2007 May 19 7th Annual Beast of the East Spring Tuneup Half Ironman Distance: Swim 1.2 Miles. Bike 56 Miles, Run 13.1 May 20 9th Annual Lake Chatuge Challenge Sprint Triathlon Swim 4/10, Bike 16 Miles, Run 3 Miles	For GPS Directions to races: 47 Clay County Recreation Park Rd Hayesville, NC 28904
Race Results:  Beast of the East Spring Tune-Up Age Group 06 Beast of the East Spring Tune-Up Overall 06 Lake Chatuge Challenge Sprint Age Group 06 Lake Chatuge Sprint Overall 06	Beast of the East Half IM Spring 05 Age Group Lake Chatuge Challenge Sprint Triathlon Overall 05	Lake Chatuge Half IM 04 Lake Chatuge Sprint 04
Beast of the East Half Ironman Spring Tuneup Race Report BY Ken Mantei Beast of the East, that is how the race director was pushing the course. And to be honest it is a very fair assessment. Wow, this bike course is relentless. Some very nasty elevation changes, very few times when you could catch a breath, I had no idea what I was getting into. By 20 miles or so I realized that hitting my goals were not going to be possible, so I tried to settle in and pass all the racers I could. This place is absolutely gorgeous. The swim is nestled in between the mountains, smooth and quiet. Bike goes thru miles and miles of valleys with incredible views. Before the race I met Felipe Bustos, we talked quite a bit. found out he had done the Miami Half Ironman last year in 4:09.. new I was in trouble. Started thinking how cool second overall was going to be:) Then at the swim start I heard him talking to a guy named Bruce.. thought it was Gennari but turned out to be Urskin (sp?)... either way I was now relegated to third place if everything went well.. Swim: 33 minutes Started out right behind Felipe. That lasted all of 2 seconds, was a great draft while it lasted. The swim basically just heads straight out, go past a small island about 300 yards then come back on the other side, again very unique. I took a wide angle around the island and lost a bit of time, I saw Dougie hit the cement structure we were supposed to swim around before me, took a better angle coming back. Was a decent swim, felt good and comfortable the entire time. Felipe normally swims in the low 26's, he finished in 28:25 so my 33 minute swim was good for me. I was 11th out of the water.	T1: 1 minute Only about 50 yards out of the water, hard to take much time. Bike: 2:38:54, for an incredibly fast 21.1 mph Trust me, that was the hardest 21 mph I have ever worked for. By far the hardest Half Im bike course I have ever seen or finished. Ridiculous:) The first trouble came at about the 10 mile mark, steep climb that lasted for just under 2 miles and the best part was with 200 yards to go... had a 27 on the back and still had to stand to grind it out. At the top of the hill the aid station told me I was in 5th overall. Onward.. The course did not get easier, constantly up and down, up and down. the worst part was that the ups were rarely just subtle climbs, they always seemed to be climbs that beat you down to 12-15 mph. For 56 miles it really wore on me. I was told that at around mile 36 that things got easy. Well they might of except the last 20 miles were for the most part into the wind. While 6-10 mph winds are not terrible, they are after going thru 36 miles of hell. Even on some of the long stretches that went slightly downhill I was still grinding out 19 mph and when it went up slightly I was spinning at 16 mph, and this was supposed to be the easy part. By mile 30 I passed another guy (51 years old) and by mile 40 I passed the last guy that was within reach, he stayed about 100 yards behind me all the way to the finish of the bike course. So off the bike I was in 3rd. T2: another minute I guess. Run: 1:34:56 for 7:15/mile Heading out the announcer said I was about 10 minutes behind the 2nd place runner and I new I had at least one racer about 30 seconds behind me. Fortunately the course is and out and back done twice. The out portion has one little stick out and back that is about half a mile long. The first two miles went by in 13 minutes.. way too stinking fast. I eased up on the pedal. At the first little out and back portion at about mile 2.5 I had a little over a minute on the guy behind me. Then at the 3.5 mile turn around I had raised it to 2 minutes on him. at mile four is where the crappy part starts. For those of you that live out here, imagine the steepest part of Rocky Gap hill, this climb was that steep and was at least 3 times as long.	Luckily we got to do that twice. I just baby stepped up the hill trying to keep my Hr under 6000!! After that climb you get a nice long flat section to catch you breath before you go up some more. I came to the end of lap one and felt good, right around 45 minutes, excellent. At that out and back I had raised the gap to 6 minutes on the guy behind me, the next closest guy was 10 minutes, then Doug at 18 minutes. At mile 7.5 I saw Doug, I was going up and was starting to feel the climbing. I crossed the damn again, looked back and saw no one. I knew then that the guy behind me was done. I kind of relaxed at that point and put it in cruise control, I knew I had no chance to catch the guys in front of me so I just decided to shut it down, no sense in killing myself. At the last turn around I had 10 minutes on the he next closest guy, so that race was over. Climbing the hill again I just cruised up, tried to help motivate all the people still doing their first lap with some words of encouragement or pats on the back. Hit the tape with a half marathon PR even with going into cruise control with 5 miles to go. Excellent sign.Finish Time: 4:49, 3r overall, 1st in my age group. I know I was no where near my goal times, but I am still ecstatic. Both of these speedy guys in front of me came in at 4:28:30, since they both can go 4:10 at a normal course I am very very pleased with being 15 minutes off the time I was hoping for.... Next stop, Sylvania in a month.. different end of the spectrum.. no hills at all:) Sundance out!!
Racers enjoying the newly paved run course for the Sprint and Half Ironman	Half Im Distances: Swim 1.2 Miles. Bike 56 Miles, Run 13.1 Sprint Triathlon: Swim 4/10, Bike 16 Miles, Run 3 Miles	The hunt for the win at the Chatuge Challenge Sprint Triathlon Page Sanderson is still looking fresh even after her finish!
Half IM Course Map	Registration Form	Sprint Triathlon Course Maps

Beast of the East Spring Tuneup Half Ironman May 19th starting at 7:30am Location: Clay County Recreation Park, just 5 miles from Hiawassee Ga Packet Pick-Up starting at 5pm Friday night and 6am Saturday Morning Awards ceramony will start at 4pm All Registration Fees include a 1 day ($10.00) USAT Ins charge that will be refunded to the racer at the registration table if the racer can show a current USAT card for 2007. NO CARD - NO REFUND!! Special early sign up prices offered on registration page or active.com Sign up Before May 1 Single : $140.00 Relay: $180.00 After May 1st or day of race: Single: $155 Relay: $195 Sign up on Active: www.active.com Put in key words: triathlon, May, Ga or just put in Beast of the East Half IM Triathlon

Lake Chatuge Challenge Sprint Triathlon May 20: starting at 8am Location: Clay County Recreation Park, just 5 miles from Hiawassee Ga Packet Pick-Up starting at 6:30am Sunday Morning All Registration Fees include a 1 day ($10.00) USAT Ins charge that will be refunded to the racer at the registration table if the racer can show a current USAT card for 2007. NO CARD - NO REFUND!! Sign up before May 1 Single: $65.00 Relay: $90.00 After May 1st of day of race: Single: $75.00 Relay: $110.00 Sign up on Active: www.active.com Put in key words: triathlon, May, Ga or just put in Lake Chatuge Challenge Sprint Triathlon

To sign up by mail, go to the front page of this web site, page down and click on Registration Form, download, print it out and send it in. The water temp is expected to be in the high 70s for these races. Wet suits will be allowed if the water is 78 or less. No wet suits if above 78. Any racers that want to use a wet suit even if the temp is above 78 can do so, but they will not be eligible for awards. Age Group Awards: 15-19 20-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-44 45-49 50-54 55-59 60-64 65-69 70 up Clydesdale, Athena, & Relay Teams We will have 3 bottle exchange tables for the bike portion of the Half IM race and 4 water tables on the run portion of the race. (we will have Gatorade, Powerade and Water at these tables) The run is a 2 lap course and racers will be passing the water tables two times, so there will be 8 chances to get water on the 13.1 mile run We will have some Gatorade bars at water tables and fruit on the bike race. Some Hammer Gel and energy bars will be offered to racers.

Cherokee bottled water. Only water from the mountains could taste this good.

Results are posted for the Half IM and Sprint Triathlon races below the great story. I want to thank everyone for all the great emails about the race. It was a real pleasure to have you all come and join us here in the North Ga and Western NC mountains. In the meantime I am going to post a very well written and humerous accounting of the race through the eyes of one of our Half IM racers. Enjoy! Friends, Saturday was a milestone for me as I competed in my first Half-Ironman Distance Triathlon in Hiwassee, GA ( http://www.gsmtc.com/june.htm ). It turned out to be quite an adventure - I hate that none of you were able to join us. Cammie and I drove to Helen http://www.mindspring.com/~littlestar and checked into our hotel Friday before going on to the race site for a reconnaissance. I had never been to Helen and used the opportunity of this race to take Cammie, who had been to Helen before and wanted to visit this make believe Alpine town again (even the Huddle House is made to look like something from the Alps). On the map, Helen appears to be no more than 15 miles from Hiawassee, which was listed as the town of record for the race, so Helen seemed like a good place to stay the weekend. On the ground, those 15 map miles translated into 25 miles of roller coaster quality mountain highway, but we stuck with our plan of spending Friday night in Helen in spite of the additional travel time. The packet pick-up for the race that Friday was uneventful and it gave us an opportunity to look at the race course and meet some interesting folks who had registered for the race. I didn't catch his name, but there was one guy who was on leave from some sort of observatory in Anartica who had come up for the race. He had a full beard and a complete lack of any tan, so I referred to him during the race as Polar Bear. There was also a midshipman, an Air Force Pilot, a Marine Aviator, a gynecologist, a couple of additional Army officers, a sailor, a CPA, a guy who wore a utitlity belt like batman, an eighteen year kid whose biggest concern was where he could find a restaurant open early enough to serve him ham and eggs for breakfast before the race, and some dude with orange hair that surfs full time (I think that is what he said - he was a real friendly guy, anyway). My wife commented to me immediately after the race that this was the most normal bunch of people she had ever met at one of my triathlons - I am still thinking that comment over. The water we were to swim in was a brisk 72 degrees on Friday (which was also the temperature at race time), but since the air temperature was to be in the low 60s on race day, the water temperature was not a big deal to anybody, well, except for one person. Polar Bear was very anxious about the water temperature. He brought an insulated swim suit with him for the race. He said that he absolutely hated cold water. For the record, the guy from Anartica swam this race with in a wet suit and yours truly, who has never lived north of Tennessee, swam in the mountain water with a swim cap and some triathlon-biking shorts on - and yes, I finished the swim in front of Polar Bear by several minutes. The bike route (all 56 miles of it - http://www.gsmtc.com/map%20half%20IM%20run%20bike.htm ) appeared to be a very challenging, but somewhat fast course which ran mainly through the gaps of the mountains. During the recon, I took particular note of the stretch that ran "smack" through Smackass Gap. After the race, I determined from the way that I felt that it was indeed appropriately named. It took us several hours to drive the bike route that wound through Hiawassee, GA, Ware, NC, Hayesville, NC, Shooting