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Thursday, September 15, 2005

A 2nd @ Gino's Duathlon

Posted by John

I headed down to Codorus State Park last Sunday, Sept. 11th, to try my first duathlon - Gino's Race, a duathlon to benefit the ALS Society (Lou Gehrigs Disease). All the proceeds from the event are donated to the ALS Association, Greater Philadelphia Chapter in memory of Gene Gladfelter. Another good race for a great cause...

The race: A 2 mile road run, followed by a 14 mile road bike loop, finishing with another 2 mile road run. I was able to check out the course the weekend before so I knew it was going to be a hilly affair, no record speeds in this event!

100 or so participants set off for the first 2 miles. Fast. There were some guys that were really flying, but I knew if I kept them in sight they would come back during the bike leg. I accomplished that goal and came into the first transition in 5th place, with only one racer already out of sight.

I had a pretty good transition and set off on the bike leg of the course. Within the first mile, I passed all but one racer and found myself in second position - and I felt pretty good too. For the remainder of the hilly ride, I just kept it steady, trying not to exert too much energy as to have a little left for the final run. Never did see the first placed racer...

Came in to the second transition, quickly lost the bike and helmet, and tossed on the running shoes. No one was pressuring me from behind, so I pretty much ran the final two miles at my own pace - not overly hard, but by no means was it easy. I had a nice little cramp that made the last ten minutes rather uncomfortable, but I made it through to finish a solid 2nd place in 1 hr. 3min. - almost 4 minutes ahead of the third placed racer.

Jeff Miller (2005 Category 1/2 PA Time Trial Champ) won the event in just under one hour. Ouch.

Great event and I will definitely return again. Hope it continues to grow!