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2010 Indoor Triathlon top finishers

Female 60-69 years: Sue Sargeant

Female 50-59 years: Deb Larsen

Female 30-39 years: Wendy Slaughter

Female 20-29 years: Whitney Lloyd

Female 18-19 years: Karen Lichty

Female 16-17 years: Danielle Border

Female 10-15 years: Carson Jarrard

Male 60-69 years: Dave Sargeant

Male 50-59 years: Michael R. Smith

Male 40-49 years: Jay Kornder

Male 30-39 years: Heath Briggs

Male 20-29 years: Blake Utley

Male 18-19 years: Jared Dammann

Male 15-17 years: Jacob McCarville

Male 10-14 years: Jacob Lewandowski

Top Relay: Diane Jass, Travis Jass and Nate Kolacia

Overall Male Winners: Jared Dammann, first place; Heath Briggs, second place; Sam Greeno, third place.

Overall Female Winners: Wendy Slaughter, first place; Brooke Barber, second place; Angela Steburg, third place.

Temperatures may have been a little chilly Saturday morning, but it still was the perfect time for a run or swim - as long as it was in the heated comfort of the Fort Dodge Community Recreation Center.

The 2010 FDCRC Indoor Triathlon drew 80 participants of all ages to the FDCRC to take part in the athletic competition.

The triathletes could participate individually in age groups in men's and women's divisions, or in teams. Individuals participated in all three events, while team participants were part of two- or three-member teams in which each person competed in one or two events.

Combined scores reflected the total distance they were able to swim in 10 minutes, bike in 20 minutes, and run in 15 minutes.

"They have 56 minutes to do everything," said Doug Spencer, who was volunteering as one of the timekeepers in the bike room.

Spencer said there is also little time for rest between each event.

"There's a new group starting every half hour," he said. "They started with the swim, and go for 10 minutes. When they're done swimming, they have seven minutes to change clothes, get upstairs and bike."

The timing between the biking segment and the running was only four minutes.

Diane Happel, the side coordinator for the swim portion of the triathlon, said there were a lot of first-timers participating in Saturday's event.

"This is a very nice introductory event for someone who has never done a triathlon before," she said. "Having it in a controlled indoor environment like this helps, too."

For J.R. Brandt, the swim was the part that seemed to be a breeze. The youngest athlete in the triathlon, 10-year-old Brandt swims competitively for the FDCRC swim team.

"I've qualified for state and regional in swimming," he said. "I've been swimming for five years."

Brandt said he would also be participating in the run and bike portions of the triathlon.

Jim Davis, a student at Drake University, made the trip to Fort Dodge from Des Moines to compete in Saturday's event with his teammates from the Drake University Triathlon Team.

"Overall, I think it went really well," said Davis. "The bike was a little tougher than I thought it would be, though."

David Pearson, executive director of the FDCRC, called the event a success.

"I'm very pleased with this year's turnout," said Pearson. "We definitely drew more from out of town. We had participants come from Des Moines, Algona and Cherokee. I definitely consider it a successful event."

Contact Emilie Nelson at (515) 573-2141 or enelson@messengernews.net