November 1:
DFT member Gail Flaa conquers her first marathon - the NEW YORK MARATHON - and inspires her family and students to go for their dreams!
Gail writes: "I wore a top with my name and state printed on it, as a friend of mine (who has previously run NYC) said it would be a good thing to do. People in the crowd cheered for me constantly by saying: “Go Gail from South Dakota”! It was one of THE most incredible experiences! I also had: “Olivia is my Saint” printed on the back, as I was running for our baby daughter who was stillborn at 34 weeks. She would have been six on October 30th. Kelly Moran gave me a charm to wear on my shoelace, so Olivia would be with me."
A local TV station interviewed Gail about this experience: http://www.keloland.com/NewsDetail6162.cfm?Id=92352
September 28, 2009:
DFT p/b TREADS adds world championship victory to long list of season palmares!
Congrats to Tricia Downing for winning the 2009 Duathlon World Championsip in Charlotte, N.C.!
We arrived in Charlotte, N.C. on Thursday night and were fortunate to have the offer to stay with a friend, Mike Savicki who lives just about 35 minutes from the racecourse. The great thing about staying at Mike’s house is that it is totally accessible (he’s in a chair too), it’s right on the lake (BEAUTIFUL), he has all the spare equipment I could have needed and tonight he took us out on his boat. Not only that, but his pantry is stocked better than the shelves at Safeway and he’s very “motherly” for a guy…he would not let us leave the house yesterday without raincoats, an umbrella, enough food and Gatorade…we were definitely prepared!
On to the race! The event took place at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, home to the two of the biggest races on the NASCAR circuit. And even part of the race took place on the apron of the track. Looking at the map the course was anyone’s guess as it was so confusing, but by the time we got my equipment to the transition area (which was in the infield by all the car garages) and took the Team USA picture, we didn’t have time or the means to travel the course. I had no idea what I was in for. Good and bad, looking back.
Yesterday we had a leisurely morning, which is rare in racing, but my division didn’t go off until 3:30pm, so we didn’t even leave Mike’s place until 12:30 or so. I liked not having to get up early, but I don’t think afternoon is my ultimate time for racing. As we backed out of the driveway, the sky was overcast and misting rain. It didn’t seem like such a big deal as it helped cool things down a bit, but as we approached the track, the mist had turned into a light rain. We got there as the elite men were on the bike course and seeing them go downhill through the tunnel and make tight turns, in a group, on wet, painted roads made me flinch every time. We could see a couple of racers had already gone down and once we got into the infield we saw a one guy crash just feet away from us. Things were starting to get real slippery and the age group race hadn’t even started yet.
Once that race was over, they had the elite and junior award ceremonies and then it was on to the age groupers. We all lined up at the start line with the PC athletes in front and racers from 18-years-old to 84, behind us.
Since this was the first time for a ParaTri division in the duathlon it was SMALL. Just five of us to be exact and I was the only female and the only wheelchair. There were fours Americans and one Italian. I was feeling pretty good about things. I figured that I would be able to take off on the run and get a gap on the field, then hold steady on the bike and then catch back up on the second run. Funny how I always have great plans and they almost never work out. The horn sounded and off we went.
The beginning of the run was only about 200 meters on the apron, then went into the infield, curved around like a snake through some grassy areas at the end of the track and out through the tunnel that leads you from the track to the outside world. Before I even got to the tunnel I heard my tire go “pssssssssssss” and I thought, “oh crap!” I don’t know how I already had a hole in my tire since we had checked them and filled them up earlier, but I kept pushing hoping that Steve had put some Stan’s in the tire. I headed for the tunnel and went full speed down the hill into the tunnel and as I hit the bottom, I hit a grate in the ground full force and it sounded like my disk wheels were going to crack and then the “pssssss” turned into “PSSSSSSSSSSSSS” and I was now facing a hill that went straight up. I started up forward and immediately knew that this was a backward climbing hill. In the meantime, my sunglasses were fogging up, I was breaking out in a massive downpour of sweat because of the humidity, so I threw off my favorite pink Rudy sunglasses, hoping I wasn’t saying goodbye to them forever (but knowing I would never get them back), turned around and started pulling up the hill. I finally made it and turned around only to have another hill staring me in the face. The course wrapped through the concourses of the track, to a bridge that went over the highway and came back over another bridge. As I pushed through the first lap (which was only 3.1 miles per lap), the rain started FOR REAL. Even though I had a huge supply of Klister on my chair, I kept coating my gloves and they’d grip for a while, but it was just too wet to keep them tacky for long. The hills were so steep and hundreds of runners had caught me and my gloves were so slippery, I had to go up everything backwards. That was FIVE hills per 5K lap that I had to turn around and pull up. It took me 1 hour and 11 minutes to go 10K, when I was planning for 38 minutes or less. The good news, the Stan’s sealed up the hole in my tire and though the air was low it was enough to keep me going. When I pulled up in transition, I was soaked! Steve helped me out of my chair and on to the bike. I grabbed my short-sleeved cycling raincoat, some gels and was off. The bike course was two 20K laps and I was wishing for more food. Based on my time at the Apple Du, I was going for 2:55 to three hours for this race, but it was obvious after the run, that I was way off my time. In the first 10K of the race, I went from chasing a PR to survival mode.
