Grinder's Biathlon

Grinders Bike Shop decided to hold a triathlon during Aquafest this year.  It was scheduled to include about 2.7 miles of canoe/kayaking and 1.7 miles of running.  It was a fun idea.  Unfortunately, it rained most of the morning hours until about 2 pm that day.  I am sure this rain scared off the hoards of people who would have thought to do this race.  I am not sure what the actual number of people who did this race was, but I could count them on two hands.  I think there were nine or ten people.  The river was pretty shallow, although in reality it was higher than usual for this time of year due to the rain.  I can't say there was much on the river for obstacles, but there were some logs here and there that caused some small rapids.  It was a horn start and everyone left from the area near the dam in Rice Lake at Holsum Riverside Park.  Participants then kayaked south until exit point.  I cleared the kayak portion first.

A buddy of mine, Brian Arnold, also participated in the race and left the water in second position.

A run followed the kayak portion that took participants up the Cedar Side Trail to the finish line behind the college.  A photographer snagged this picture that makes it look like I am about ready to fall over with exhaustion.  I really was doing fine.

A few moments of chaos ensued while they scrambled to figure out awards.  They had to sift through the times of the competitors.  Participants didn't know what to do.  I liked the white umbrella, showing that these race photographers weren't shorting participants from getting that ideal race picture.

Very cool awards were given.  The top three people were given certificates for merchandise and repair services in the shop.  I can always use that.  Lucky #7 finished in about 34 minutes today.  I must have been quick because the race organizer told me he finished just the canoe/kayak portion the day before in the same amount of time.  Grinders did a nice job organizing the event and hopefully it will continue to grow in future years.  I was first out of all the participants today.  Usually, my dad jokes that if I tell him I placed high in a race he says something like "were there only three people who showed up."  Well, today there weren't many more than that, but my dad will be able to laugh at his own joke after this race.