Here we are ending the heat of the season--quite literally--as we head for the Fall roundup of multisport events. By the end of July, we already had more 90-degree days in the DC area than we had in the last two years combined. But multisporters are in fine fettle. They're tough; they're strong...strong enough to go half-Iron at the 20th Annual Blackwater Eagleman (1/2 -Ironman), a Hawaii Ironman Qualifier.

The Blackwater Eagleman Triathlon

The next time you cruise down Route 50 on the way to Ocean City, pay attention to that beautiful little park in Dorchester County, you know, the one with that striking sculpture with billowing sails. It marks the spot for the Eagleman Triathlon, that early summer test with qualifying slots for the Hawaii Ironman. It also tells you something about the winds thereabouts. This has become a world-class event with world- class competition.

Despite the midsummer heat, June 9 was a decent day for the event in Dorchester County, MD. Neither excessive heat nor wind, common occurrences here, taxed the 2002 field that boasted nearly 1800 entrants. Conditions were a near-enough approximation to ideal to produce new course records for both men and women. The pros were out in force as Lyons, CO's Tim De Boom (30) bested all comers on the flat, fast 1.2-mile swim, 56- mile bike, 13.1-mile run course. With the fastest bike split in 2:06:24 (averaging 26.58 mph) and the speediest (1:12:07) half- marathon (averaging a shade over 5:30 minute miles), DeBoom coasted to a course record, breaking the tape in 3:44:07 for a remarkably easy victory. Second-place pro Tim Legh (28) of San Diego was 7:45 back in 3:51:52. New Zealand (Gisborne) pro Stephen Sheldrake (28), the owner of the fastest swim split (21:36), finished third nearly ten minutes (3:54:05) behind DeBoom This was an awesome demonstration of pro prowess as neither the pro women (despite a course record) nor the amateurs could break the 4-hour barrier.

Among the pro women, Baltimore's Dr. Joanna Zeiger (32) must feel snake-bitten--by a decidedly Swiss snake. In the inaugural Olympic triathlon that opened competition at the Australian games two years ago, Zeiger was the highest US finisher. She finished fourth behind two Swiss women and Australian Michellie Jones. Although neither of those Swiss Misses showed at Eagleman, the redoubtable Natascha Badmann (also Swiss) did.

For those who don't know Badmann, she is, in street parlance, b- a-a-d. A consummate duathlete, she is the only woman to have won back-to-back races in the grueling Powerman Zofingen before setting her sights on the ultimate triathlon prize, the Hawaii Ironman. Badmann (35) has won that event three times, most recently back-to-back in 2000 and 2001. So Zeiger hustled to a second-place in 4:15:10 behind Badmann's course record 4:11:58. Badmann owned the fastest bike split among the women with a 2:15:57 clocking (24.7 mph) while Zeiger had the best swim (22:50 for the 1.2 miles). The third-place pro was Amy Ferrell (25) of Ogdensburg, NY in 4:19:27.

The real races were among the amateurs, however. The top five women were separated by 5 minutes, 2 seconds and the top five men by 2 minutes, 5 seconds. With margins like those, your shoelaces better not come undone! Blacksburg, VA's Peter Traylor (24) led the men home in 4:01:28. Traylor's bike split was only bettered by two of the pros. He was followed by Adam Carlson (23) of Atlanta (with the second-fastest run of the day) who made up all but 10 seconds of the 6:49 that he had ceded to Traylor at the start of the half-marathon. Otho Keller (25) of Timonium, a frequent force in local races, took fourth place in 4:02:44 as he was edged by Canada's (Ontario) Len Gushe (39) who was 12 seconds faster. West Point's Michael Hagen (39) was the fifth-place amateur in 4:03:33.

Among the amateur women, Jill Riblett (30) of Virginia Beach took top honors in 4:30:36, the sixth female and 104th triathlete to cross the line. Riblett, whose third-fastest bike split overcame all but two of the pros, beat top master Patricia Loggins (40) of Charleston, SC by nearly two minutes (4:32:35). Loggins (121st overall) finished 44 seconds ahead of Kara Hughes (39) of Evanston, IL (4:33:09). Arlington, VA's Kirsten Black (27) finished fourth in 4:35:24, edging Allie Lawler (32) of Stamford, CT by a bare 14 seconds. Black had the fifth-best half- marathon, behind four pro women. Finishing about 17 minutes behind the remarkable Loggins in the masters race were Kathleen Hughes (44) of Columbus, OH in 4:49:28 and Becky Obletz (42) of Portland, OR in 4:50:38. The men's masters race was a bit more competitive as veteran Bill Kvetkas (40) of Annapolis was outdistanced in the last half of the marathon to cede top honors to Robert Hepler, Jr. (40) of Machias, ME. Hepler (30th overall) was clocked in 4:15:40 to Kvetkas's 4:16:02 (32nd overall). Boca Raton's Steven Griffith (41) followed in 4:17:44 with Southington, CT's David Gworek 35 seconds later. Pittsburgh's Eric Wilkins (43) rounded out the top five in a time of 4:19:53.

RD Rob Vigorito awards grand-masters prizes in his races. These are defined as 50 or over for the women and 60 or over for the men. There are time limits for all three of the triathlon disciplines in this tough race, but "no worries" here. Jon Adamson (65) of Alpharetta, GA clocked the win in 4:59:44 (403rd place, overall). Thomas Murray of Zelienople, PA was second (462nd overall) in 5:05:47. Reston's Antonio Panizza grabbed third (560th overall) in 5:13:27. Women's winner Beatrice van Horn (50) of Ft. Collins, CO had a time of 5:16:46 good for 597th place overall. Not only did all of these individuals finish in the top half of their gender group; they also finished in the top half of 1338 finishers.

Notes and News

Some new celebs in the mid-Atlantic multisport ranks: Cecily Tynan, meteorologist at Philadelphia's ABC-affiliate finished third, behind local pros Desiree Ficker and Marjan Huizing, at the Blackwater Traverse Duathlon in April . . . Huizing is regaining form as she won the Shamrock Duathlon in Glastonbury, CT on June 23rd with a 1:29:31 clocking. She averaged just under 5:49 per mile pace on the first 5K run and 20.8 mph on the 28K (about 17.4 miles) bike . . . RD of the popular Riley's Rumble Half-Marathon and ex- Board member of Montgomery County Road Runners Bill Riggs (33) is on-track for his first Ironman. He is training for the Great Floridian in Clermont, FL on Oct. 19. Riggs finished the Eagleman in 5:53:12. Riggs's efforts are noteworthy because he was diagnosed some time ago with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disorder, an inherited neurological disease with progressive degeneration of muscles in the limbs (notably the extremities of the limbs) and both loss of sensation and impairment of function. Riggs is increasing both his long runs and his long bikes in preparation for the Great Floridian . . . Potomac pro Desiree Ficker has overcome her midseason woes from an injured soleus to take the Dannon Duathlon in Everett, WA at the end of July. The intriguing event interspersed two 10-mile bikes among the three 2-mile runs. The Zoot Sport-sponsored Ficker was remarkably consistent and won the event by over three minutes.