The Bucyrus Area YMCA

Our committee has received many kind letters and emails since we held the Triathlon on May 25^th. We’d like to share some of them with you—we don’t think the senders will mind. We welcome any additional feedback you can give us.

If anyone has other comments or race-day photos to share with us, they can be emailed to whetvet@cybrtown.com , or can be mailed to the Y at 1655 E. Southern Avenue, Bucyrus, OH 44820.

On to the letters, phone calls, and emails:

Rob Powell emailed us: “I participated in my first Triathlon yesterday in Bucyrus. I just wanted to let you know that I found this to be a positive and fun event. Please send a message to the others who helped, Thanks. It was a great well run race. I look forward to next year.”

Thanks for the kind words, Rob—we’ll reserve your space right now. J.H.

From Jimmy Hunter via email: “Thanks for another great race !!! I did my first race last year in Bucyrus and had to come and do it again this year !!! Despite the horrendous weather it was a blast !!! A big thanks to you and your volunteers. Keep up the good work. It is appreciated.”

“Great race”—a phrase that’s music to our ears. See paragraph 2 of the Race Summary page to see how you, too, can help with the weather for next year. J.H.

An email from Brian & Kimberli Mollenkopf : “Thanks for such a great event. For putting together such a team at the last minute I think we done great taking 1st in the Coed. Will you have any photographs posted of the event? I saw a lot of people with digital cameras. If you have any pics of our team D7 please email or let me know where they are posted.”

And that Coed Team division was a close one, with the first 3 teams separated by only 1 minute 13 seconds. As soon as I get the pictures from our photographer I’ll get them up on the web page. J.H.

John Denman of Wooster emailed us: “The Bucyrus triathlon exceeded our expectations. Not only was it well organized, but the volunteers were extremely friendly. During our ride home, we decided that your passion for the race and participants is what made this event so special. We've added next year's race to our calendar. Thank you for a great race - a wonderful way to kick off the triathlon season.”

Thanks for your kind praise for our volunteers. We think that anyone who will go stand at an isolated country intersection in the pouring rain for 3 hours is pretty special. Perhaps a tad crazy, but special. J.H.

Gerry received this email from Brandon Wilmoth: “I just wanted to thank you for your assistance with last weekend's triathlon. It was my first race, and I loved it! You did a great job with the event, and I'm looking forward to coming back next year...and hopefully not getting 4th. P.S.: When will the results be posted?”

I really liked seeing this particular email—although I didn’t meet Brandon at the Triathlon, I realized when I saw this message that I’ve spoken with him several times on the phone in his capacity as a customer service rep for the Columbus Crew of Major League Soccer. As partial-season ticket holders for the previous 2 years, my family and I found the Crew organization to be a first-class operation; therefore, I find these compliments about the organization of our little sporting event to be especially meaningful.

As far as the posting of the results—if you’re reading this, it means the results are also now up and can be accessed from the Race Summary page. J.H.

From new race record-holder Todd Briggs: “Wanted to say what a nice event. Great volunteers, well-marked course and great enthusiasm. Just how a triathlon should be. Thanks again.”

Any guy who can go 57:39 should know. Great race, Todd. J.H.

Rich Fowler has really given this race some thought: “Again - thanks for a great race Saturday. While the weather may not have been ideal, the race was close to it. Good organization, great volunteers, homemade goodies...who could ask for more?!

I mentioned the possibility of a "Clydesdale" category, and thought I'd bore you with some of the benefits of it:

1) More participants. - there are a lot of folks my size (and larger) who like to exercise and stay fit who just cannot compete with the 145 pounders. I have noticed in road races and Duathlons the last few years that the Clydesdale group is a relatively full bucket.

2) Mindset/insult - those of us that fit the Clydesdale/Athena category know it, so it isn't a surprise to any of us, and most of us have dealt with it all of our lives. In some cases, it is a great way to get back into some competitive events if you're pulling off weight. We do NOT consider the class an insult, and there is a national organization of triathletes who have joined together to promote larger folk fitness (www.teamclydesdale.com). They may even be another potential sponsor for your race next year.

3) More trophies - yes, it means an extra $10 in trophies, but as you probably have figured out after all these years, the more trophies you give out this year, the more likely the same people will be back and bring friends next year.