As I rode off to the bike course, I was surrounded with other racers, which was good for support, but bad for splash back. It was raining steadily and my front wheel, being exactly the height of my face, was throwing gallons of water and dirt directly into my eyes. Now I really wished for my Rudy’s, but they probably wouldn’t have helped. There were a couple of screaming downhills where I was going over 30 mph, but not being able to see a thing with all the water in my face and at the bottom, a sharp turn to the right. I’d go back and forth squinting one eye and then the other trying to keep at least some sort of sight on the course and hoping not to take out any cyclists.
After the first lap outside of the complex, we came back into the speedway and rode almost all the way around on the track. At one point the wind was behind my back and I was cruising. But as soon as I passed by transition and headed back out of the complex for my second lap, it began to POUR. And at this point, I was all alone on the racecourse. I was thankful for my jacket as I started to shiver and get very cold. The water was getting deep along the course and I was thinking to myself, “if I had wanted to get wet, I would have done a TRIATHLON.”
Finally I could hear a vehicle behind me and I kept waiting for them to pass, but then I realized that someone had sent a follow vehicle out for me. That was nice…maybe they could save me from drowning.
When I got back into transition to get ready for the final 5K, Steve told me to hurry up. He said the ITU officials wanted to pull me from the course (for “safety reasons” … it was getting dark and was VERY wet), but the USAT folks were sticking up for me to stay in the race. He helped me get in the chair and I told him to follow me over to the tunnel so he could be there in case of disaster. He jumped in a golf cart with Casey, a gal from USAT. As the sky got dark and all the street lights came on, they followed me through the whole course. I kept seeing racers leaving with their bikes in hand—most had already left. At that point, all I wanted was to finish.
When we pulled back into the track, they were taking down fencing and bike racks, but there was still an announcer, a finish line and a couple of straggling athletes. It felt like the two Ironman races I have finished late into the night, and it felt almost as difficult.
For a race that I was expecting to go three hours, fighting through to 4:10 was a killer both mentally and physically. The entire time, I kept telling myself that I had to finish no matter what. The last time I went to Worlds was in 2003 in New Zealand when I was pulled from the water with hypothermia and didn’t get to finish. It didn’t matter this time that I was the Lanterne Rouge or as Mike says, “DFL.” I finished and for that, I am the World Champion in my division.
As Steve and I walked to the car, the guy who had been following me on the bike, drove up, got out of the car and said, “I can’t give you a medal for your race, but I want to give you this.” He gave me a commemorative gold coin from one of the events at the track. He said, “you inspired us tonight. All the EMT and security staff enjoyed watching you and your determination. You are amazing.”
The things that made it all worthwhile, were wearing the read and blue, being cheered on by all of my USA teammates and the standing ovation I received at this morning’s award ceremony. No, it wasn’t the athletic performance of a lifetime, but I had to dig deep for this one. And maybe sometimes it’s just as well to inspire as to be fast.
***
September26:
DFT p/b TREADS elite racer Luisa Bryce takes regional title!
2009 Xterra Mountain Regional Champ, women 25-29
Here's the link to the PDF:
http://www.xterraplanet.com/uploadedfiles/2009%20XTERRA%20Regional%20Champions.pdf
SHE KICKED BUTT AT XTERRA NATIONALS TAKING 4th overall!!
***
Labor Day weekend:
DFT p/b TREADS wraps up the road season with the Steamboat stage race and the Women's series at the Tour of Missouri!
