(Pattison State Park, WI - September 12, 2009) The 3rd edition of the Burrito Union 5 & 10 Hour Triathlon featured an interesting blend of the expected and the pleasantly unexpected.
Thunder Bay's Jon Balabuck (pictured) was expected to win the men's 10-hour and he didn't disappoint. Columbia Heights' Matt Payne was expected to dog Jon all day, and did just that. Both men, along with Toddville, Iowa's Barry Breffle outperformend all who had gone before.
On the pleasantly unexpected side, the weather forecast called for cool temps and rain, with a strong chance of thunder and lightning, but instead the skies were clear and midday temps reached the low 80s. Additionally, at approximately 8:30 a.m. an opaque curtain of fog dropped onto Interfalls Lake, where it would loiter for 40 minutes or so, forcing the cancellation of the swim portion of the 2nd "Lap" (each lap, except for lap #2, consisted of a .4 mile swim, 14-mile bike and 3.5 mile run). Few participants complained, the prospect of postponing the need to clamber into their wetsuits until lap three appealing to most.
In 2007 Rochester's Mark Carey completed 7 laps in 8:53:42. He opted not to proceed for two reasons: his victory was assured and extreme fatigue. Had he chosen to continue and was able to match the time of his previous lap, he would have finished 8 laps in 10:13:02.
By comparison, here is what Jon Balabuck did on September 12: Finishing 7 2/3 laps (remember, swim leg #2 was cancelled) in 9:56, his win in hand, Balabuck, who bonked hard on lap 6 only to recover at the start of lap 7 (he was hoovering bananas like a crazed chimpanzee!), Balabuck had less than 4 minutes to decide whether to stop or proceed. (The swim course would be closed at the 10-hour mark.)
As his wife shook her head and rolled her eyes incredulously, Jonathan headed for the beach.
Jonathan's final stats: 8 2/3 laps - Total Time: 11:28:07 - 25 transitions - Total Distance Covered: Swim - 3.2 miles, Bike - 126 miles - Run - 31.5 miles
Matt Payne's Final Stats: 7 2/3 laps - Total Time - 10:00:37 - 22 transitions - Total Distance -
Swim - 2.8 miles, Bike - 112 miles - Run - 27 miles
Barry Breffle covered the same distances as Payne. His final time was 10:19:24
The women's 10-hour solo winner was Rosslyn Kendrick, who looked strong and raced aggressively throughout the event. She covered 5 2/3 laps in 10:15:05. The final breakdown was: 17 transitions - Total Distance - Swim 2 miles; Bike - 84 miles - Run - 21 miles.
Fellow Duluthian Juliana Bertelsen also covered 5 2/3 laps. Her time was 10:17:20, only 2:15 slower than Kendrick's.
Winners in the other categories:
* 2-Person - 10-hour - Men: Donald Sawyer & Tyler Olson (Now Bikes Tri Club) - 8 2/3 laps - 10:45:24
* 2-Person - 10-Hour - Women: Leanne Bronson & Sondra Mowers (Breakaway Babes) - 7 2/3 laps - 11:17:35
* 2-Person - 10-Hour - Coed: Christopher Clausen & Jackie Arendt (Pain Cave) - 7 2/3 laps - 9:51:46
* 3-Person - 10-Hour - Men: David Binsfield, Jeremy Beuch & John Cummings (Team Clown Car) - 8 2/3 laps - 10:27:31
* 3-Person - 10-Hour - Women: Tiffany Carlson, Coleen White & Kristen Regas (Team TCK) - 6 2/3 laps - 9:47:37
* 3-Person - 10-Hour - Coed: Julie Hendrickson, Tim Keppers & Bettina Keppers (2 Chicks & 1 Old Goat) - 7 2/3 laps - 10:52:17
* 5-Hour Solo - Men: Todd Jensen - 4 2/3 laps - 6:08:46
* 5-Hour Solo - Women: Lindsay St. Martin - 2 2/3 laps - 4:53:12
* 2-Person - 5-Hour - Men: David Pipho & Jason Hanson - 3 2.3 laps - 5:05:06
* 2-Person - 5-Hour - Lisa Heyesen & Angel Hohenstein (Team Silent Killers) -3 2/3 laps - 5:24:27
* 3-Person - 5-Hour - Women: Holly Bowen-Bailey, Julie Flotten & Shari Marshik (Team Flowen) - 2 2/3 laps - 5:59:16
* 3-Person - 5-Hour - Coed: Justin Proulx, Dawn Studstad & Rick Kurhajetz (Culos en Fuego) - 4 2/3 laps - 5:28:40
Burrito Union 5 & 10 is a unique and special event. We wholeheartedly encourage all triathletes to put it on their "Must Do" list.
Burrito Union Results:
