many were doing their first triathlon ever. Two new initiates into the world of multi-sport were Tom and Susie Wyman of Boulder. Tom cruised the course on his trusty mountain bike and had some trouble finding his running legs "until a couple of miles into the run." But the best part for him was just having fun with the experience. "I was conscious of all the expensive bikes out on the course, but knew it didn't make any difference that I was on a mountain bike."
Susie was a bit freaked out by the swim, which she did in a borrowed wet suit that choked her neck. Once on the bike, however, she took off and loved every minute of it. "I figured it would feel the same if I fell going fast or slow, so I really pushed it down those hills!" she said with a laugh. A key part of her preparation was the "spinning" classes she took at the Pulse Fitness Center in Boulder. Her preparation paid off when she came out of the bike-run transition feeling good and went on the pass a slew of people on the run.
For the seasoned competitors, there was plenty of competition, especially among the junior division. Lindsay Hyman dominated the female junior category and worked her way to a 6th place overall finish. This 14 year old Sophomore at Cherry Creek High School is looking to make her second Junior National Team this year and take another trip to Worlds. She grew up doing Ironkids and in the triathlon off-season she competes on the Cherry Creek cross country, swimming, and track teams.
Jason MacDonald, a Cherry Creek alum who now races for the Power Bar Racing Team, used his home town advantage to win the male junior division. Sprints are his strong suit and he said Aurora is one of his favorite courses.
Meanwhile, 22 year old Debby Daehler of Golden flew to a women's overall victory in only her third triathlon ever. A runner while at Southern Illinois University, she also has a background in swimming. She's looking to improve her biking this year and move up in the triathlon ranks. She's already off to a great start, having earned a spot for this year's Duathlon World Championships and clinching a win in the first race of the Sprint Series.
On the men's side, Randy Johnson of Boulder cruised to an uncontested win. Despite starting in the second wave, he was still the first runner to cross the finish line. Randy is a veteran of the Zofingen Duathlon and is using sprints like Aurora to work on his speed and to prepare for Powerman Colorado.
By the end of the morning, race director Graber was already looking towards next year. "We're hoping to add more races to the Sprint Series, including four duathlons, and to spread out into other parts of Colorado," said Graber. He also added that Aurora will most likely be the sight for next year's Colorado Sprint Series championship race. "Not only is this a great venue for it, but having the race later in the summer will give the reservoir a chance to warm up a few more degrees."
Ah, but would the water be as refreshing if it was warmer than 60 degrees?
* This article appeared in The Athlete's Source (August 1996).