TOUR OF MISSOURI RECAP:
We sent 4 tough girls, Mo, Gwen, Tiffany and Linsey, to duke it out against the top pros in the country. The TOM races for women consisted of 4 criteriums (formerly, Gateway Cup) the weekend before the pro men's event, THE tour of Missouri, began.
These events draw huge crowds, huge payouts, and huge competition!
Here are the team results for all 4 days:
Day 1: Mo- 22nd; Tiff 26th; Gwen- 42nd
Day 2: Tiff- 28th; Gwen-43rd; Mo- 45th
Day 3: Tiff- 11th; Mo- 15th, Gwen-30th
Day 4: Tiff- 14th; Mo- 24th, Lins- 34th, Gwen- 39th
Here's a link to some GREAT race photos including many of the DFT women!
http://www.podiuminsight.com/2009/09/06/dramatic-win-by-tibco%E2%80%99s-miller/
more photos here: http://www.lynelamoureux.com/Tour-of-Missouri-2009
For some super entertaining laugh-out-loud recap renditions of how the weekend unfolded, read Tiffany's Blog.
Meanwhile in Steamboat, DFT had 3 women racing the CAT 1/2/3 event and 5 racing the CAT 4 event. The stage race consisted of a prologue TT followed by 3 hard stages.
Our top-placing cat 1-2-3 lady was Amy Gray-Smith, who finished 7th overall - she's a relatively new CAT 3 who is already demonstrating she is ready and willing to take it to the next level as a CAT 2!!
DFT takes 2 of the top 3 places in the final stage of the SW 4 event: the criterium (Phoebe 2nd, Holly 3rd!):
awesome CAT 4 squad - you can SEE the enthusiasm!
***
August 15-16:
GWEN TAKES THE WIN AT THE COLORADO STATE CRIT CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!
For the second weekend in a row, Gwen climbed to the top step of the podium to collect her championship title. Last weekend she claimed the victory in the Masters Crit championship and this week she beat out a tough field of pro-1-2 women for the Senior Crit champ title.
We also collected a championship title in the SW4 event with Becky taking her first win !!!
On Saturday the Saul Raisin Foundation hosted a crit to raise money for Craig hospital. We had a lot of our cat 1-2, 3 and 4 racers attend to support this event.
Gwen took 2nd in the women 1-2 event:
Our cat 3 women Joan and Amy took 1st and 2nd. Here is their sprint to the finish and podium photo with Mr. Raisin:
Out in Downers Grove, IL, teammate Tiffany was representing the team at the National Criterium championships. She took 15th on Saturday and 30th on Sunday!!
UP NEXT: DFT p/b TREADS is co-hosting the HART criterium in Inverness (South Denver) on August 23rd. Come out to watch the event or to volunteer or race! Info and flyer at: http://www.haulnass.com/
***
August 8-9: Denver-area racing and Sr Olympics!
Last weekend featured 2 local criteriums here in Denver - one in the Prospect Area, called the Vics Espresso Crit (pics here) and the one on Sunday down in south Denver, called the BRE Real Estate Crit.
Saturday's race included the women's 35+ (masters) criterium championship, which our very own Gwen Inglis won -- this makes her the 2009 masters criterium champion in the state of Colorado!!!
In the women's pro 1/2 event, Megan got off the front with one other rider about half-way through the race and stuck the breakaway, taking 2nd place. Teammate Monique appeared on her behalf in the podium photo.
Two podiums in one day is a GREAT day!!!
On Sunday, Gwen and Megan took 3rd and 4th in the BRE crit against some tough competition vying for big money payouts. Everyone had their game face on for sure - we were pleased to once again be the only team to put 2 riders into the top 5. Teamwork really paid off for Gwen and Megan, who worked well together during the race.
Meanwhile Donavon Hottman was representing DFT p/b TREADS out in San Francisco at the Senior Olympics, racing in the men 60-65 age group. He competed in 2 road races and 2 time trials, placing in the top 15 in each event. (pictures coming soon).
DFT p/b TREADS will be co-promoting a criterium with HART (men's cycling team), on August 23 in south Denver - Flyer is not quite done but will posted on ACA website as soon as it is!
***
DFT p/b TREADS takes on the Salida Omnium, July 31-August 2:
We had 4 CAT 1/2 racers, 3 CAT 3 racers, and 5 CAT 4 racers make the trip to Salida, Colorado last weekend for the Salida Omnium. Here are the top results:
CAT 1/2 team:
2nd in time trial (Ambre)
2nd in Road Race (Gwen)
1st and 4th in crit (Monique and Megan)
and Ambre, Gwen, Monique and Megan had a 4-way tie for 5th place in the overall omnium
CAT 3 team:
2nd in road race (Amy)
2nd in overall omnium (Roberta)
CAT 4 team:
4th in time trial (Becky)
6th in omnium (Becky)
We had so much fun spending time as a team, learning and growing as racers!
