Margot Hair (Mississippi) and Vinnie Monseau (West Virginia) reign over deep, intense field
Tempe, AZ / October 26, 2008—When America's best and most fiercely competitive amateur triathletes convene each Fall at the Best of the U.S. Amateur Triathlete Championship to race each other head-to-head, anything can happen--and today's race bore that out in spades.
39-year-old emergency physician Vinnie Monseau from West Virginia, a best known for his long course prowess, took it out hard after the first mile of the run and exuberantly crossed the line 1:23 ahead of the rest of the field. Absolutely jubilant at his performance, Monseau's genuine thrill excited the crowd of spectators at the Soma Quarterman Triathlon in Tempe, Arizona. "A few guys ran with me, and then I pushed it out after the first mile, and I couldn't believe nobody came with me. I never dreamed I could have a race like this," he exulted.
Connecticut's Christopher Thomas, in his second Best of the U.S. appearance, took second, and Duluth, Minnesota's 42-year-old Brian Bich made history as the first Masters athlete to make the podium.
Women's Champion, 28-year-old Margot Hair had a few reasons to celebrate, as well. The software engineer from Missisippi rounded the last corner 50 yards from the finish line with Illinois' highly-accomplished Elizabeth Ott (30) just 2 seconds behind. Hair had supremely personal reasons for relishing her victory. She made her debut BOUS appearance a year ago with a 13th place finish in her first season as a triathlete--training she had begun as part of a cancer-recovery plan.
New Jersey's 34-year-old Suzanne Huelster, a virtual shoo-in for US Duathlete of the Year honors, posted the fastest run of the day to finish 37 seconds behind Ott.
In the popular Fastest State Team Competition, Huelster combined with teammate 37-year-old tri-rookie phenom Dave Slavinski to win by 26 seconds over 2nd place Illinois [Ott and 20-year-old Colin Riley who was 9th for men]. Pennsylvania's team of Rick Fesler and Beth Shutt was third.
Best of the U.S. is an annual competition designed to celebrate amateur racing and inspire other adults to embrace the sport as an integral part of balancing full lives of work, family and sport. This year's Championship was produced and hosted by Red Rock Company of Tempe, AZ, at their Soma Half Iron and Quarterman races, which drew an additional 1800+ citizen athletes. The race was held at Tempe Town Lake, a popular triathlon venue and site of Ironman Arizona.
TOP TEN MEN:
| 1. | Vinnie Monseau, 37, West Virginia |
| 2. | Christopher Thomas, 36, Connecticut |
| 3. | Brian Bich, 42, Minnesota |
| 4. | Rick Fesler, 27, Pennsylvania |
| 5. | Dave Slavinski, 37, new Jersey |
| 6. | Philippe Kozub, 33, Maryland (2007 Champ |
ion)
| 7. | Mark Harms, 33, Wisconsin |
| 8. | Luis De La Torre, 40, Hawaii |
| 9. | Colin Riley, 20, Illinois |
| 10. | Bill eeves, 41, New Hampshire |
TOP TEN WOMEN:
| 1. | Margot Hair, 28, Mississippi |
| 2. | Elizabeth Ott, 30, Illinois |
| 3. | Suzanne Huelster, 34, New Jersey |
| 4. | Chris Tommerdahl, 21, North Carolina |
| 5. | Kirsten Sass, 29, Tennessee |
| 6. | Amanda Erwin, 36, Oklahoma |
| 7. | Cindi Bannink, 31, Wisconsin |
| 8. | Beth Shutt, 29, Pennsylvania |
| 9. | Kathy Rakel, 24, Arizona |
| 10. | Shannon Donley, 37, Alaska |
TOP FIVE TEAMS:
| 1. | NEW JERSEY: Dave Slavinsky & Suzanne Huelster |
| 2. | ILLINOIS: Colin Riley & Elizabeth Ott |
| 3. | PENNSYLVANIA: Rick Fesler & Beth Shutt |
| 4. | WISCONSIN: Mark Harms & Cindi Bannink |
| 5. | TENNESSEE: Bruce Gennari & Kirsten Sass |
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