With a tough week of final exams behind them, the UCSD Triathlon Team trekked up the state to UC Berkeley for the Golden Bear-athlon. This would be the Tritons' first Olympic-distance race of the season and a tough test for the whole team. Already expecting a very hilly bike and run course, the team was nervous about the weather forecast, which was calling for cold air and water temperatures, wind and possibly rain.

After spending the night with the exceptionally hospitable Kavaler family, the team caravaned to Lake Anza in the Berkeley hills. A few warmup stokes in the lake confirmed everyone's fears – the water really was a fridgid 52 degrees and the air was several degrees cooler still. A few minutes after dawn the horn sounded and the men were off on their two laps around the lake with a short 50 meter beach run in between. Tim Ray was the first of the UCSD men out of the water, followed by Michael Libutti. On the women's side, Bethany Sotak led the Tritons with the 2^nd fastest swim split.

The bike course left Lake Anza and took the riders down the winding decent of Wildcat Canyon Rd, then around the perimeter of Lake Briones. The course was very difficult with more than 1400 feet of climbing along the 24 mile route. In addition, several Tritons wound up with flat tires by the time they reached the second transition. Fortunately, most of these flats occurred close to the end of the bike and did not cause significant delays.

Out on the run course, the UCSD team found the conditions even more challenging. The stormy weather from previous days had turned the dirt trails into thick, sticky mud. Combined with a cold, howling wind and steep hills, the mud ensured that everyone's 10K run splits would be significantly slower than normal.

At the end of the day, the UCSD Tritons finished 3^rd in the Men's, Women's and Overall Team standings. Marc Schommer led the men with a 4^th place finish in a time of 2:08:10. He was followed by Tim Ray in 5^th, Michael Libutti in 13^th, and Frank Uyeda in 27^th. Sarah Kavaler scored a 7^th place for the women, with Allison Johnston and Bethany Sotak finishing at 11^th and 17^th, respectively. Unfortunately, team captain, Sante Kotturi, was forced to abandon the race due to the harsh conditions.

Article by: Frank Uyeda

Women

Men

* penalty added to finishing time