Troika Takes Off This Sunday

The scenery should be as pleasurable as the course is demanding for the nearly 400 competitors poised for Spokane’s annual Troika Triathlon Sunday.

More than half will be individuals taking on the challenge of the 1.2-mile swim, 58-mile bike ride and 13.1-mile run that concludes near the Forest Pavilion in Riverfront Park.

Others will compete on teams. More than 60 teams are registered.

Medical Lake is the site of the swim, with the individual competitors hitting the water at 7 a.m. Team swimmers start a half-hour later.

First swimmers will be out of the water about 7:25 and take to the bikes for a ride that heads south to Cheney, swings back through Medical Lake and travels through Riverside State Park before ending at the carousel in Riverfront Park. First riders will be in between 9:20 and 9:40.

The run takes the competitors out the Centennial Trail eastward to a point just past Boulder Beach on the Spokane River, where they’ll turn around and head back to the park, finishing around 11:10.

Among the local favorites are Brad Van Wert and Kristi Kincade-Schall.

The field, said race official Sylvia Quinn, is down a little, largely “because we didn’t get (certified as) an Ironman qualifier.

“We were the last U.S. qualifier before the Ironman Hawaii last year,” she added. “That definitely affected the individual competition. We’re down at least 130.”

There’ll be a Spokane mother-daughter duo competing at the Danskin Women’s Triathlon in Seattle on Sunday. Elaine Tober, 52, will be in her second triathlon while daughter Denise Raczka, 25, will be in her first.

Mountain biking

It was business as usual for Mark Cesal of Spokane and Jolanda VanOoyen of Sandpoint during the cross-country portion of the Washington-Idaho-Montana race at the Pend Oreille Pounder last weekend at Schweitzer Mountain.

Cesal, whose name was misspelled in a story on last Friday’s Recreation page, and VanOoyen, WIM points leaders, continued their winning ways as more than 400 riders braved cold wind and rain.

Cesal completed four laps of the 5-mile circuit in 1 hour, 37 minutes, 28.3 seconds, more than a minute ahead of Mike Gaertner and Todd Werner, both of Coeur d’Alene, who tied for second. VanOoyen was more than 11 minutes ahead of Tanya Hawthorne of Rossland, British Columbia, with Anne Grabowski of Post Falls finishing third.

In the downhill, Boe Wadharms of Helena streaked down the 2.5-mile course with a 1,300-foot descent in 3:58.3, barely ahead of WIM leader Willy Warren (3:58.4) and Greg Smith (3:59.1), both of Sandpoint. In the women’s race, Greta Elston of Helena won in 4:29 ahead of Grabowski and Hawthorne.

The WIM series winds up Sept. 8-9 at Lookout Pass.

Bowling

Spokane establishments are participating in a statewide program called “Bowlers First” designed to recruit 2,500 new league bowlers.

“This campaign will have a significant impact on every city in the state that’s participating,” said Dave Storkson of Anacortes, president of the Washington State Bowling Proprietors Association.

The campaign is targeting newcomers to league play and former bowlers who have dropped out.

Spokane houses involved are: Airway Lanes, Colonial City Bowl, Lilac Lanes, North Bowl, Silver Lanes, Sports Page and Valley Bowl.