USA Triathlon Club Champs Three Years Running

Twinlab-Full Throttle Endurance Racing steals the show at the USA Triathlon Club Championships

Twinlab-Full Throttle Endurance Racing closed their outstanding 2009 season with a victorious finish, taking home first place at the USA Triathlon Club Championships for the 3rd year in a row! Twenty-eight members represented the team at the event in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma on September 20, 2009, with many impressive finishes.

“It could not have gone any better,” said coach Scott Berlinger. “Everyone peaked at the exact right moment, and we really had no letdowns. Everybody did exactly what they had to do to get on the podium.”

The Club Championships consisted of an Olympic distance triathlon comprised of a 1.5k swim, 40k bike and 10k run, and a sprint distance triathlon, comprised of a 750 meter swim, 20k bike and 5k run. Athletes had the option to race in either triathlon to earn points for their team, which were then tallied up to decide the winners.

The team started off strong in the sprint distance triathlon, with Scott Berlinger, John Profaci, Darcy Bhatia and Melina Heally each placing first in their divisions. Karen Phillips, Brice Vanelswyk and Maria Mahn followed up with 2nd, 3rd and 4th place finishes in their divisions, respectively, putting the team in prime position at the start of the Olympic distance triathlon.

Despite the grueling heat that developed later in the day, the team dominated the Olympic triathlon; 10 of the first 20 athletes across the finish line were members of Twinlab-Full Throttle Endurance Racing. For the females, Jessica Mullin and Allison Lind took 1st and 2nd place in their divisions, respectively. And Toni Weeks came in with a strong 6th place finish in her division after enduring a flat tire only 100 meters into the bike portion of the race, thanks to some quick action by coach Berlinger, who was able to swap out her tire for one of his own.

The men were truly leaders of the pack, taking 1st and/or 2nd place in almost every division. Jesse Du Bey finished a mere 20 seconds behind the race’s overall winner, landing him first in his division. Andrew Kalley and William Kelly also took 1st place in their divisions, racking up numerous points for the team. Dan Ownes, Mark Guay, Richard Krupa, Scott Stallwood, Tom Slon and Greg Usry kept the momentum going, each placing 2nd in their divisions. “I think this was the perfect way to finish 2009,” says Berlinger.

Though Jesse Du Bey, who will be competing at the Ford Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii on October 10, 2009, and a handful of team members who will compete at the 2009 Foster Grant Ironman World Championships in Clearwater, Florida on November 14, 2009 still have some hard work ahead of them, most of the team will be enjoying some much-deserved downtime before starting off-season training in November. “Then in January we’ll get back to business as we start our in-season training, and try to go for a four-peat at the Club Championships in 2010!” Berlinger jests.

CONGRATULATIONS TO TWINLAB-FULL THROTTLE ENDURANCE RACING ON A TRIUMPHANT 2009 SEASON!