***
July 18- Big Day for DFT women's team!
Tiffany took 3rd place on the podium with Kristin Armstrong, the race winner - at the Boise Twilight Criterium in Boise, ID (Kristin Armstrong's hometown). This was a huge finish for Tiffany and for our team!!! (blurry cell phone photo pending better pics on the way):
Luisa was wiping the field at the XTERRA triathlon, winning the women 25-29 age group by over 30 seconds. Results here.
Gwen was rocking Superweek in Wisconsin, taking 5th place in the first race of the series.
Amy, Joan and Roberta were crushing Mt Evans, the Colorado State Hillclimb championships, taking 2nd, 4th and 6th respectively. Here's Amy's second place podium shot!
Megan was earning 2 state champion titles on the velodrome, winning the women's pursuit and sprint competitions. These events qualified Megan for the USA Cycling Elite National Track championships, held in October in Carson, CA!! Online photos of the event: here and here and here
points race photo
June 20: several crazy members of the team lined up for the Mike Horgan "hillclimb" which actually means a legbusting time up Magnolia in Boulder. Standout climbers CAT 3 Joan and Amy locked up 1st and 2nd place with their efforts - way to go!!!
Meanwhile up in the barren country of Wyoming, elite racer Tiffany was braving the elements at the High Uintas Classic. She took 1st place in the road race and 2nd in the TT and crit!
On Sunday, June 21: ALICIA BRILLON TORE UP IRONMAN CDA!!
http://ironman.com/events/ironman/coeurdalene
***
June 15 update:
Kansas 70.3 and Winter Park and Glenwood Springs
Elite racer Marisa Asplund out-raced an 800+ amateur field by 4 minutes at the IRONMAN Kansas 70.3 event this weekend, giving her a time that would have placed 8th in the pro field. This was Marisa's first 70.3 distance triathlon and her results show it was a huge success!
Up in the mountains, several of our ladies were racing the Winter Park hillclimb, which ends at the top of the infamous run, "Mary Jane." New cat 3 racer Amy Gray-Smith won the sport competition by 2 minutes!
Meanwhile, DFT supplied 7 of the 30 racers that competed in the Glenwood Springs Road race, which included a substantial gravel section. On Friday night, Ambre placed 2nd in the TT. In the road race, Ambre and Gwen made the break; Ambre just narrowly missed the sprint for 2nd place. Gwen came in 7th, with Megan, Luisa, Jill and Joan rounding out the top 15. Leigh motored in for 30th. Sunday's criterium was women 1/2 only, and Ambre, Gwen, Sandy and Megan rode aggressively on the technical course. Top DFT place was 5th. It was a great weekend in Glenwood Springs and Lance and Levi were even in attendance at the time trial!
Congrats ladies on your accomplishments!
**
Marisa wins TEVA games Vail hillclimb, beating Georgia Gould and Katie Compton!
DFT girls get even TOUGHER:
3 of our elite team members made the trek to Tulsa for the Tulsa Tough 3-day criterium series. Read about their adventures here:
http://dftwomen.blogspot.com/2009/05/hanging-tough-at-tulsa-tough.html
***
Meanwhile, DFT roadie Marisa made her splash onto the multisport scene, taking the overall win at the Deuces Wild Olympic Distance Triathlon in Show Low, AZ:
Overall Female Winners | |||||||||||||||||||
|
Overall |
------- SWIM ------- |
T1 |
------- BIKE ------- |
T2 |
------- RUN ------- |
Time |
Total | ||||||||||||
|
Place |
Place |
Name |
Bib No |
Age |
Rnk |
Time |
Pace |
Time |
Rnk |
Time |
Rate |
Time |
Rnk |
Time |
Pace |
Back |
Time | ||
|
1 |
15 |
Marisa Asplund |
311 |
32 |
5 |
29:56 |
31:51 |
01:48 |
1 |
1:04:22 |
23.3 |
01:10 |
1 |
41:12 |
6:38 |
|
2:18:30 | ||
|
2 |
19 |
Kara Middendorf |
434 |
31 |
4 |
27:02 |
28:46 |
01:38 |
2 |
1:07:46 |
22.1 |
01:08 |
2 |
44:24 |
7:09 |
03:29 |
2:22:00 | ||
|
3 |
23 |
Robin Lyon |
424 |
38 |
1 |
21:47 |
23:10 |
01:46 |
5 |
1:12:23 |
20.7 |
01:09 |
3 |
46:29 |
7:29 |
05:06 |
2:23:36 | ||
|
4 |
24 |
Kimberly Tuck |
509 |
30 |
3 |
24:35 |
26:09 |
01:37 |
3 |
1:08:40 |
21.8 |
01:07 |
4 |
48:05 |
7:45 |
05:35 |
2:24:06 | ||
|
5 |
25 |
Kristin Moriarty |
443 |
31 |
2 |
22:03 |
23:27 |
01:46 |
4 |
1:10:03 |
21.4 |
01:11 |
5 |
49:27 |
7:58 |
06:01 |
2:24:32 | ||
IRONHORSE BICYCLE CLASSIC - MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND:
The DFT women scored some FANTASTIC results at the Ironhorse Bicycle Classic!
