Polar Bear Triathlon
Eleven SSR members raced at the Polar Bear Triathlon on December
14th, including five individuals and two relay teams. Mike
Montoya came from behind after the bike leg to make up a
two-and-a-half-minute deficit during the swim, stealing second place
overall from El Paso's Alberto Lugo in a total time of
1:10:11. Christian Krueger finished 6th overall with a time
of 1:14:20. Laura Wilcox won the 20-24 age group with a time of
1:27:06. E.P. Higgs finished in 1:32:49 and Robert Abernathy finished
in 1:36:15. The official results report that Tech student Bill Collins
finished in 1:39:18, however, observers at the race indicate that he
finished in less time.
The relays included one composed of Jan Thomas (run), Peter Mozley
(bike), and Matt Perini (swim), and another composed of Damian
Lopez-Plancarte (run), Alyssa Higgs (bike), and Jenell Higgs
(swim). Thomas/Mozley/Perini finished in 1:19:08, third among coed
teams, while Lopez-Plancarte/Higgs/Higgs finished in 1:34:39.
After the main event, awards were given out for champions of the 2002
Southwest Challenge Series. Last year's series had 24 events, and
athletes had to finish ten events to qualify for the series
championship. Laura Wilcox was the champion of the female 20-24 age
group, and Cathy Perini was the champion of the female 40-44 age
group.
Next year's Southwest Challenge Series, of which the Polar Bear was
the first race, is expected to retain all 24 of last year's
races. However, the number of races required in order to qualify for
the championship has been reduced to eight.
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Tech Freeride Park Open For Business
Tech's Freeride Park is a cycling arena of obstacles, ramps, and jumps
created by Brad Cromey, SSR's Nathan Heronen, and the Tech Extreme Cycling
class. You can find the park just west of the Tech golf course, next to
the greenhouse.
The park is open to the public, however, safety is a real
concern. Helmets are required and you use the equipment at your own
risk. If you'd like to learn freeriding and greatly improve your bike
handling skills, the Extreme Cycling class is available. Contact Brad Cromey for more
information. You can find the Extreme Cycling class at the park on
Sundays, and you can typically find Brad there riding or adding on to
the park during the noon hour on weekdays.
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Relay For Life Christmas Luminarias Available
Fred Yarger reports that the American Cancer Society's 2003 Relay For Life will be held on June 13th and 14th, rather than the usual first weekend of June. It's not too early to start your Relay fundraising, and Fred also has forms for obtaining luminarias from the ACS for Christmas.
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Club Elections Scheduled For January 7th Meeting
The first SSR meeting of 2003 will be held at 7PM on January
7th at the Socorro Springs Brewing Company. Items on the
agenda include election of officers for 2003, the APAS 5K, and our
adopted highway cleanup day.
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APAS 5K Tentatively Set For March 8th
Plans are in the works to hold a 5K run to support the Animal Protective Association of Socorro (APAS), on Saturday, March 8th. The race will probably be held on Sixth Street in Socorro, starting and finishing at Clark Field. Runners will be encouraged to run with their dogs. A 1-mile walk will accompany the 5K run.
Since this race is still in the planning stages, we still need help
with a name, a poster and entry form, t-shirt design, course design,
and many other aspects. If you'd like to contribute, please contact Matt Perini.
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Fourth Fall Running Series Race January 14th
The fourth race in the Fall Running
Series of handicap-format races will be held at 5:30PM on Tuesday,
January 14th. This 5K race will be held on the Socorro Chile Harvest Triathlon course, which starts at the Socorro City pool on El Camino Real. See the map for details.
This race is worth (5, 4, 3, 2, 1) points for the (first, second,
third, fourth, fifth, and remaining) finishers.
If you are not an SSR member and you'd like to race, download a membership
form and sign up. Students cost $5, individuals cost $10, and
families cost $15. The race series fee is $5. Race winners receive a
$10 prize, and the series winner wins $50.
Course Maps for Races 1, 2 (updated), and 4.
Click here for a larger image.
Click here for series standings.
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USA Triathlon Raises Membership Rates
USA Triathlon, the national
governing body for triathlon and duathlon, and the organization that
sanctions and insures the Socorro Chile Harvest Triathlon and many of
the other triathlons in the country, is raising its individual
membership rate to $30 per year. One-day memberships will increase
from $7 to $9. Youth rates will remain at $15 per year, or $3 for a
one-day membership. The club discount will remain at $3.
USAT reports that the rate increase is due to a 30% increase in their
insurance premium. Membership in USAT includes medical insurance for
racers. The premium increase is due to the general lack of
underwriters of insurance for sporting events following the collapse
of Harbour Entertainment and Sports Insurance earlier this year.
Current members might consider renewing before January, when the new
rates go into effect.
SSR has also seen a near-doubling in insurance premium from Road
Runners Clubs of America (RRCA), however, the American Cycling
Association (ACA), which did not use Harbour, has managed to avoid a
fee increase this year.
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January 11 Ride With Tri Team Southwest Planned
Tri Team Southwest, a
triathlon club with members all over the state of New Mexico and West
Texas, is planning a 50-mile training ride on NM Hwy 1 on January
11th, and they're inviting members of SSR to join
them. We're meeting at the Owl Bar at 9:30 AM to ride to the Santa Fe
Diner, then back. Lunch will be at the Owl after the ride.
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Regular Rides and Runs
- Cycling (Road): MWF 11:15 AM, meet at Tech's NRAO Guesthouse.
- Cycling (MTB): Friday 12 Noon, meet at the IRIS Parking Lot.
- Running: SSR Sunday social run, meet at Tech pool parking lot, 8AM Sundays (excluding Dec 8).
Like to start a new regular run or ride? Contact Matt Perini to get it listed here.
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