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| Woolmarket
Biathlon #1, consisting of a 5k run and 11 mile bike was held on
April 22, 2007. Biathlon is apparently a generic term for any
event that combines two disciplines (or so Wikipedia says),
although the term often refers to the Olympic competition for
people on cross country skis who shoot rifles. Luckily,
everyone who showed up in Woolmarket appeared to be ‘armed’ only
with bicycles and running shoes; I saw no sign of skis or guns
(although the course at one point does pass by a shooting
range). There is no preregistration for this event so sign up is pretty streamlined. We had a little difficulty finding the race (Mapquest has never heard of Woolmarket and my Mississippi back roads map predates some road construction near the coast) but were not the last to arrive. The bike racks (and the prime spaces against the fence) were full as I had been warned, but we managed to fashion perfectly functional transition areas in the grass facing the start. The run leg is straight out (going down) and back in (going up). As I continue to have opportunities to experience creative course designs here and there, I find myself more and more drawn to the purity of the ‘out and back.’ The beginning of the bike leg takes the same course so is downhill and a real leg saver after running about a mile and a half up. Turns on the bike course are logical and well marked. The information I was given about the bike course on the Pacers’ Members Forum was mostly right on other than the fact that an unanticipated heavy almost head wind put a real dent in my downhill speed on the rollers of Highway 67. A few Pacers competed including my husband Don who had never before done any type of race which required him to run. In all, 108 participants completed the event. The other two races in the 2007 series will be held on May 27th and June 24th. I highly recommend these races to anyone new to or experienced with multisport racing. Top finishers were very strong but there were a range of abilities represented. A mountain bike class makes these races accessible to those who don’t have or are not inclined to buy a road or time trial bike. Full results © sheryl l. chatfield
Results of Pine
Belt Pacers
8. Robin
Ryder 51:34 --- First 30-34 age group
9. Mike
Barnes 52:51 --- Second 30-34 age group
10. Sheryl
Chatfield 53:02 --- First Overall Female
22. Steve
Phillips 56:08 --- First 50-54 age group
26. Ed
Wheeler 56:53 --- Second 50-54 age group
45. David Beckett
1:00:03 --- Second 55-59 age group
66. Don Mutchler
1:05:19 --- First Biathlon! (PR)
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