Creek, NC, and within a mile or two of Murphy, NC. As I began to tire just driving my car over this route, I started to fully appreciate what kind of physical effort this race was going to require from me - what had I gotten into? After our recon was complete, we got on roller coaster 75 and went back to Helen to have dinner. Getting dinner proved to be harder than riding my bike through Smackass Gap. It seems that the smoking section in restaurants in Helen is everywhere except the parking lot. I am not anti-smoke like some of you are, but I am pro-breathing. We had to change restaurants in order to breathe, but we finally found some really good dinner at the Troll's Tavern (where we sat outside surrounding by five tables of people who lit up cigarettes as soon as we started eating - but it was much easier to handle outside - I told you that I am not anti-smoke!). We woke up bright and early Saturday morning and arrived at the race in plenty of time for me to warm up and set up my transition area. I was ready to start racing. True to my standard race template, I exited the water with the retired people and some of the slower women(there were no children in this race),but well ahead of Polar Bear and slightly ahead of the 21 year old midshipman. This positioning might sound like a disadvantage, but it sets me up for a tremendous mental advantage during the race. I passed a lot of people during the bike and run who were good swimmers, but who weren't as strong on land. For instance, I passed that eighteen year old who wanted ham and eggs for breakfast during the bike (he never did find a restaurant open that early), and I was finishing the race as he was starting the run. I actually struck up several interesting conversations during the bike ride. For one ten mile stretch, I talked with the gynecologist about some common interests. Then I talked with a group of guys about when in our lives we wanted to quit exercising and get fat and lazy. I was considering starting that lifestyle change on Sunday during the race, but now that it is done, I have pushed it back to age 70. At a couple of different points in the race, I would ask my fellow racers, "Do you think that dog is really going to bite us? Do you think you can outrun him?" What I really was wondering was whether I could leave my fellow biker far enough behind so that the dog would eat him and not me. There were a few hairpin turns on the course and I came close to becoming a lawn ornament in one family's yard, but everybody seemed to survive the dogs and turns just fine. There wasn't a great deal of traffic on the roads that we were racing on, but some of those folks acted as if they had never seen cyclists before. Many of them felt compelled to blow their horns at us and come as close to hitting us as they possibly could. They also had a very efficient manner (as far as finger usage is concerned) of waving at us. One aggressive driver gave us the one finger salute, questioned our sexual orientation and threatened to come back and beat us within an inch of lives. He infuriated me to the point that I reported him to the deputies that were controlling traffic for us. To my surprise, when I finished describing this guy and telling the deputy which direction he was heading in (he was heading into the town of Murphy), the deputy jumped in his car and turned on his lights and went after him immediately. I thought that Clay County, NC was the most bicycle friendly county in the USA when that happened. It was only later that day when I turned on the news that I figured out the real reason that deputy sped away like a bat out of Boaz (see timeline at the bottom of the email). After finishing the bike in much better shape than I expected to be in, I attacked the run with everything I had left. Just in case I had any thoughts of looking tired or week, the race director had strategically placed a pit bull at the 11 mile mark to keep our adrenaline flowing. I had no doubts that I could not outrun the pit bull at this point in the race, so, I quickly developed what seemed at the time to be a brilliant plan. I decided that at the first sign of trouble, I would select the weakest looking runner in the vicinity and run at him while growling like a dog in order to convince the pit bull that I was really on his side. Luckily, I never had to implement this strategy. The last mile of that race was one of the happiest miles I have ever run. I felt a great sense of accomplishment and relief (and that was before I found out that I had helped solve one of the great mysteries of our time). I finished fourth in the military category and felt confident that I had left it all out on the course. When I got home to Fort Benning, I discovered that I had really only left my biking helmet and sunglasses on the course, but I am sure that I will recover them eventually. I want to challenge all of my friends to start training now for next year's edition of this race - it was a great time. Jason Benefield

2003 Lake Chatuge Challenge Half Ironman Triathlon Overall Male Winners: Andrew Johnston: 31 Atlanta Ga 4:31:37 Jason Morris; 28 Atlanta Ga 4:39:30 Galen Holland: 26 Asheville NC 4:39:56 Overall Women Winners Martha Dudley: 39 Orlando Fl 5:14:22 Catherine Fuss: 29 Atlanta Ga 5:17: 19 Jerrifer Petosa: Whittier NC 5:29:34 FirstName LastName City State Sex Age Group TS USAT# Race # Finish Katie Lord Athens GA F 22 20-24 M 197599 214 5:55:45 Emily Bowman Lexington KY F 21 20-24 M 161249     Catherine Fuss Atlanta GA f 29 25-29 l 162380 255 5:17:19 Jennifer Petosa Whittier NC f 29 25-29 s 168349 280 5:29:34 Lisa Holder Ringgold GA F 27 25-29 M 192414 257 5:31:33 Emma Williams Chattanooga TN F 29 25-29 L   207 7:00:38 Erica Koszalka Charlotte NC F 25 25-29 S 205539     Michelle Howard Canton GA F 34 30-34 L 183231     Martha Dudley Orlando FL f 39 35-39 m 146337 222 5:14:22 Lynn Allin Mobile AL F 35 35-39 M pending 184 6:17:42 Mary Weiland Athens GA f 39 35-39 m 178422 234 6:57:59 Barb Joffe Nashville Tn f 36 35-39 l       Tammy Cook Hixon Tn F 33 Athena L   208   Rachel Rodriguez Atlanta GA F 24 team M       Matthew Moye Atlanta GA M 18 16-19 M 210695 191 6:40:32 Josh Kuhn Evans GA M 21 20-24 M 143998 232 4:54:59 matthew bengochea alpharetta GA M 23 20-24 L 173322 248 5:59:22 Bradley Greybeck Houston TX M 24 20-24 L 185298 210   Jason Morris Atlanta GA M 28 25-29 XL 180039 260 4:39:30 Galen Holland Asheville NC m 26 25-29 m 189230 284 4:39:56 Galen Holland Asheville NC m 26 25-29 m 189230 284 4:39:56 Justin Andrews Matthews NC M 26 25-29 L 159284 193 5:48:09 Jade Costen Stallings NC M 29 25-29 L   288 5:59:56 Jeremy Archer Gainesville FL M 27 25-29 L   190 6:06:38 Richie Moore Cleveland TN M 27 25-29 L   259 6:10:16 Brian Parker Alpharetta GA M 29 25-29 M 172553 273 6:26:39 Jon Carr Smyrna GA M 28 25-29 L 150742     John Ehinger Birmingham AL m 29 25-29 l 173729     John Glotzbach Atlanta GA M 29 25-29 L       John Martin Anderson SC m 25 25-29 XL       Andrew Johnston Atlanta Ga m 31 30-34 l 170344 261 4:31:37 Jeff Gibson chattanooga TN M 30 30-34 XL   249 4:46:46 Michael Dembski Marietta GA m 34 30-34 l 158506 238 5:13:02 Thomas Smith Columbus GA M 30 30-34 XL 188005 204 5:19:45 Alex Piquer Jacksonville FL M 33 30-34 L 143573 286 5:23:26 Chris Holland Asheboro NC m 33 30-34 XL 186750 240 5:23:35 Jeff Holder Ringgold GA M 32 30-34 L 183876 258 5:28:49 Eric Sellers Wesley Chapel FL M 34 30-34 XL 184921 195 5:31:36 Jon Karcsh Smyrna GA M 30 30-34 L   290 5:34:17 Matt Clark Athens GA M 30 30-34 L   236 5:35:08 Christopher Sustala     M 32 30-34 L 193453 209 5:45:31 Chad Klinck Duluth GA M 33 30-34 L 150996 237 5:49:34 Tony Camblor Bryson Cty NC m 34 30-34 m   281 5:59:05 edwin marty Birmingham AL M 31 30-34 L   219 6:02:01 Chad Thompson Marietta GA M 31 30-34 M Pending 197 6:19:50 Rick Christensen Charleston SC M 33 30-34 XL   278 6:22:01 Robert Preston Douglas GA M 30 30-34 XL 191187 206 6:40:42 Jason Devine Alexandria VA M 32 30-34 L       Brian Schultz Asheville NC M 33 30-34 L       Gregory Spencer Smyrna GA M 32 30-34 L 188037     Billy Jolley Nashville Tn m 35 35-39 m 146986 186 4:41:01 Marshall Martin Harrison Tn m 38 35-39 l 91808 267 4:48:27 Mike Miller Canton GA m 36 35-39 m 141430 189 4:51:33 Jeff Steen Kennesaw GA M 37 35-39 XL 168066 251 5:03:37 Clay Taylor Frankewing tn m 37 35-39 l 69687 253 5:07:24 Jim Bonner Albany GA M 36 35-39 L   272 5:08:22 jean-yves solves marietta GA M 39 35-39 M   200 5:22:42 Peter Cummings Palm Bch Gdn FL m 39 35-39 l 162463 264 5:29:49 Andrew Stull Atlanta GA M 38 35-39 XL   277 5:38:30 Steve Arcangeli Lexington VA m 36 35-39 XL 173027 263 5:41:35 James Overley kennesaw GA M 39 35-39 L   245 5:56:04 Timothy Arnold Valdosta GA m 35 35-39 l 203208 282 6:04:36 Darin Sims Anniston AL M 38 35-39 L   275 6:12:52 Ted Dettmar Arlington VA M 39 35-39 XL   198 6:13:23 Stephen Julien Atlanta GA M 35 35-39 M 177611 212 6:13:47 John Schramm Atlanta GA M 38 35-39 XL 206027 293 6:24:07 Stephen Maag Asheville NC m 37 35-39 XL   201 6:37:06 Bryan Maxwell Roanoke VA M 35 35-39 XL   262 6:38:25 Charles Burell Covington GA M 37 35-39 L   196 6:52:59 Doug Thompson Beaufort SC m 35 35-39 l   244 7:20:56 Michael Bowling Atlanta GA M 36 35-39 XL   279 7:20:58 john devine bradenton FL M 38 35-39 L       William Schroder Mt Pleasant SC M 36 35-39 XL       James Logan Suwanee GA M 38 35-39 XL   224   James Ringers Suwanee GA M 38 35-39 L   225   Nicholas Simontis Cayce SC M 41 40-44 XL 197023 271 4:56:08 randy grimes atlanta GA M 40 40-44 L 179220 254 5:06:03 Shahin Hadian Huntsville Al M 40 40-44 L 135661 217 5:07:26 Chip Grizzard Lawrenceville GA M 40 40-44 XL 213380 246 5:16:15 Ed Rucci Alpharetta GA M 41 40-44 L   292 5:21:34 Calvin Gray Alpharetta GA M 40 40-44 L 203707 250 5:27:17 Eric Simontis Alpharetta GA M 40 40-44 L   269 5:38:08 Dan McCormick Marietta GA m 43 40-44 l 38333 188 5:44:56 Gregg Radloff Suwanee GA M 42 40-44 L 117815 252 5:48:04 Jeff Brooks Lawrenceville GA M 42 40-44 L 198890 270 6:09:07 James Haley Rome GA M 41 40-44 XL 175665 231 6:50:35 John Peacock Atlanta GA m 42 40-44 XL   266 7:30:16 sean moloney bradenton FL M 45 45-49 L 136257 192 4:56:56 Mark McInteer Nashville Tn m 49 45-49 XL 174296 213 5:10:22 Richard Rodenhausen Huntsville AL M 49 45-49 L 208021 223 5:13:51 chuck bengochea Alpharetta GA M 45 45-49 L 165722 247 5:18:05 jerry mccrum newnan GA M 47 45-49 L 181911 221 6:01:18 Richard Meek Red Bank Tn m 46 45-49 l pending 185 6:16:53 Bernie Hall Asheboro NC m 45 45-49 l 150072 241 6:21:40 Leslie Smith Waresboro GA M 47 45-49 L 164826 220 7:00:56 Jay Connaughton Cedartown GA M 47 45-49 L 140495 187 7:13:01 John Adams Mableton GA M 48 45-49 L       james mahaffey Simpsonville SC M 45 45-49 L       Joey Bowler Greenville SC m 50 50-54 l 154854 239 5:06:56 David Lee Davie FL M 53 50-54 XL 152259 194 5:10:01 Terry Hemminnger Pine Mountain GA m 51 50-54 xl 2090 226 5:11:25 Jerold Gardner Buford GA m 53 50-54 l 183279 274 6:32:16 Charlie Weiland Athens GA m 52 50-54 l 164357 233 6:39:47 Brad Bradford Metairie LA M 54 50-54 M 178414 235 7:09:36 Sam Council Buford GA M 50 50-54 XL   256 7:48:45 Jerold Gordner Buford GA m 53 50-54 l 183279     Michael Allpass Atlanta GA M 52 50-54 L 167303 285   Patt Burgin Waynesville NC m 56 55-59 m   289 5:49:15 Carl Mowery Murray KY m 61 60-64 l 1808 205 6:41:39 James Lowe Morcross GA m 33 clyd XL 180548 227 5:46:01 Anthony Maguire Jacksonville FL M 34 clyd L 210265 243 5:51:55 Jackk Spartz Alpharetta GA m 42 clyd XL 184816 229 5:54:54 early brewer Lumber City GA M 30 clyd XL   216 6:02:17 Ron Brucker Maryville TN M 32 clyd XL 176504 276 6:11:04 Tim Lawrence Wetumpka AL m 37 clyd XL   283 6:22:15 c m jenkins douglas GA M 43 clyd XL   215 6:34:14 Paul Lydolph III Santa Rosa Bch FL M 31 clyd XL   218   Nicholas Warren Milton FL M 24 military L   287 5:08:10 Talmadge Sheppard Enterprise AL M 31 military L   268 5:21:26 David Dosier Fort Rucker AL M 33 military L 159380 265 5:21:30 Eric Benefield Fort Benning GA M 32 military L 170228 199 5:51:52 Patrick Panjeti Auburn AL M 26 military M 182568 203 5:53:45 Corbett McCallum Columbus GA M 28 military L   230 6:01:42 Jonathan Nelson Annapolis MD M 21 military L   202 6:41:17 Timothy Durning Fort Meade MD M 42 military M 164846 211   Erik Koep Atlanta GA M 26 team     291 4:24:17 Chad Ruff Marietta GA M 35 team L   242 5:44:33 Lake Chatuge