So serene…

While most of you were still in bed, excluding Alex who was likely opening at Subway, the 15th annual Beaver Lake Triathlon was only moments from its 7:45 AM start time this past Saturday, August 16th.

The race, now a Plateau tradition older than most of the underclassmen who clog the Skyline halls during passing time, shut down many heavily traveled roads (like the underclassmen), and attracted 521 athletes, over 50 more than last year’s race boasted.

The race, finished in anywhere between one and three hours, is actually considered a sprint triathlon. While most people would hardly consider a race longer than an episode of The Office a sprint, in the strenuous and will-testing world of triathlons, the BLT was definitely not a test of a triathlete’s endurance. In fact, the swim portion alone in several triathlons takes as long as the Beaver Lake Triathlon did in its entirety.

Beginning with a quarter mile swim through Beaver Lake, Duvall resident Bill Foreman was first out of the water in an exceptional 4:23, nearly a minute and a half ahead of 2007 BLT overall champion Benjamin Bigglestone of Newcastle. Despite his quick swim though, Foreman was not a top finisher when all was said and done.

Perhaps the tortoise, slow and steady, really does win in a race against the hare. All cliches aside though, it really shouldn’t come as a surprise: do you really expect a hare to swim faster than a tortoise?

After the first portion of the race, Foreman had the lead, but the experienced Bigglestone was in hot pursuit, followed closely by an elite group of athletes including several top finishers, as well as Skyline’s own University of Michigan fanatic and math teacher extraordinaire Thomas “Tizzle” Elliott. Elliott was fifth out of the water in his debut Beaver Lake Triathlon, although he is no stranger to the sport as he annually competes in the Ironman triathlon series.

Where’s the “no lifeguard on duty” sign when you need one?

Following the dip in Beaver Lake, the athletes made a wet and wild transition to the 13.8 mile bike ride, traversing Duthie Hill road amongst other scenic paths, with the lead group still tightly packed. Although only a cool 35 minutes for the leaders, the bike ride was made all the more treacherous by the oppressive weather, already unbearable for the majority of Plateau dwellers at 8:30 in the morning. Although Bigglestone, 35, took the lead early into the bike portion, he was tracked down by a couple of competitors under 30: Seattle’s Adam Jensen, 28, and Kirkland’s Michael Gordon, aged 29.

Going into the run, Bigglestone and Gordon were neck-and-neck, but Jensen had built a sizable one minute lead on the two with a merciless time during the bike portion. With only 4.3 miles of running left in the race, Skyline’s Elliott was still racing impressively, holding down 13th overall after the bike portion. Could Elliott tap into Skyline’s rich and illustrious history of phenomenal runners? Was he able to hone his inner Frerker or Sorensen to stage a comeback reminiscent of Jason Lezak’s herculean effort in the 4 x 100m?

Unfortunately, Elliott did not provide the storybook ending I built up to so artfully in the preceding paragraph. Instead of stirring memories of Skyline’s remarkable triumph over O’Dea this past fall, Elliott faded down the stretch just as the Mariners did almost exactly this time last year. After a strong start, the bottom dropped out during the run, as Elliott clocked in at 31:54, (7:25 mile average for those curious) a mediocre 91st amongst all runners.

However, despite his heartbreaking late race breakdown, Elliott still finished 30th overall (27th among men), in 1:18:47: good enough for 4th in his age group, and the pride and respect of all of Skyline. Although Elliott ordinarily focuses on far longer triathlons, in the realm of 10-12 hours, I’m sure that with this experience, Elliott will not disappoint if he elects to return to the BLT next year.

Back to the rest of the field. Although Gordon made a valiant effort to run Jensen down, Jensen’s lead proved insurmountable, as he took the triathlon in 1:06:39, the fastest time since 2005, and a solid 50 seconds ahead of Gordon who claimed second. Despite shaving ten seconds off his 2007 championship time, Bigglestone took third in the race, a distant two minutes behind Gordon but still good enough for first in his age group.

Overall, Seattle athletes had a strong showing, taking five out of the top 14 places, including of course, the race’s winner in Adam Jensen. Notable finishers from Sammamish include Drew Magill 5th in 1:11:46, Steven Bailey 13th in 1:15:40, and Brian Carter 16th in 1:16:46. Notable finishers from Issaquah include Stephen Bennett 30th in 1:18:59, Bryan Wienand 73rd in 1:26:59, and Paul Turcotte 105th in 1:31:01.

Audrey Baldessari en route to the first of her back to back BLT victories.

On the women’s side, 42 year old Audrey Baldessari of Redmond channeled the over-40 power of Dara Torres to hold off 29 year old Seatteite Kara Nielson, and win the race by half a minute in 1:17:01, a time beaten by only 17 of her male competitors.

Despite a slow start in the water (okay, so maybe she’s not the next Dara Torres), Baldessari was able to keep pace on bike with the race’s early leader, Seattle dwelling Rhae Shaw, and then surge into first with a phenomenal burst. Falling off of Baldessari and Shaw during the bike leg, Nielson ran valiantly — systematically closing the gap on Shaw, and eventually passing her after Baldessari had broken her psyche by taking the lead. When all was done, Baldessari had taken over a minute off of her winning time from the year before as she successfully defended her BLT title.

Seattle women placed even better than their male counterparts, accounting for four of the top ten slots, including two in the top three of course. Notable finishers from Sammamish include Johnna Koenig 5th in 1:22:42, Heidi Lind 18th in 1:30:17, and Tammy Wales 34th in 1:33:10. Notable finishers from Issaquah include Anna Jurgens 13th in 1:28:53, Kenda Super 37th in 1:33:36, and LeeAnn Kinkade-Herman 43rd in 1:34:16.

Congratulations to Adam Jensen and Audrey Baldessari for winning the men’s and women’s Beaver Lake Triathlon titles respectively, and also to all 521 athletes who finished the triathlon. Will either repeat next year, or will a new face rise to the forefront?