Brit Stuart Hayes and American Alicia Kaye took the wins at the 2013 Life Time Fitness Triathlon finale in Oceanside, California, but it was Cam Dye and Alicia Kaye who came home with the big pay day.
The men
Joe Maloy who is coached by Paulo Sousa was first out of the water in 17:47, and he was followed by Cameron Dye 2 seconds later and Eric Lagerstrom another 2 seconds adrift after that opening 1.5k swim. Hunter Kemper, Barrett Brandon, Ben Collins and Stuart Hayes were also in good striking positions after their sub-18 efforts.
In the very foggy conditions Ben Collins managed to record the fastest bike split of the day with a 55:34, but Cameron Dye was also fast with a 55:45 and Stuart Hayes managed a 55:50 to stay reasonably close. Eric Lagerstrom's 56:07 also kept him in the game, but Joe Maloy had lost 2 minutes to the front runners and Hunter Kemper 2.5.
A speedy 34 second transition allowed Collins to gain 15 seconds on Hayes, but Dye and Lagerstrom managed to stay under the 40-second mark in that bike-run transition. Collins though did not have the goods on the run and his 34:52 10k effort dropped him all the way back to 5th place. Hayes on the other hand looked very good on the run and managed to take the win in 1:48:43 under a blanket of fog. Lagerstrom who is also a Sousa coached athlete ran past Dye to second place in 1:48:55 and Dye held on to the final podium spot in 1:48:57. But that gave him the series title of the 2013 Life Time Fitness Tri series and a very nice pay check. Maloy recorded a fast 31:59 run and that gave him the 4th place finish.
"Winning the series last year was a huge breakthrough in my career, but winning it again this year, especially with all the crazy things that have been going on outside of racing made this series win even more satisfying. With remodeling a house and my wife being pregnant, not to mention the flood, being able to maintain my focus and continue to race at a high level all season throughout all that was a great confidence booster. I have always prided myself on being consistently prepared to race well, and winning such a major series for the second year is a row against such great competition is a fantastic feeling," said Cam Dye to slowtwitch.
Racer winner Stuart Hayes was also happy with his day and said, "I was obviously very happy with the win in Oceanside, I was in very good shape leading into the race. I had been in Tucson with TJ Tollakson who was preparing for Hawaii and he was a great training partner and I felt confident. I knew I had to have a strong performance to move up the ranking in the series. My plan was to come into T2 as close to Cameron Dye as I possibly could so that I could give myself a shot at winning the race. Really happy to be heading home to see my beautiful wife whom I haven't seen for ages."
The women
Sara McLarty smoked the women's field in Oceanside with a 17:45 swim that was better than any of the Pro men times too. Lauren Brandon was next in 18:36 and Jennifer Spieldenner, Alicia Kaye, Lauren Goss and Abby Geurink came out of the Oceanside bay water in the 19:04 to 19:40 range.
Alicia Kaye then put down the hammer on the bike and recorded a race best 1:01:06 bike split and only Helle Frederiksen managed to stay somewhat close to the new race leader. The Dane's 1:02:16 was over 2 minutes quicker than the times of any other pursuers and put her in good position for that final 10k run. But McLarty was also still close as she had gone into that bike segment with a nice cushion of time.
Kaye ran a 36:51 to take the win in Oceanside in 1:58:34 and that meant the series title and that also gave her the Triple Toyota Crown sweep as she had won the Life Time Fitness Chicago race and the Minneapolis one too. Frederiksen managed to pull back some time but it was not enough and the Danish Pro had to settle for the runner-up spot in 1:59:53. Lauren Goss ran past McLarty to take 3rd place in 2:01:42.
"I was able to put together another consistent performance to win Oceanside, the Lifetime Series and the Toyota Triple Crown. Nothing is ever a guarantee, so I had prepared for every possible detail and contingency plan. There are very talented athletes racing the series, so I knew I was going to have to race well to achieve my goal of winning the Lifetime series and the Toyota Triple crown. I am extremely happy about the result and to finally win the Lifetime Series," said Kaye to slowtwitch.
Life Time Fitness Triathlon Oceanside
Oceanside, CA / October 20, 2013
1.5k swim / 40k bike / 10k run
Top men
1. Stuart Hayes (GBR) 1:48:43
2. Eric Lagerstrom (USA) 1:48:55
3. Cameron Dye (USA) 1:48:57
4. Joe Maloy (USA) 1:49:00
5. Ben Collins (USA) 1:49:49
Top women
1. Alicia Kaye (USA) 1:58:34
2. Helle Frederiksen (DEN) 1:59:53
3. Lauren Goss (USA) 2:01:42
4. Sara McLarty (USA) 2:02:32
5. Jen Spieldenner (USA) 2:03:19