Challenge Sprint Triathlon 2003 Overall Male Winners Chris Hartfield: 40 Suches Ga 1:12:07 Sam Krieg: 27 Knoxville Tn 1:12:29 Rob Blaszkiewicz: 38 Monroe Ga 1:15:14 Overall Female Winners Carrie Brady: 26 Atlanta Ga 1:17:58 Abagail White: 27 Atlanta Ga 1:19:40 Beth Goetz: 28 Atlanta Ga 1:26:56 FirstName LastName City State Sex Age Group Race # Finish Megan Williams Atlanta GA f 19 15-19 394 2:13:05 Sarah Gorechi Franklin NC f 17 16-19 376 1:52:07 Sarah Utz Columbus NC F 20 20-24 332 1:44:03 Anna Lundeen Mountain Rest SC F 22 20-24 406 1:50:15 Carrie Brady Atlanta Ga f 26 25-29 416 1:17:58 Beth Goetz Atlanta GA F 28 25-29 418 1:26:56 Karen Appleby Knoxville TN f 26 25-29 337 1:28:28 Christine Cason Mableton GA F 29 25-29 348 1:35:57 Katie Scharf Atlanta GA F 27 25-29 402 1:36:37 Julie Isakson Atlanta GA F 26 25-29 358 1:43:24 Christy Van Dusen Atlanta GA F 29 25-29 409 1:44:43 Kathryn McAllister Nutley NJ F 29 25-29 347 1:47:27 Harmony Ilenda Atlanta GA F 28 25-29 338 1:47:29 Leigh Van Dusen New York NY F 26 25-29 407 1:48:25 Diana Orrego Atlanta GA F 26 25-29 366 2:03:26 Tiffany Rouse Powder Springs GA F 26 25-29 379 2:03:37 Katrina Kelly New York NY F 32 30-34 349 1:34:49 Jamie Smith Canton GA f 30 30-34 410 1:38:55 Lisa Carpenter Spartanburg SC F 34 30-34 378 1:40:06 Beth Hrubala Spartanburg SC F 32 30-34 377 1:43:57 Danelle Weidman Smyna GA f 32 30-34 364 1:53:11 Elizabeth Merwin Canton GA f 37 35-39 412 1:41:01 karen smidt Roswell GA F 37 35-39 395 1:53:21 Tracy Sims Anniston AL f 38 35-39 386 1:56:02 Melinda Yantch Decatur GA F 44 40-44 365 1:33:52 Kim DeLoach LaGrange GA F 43 40-44 398 2:06:47 Laura Follmer Birmingham AL F 42 40-44 354 2:12:54 Pam Jenkins Douglas GA f 42 Athena 295 1:45:15 Janice Wycherley Rocky Face GA F 43 Athena 346 1:59:56 Abigail White Bonaire GA F 27 Military 384 1:19:40 Michelle Meek Red Bank Tn f 22 relay 392 1:44:49 Rocky Oakes Otto NC M 23 20-24 350 1:16:11 Sam Krieg Knoxville TN m 27 25-29 336 1:12:29 J.D. Clockadale Atlanta GA M 28 25-29 417 1:17:14 George Sanger Knoxville TN M 29 25-29 360 1:27:08 Roderick Kent Marietta GA m 28 25-29 342 1:28:56 Jonathan Moore Atlanta GA M 27 25-29 367 1:30:13 Francis Moyer Atlanta GA m 34 30-34 419 1:24:31 Bryan Roberts Marietta GA m 33 30-34 341 1:26:22 Erik Eidsvik Atlanta GA M 30 30-34 351 1:30:22 Carrie Paul Atlanta GA m 34 30-34 420 1:35:13 Dave Linn Franklin NC m 30 30-34 397 1:44:40 Ed DeLise Roswell GA M 34 30-34 353 1:52:30 Sean Mahar Atlanta GA m 31 30-34 340 1:56:31 Steven Rouse Powder Springs GA M 30 30-34 380 2:03:39 Jeff Gelderman Dacula GA M 32 30-34 400 2:04:23 Scott Wright atlanta GA M 33 30-39 334 1:30:09 Rob Blaszkiewicz Monroe GA M 38 35-39 382 1:15:14 Jac Crawford Cumming GA M 37 35-39 362 1:23:17 Dave Cook Kennesaw GA M 37 35-39 388 1:26:42 Rob Anderson Hayesville NC m 38 35-39 344 1:30:55 Bill Wallace Suwanee GA m 39 35-39 403 1:31:11 Richard Dotson Kennesaw GA M 36 35-39 372 1:37:29 Trace Johnson Boiling Sp SC M 35 35-39 375 1:39:08 Andrew Sumpter Duluth GA m 35 35-39 391 1:41:13 Marc Follmer Birmingham AL m 39 35-39 355 1:43:05 Daren Sims Anniston AL m 38 35-39 385 1:56:06 Chris Hortsfield Suches GA m 40 40-44 363 1:12:07 Scott Miles Roswell GA m 44 40-44 381 1:26:46 Brian Summers Sante Fe NM M 40 40-44 404 1:28:52 Gregg Duff Sylva NC m 41 40-44 387 1:35:45 Buddy Cain Jefferson GA m 42 40-44 371 1:39:17 David Hayes Marietta GA M 42 40-44 361 1:43:03 Doug Hadaway Acworth GA m 41 40-44 413 1:47:09 Randall Cain Watkinsville GA m 40 40-44 370 1:48:08 Michael Smidt Roswell GA M 41 40-44 396 1:49:41 Steven Miller Asheville NC M 49 45-49 359 1:36:43 Abel Nunez Griffin GA m 49 45-49 339 1:39:48 Alan Newman Atlanta GA m 45 45-49 408 1:39:53 C+A18huck Liebold Acworth GA M 53 50-54 414 1:41:03 Don Hicks Marietta GA m 50 50-54 343 1:41:27 William Utz Columbus NC M 51 50-54 333 1:45:44 David Wycherley Rocky Face GA M 59 55-59 345 1:48:56 Carl Mowery Murray Ky m 61 60-64 383 1:45:18 Craig DeLoach LaGrange GA M 43 clyd 399 1:36:01 Walker Rutledge Atlanta GA m 30 clyd 373 1:39:02 Douglas Ingram Dacula GA M 27 clyd 411 1:39:22 Martin Trey Spartanburg SC m 32 clyd 374 1:40:50 Steve Arney Chattanooga TN M 40 clyd 368 1:45:06 Kenet Adamson Asheville NC M 45 clyd 393 1:45:22 Kenneth Radley Harrison TN M 43 clyd 369 1:58:42 Raymond Oliver Atlanta GA m 45 clyd 405 2:03:31 John Hull Duluth GA M 36 clyd 390 2:20:16 Doug Carriker Memp[his TN M 24 Clyd 389 1:44:46 Jamie Jordahl Columbus GA M 29 Military 331 1:22:57 Michael Gorhan Columbus GA m 22 Military 335 1:51:05 Leon Fronsin Alpharetta GA m 38 relay 415 1:34:42 Bob Besso San Fransisco Ca m 51 relay 401 1:41:45 CM Jenkins Douglas GA r r relay 296 1:27:59

Chatuge Challenge Sprint Triathlon 2002  Male Overall 1st Place: Andrew Johnston, 30; 53:36:21 2nd Place: Damian Walsh, 26; 55:14:87 3rd Place: Tomas Lauer, 18; 56:08:51 Female Overall 1st Place: Carolyn Peacock, 34; 1:06:37 2nd Place: Kathy Smith, 34; 1:06:39 3rd Place: Leslie Crawford, 33; 1:06:48 Chatuge Challenge Sprint Triathlon 2002           Sun Jun 1, 2002           RESULTS FOR Myouth                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:10:10 bradley gay anondale estates 36 M13             RESULTS FOR fyouth                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE             RESULTS FOR m16-19                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 56:08:00 tomas lauer kennesaw 3 M18 2 57:31:00 jack mcafee kennesaw 6 M18             RESULTS FOR f16-19                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE             RESULTS FOR m20-24                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:02:20 rocky oaks franklin 14 M22 2 1:10:24 adam moats fayetteville 38 M23 3 1:13:43 stephen holland atlanta 44 M22 4 1:15:04 robert irwin lawrenceville 48 M20             RESULTS FOR f20-24                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:17:25 elizabeth justus carrboro 53 F23 2 1:17:36 natalie leonard douglasville 54 F22 3 1:27:06 nolyan sutherland fayetteville 76 F23             RESULTS FOR m25-29                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 55:14:00 damian walsh chattanooga 2 M26 2 59:49:00 jd clockdale atlanta 