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Teams make final plans for 13 Hours of Santos

By JESSICA MUNDIE, Times Correspondent
Published August 29, 2007

Florida's fall mountain bike racing season kicks off this weekend with the 13 Hours of Santos on Sunday. This ultra endurance event takes place from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. at the Santos Trails in Belleview. Riders loop around the 9-mile course, and the teams mix in with solo riders, all vying for part of the $4,000 prize purse for most completed laps during the 13 hours.

Area team members continue to meet at bike shops, making their race plans, which will enable them to survive the event. Hydration, nutrition, dealing with mechanical problems, meeting the requirements of night lights on the trail, as well as going without sleep, are the issues talked about at the meetings.

"I know from my experience last year that I need to begin drinking and eating a lot earlier during the race," said Jennifer "Generator" Turner Team Chainwheel Drive/Specialized who won last year's solo woman first-place award.

Turner, who races in the sport women's class, will return to defend her title at Santos Trails. Turner said her recent training in the mountains in North Carolina has given her increased fitness and confidence for the 13-hour race.

"Each lap gets harder and harder if you are racing fast," Turner said. "Setting up your fluids and nutrition ahead of time is the smartest plan. Race experience is what you rely on to make those decisions, and they can make or break the race for riders out there all day."

Teams are now being assembled from some of the area's shops, including: Action Wheel Sports in Pinellas Park; Bent's Cycling & Fitness in Lakeland; Bike Route in Gainesville; Chainwheel Drive in Clearwater; Florida Bicycle Sports in St. Petersburg; Orange Cycle in Orlando and Revolution Bicycles in St. Petersburg.

Practice riding and camping are available for riders and their supporters and pit crews. There may still be entries available for solo riders and team riders, which may consist of up to four team members.

For details on the 13 Hours of Santos, call Terry and Dave Berger at (352) 873-9279, or check out: www.goneriding.com.

Belleview's Santos Trails directions from the bay area: Interstate 75 north to Exit No.341; proceed east to the town of Belleview. Turn north on 441, traveling 3 miles, then go west on 328. The course is on the left side, and there is a $3 gate charge to enter.

IRONMAN TRIATHLON UPDATES: Bradenton's Heather Gollnick won women's division of the inaugural Ford Ironman Louisville (Ky.) on Aug.26, with a time of 9 hours, 23 minutes, 22 seconds. Gollnick's bike split for the 112 miles was 5 hours, 8 minutes, 49 seconds, and her performance bodes well for her ambitions Ford Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, on Oct.13.

Gollnick's time was a personal best in the Ironman Triathlon distance. Five cartwheels at the finish line wowed the crowds in Louisville, as the former gymnast from Wisconsin marked her fifth Ironman win.

Ironman Triathlon race distances are swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles and run 26.2 miles.

Australian Chris McDonald won the race overall, in 8:38:38. Gollnick's time reflects the fact that she reached the Ironman finish line in 14th place overall, including men and woman professionals.

St. Petersburg dentist Art Halttunen (St. Pete Mad Dogs) led the way for top locals at Ironman. Halttunen, 57, finished in fourth place in the male 55-59 division, and will now rest and plan his peak training for Hawaii.

Complete race results and coverage of Ford Ironman Louisville are available at www.ironmanlouisville.com.

TARPON SPRINGS SPRINT: Closer to home, members of the Tarpon Springs Rotary Club will host the 19th annual Tarpon Springs Sprint Triathlon at Fred Howard Park on Sept.8.

The Tarpon Springs Sprint Triathlon will begin at 8 a.m., and the race distances are swim .25 mile, bike 10 miles and run 3.1 miles. Each September, this event marks the start of the fall multisport season, and it attracts sprint specialists, along with novice racers, also known as "tri-newbies."

To volunteer or to register, call race director Dave Tobey at (727) 938-6439.

Times correspondent Jessica Mundie can be reached at sptimescycling@yahoo.com

[Last modified August 28, 2007, 21:34:06]