Marisa took 2nd in the road race and Tiffany took 2nd in the crit. Marisa was also the top placer in the time trial, in 4th place. There was some stiff competition in Durango and some scary weather, but the troops toughed out the elements and really flew the team colors well - -great job ladies!!
DURANGO HERALD'S AWESOME STORY ABOUT MARISA HERE
and PRESS FOR DFT HERE
Read more here. Results at: www.ironhorsebicycleclassic.com
*****
DFT p/b TREADS made its second NRC appearance last week at the Tour of the Gila stage race! Lance Armstrong, Levi Leipheimer, Floyd Landis and Kristin Armstrong were some of the notables in attendance at the event.
5 of the DFT ladies finished the grueling 5-day event, placing the team in 7th place in the team overall classification. The team worked very hard for GC rider Marisa, who finished out the week in 13th place overall.
In addition to taking a full squad of elite riders, DFT also sent five cat 3/4 women to contest the 3/4 event. Joan ended up 3rd overall and made the podium!!!!!!
Shown here, the Gila elite racers after stage 1 with our title sponsor, Jim:
Additionally, two of our team members were representing us down in the southeast at SPEEDWEEK, a week-long series of criteriums. Linsey and Tiffany did awesome all week long!!
DFT p/b TREADS made its NRC debut at the Redlands Bicycle Classic.
The race began on Thursday with 138 professional and amateur female cyclists and ended on Sunday with 80 finishers!
All 7 of the DFT ladies finished the grueling 4-day event, placing the team in 9th place in the team overall classification, and 3rd among the amateur teams!
Shown here, the Redlands racers:
Marisa represented DFT p/b TREADS at the Tucson Bicycle Classic last weekend and brought home 6th place! Shown here on the front (left) of the pack in the road race:
1-24-09 - Presenting . . . our 2009 "DFT p/b TREADS" elite CAT 1-2-3 team:
January 21, 2009: Our 2009 team clothing arrived!!!
Many thanks to Melissa Dehner for designing our clothing and to SQUADRA for making a quality product!
As our team grows, the clothing order grows . . . this year we jumped to 4 boxes and that's not even all of it!
The 2009 season and team are off to a strong start . . . and it isn't even 2009 yet!
Amy and Gwen locked up 1st and 2nd place, respectively, in the first race of the Chilly Cheeks Duathlon series on Saturday!
| AMY | SMITH | 32 | F | 1 | F39&UND | 1 | 26:43 | 6:41 | 2:01 | 40 | 30:42 | 21.1 | 59:25 | AURORA | CO | OPEN | |||
| GWEN | INGLIS | 34 | F | 2 | F39&UND | 2 | 28:24 | 7:06 | 1:52 | 30 | 30:06 | 21.5 | 1:00:22 | LAKEWOOD | CO | OPEN |
NICE JOB LADIES!
Our 2009 team launch party on November 14 was a huge success! Thanks to everyone that attended and especially to our fantastic sponsors, who make all of this possible! A special thank you to our new shop sponsor, TREADS, for really working hard to make our team feel special at our big event!
Here are some photos from the evening:
Posing with Treads manager, Bill (left) and Treads owner, Gene (center):
Everyone loved Tricia Downing's inspiring talk:
We had a great turnout!
Meet Jim Moriarty - owner of the law firm you see displayed on the banner behind us, and our new title sponsor for 2009. Read more here.