11 M27 3 1:06:22 jeremey davis greenville 23 M25 4 1:17:21 james thomas monroe 52 M28 5 1:22:09 ian jones atlanta 64 M27 6 1:27:38 luis sandchez sugar hill 78 M27 7 1:27:56 marshal hancock greensboro 79 M27 8 1:30:04 william zeigler atlanta 83 M26 9 1:37:28 dave linn franklin 98 M28             RESULTS FOR f25-29                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:07:07 audra mcneal charleston 28 F26 2 1:13:32 jennifer hart dunwoody 43 F29 3 1:13:57 caraline odowirak atlanta 45 F25 4 1:30:18 lori dibble hendersonville 86 F29 5 1:30:34 melissa rosenblom lexington 87 F26 6 1:33:59 leslie rodriguez atlanta 92 F25 7 1:35:37 ronda owens sugar hill 96 F29 8 1:40:51 lori montross lexington 102 F29             RESULTS FOR m30-34                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 53:35:00 andrew johnston atlanta 1 M30 2 57:53:00 lajos toth blairsville 7 M34 3 58:31:00 paul clarke atlanta 8 M34 4 1:00:12 brandon parrerson cumming 12 M34 5 1:00:49 john hollmer cumming 13 M33 6 1:02:35 harry dinhan atlanta 15 M32 7 1:04:02 julian bisaza asheville 17 M30 8 1:04:27 george mayer anderson 19 M31 9 1:05:18 john fonk atlanta 22 M33 10 1:07:50 brian nelson huntsville 30 M32 11 1:09:55 james resio charlotte 35 M30 12 1:18:57 david stewart atlanta 58 M32 13 1:30:13 tim foster duluth 85 M34 14 1:41:32 smokey hughes greenville 104 M34             RESULTS FOR f30-34                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:06:37 carolyn peacock atlanta 25 F34 2 1:06:39 kathy smith marietta 26 F34 3 1:06:48 leslie crawford waynesville 27 F33 4 1:07:46 ann schwartz atlanta 29 F32 5 1:09:02 hope concannon candler 32 F33 6 1:15:48 paige sanderson smyrna 50 F30 7 1:17:53 beverly hendrix norcross 55 F32 8 1:24:52 vivian clarke atlanta 71 F32 9 1:25:40 elizabeth curran alpharetta 73 F31 10 1:37:39 heather weisenborn cumming 99 F32 11 1:41:25 J.L dykes greenville 103 F31             RESULTS FOR m35-39                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 56:17:00 harvey gould savanah 4 M37 2 58:58:00 chuck cates 9 9 M39 3 1:04:16 scott conary carsboro 18 M35 4 1:04:51 ubefmar herrera lawrenceville 20 M35 5 1:09:27 vance rowland belton 34 M38 6 1:14:48 ken wheeler cashiers 46 M38 7 1:20:34 roy patterson atlanta 61 M35 8 1:23:15 william lovett atlanta 66 M35 9 1:24:25 robert oster calhoun 69 M38 10 1:25:14 avril louis 72 53 M36 11 1:31:53 timothy mourninghan decatur 89 M36 12 1:35:31 regan burmeister marietta 95 M35 13 1:45:13 bob lussier duluth 107 M36             RESULTS FOR f35-39                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:15:37 joanna williamson marietta 49 F36 2 1:23:25 kelly tucker hoschtom 67 F38 3 1:26:55 kim bender waynesville 75 F38 4 1:28:10 beth caldwell ft benning 81 F38 5 1:28:17 karla weidner sylva 82 F36 6 1:30:08 jeanette hahn marietta 84 F35 7 1:37:25 sandra cantel flowery branch 97 F38 8 1:37:46 lisa dense lilburn 100 F36                                                                                     RESULTS FOR m40-44                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 56:24:00 tom jones marietta 5 5 2 59:27:00 dave crowley martinez 10 10 3 1:04:57 steve rakestraw alcoa 21 21 4 1:11:13 pete zimmerman atlanta 39 32 5 1:11:25 douglas stratton marietta 40 33 6 1:24:43 zimmerman roswell 70 52             RESULTS FOR f40-44                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:08:35 amy griffith cumming 31 F44 2 1:18:18 lynn deal atlanta 56 F42 3 1:27:12 regina fowler travel rest 77 F42 4 1:27:59 anne zimmerman atlanta 80 F44 5 1:35:21 kim schorr alpharetta 93 F42 6 1:35:24 feanne bell alpheretta 94 F43 7 1:42:01 sandra macculey marietta 106 F41 8 1:46:12 carol macauley marietta 108 F41             RESULTS FOR m45-49                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:09:02 charles williams smyrna 33 M46 2 1:10:13 patt burgin waynesville 37 M45 3 1:19:34 steve miller asheville 59 M48 4 1:21:59 floyd coleman pensacola 63 M45             6 1:30:50 dave bracken hayesville 88 M49             RESULTS FOR f45-49                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE             RESULTS FOR m50-54                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:06:35 kit sealock woodstock 24 M53 2 1:14:58 bob besso san fransisco 47 M50 3 1:33:43 ler huenefeld naples 91 M53             RESULTS FOR f50-54                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:33:11 joan varney san francisco 90 F50             RESULTS FOR m55-59                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:17:17 roger mills stockbridge 51 M56 2 1:26:10 david wycherley dalton 74 M58             RESULTS FOR f55-59                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:41:38 judy tippetoe franklin 105 F55             RESULTS FOR m60-64                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:12:34 errol lassiter woodstock 41 M60 2 1:13:27 miles hyman franklin 42 M63             RESULTS FOR f60-64                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:20:12 skip gilkerson maryville 60 F61             RESULTS FOR m65-99                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE             RESULTS FOR f65-99                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE             RESULTS FOR clyd                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:03:48 forrest swyden roswell 16 M41 2 1:20:55 michael tomasello calhoun 62 M37 3 1:23:55   Phil Manson  Conyers  68  M45 RESULTS FOR ath                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:18:53 eileen steil marietta 57 F32 2 1:38:22 janice wycherley dalton 101 F42             RESULTS FOR mil                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE             RESULTS FOR team                       DivPL TIME NAME, CITY PLACE SexPL AGE 1 1:22:15 miki & danny haralson birmingham 65 F41

The swim times below were taken as you were leaving the transition ares. Most of the times were recorded. The few racers that don't have a number beside their times were missed. I appologize for that, but most racers will have times.

