One of Drumheller’s newest athletic events is looking ahead to bigger and better things after a huge turnout this past weekend.
On the morning of Saturday, June 8, individuals and teams gathered for the second annual DinoFest Triathlon.
Participants were divided into two distances. Seven triathletes took part in the Olympic distance race, in which they had to swim 60 lengths of the pool, bike 40 kilometres, and run 10 kilometres.
The remaining thirteen individuals and four teams did the sprint race, which is half the distance.
Brad Hale took top spot in the Olympic distance with an overall time of 2:33:35. Mike MacDonald took second with a time of 2:43:18 and Morgan Syvertsen placed third with a time of 2:47:40.
Olympic distance triathlon winner Brad Hale during the swim. Hale won the race with a time of 2:33:35.
Laura Hegberg was the champion of the sprint distance, finishing it in 1:20:18. Ben Borkovic placed second with a time of 1:23:53 and Kali Wade came in third with a time of 1:27:39.
The top team finished with a time of 1:34:50.
Laura Hegberg, picutred here during the 5 kilometre run, took the gold in the triathlon sprint distance with a time of 1:20:18.
The race is being counted as a success by organizer Morgan Syvertsen and discussions have started to make the race bigger and better for next year.
“I think it went really well. I talked to a few people who are really into triathlons and are keen to form an organizing committee next year. Next year, we could go public and advertise outside the valley. It could triple the numbers, which would change the logistics quite a bit,” said Syvertsen.
Creating an official organization would require organizers to jump through a few more hoops next year.
“If we go bigger, we’re going to have to connect with the ATA (Alberta Triathlon Association), which means everyone would have to get a one day membership, which is $35, so the cost will go up,” said Syvertsen. “If we do advance registration and payment, we’ll know the budget we’re working with. We could do t-shirts, other swag, and awards.”
Despite the challenges, the goal is to keep growing the triathlon and continue it as an annual event.
“We had a good crowd last year and more than doubled it this year,” said Syvertsen. “We demonstrated we could do it, now it’s just a matter of buckling down, planning further ahead, and working out some of the little problems.”
