Matt Balzer, Cyrus Severance, and Bethany Handley traveled to Pacific Grove, CA to race in an Olympic Distance Tri this past weekend. Tri California put on a great race with excellent organization and an uplifting atmosphere. Many people came out to cheer on the competitors in a race that was extremely spectator-friendly. The race course had 2 swim loops, 4 bike loops and 3 run loops, so spectators saw the competitors multiple times throughout the 2(+) hours that the race ensued.
The water temperature was in the 50s, which was quite chilly. The swim is known by many as “the kelp crawl” since there was so much kelp that the swimmers had to swim over and through. Bethany said that she had to stop a couple times to detach seaweed from her timing chip and also from around her neck.
Matt finished 8th overall in the pro men’s race, receiving kudos for the top 10 finish as well as a nice pay check to add to his bank account. Cyrus and Bethany competed in the age-group event. Cyrus finished 5th overall. He was about a minute off of 3rd place, which would have earned him pro status. In one of her last races as an amateur, Bethany won the race, finishing almost 8 minutes ahead of the next competitor. Bethany had the fastest run by nearly 3 minutes!