The bike times were taken when leaving the transition area and reflect an accumulated time from the beginning of the race.

Swim and Transition Times for the Sprint Triathlon 1 331 10:58 2 320 12:19 3 423 12:27 4 371 12:39 5 317 13:05 6 ? 13:08 7 ? 13:08 8 422 13:12 9 413 13:18 10 412 13:57 11 402 14:02 12 407 14:04 13 358 14:13 14 397 14:17 15 349 14:18 16 344 14:29 17 ? 14:32 18 302 14:34 19 321 15:03 20 415 15:16 21 401 15:20 22 305 15:23 23 339 15:28 24 404 16:17 25 410 16:49 26 338 16:51 27 403 16:59 28 326 17:08 29 343 17:14 30 373 17:16 31 350 17:20 32 392 17:22 33 418 17:30 34 419 17:34 35 400 17:36 36 300 17:54 37 312 18:04 38 353 18:14 39 379 18:16 40 386 18:23 41 304 18:33 42 337 18:47 43 426 18:52 44 394 18:58 45 308 19:05 46 403 19:07 47 322 19:11 48 398 19:19 49 411 19:21 50 395 19:24 51 417 19:54 52 332 20:25 53 416 20:27 54 367 20:30 55 362 20:34 56 405 20:45 57 328 20:52 58 324 20:57 59 406 20:59 60 424 21:19 61 310 21:24 62 316 21:35 63 414 21:44 64 323 22:09 65 336 22:15 66 31322:15 67 319 22:20 68 327 22:27 69 307 22:27 70 333 22:28 71 365 22:32 72 311 22:51 73 384 23:01 74 352 23:44 75 368 23:53 76 383 23:56 77 425 24:07 78 375 24:10 79 329 24:27 80 376 24:47 81 421 24:49 82 314 24:54 83 377 25:01 84 318 25:04 85 301 25:08 86 369 26:29 87 347 26:31 88 341 26:38 89 364 26:48 90 335 27:14 91 334 27:16 92 306 27:23 93 387 27:42 94 359 27:49 95 420 28:20 96 325 28:41 97 409 29:49 98 399 29:59 99 396 30:20 100 390 30:48 101 393 30:52 102 354 30:57 103 360 31:01 104 378 31:17 105 355 32:03 106 346 32:28 Chatuge Challenge Sprint Triathlon Bike and Transition Times 1 371 33:22 2 331 34:45 3 317 35:00 4 389 35:56 5 397 36:26 6 407 36:33 7 356 36:39 8 358 36:41 9 412 36:50 10 402 37:03 11 423 37:14 12 320 38:09 13 351 38:23 14 404 38:47 15 388 39:13 16 321 39:56 17 415 40:09 18 302 40:12 19 334 40:26 20 413 40:29 21 422 40:32 22 419 41:25 23 305 41:28 24 401 41:31 25 349 41:41 26 350 42:03 27 395 42:40 28 410 42:45 29 400 42:52 30 394 43:03 31 392 44:07 32 343 44:09 33 339 44:23 34 418 44:32 35 338 44:36 36 324 44:46 37 417 44:48 38 411 44:50 39 304 44:56 40 326 45:04 41 353 45:28 42 426 46:15 43 300 47:01 44 308 47:26 45 373 47:27 46 379 47:35 47 386 47:40 48 398 47:53 49 406 48:04 50 424 48:12 51 316 48:20 52 414 48:41 53 352 48:47 54 322 49:02 55 403 49:06 56 307 49:20 57 348 49:29 58 332 49:41 59 416 50:10 60 337 50:12 61 365 51:01 62 328 51:15 63 336 51:30 64 367 51:36 65 312 51:40 66 301 51:49 67 327 51:54 68 362 52:33 69 318 53:03 70 345 53:48 71 319 54:00 72 313 54:50 73 333 55:15 74 347 55:23 75 405 55:34 76 314 55:41 77 425 55:57 78 375 56:01 79 323 56:39 80 359 56:59 81 311 57:00 82 325 57:39 83 421 58:02 84 310 58:04 85 329 58:49 86 384 59:27 87 306 59:40 88 387 59:44 89 360 1:00:10 90 376 1:00:53 91 377 1:00:55 92 346 1:01:42 93 396 1:01:45 94 341 1:01:53 95 420 1:02:07 96 369 1:02:40 97 393 1:03:23 98 363 1:03:53 99 368 1:03:55 100 378 1:04:54 101 335 1:04:57 102 399 1:05:12 103 355 1:05:21 104 364 1:05:27 105 334 1:06:52 106 354 1:06:59 107 390 1:07:59

A Racers Story Jeremy Dando Lake Chatuge ½ IM 02 June 2002 Haiwassie, GA Short version It was hilly, it was hot, it was humid, and I had FUN! 34:xx swim 03:xx T1 3:02:xx bike 03:xx T2 2:07:xx run 5:49:26 Long version Lake Chatuge ½ IM 02 June 2002 or "Looking for Water Bottle Guy" Haiwassie, GA The journey began in a distant, dark, barren land. Hey it was January in Minneapolis, very cold, dark at 4:30 p.m. and did I mention cold? My brother decides he wants to do a ½ IM and me being the supportive younger (smarter, better looking, more studly) brother I told him I would help him train and do the race with him. A few minor details, he is in North Carolina and I am in Minnesota, but we will work out the details. The 2nd Annual Lake Chatuge Challenge appears on the calendar and we get signed up! The training was difficult for me; all but a handful of my workouts were indoors due to a very cold spring and family constraints. All my "key" workouts were indoors, three hours on the lifecycle and an hour on the treadmill numbed my brain to the consistency of lime Jell-O. My plan was to take an extra vacation day, arrive early and spend a couple of days getting used to my borrowed bike. The drive from Atlanta to North Carolina took me past the race site so I figured I would swim the swim course and get in an easy workout. A minor problem was that I stopped for a nice large lunch of bar-b-que just outside of Atlanta and halfway through the swim I thought I would chum the waters. I finished but was mighty uncomfortable and thought the altitude (3000 ft) was bothering me also. The drive to my brother's house was long, due to several stops to deal with dizziness and a strong urge to hurl all over the road. Skipping forward to race morning… We load up my brothers truck, turn the key and nothing happened! Another attempt yielded click-click from the starter. Luckily we bump started the truck and were on our way. Note to self, park on incline, I do not want to push start this pig after the race! My attitude for the day was to swim the swim, cruise the bike and see what the run would bring. No watch, just a long catered training day. The swim was a mass start, about 150 people. The course was across the lake to the dam around a "structure" and back to the beach. I hoped the "structure" was not an electrical turbine water inlet, I had no desire to get pureed if I cut the corner too close! The water was very clean and comfortable, no problems sighting or fighting and actually drafted of someone for five or six minutes. Since I wanted to enjoy the day, I took a little break in the middle of the return trip and floated quietly looking at the awesome scenery and the rising sun. It was a great day to be fit and racing! After a few seconds it was back to business and finishing strong. I focused on body position and a long smooth stroke. The shore soon appeared and I was back on terra firma. A pedestrian transition, including a chat with the guy I loaned my camera to and it was time to bike. A survey of the bike ranks indicated a good swim and as planned I buried my brother J. The plan for the bike was to eat, drink, drink and spin up the hills. I was concerned about a major hill that the RD said it was okay to walk your bike up the hill. My hope was not to have to walk. Being from Minnesota I was not ready for all