Parsons, Steed win spring triathlon

Ben Parsons defended his title on Saturday at the annual Pole, Pedal, Paddle spring triathlon. Under sunny skies, Parsons overcame a small deficit in the kayak portion to win by a whopping 14-minute margin with a total time of 1:39:29. Parsons overall time was even faster than the top mens team.

After paddling the Whitefish River, Parsons biked from Riverside Park up Big Mountain Road in 38 minutes. He then transitioned to skis and climbed to the summit of Big Mountain in 33 minutes. From the summit he skied down to the Base Lodge finish line in 3:48.

Leading all women racers, Amber Steed posted the fastest bike time at 50 minutes. She was also the fastest woman to climb to the summit of Big Mountain with a time of 45 minutes. Steed’s overall time was 2:13:34.

Marcella Sandry cranked out an impressive 2:26:13 for second place overall.

Men Solo

Ben Parsons 1:39:29

Ben Ruffatto 1:53:37

Chris Connelly 1:56:30

Erik Anderson 2:01:23

Bear 2:05:40

Paul Conrad 2:09:50

Jeff Shehan 2:10:45

Jeff Beck 2:12:19

Mark Sandry 2:12:52

J. Peter Heyboer 2:19:27

Andrew Matulionis 2:22:11

Eric Anderson 2:28:19

Jeff Brown 2:28:22

Warren Lane 2:28:27

Jeremy Philips 2:36:10

Jake Hall 2:40:56

Clay Roehner 2:46:57

Tony David 2:47:00

James Cannava 2:58:53

Mike Dezzani 3:36:53

Marty Stannard 3:45:10

Women Solo

Amber Steed 2:13:34

Marcella Sandry 2:26:13

Jen Curtis 2:28:46

Kayleen Uibel 2:34:00

Erika Johnson 2:39:16

Sarah Peterson 2:49:09

Ginjer Yachechak 3:05:29

Alison Zeller 3:22:27

Team Men

Big Mountain Club (Pat Malakie, Walter Chauner, Tim Noonan) 1:47:46

Team 3 1:49:55

Special K 2:00:42

Team Women

Giddy Up (Dawn Lev, Cathy Galbraith, Kim Gilvler) 2:09:52