(File Photos: Top - Greg Taylor "napping" at the finish line of the 2009 Timberman. Left - Jan Guenther leaves an angry Lake Waconia behind.)Mankato's Greg Taylor, 55, and Mound's Jan Guenther, 50, turned in extraordinary efforts at Chisago Lakes Half.
How extraordinary?
How about "Best in the World" extraordinary?
At the 2007 70.3 World Championships in Clearwater, FL, a terrific triathlete from Brazile named Carlos Luis Ribiero won his division in 4:29:37, which is believed to be the fastest half time ever for a 55+ male.
On Sunday at the Chisago Lakes Half, Mankato's Greg Taylor swam, PowerCranked (yes, he was riding PowerCranks) and ran his way to a 4:21:04.
Yup, you read correctly. A 4:21.
An official World Record?
No. But definitely a World Record-worthy performance.
Huh?
The Chisago Lakes Half had slightly short swim (1.1-ish) and bike (55.4 miles) segments. The times, as a result, were a bit faster than if the event were a spot-on 1.2-56-13.1.
How much faster?
For elite athlete males, perhaps four minutes; perhaps five for elite females.
Even if 6-7 minutes were added to Taylor's finishing time, it would still have been significantly faster than Ribiero's clocking.
As for Guenther's 4:36:05, only Denver's Ellen Hart, the 2008 USAT Master of the Year and former Olympic-calibre runner, has covered a half faster, a 4:35:29 at 70.3 Worlds last fall.
Minnesota is blessed to be the home of three--Taylor, Guenther and six-time World Champion Tony Schiller-- of the very best over-age 50 triathletes in the World.