the hills. The only piece of level ground I had seen in my entire stay was the parking lot at Wal-Mart! Once on the bike I felt great and comfortably warm. I cruised the first 10 miles, passing a few of the stronger swimmers and getting passed by a couple of guys. The hill/mountain started and I climbed and climbed and tried to stay in a comfortable zone. The climb was not that bad or perhaps it was the 26-tooth cog I had installed as a "bailout" gear. I used it, it felt good and I did not tax my poor under-trained body. I am also glad that the hill was at mile ten rather than fifty. More rolling hills and scenic views. Up and down, down and up never a flat stretch. Around mile 24 a group of six riders comes past in a peleton like form. I got mad, but try to let it go since this is just a "training race". About a mile later I catch the peleton when they get confused at a turn and say a few expletives describing their pack. They ignore me and pedal off up the next hill. Oh well, let it go and enjoy the scenery, hills and warm weather. Oh yeah, it is now hot on the bike and the sun was shining. After each feeding, I made sure my bike jersey was pulled down, I did not want a fried lower back to start the run. The miles pass, up and down, generally riding by myself and occasionally getting pasted or catching someone. The bike course went from NC to GA to NC to GA and back to NC. The benefit of this was I could tiddle in two states on one bike ride! This was a good thing, telling me my hydration was good. Lots of water and Gatorade were the watchwords of the ride. Sooner than I thought the lake came back into view, but we had ten more miles to go. I was pleased with my effort and felt great. The legs were good, lower back not too sore and stomach working just fine. I dropped into the small chain ring for the last mile and spun into T2 just over three hours. A very pleasant surprise! I began to entertain thoughts of hammering the run and turning this into a race. T2 and not too many bikes in the racks. As I walked (clomped) into the transition area I notice another racer standing there sweating. I asked if he was okay and he said no, he was toasted. I was a little surprised. He never left T2, a sign of things to come. It was decision time, race hard or cruise? After a few seconds, the decision was made, stick with my plan and cruise/enjoy the day. No watch, no HRM. Apply another layer of SPF 30 to my walleye-belly white body and I was off for a jog in the country. I stopped for a couple of photos from my cameraman and then it was off. To my surprise I saw my brother with in the first ½ mile of the run. I shouted words of encouragement and figured he was about 6-8 minutes back. He must off had a better swim than I thought and hammered on the bike! It would be cool if we could run together, but I was not going to wait for him. It was almost noon and the heat and humidity was becoming oppressive. Did I mention I was from Minnesota and did most of my training for this race indoors! I was glad I made the decision to cruise the run, it made the walk breaks on the hills easier to accept. After two miles the run course goes over the dam. Finally a flat stretch of road, I hammer along feeling the heat radiating of the asphalt. I imagined this is what Hawaii is like, hot, humid, probably the closest I will every get to Kona…. At the end of the dam is a steep downhill, I trot down with my arms flailing around and past some poor guy with some serious cramping issues. Man that downhill will hurt during the second lap! I get water and Gatorade at the aid station; it is now really hot and humid. I soldier on, only walking the steep hills. Around mile four I start to wonder if I will quit after one lap. I do not need to prove anything, it is hot, humid, hilly, what the heck am I doing here? Luckily the low lasts only a few minutes and I am back to enjoying my jog in the mountains. I complete one lap and take a look at the clock. It was 4:48:xx or something, the winner is in and drinking a cool beverage and I have 6.5 miles to go. I abandon hopes of a sub-six hour race; the heat, humidity and hills have taken a toll on everyone today. I grab a gel and water bottle and head back out. I have never raced with a water bottle, but today I did not want to meltdown. At about mile 7 I saw my brother at the 5-mile point. He was struggling. We stopped and took a couple of pictures; I shouted words of encouragement and told him "He was the man!". He was going to finish and that was his primary goal for the day. I did some math and realized I had put some serious time on him on the first lap. The run continued, at least I knew the course now. Walk breaks were more common and I tried to time the to be in the shade, man was it hot! Soon I was on the dam again; some poor guy halfway across the dam imploded and was walking. I was stalking him! About ¼ of the way across I was walking, man where was this race going. My run had turned into a jog, which turned into survival. Lets hope it does not slip any further! After 50 feet I was moving again, I caught my target on the steep downhill. Luckily my quads were still intact and I could run the downhills and flats (most of the time). I filled the water bottle at the aid station, Holy cow; I had used whole bottle in about 2.5 miles. I was glad I had brought it along, even if my arms were protesting carrying the darn thing. About a mile later I spied a treasure, someone had dropped a gel. I needed a lift, would it be a double caffeine tangerine? No such luck, a strawberry banana, oh well beggars can not be choosy. I choked the gel down and a swig of water and I was moving again! I was now playing leapfrog with about four people. The gaps and positions changed with our walk breaks. Everyone was walking at some point. I caught a younger guy in tough shape, he offered words of encouragement and said he still hoped to break six hours. I was amazed, I thought that was not in the cards for me. I moved on spurred into a slightly higher pace! At this point I felt surprising good, my nutrition plan was right on, my legs felt good (okay they felt fair, but what are the supposed to feel like after five and half hours) and I had people in front of me to pace off of. The hunt was on! My focus shifted to closing the gap on the runners in front of me. People were generally walking