Stroud, Loskotova capture overall titles in triathlon
BY DAVID QUICK The Post and CourierISLE OF PALMS - On a day when out-of-town talent was expected to dominate the men's division of the third East Cooper Coastal Triathlon on Sunday, the exact opposite happened.
Third-year medical student Zach Stroud and 36-year-old attorney Turner Boone comfortably took first and second places in the triathlon, which featured a .6-mile ocean swim, a 16-mile bike and 5-mile run. On the women's side, Czech Republic professional triathlete Gabriela Loskotova, 32, beat local favorite Tracy Dewitt of Daniel Island by more than two minutes.
Loskotova, who hails from Prague and has yet to hone her English, is competing in triathlons in North America this spring and this was her first of the season - which she described as a "training" event. She is focusing her efforts on Ironman Canada in August.
Her win was the second consecutive year a Czech dominated a field. Last year, Stroud finished third behind Savannah-based Czech triathlete Radek Parnica.
Stroud, who won the inaugural East Cooper tri in 2005, was all smiles Sunday. The 26-year-old was the first out of the water and stayed in the lead the whole way - clocking the fourth fastest bike split and the second fastest run split. He credits his success to backing off his training for the Lake Placid (N.Y.) Ironman, which will be in July, for the last two weeks and doing shorter, faster workouts.
While Stroud has been a top local triathlete for the last two years, Boone seemed to surprise even himself with his best triathlon finish. He had never finished in the top five, though he has won a bike-run duathlon. The feat Sunday came on his 36th birthday.
The top masters finishers were Jeff Brandenburg, 40 (race officials did not know his residence), and Melinda Yelton, 40, of Charlotte.
Yelton is a seasoned triathlete with two Ironman finishes among her 13-year triathlon resume.
This was her first triathlon in Charleston and, like many, she worried about the 64-degree ocean water temperature. She prepped herself by jumping into a 58-degree Lake Norman, near Charlotte, the day before arriving. She lasted only two minutes, but the strategy worked. She thought the water and conditions were ideal. Nearly 180 of the 208 total registrants completed the race, while 15 three-person relay teams also finished.
Not everything was ideal Sunday.
According to Mount Pleasant Police Sgt. Donnie Quick, 38-year-old Will Lewis of Mount Pleasant ran into a vehicle while biking on the Isle of Palms Connector and had to be taken the hospital. Race Director Paul King spoke with Lewis at his home mid-afternoon Sunday and reported that Lewis suffered the brunt of the collision on his right shoulder and arm and had to get stitches.
Partly as a result of the accident, Quick noted that officials will "re-evaluate" a course that remains open to car traffic. "We usually do that anyway," he said of most special events.
Results
OVERALL: Male - Zach Stroud 1:26:28, Turner Boone 1:30:47, Kurt Braeckel 1:32:48. Female - Gabriela Loskotova 1:36:28, Tracy Dewitt 1:38:39, Sara Kraft 1:42:38. MASTERS: Male - Jeff Brandeburg 1:30:56. Female - Melinda Yelton 1:40:59. CLYDESDALE - Keith O'Connell 1:41:28. ATHENA - Melanie Stuart 1:54:27. AGE GROUPS: 15-under - Ethan Ruckel 1:37:55. No female. 16-19 - No participants. 20-24 - Pete Schultz 1:36:49. Megan Cole 1:52:23. 25-29 -Jackson Bender 1:44:15. Brooke Bower 1:52:56. 30-34 - Brad Miller 1:27:37. Robin O'Connell 1:46:45.35-39 - Robert Reuther 1:39:46. Ciny Teachman 2:13:17.40-44 - Robert Teachman 1:35:32. Patricia Cohen 1:42:19. 45-49 - Jirka Martin 1:39:56. Jodi Joye 1:54:41. 50-54 - Rick James 1:40:43. Jackie O'Rourke 2:42:05. 55-59 - Bob Griffith 1:51:46. Susan Radley 2:12:14. 60-64 - Neil Jacobs 2:01:24. No female. 65-69 - Glenn Vetter 2:23:38. No female. 70-99 - No participants. RELAY TEAMS: Male - Misfits (Richard Farr, John Oliver and Ryan Thompson) 1: 28:10. Female - Bull Street Babes (Bridgette Lindsey, Diana Marino and Melanie Jeffries) 1:53:04. Coed - TrySports (Rachel Kozy, David Bolger and Neil McDonagh) 1:26:58.