Kendra's Post Race:

The UCLA triathlon team competed in their first away race, UCSB's Kendra's Race. The course proved challenging for some. A dangerous bike course resulted in flats and crashes while a rugged run course presented a final hurdle before the finish. Nevertheless, the team performed spectacularly. The Bruins walked away with 3 podium spots, winning the women's race and getting 2nd in the men's.

Ashlyn Sloane took home 1st place, finishing the course with a time of 1:11:51, nearly 5 minutes ahead of 2nd. Ashlyn was ready for the difficult bike course, focusing on going "as fast as possible around the corners and sharp turns without crashing" before accelerating "up to speed quickly on the flats to make up lost time." She admits that "it was a little scary and unpredictable at times". On the run Ashlyn "picked a random Berkeley guy to beat to keep [herself] mentally engaged and motivated to run well." Of course she "pulled away in the last half mile to take the win in that small battle." To maintain this dominance, for the offseason Ashlyn plans to do a lot of "indoor swimming, treadmill running, and many hours on Zwift" in an attempt to avoid the winter in Washington.

Ashlyn wasn't the only Bruin on the podium, Edoardo Leone hung on in the men's race to achieve 2nd in a time of 1:05:38. Edo narrowly beat a hard charging 3rd by 11 seconds. Edo doesn't "think [he] handled the technical part of the bike well", and admits that "it's good to be able to identify areas where [he] needs to improve." On the undulating run Edo "ran well, but ... definitely left something in the bag." This race marks the first head to head meeting of the 2022-23 season between Edo and Kendra's Race winner, Johnathan Dolan. Dolan beat his rival by less than a minute. For future races Edo's strategy will be to close gaps and "not be complacent ... [attacking] the pace more aggressively right off the bike."

New members of UCLA triathlon also got a lot out of the race. Eleanor Casey placed 3rd in the woman's race finishing with a time of 1:20:53, narrowly beating fellow bruin Julia Martin by less than a minute! For Eleanor, "getting on the podium was definitely unexpected. [She] approached [the] race with [the] goal of having fun and trying something new" and was excited with finding out what she's capable of. She's also "super happy for the whole team ... especially [the] women's team who had such strong performances during the race". In order to achieve her 3rd place, Eleanor "focused on [her] transitions as well as really pushing to get ahead on the swim." Getting on the podium isn't the only way for new members to enjoy the race. New triathlete Jacob Schaperow came into the race a bit "nervous about the cold water" but admits that "it wasn't too bad since it was sunny out." He used the race to meet other athletes, as well as a fellow graduate student, and thinks the race "was a good way to get to know the other folks on the team better."

Men's Results:

2 EDOARDO LEONE 1:05:38

8 EMILIANO OLIVO CAUBERGHS 1:10:09

23 NATHAN MONTANEZ 1:17:13

38 WALEED ALZAROONI 1:24:39

65 JACOB SCHAPEROW 1:50:06

Women's Results:

1 ASHLYN SLOANE 1:11:51

3 ELEANOR CASEY 1:20:53

4 JULIA MARTIN 1:21:50

7 CADENCE CHANG 1:23:59

9 JOSIE GOODSON 1:25:52

15 MEHA THAKUR 1:28:14

33 ATHINA MIHALOPOULOS 1:35:00

36 SOPHIA STEWART 1:35:45

38 HEATHER CHOU 1:36:36

39 DELILAH DEHAN 1:36:41

40 ISABELLA SHARP 1:36:52

45 ALIYAH ANDERSON 1:38:51