| An athlete races up the road in Scofield during the annual Drop Dead Gorgeous triathlon/biathlon event. |
The scenery through the Huntington and Eccles Canyon Scenic Byway is amazing. Each year, thousands of tourists travel the roadway in order to view the majestic mountains and valleys. But once a year, athletes gather to participate in an event which allows one to view the area in a more personal manner.
The annual Drop Dead Gorgeous walk-run competition along with the triathlon and biathlon events give well conditioned athletes the opportunity to compete at one of the more interesting venues in the country.
This year’s events took place July 19 and attracted athletes from across the country.
The winner of the Huntington Canyon 10K run was Salt Lake City resident Arne Hultquist who finished the race in 43 minutes, 57 seconds.
Hultquist competed in the 45 to 49 year old category and managed to not only capture the division title, but also the overall championship title.
Following Hultquist in the overall 10K run standings was Erik Gulbranson who completed the run in 44 minutes, 19 seconds.
In third place overall was Bill Broadbear with a time of 44 minutes, 33 seconds followed by Adrian Gutierrez who completed the run in 56 minutes, 1 second.
Rounding out the top seven was Edward Varley, Molly Windham and Suzzanne Cutler.
In the Huntington Canyon 5K event, Dale Woodbury finished as the overall winner with a final time of 20 minutes, 43 seconds.
Steve Barton finished in second place with a final time of 22 minutes, 37 seconds. David Capalbo completed the race in third place with a time of 27 minutes, 17 seconds while Dan Dorff followed with a final time of 31 minutes, 23 seconds.
Rounding out the top seven were Kelly Broadbear, Linda Capalbo and Julie Maxon.
The Scofield portion of the annual event kicked off early in the morning as athletes dove into the lake to begin the first portion of the triathlon event.
This year, the event attracted athletes from all age divisions including one 14 year old female athlete.
Alina Fong jumped into the water and remained calm and confident as she raced against athletes twice her age and older.
Because Fong had never competed in an open water swim event, her father followed her on a surfboard. Even so, Fong left her father behind treading for all he was worth in order to catch up to the young swimmer.
Fong finished in fifth place in the short course triathlon event with a time of one hour, 46 minutes, 47 seconds.
Capturing the first place title in this event was former Carbon High athlete Issac Goodrich who completed the event in one hour, 35 minutes and 44 seconds.
William Crider finished in second place while Cody Eldridge captured third place honors and Jared Purdy finished in fourth place.
Carbon Dino athlete, Melanie Madsen rounded out the top six with her time of 2 hours, 11 minutes and 14 seconds.
Last year’s Olympic distance triathlon winner, Jason Crompton returned this year to recapture the title with a time of two hours, 16 minutes and 47 seconds.
John Ramsey followed in second place with a time of two hours, 37 minutes and 28 seconds while Brad Crompton finished in third.
Rounding out the top five were Scott Czarnecki and Scott Wright.
The Olympic distance event included a 1.5K swim, 40K bike ride and 10K run.
Athletes who competed in the novice event which is comprised of .225 meter swim, 20 K bike competition and two mile run also had a successful showing.
Danielle Pendergrass took home first place honors with a time of one hour, 35 minutes and 56.7 seconds. Pendergrass was followed closely by her sister Dede Howa who finished a hundredth of a second behind.
Gina Needham-Sacco placed third in the novice event with a time of one hour, 48 minutes and 52 seconds.
In the biathlon event, Dave Rich took home top honors with a time of one hour, eight minutes and seven seconds.
Chris Colt followed in second place with a time of one hour, eight minutes, 43 seconds and Jacob Burrows rounded out the top three with a time of one hour, 11 minutes and 45 seconds.
Julie Colt lead the women’s division with a time of one hour, 21 minutes and 54 seconds. Colt was followed by Ruth Eldredge and Jana Burrows.
This year’s event attracted several athletes and received many praises.
Olympic distance winner, Crompton explained the unique location for the venue as being breath taking.
“I saw some deer on the way to Clear Creek this time. Last year, I saw moose,” explained the athlete. “Those dear stared at me like they were expecting me. I looked at them. They looked back. And then they dropped their heads down and started eating like it was no big deal.”
Next year’s event is much anticipated and should once again attract dedicated athletes from across the nation to compete.