As everyone arrived, they were greeted by Greg and given a custom DFT-schwag (ECO-BAG) bag full of goodies and they were also entered in our raffle:
The service area (aka where the Chipotle and beverages were served) was a very popular area of the store:
DFT elite team member Deb Holland is an IRONWOMAN!! She hammered IM Wisconsin today in 13:29:13 -- congrats DEB!
DFT makes the press 3 times in the month of September!
http://www.kmbc.com/video/17423553/index.html
http://www.denverpost.com/fitness/ci_10343713
http://www.rockymountainsports.com/features/everyday-heroes.html
9-7-08:
DFT elite team member Gabriela wins the Cycle to the Sun race in MAUI!
It has been dubbed "the steepest paved road on earth," with over 10,000 feet of elevation gain in just 36 miles! Congrats Gabriela!
8-28-08:
Rapture In Misery 2008 6/12 hour MTN Bike Race
August 16, 2008
Landahl Park, Blue Springs, MO
6 Hour Solo Female - 2nd Place
June 14: Gabriela and Megan take the wins in their respective age categories in the women's sport division at the Winter Park MTB uphill time trial!
June 8th: DFT hired Olympic-hopeful and Masters-swim-team coach Elliot Lang to coach our members in an open-water swim clinic at Big Soda Lake! From left: Deb, Jenny, Alice, Kelsey and John (And Elliot in front!)
On May 31, 2008, Donavon Hottman, Kansas DFT team member, took third place in the CRRT 20K TT, Masters 55+ group.
The following day, approx 8-10 of the Colorado DFT members participated in the Elephant Rock ride, which ranged from 50, 65, or 100 mile routes. Everyone had a great time!
DFT elite team member Melissa Dehner takes the podium at the Heartland Spoke Pony Showdown 6-hr MTB race on 3/29:
2-10-08: our team photos turned out great!
TEAM DFT-QA3 (The Colorado bunch):
10-24-07: CONGRATS to LESLIE CURLEY who competed at Duathlon worlds in Richmond, VA (http://www.duathlonworlds.com) !!! She finished 8th overall woman age-grouper and 2nd in her age group!!
****
10-21-07: Our DFT logo is now a federally-protected trademark!!
***
10-15-07: DFT rider Melissa Dehner gives CYCLOCROSS a shot and places 4th in her first race in Kansas City
-- GREAT JOB!
9-30-07: ANOTHER DFT woman has taken the plunge and registered for an IRONMAN! Robyn is going to Louisville IM 08!
9-24-07: DFT members Kelly and Leslie both competed at the RYKA IronGirl duathlon in Bloominton, MN last weekend:
Kelly with the thumbs up!
Leslie hauling to the finish!
| NO | FN | LN | OVERALL | DIVPL | SEXPL | TIME | PACE | RUN1 | TRAN1 | BIKE | TRAN2 | RUN |
| 567 | Leslie | Curley | 5 | 3/195 | 5/727 | 1:28:13 | 4:24 | 13:12 | 1:14 | 58:59 | 1:10 | 13:37 |
| NO | FN | LN | OVERALL | DIVPL | SEXPL | TIME | PACE | RUN1 | TRAN1 | BIKE | TRAN2 | RUN |
| 360 | Kelly | Moran | 123 | 31/195 | 123/727 | 1:49:14 | 5:48 | 16:35 | 2:10 | 1:09:49 | 2:44 | 17:56 |
9-17-07:
DFT WINS USAT NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!!!
9-12-07 -- wow! DFT coach Andres accepted a job as an attorney for the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for
9-10-07: two more DFT women take the plunge -- Deb and Laura are registered for IM Wisconsin 2008. That makes SEVEN DFT WOMEN doing Ironman events in the next twelve months!!
7-9-07: DFT member LESLIE CURLEY takes the overall win at the SHAWNEE MISSION TRIATHLON (long course)!!!
6-20-07: www.republicoftea.com sent the DFT ladies a bunch of yummy samples of their LUNA tea line (bottled tea) --and they're only 50 calories!!
***
6-13-07: a national triathlon legend, Leslie Curley, has joined the DFT women's team! We are so excited to have athletes of this caliber joining our ranks!!
***
4-22-07: 3 DFT women represent at the Golden Spring criterium in Golden, CO. Viola, Tammy and Megan all raced in the women's 4 and women's 1/2/3 events! We also got our new team kits from Squadra and should have our new helmets in soon!
