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Local athletes survive, flourish in Ironman

Sandkuhl, Palm win categories, qualify for world championships

The conditions were near perfect for this year’s Ironman Canada race in Penticton – cool and dry with almost no wind – as a record turnout of 2,166 athletes took to the water last Sunday morning.

It would be dark again before many of them would get to the finish line, following a 2.4 mile/3.86 kilometre swim, a 112 mile/180.2 km bike and a 26.2 mile/42.2 km run. But an amazing 2,058 of the participants managed to finish the race this year.

The people of Penticton were thrilled to see one of their own, Tom Evans of Naramata, claim the pro men’s title this year with his time of eight hours, 28 minutes and six seconds. This was the first time in the event’s 22-year history that it was won by a local athlete.

Evans posted the fastest time in the swim and the run, building up a lead of almost 15 minutes in the first two events before his main competition, Gordo Byrn of New Zealand, turned up the heat in the run. Over the course of the marathon, which Evans completed with the seventh fastest time of 3 hours, 11 seconds, Byrn managed to close the gap to just under two minutes with a leading run time of 2:46:09.

Lisa Bentley of Caledon, Ontario defended the women’s title with the top swim, the second-fastest bike and the top run of the day, crossing the line in 9:16:02. Her closest competitor, Joanna Zeiger, was almost 13 minutes behind at the finish line.

Among the local competitors, Paul Nicholas of Whistler posted the top time of 10:44:41 to finish 186 th overall and 42 nd in the men’s 35 to 39 age group. He made the swim in 1:05:45, the bike in 5:33:35 and the run in 3:59:46, and spent just 7:22 in the transitions.

Greg Sandkuhl, competing in his first Ironman, blew the competition away in the 55 to 59 age category to finish first out of 64 competitors with a time of 11:01:08, qualifying for a spot in the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii.

Sandkuhl, who turns 60 this year, was 3:37 ahead of the next competitor in his category, placing first in the swim, fourth on the bike and third in the marathon. In addition, in both the swim and the run he was 272 nd overall.

Marla Zucht had an incredible first Ironman. She hoped to break the 12 hour mark, and succeeded by almost 40 minutes to finish 11 th out of 144 women in the 30 to 34 age category with a time of 11:21:28. In her age group she was 73 rd out of the water, ninth on the bike and 14 th in the run.

John Blok came 20 th out of 123 competitors in the men’s 50 to 54 group, crossing the finish line in 11:43:07. He was 58 th after the swim, an incredible sixth on the bike, and 25 th on the run.

His stomach started to bother him on the bike leg, possibly because he swallowed so much lake water in the swim. As a result he couldn’t drink much water on the bike without cramping, and it was painful to get off his saddle to pedal in some sections. He also couldn’t eat, and felt his glucose levels go down.

"It was gross. I had stripes in front of my eyes for the whole bike ride. I actually got (a time penalty) for drafting, which I never get, but I was fine with it because I needed the time anyway to recover. When I got off the bike, my eyes were so blurry I couldn’t see anybody," said Blok.

The run wasn’t much easier, and because Blok wasn’t able to eat or drink as much as he would have liked, he felt tired and dehydrated the entire way.

"My time wasn’t what I wanted, but under the circumstances it should have been worse. I was 20 th in my age category, which was actually pretty good all things considered."

Christine Cogger, who was making her first Ironman appearance – as well as competing in her first ever triathlon and first ever marathon – finished the race in an impressive time of 12:11:44 to rank 22 nd out of 73 competitors in the women’s 25 to 29 race.

She started off steadily in the swim, finishing 46 th in her age category, before turning up the intensity to finish 16 th in the bike and 25 th in the run.

"I was pleasantly surprised to see where I finished," said Cogger. "Halfway through the marathon I was kind of struggling a little, my stomach was cramping, and I was wondering what I was doing there. There was a section in the middle of the marathon with a lot of hills, and I was having a hard time with that, but so was everybody else. That was probably the low point for me.

"But the swim and the bike went well, and I got through the run in not too bad a time. It was definitely worth it."

Cogger says she was helped along the way by the volunteers and the crowds of cheering spectators.

"I can’t say enough good things about the volunteers, they really made the race for me. They make you feel like you’re the greatest, that everybody is a pro. It was so encouraging, especially when things were tough, to have everyone yelling your name. It really helped me a lot," said Cogger.

Although she said at the end of the race that she would never sign up for another Ironman, all it took was a day of rest before she softened her stance. She won’t be in the 2005 race, she said, but possibly the year after that.

After two days of rest she was back on her mountain bike, something she missed while she was training for Ironman.

This fall she plans to take part in a few local runs as well as get back into the weekly Loonie Races. She’s also looking to run in a marathon before November.

Next year she will take part in a few Olympic distance triathlons and possibly a half-Ironman race.

Grace Blok, whose goal was just to finish this year, beat her own projected time in the swim by 15 minutes and held steady through the bike and the run to come in at 15:13:49.

Doug Fox, who lives in Squamish and works in Whistler, finished eighth out of 32 in the men’s 60 to 64 bracket with a time of 12:56:42. He was fourth in the swim, third on the bike and 16 th on the run.

Mae Palm, a Squamish ultra runner, posted her personal best time in the women’s 60 to 64 group. Palm came in at 13:19:01, first in her age category and just six minutes back of the course record, to qualify for a spot at the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii for the fourth year running.

She suspects that she could have made the record time if she didn’t stop to chat with the other athletes she knew, but she didn’t have any regrets about the day.

"I’m very happy with it," said Palm. "It was a personal best for me, and I can close to the record even though I’m coming close to the end of my age category.

"I tried to work a little harder this year, and went a little faster. I told myself I wouldn’t stop so much to talk to people, but I found myself doing it anyway. That’s part of what makes the race so enjoyable for me."

The day after the race in Penticton, Palm registered for next year’s Ironman Canada as well as the Ironman championships in early October. That leaves her about six weeks to recover from her race, and get a little more training in. "Of course I’ll be just trying to maintain at this point, six weeks isn’t an awful lot of time. I’ll go for a few runs and a few bike rides. I’m my own trainer so I have to listen to my body to make sure that I don’t overdo it. That’s something that may have gotten me in the past," said Palm.

For the Ironman championships she hopes to be in the top-five, but as she gets closer to her 65 th birthday, there are more people in her category every year.

Her biggest hurdle, as always, is putting the money together to get to the event. Semi-retired, Palm is hoping to hold a fundraiser or find a sponsor this year – as a four time Canadian champion and two-time world Ironman champion, she does get a lot of attention. Sports Illustrated Women is just one of the publications that Palm has appeared in.

Next year, when she competes in the 65 to 69 category, she will take another shot at the Canadian record for that age group, and will have fewer athletes to beat in the championships as well.

"I still have to work on my swimming, that’s my big weakness. I’ve done it so many times, but I still get nervous in the water. I’m pretty much hyperventilating at the start of the swim, and I spend to much time worried about the people behind me, that they’re going to run me over," said Palm. "I am getting a little better each year, and I’m starting to feel more confident. I think that’s why I was able to do so well this year."

Paul Suter, an experienced triathlete who divides his time between Whistler and Penticton, had knee problems, and finished in 14:29:54. In the 40 to 44 age group he was 60 th out of the water, 33 rd on the bike and 286 th in the run, which he took 7:51:06 to finish.

Jenica Sorban of Squamish, the youngest local in the race, finished in 13:40:15 to rank 12 th in the women’s 18 to 24 category.

Mylene Belleau of Squamish was 130 th in the women’s 30 to 34 category, crossing the line in 15:52:07.

Complete results are available online at www.ironman.ca.