Hadley captures CdA Triathlon
A change of course signaled a change of luck for Brian Hadley in Sunday’s Coeur d’Alene Triathlon.
The 30-year-old Hadley, third a year ago after battling a nagging foot injury, took full advantage of this go-round’s more-mountainous bike portion and topped the men’s field, finishing in 2 hours, 5 minutes and 23 seconds.
Hadley, a Coeur d’Alene resident, crossed the finish line just more than two minutes ahead of second-place Cameron Chesnut, 23, of Post Falls (2:07:28) and nearly four minutes in front of third-place David Gettle, 23, of Weiser, Idaho (2:08:57).
On the women’s side, 25-year-old Annie Warner of Spokane made it two in a row, finishing in 2:13:41 and blowing away the nearest competitor by a full 11 minutes.
Haley Cooper, 24, of Spokane was second (2:24:48) and Coeur d’Alene’s Susan Endsley, 39, was third (2:25:49).
Hadley, whose bouts with bad luck in past years’ events also include getting a flat tire, said the race committee’s decision to move the bike portion into the hills and mountains above the eastern shore of Lake Coeur d’Alene fit his talents perfectly.
“Climbing is kind of my strong suit, so it was great – I loved it,” said Hadley, adding that he has been resting for the last week and put off until Saturday his decision to even compete in the race. “I’ve been kind of burned out for a while after the Ironman (Coeur d’Alene).”
“But I felt good today; I felt really fresh.”
Chesnut lamented the vertical course additions as well as his perennial predilection for near misses.
“Always the bridesmaid, never the bride,” Chesnut, soon to embark on a career as a doctor, said with a smile. “I always feel like I have a chance to win, but I always have to battle with Brian on the bike.
“I’m more of a flats guy, so I wish (the climbs) weren’t there.”
Warner, first out of the water and first after the bike for the second year in a row, said she was pleased with the victory, but more proud by far of her seventh-overall finish.
“It was pretty similar to last year,” said Warner, a swim-team coach who competes in triathlons almost every weekend and has won four of them this summer alone. “But I wanted to be in the top 10 overall, and I did that, so I’m pretty happy.
“It’s a beautiful course, so I enjoy coming out here. In the sister-race duathlon, Justin Taylor, 30, of Coeur d’Alene took top men’s honors (2:03:19). Chad Trammell, 21, of Yakima was second (2:06:05) and David Cole, 44, of Chewelah (2:15:31) was third. For the women, Sheri Hueter, 35, of Bozeman, Mont., crossed the line first (2:35:26). Amy Leibensberger, 48, of Coeur d’Alene was second (2:36:18) and Leah Villegas, 28, of Spokane was third (2:40:26).
The triathlon underwent several other significant changes this year. The run was moved from Tubbs Hill to the flats along the Centennial Trail and the start-finish and transition areas were moved to City Park from North Idaho College, where they’ve been since the inaugural race in 1984.