***
3-10-07: it's been an exciting week for the DFT team: we confirmed with Squadra that we'll have our custom kits around 4-19 and we also secured sponsorship from two more outstanding companies: Ritchey Logic and Accelerade!! This team is going to be backed by the best companies in the business, which should make for a VERY successful season!
***
1-21-07: Megan and DFT presented a women's cycling seminar at the Denver Athletic Club on 1-20-07. (See pics below). Nothing beats talking to a group of gals just thirsty for cycling info and chomping at the bit to learn more--it was so exciting to have such a great turnout and positive feedback. We plan to do at least 2 more seminars with more indepth discussions on nutrition, HR monitors, and equipment maintenance!
1-1-07: the new DFT women's team for 2007 is unveiled, along with the team's new and renewing sponsors!! With event better sponsor support and tougher and bigger goals, the team is set for another awesome season! This year they will be especially noticeable on the race courses in their CUSTOM team kits made by Squadra, and designed by teammate Melissa Dehner.
***
DFT client Laura Brown, after being in the hospital with a bleeding esophagus for several days, WON 1st place in the time trial event at the GAY GAMES in CHICAGO, IL. While she was unable to attend the awards ceremony afterwards, she now has a medal "her something shiny" to show for her hard efforts! Way to go Laura!
***
DFT client Laura Brown, aka "triathlon junkie," as Megan calls her (because she is constantly representing DFT at events on a weekly basis!) will be interviewed by CNN on July 6th, regarding her transition from an overweight gal to our own Miss Fitness via gastric bypass surgery! After a successful surgery with Dr. Hoehn, a local KC biker and surgeon, Laura's life changed dramatically! Stay tuned for the date and time of the broadcast!
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After winning her age group in the KCCC time trial and snagging 2nd place at the Nature Valley Amateur Time Trial, DFT client Dawn McPherson showed that she is a true time trialist by posting the fastest time in the Women's Cat 4 event at the Baldwin City Stage Race, June 24-25, 2006. During the criterium later that day (stage 2), she suffered an unfortunate mishap: she flatted and did not have wheels in the pit...but the officials gave her the go-ahead to continue racing for GC, so she entered the road race on Sunday (stage 3) and performed VERY well, taking 4th in the RR, giving her 4th for the overall GC. Dawn, great job this weekend!
IRONMAN CROWNED!
In its first full year since incorporating as a company partnership, DFT proudly announces that Christopher Moore is the first DFT,LLC client to participate and complete a full Iroman event (Silverman). Christopher worked diligently with DFT for nine months to prepare for his event and now has the accomplishment of a lifetime under his belt. His next goal is a top finish at age-group national championships. Congratulations, Christopher!!
A BIG CONGRATS to clients Dawn McPherson and Laura Brown for completing the 1/2Max national championship triathlon on Sunday, September 25--way to go! Dawn writes,"I felt like crying as I crossed that finish line - I couldn't believe I had just
finished a HALF IRONMAN!!!"
Audrey Hobbs ran her second-ever 5K race last Sunday, only 3 months after having a baby! She has already lost 3 dress sizes since then and is working towards longer distances in the future. Way to go Audrey!
Hotter 'n Hell 100, Wichita Falls, TX and Jackson County triathlon, August 28, 2005
Client Laura Brown SMOKED in the heat of TX, averaging 20 mph she finished the 100 mile endurance ride with energy to spare--good job! Client Dawn McPherson competed in the Jackson County triathlon at Longview Lake and took 2nd place in her age group--nice work!
Midwest Meltdown 1/2 Ironman triathlon, August 7, 2005
Only one week after her great effort at the Quartermax triathlon, client Laura Brown competed in the SCORCHING HOT Midwest Meltdown 1/2 IM tri--her first ever 1/2 IM distance race. Despite the heat and her willingness to walk with a woman she encountered out on the course (who wasn't doing very well!), Laura still managed to win her age group! She now turns her attention towards the 1/2 IM championship triathlon on Sept 25. WAY TO GO--AGAIN--Laura!!
Quarter Max, Innsbrook MO (July 31, 2005)
DFT coach Megan Hottman and clients Dawn McPherson and Laura Brown hit the hills of Innsbrook Sunday with FURY, competing in a 1/4 Ironman-distance triathlon!! Dubbed one of the toughest tri courses in the country, this race offered a LONG .6mi swim (it looked more like a mile!); a VERY hilly bike which began with the first 6-8 miles offering several steep climbs, followed by a long flat section into a head wind, and concluding with a sharp u-turn and a final steep climb; and a run that was either going straight up, or straight down (several miles of which was gravel!).