4) Voluntary - of course - the whole thing is voluntary - the racer can choose which division they'd prefer to be in - age group or Clydesdale. That way - if they don't want to be associated with the larger athletes, they don't have to be; but if that's their intent all along, they can choose that box on the entry form and enter as such.

Categories - I've seen it done a number of ways - but the standards are usually something in this area: Goliath / Clydesdale I - Male 180-200, Goliath / Clydesdale II - male 200+ - and some adjust that to the 200-225, and 225+ respectively. Athena - female 150+.

Thanks again for hearing me out - and regardless of what the forms say next year - I'll see you then!”

An intriguing idea, Rich—Gerry and I have already discussed this at some length since receiving your email, and we’d like to get opinions from our racers. Send your opinions to Gdolan@columbus.rr.com . I myself am not sure what to think at this point, although I definitely was one of the larger horses out there this year (180 lb. Clydesdale??—heck, that’s a Shetland Pony). J.H.

Doug Rothhaar not only dropped 8 minutes since last year’s race, he also dropped a few years in the process—at least for the day: “Thanks again for a fun race. I enjoyed myself again this year and have already cleared off a sunny day for next year. As usual, good people, good fun, and good food!

Just one note, the results page has me still listed at 30 years instead of 39. While I'd be more than happy to trade my 3rd place plaque for a shot at staying 30 years old, I don't think that is a trade you can work out! :) Thanks again.”

The appropriate corrections to the results have been made. Keep improving by 8 minutes every year, and in 3 or 4 years you’ll be down right around an hour and we’ll be putting you in the 19 & under age group. Didn’t know that’s how it works, did you? J.H.

From Bill Harvey: “Thanks for the results of this year's Triathlon. I don't feel quite as bad now as I did before. Thanks to all of you who helped put it together and "run" it. It was a great first experience for me. I hope to see you next year.”

I hope that Bill was feeling bad because he was sore from the race, or had a cold, or something like that. No one who finishes the race should feel bad about their time, especially if it was a “first experience.” Admittedly it’s not the IronMan, but it still takes some grit to complete this thing. This just sets a “baseline” for your improvement goal for next year. And remember, the more you improve, the younger you get! (see above) J.H.

Liz forwarded me this email from Kelly Croy on 6/7: “Perhaps I did something wrong, but the link to the pictures did not work for me. Could you double check the link to the pictures for me? Is it possible there was a problem with the uploading? I'll keep trying. Thanks!”

I’ve responded by email to Kelly already, but I need to hear from anyone else who’s having problems with any of the triathlon pages. So far all of us who have tested it have done fine, but it’s a pretty small sampling so far. If you’re having difficulties, email me at whetvet@cybrtown.com, let me know what the specific problem is, and let me know what browser you are using. J.H.

Again an email from Todd Briggs: “Received the first overall male award yesterday in the mail- thanks. Also just noticed that you have me in the 30-34 age group. Please note that I'm 39, so in the 35-39 category. Hope to see you next year as a 40 year old.”

It’s repaired. But remember what we noted earlier, after finishing, you may feel older, but you actually become younger. J.H.

From Kelly Croy: “I had no idea that you took a picture of every finisher! Wow!! That picture attached isn't me, but that might be me behind him. You ran an excellent triathalon. That was my second ever. I will do one more this summer, perhaps two. I'll check back from time to time to see if I can view the pictures. No biggie. It was just such a fun day I wanted to check all the photos out.

We’ve discovered that Kelly can’t open up the pictures page on his computer for whatever reason. We’ve also discovered that the picture that we thought was him, wasn’t (we emailed it). Although we might not do a finish line photo page quite like this year’s in the future (due to the amount of time it took), we’re striving for accuracy this year. So. . . if you’re having trouble opening any of the pages, or if the picture that we say is you is indeed not you, send us an email—we’ll try to get it fixed. J.H.

From Brian Mollenkopf again: “Awesome photo coverage. The best photo coverage I seen in a race except for a big city marathon (e.g., Washington DC Marathon or Boston Marathon). Keep this aspect in the years to come!”

Three of the better races in the country, of course—you often see us mentioned with the DC Marathon and the Boston Marathon. Thanks, Brian. Thanks again to our photographers, Clay Harris and Stephanie Stevens, and their assistants, Justine Bruns and Carmen Myers. As far as changes for next year, we’ll probably continue to do finish line pictures, but without the identifications—it’s awfully hard to keep the faces and names matched up, especially with the staggered start times. J.H.