Despite all of this, Dawn was off and running in the swim, beating her coach out of the water by several minutes! She attacked the hills on her bike, averaging almost 20mph, despite a dropped chain 1/2way through. The steep hills on the run forced her to walk more than she wanted, but she came through the finish line at a dead sprint, looking no worse for the wear, at an overall time of 3:02, just missing her 3 hour goal. This earned her 13th out of a very competitive 24 women in W30-34 age group.
Despite a rough pre-race morning, Laura once again competed in, and won, the women's Athena division, with an overall time of 3:11. She had no problems in the water, and hauled on the bike averaging almost 20mph. She hung in there on the run and was able to sprint against another woman at the line for a strong finish! Due to her success, she earned a qualifier position at September's 1/2 IM championship.
After a bit of a rough start in the water, Megan got her legs back on the bike leg, averaging almost 24mph over the 26-mile course, which gave her the fastest female time and 30th fastest of all 500 participants! The hilly run presented a bit of a challenge, but she held on, for an overall time of 2:37:35. While she missed the winner's time by over 3 minutes, she secured 4th place out of 26 in the W24-29 age group, which qualifed her for the Championships this September.
Megan couldn't have been PROUDER of Laura and Dawn! They demonstrated great athletic ability, calm during calamity (both before and during the race!), and wonderful sportswomanlike conduct. They are the type of athletes DFT is proud to have on the race course! Well done ladies! Both are now focusing on the 1/2 Championship at Smithville lake, September 25, 2005.
Shawnee Mission Medical Center Triathlon (July 10, 2005)
Laura Brown adds another win in the Athena division to her repotoire! Way to go! Dawn McPherson also performed well, placing 5th in her age group. Keep up the good work ladies!
Kansas Cycling Championships (June 18 and 19)
Fresh off a great performance at the Nature Valley Stage race in Minnesota, Defined Fitness co-owner Megan Hottman returned to Kansas and won both the road race and criterium championships in the women's 1/2/3 category. Megan is using the training methods that make her a winner!
Topeka Tinman (June 19)
DFT client Laura Brown took 1st place in the Athena division at last weekend's Tinman triathlon. While she was nervous about the 7 mile run, she demonstrated that her fitness and training efforts have paid off! Way to go Laura!
Danskin Women's triathlon, Texas (June)
DFT Client Sheryle Gallant competed in her first triathlon--a women-only event, in Texas this month. She writes, "The bike was very hilly--it is the toughest of the Danskin courses--I finished the 12 miles in 46 minutes and felt great--I walked the run mostly --it was on grass with dirt clods not my best surface--the 3.1 miles took me 37 minutes. So overall I completed the race in a little over 2 hours." Coached by Megan for only a brief time, Sheryle demonstrated she has what it takes for triathlon racing and Megan expects big things from her in the future!
Corporate Challenge Triathlon (June 12)
DFT client Dawn McPherson competed in the Corporate Challenge triathlon and took 7th out of 24 women in her age group! Even though she had no sleep going into the race due to an out-of-town wedding, Dawn rose to the challenge and overcame several obstacles to place very well, both in her age group and overall! Well done, Dawn!
BIKE SOURCE TRIATHLON
DFT Clients Julia Schulte and Laura Brown both nabbed top-five age-group finishes. Casey Walsh set a new personal record, shaving 3 minutes and 9 seconds from his time a year ago! It pays to train with DFT!!!
LIFESTYLE ACCOMPLISHMENTS
When Brian Day started with Defined Fitness Training several years ago, he was about 60-80 lbs overweight and his diet consisted of fast food and twinkies at work! He never DREAMED of running a 5K, let along a full marathon. Instead, he simply wanted to lose some weight and feel better. After Brian made serious progress in the weight room, Megan began to work with him on running and cycling, by integrating track workouts and incorporating events such as the MS 150 into his training plans. Following some recreational and local events, Brian began to develop an interest in long distance cycling, running, and the sport of triathlon. After all of his hard work and efforts, he's now lean, mean and actively involved in several athletic disciplines. Good going Brian! You are a powerful reminder to ANYONE that it's possible to accomplish their goals, provided they are dedicated to their training and themselves! You never faltered--so thanks for being an inspiration to others!
