Alex Woodard of Birmingham breezed to the Rocketman Triathlon title Sunday at Ditto Landing in Huntsville.
Woodard, 34, won by four minutes in what he said was a smooth, good race in all phases and transitions. He finished in 2:11:48.
“Maybe if I could swim in a straight line that might help a little,” he said, laughing. Woodard did the 1500m swim in 29:19, the 40km bike ride in 1:03:32 and the 10k run in 41:03. His two transition times were 1:12 between the swim and biking, and 49 seconds between biking and running.
“I had a good event,” he told Tennessee Valley Outsider. “I’ve never been up here for this one and thought it sounded like a good one. The course was good, smooth, flat and I enjoyed it. I didn’t have any issues or anything. This is a really well-run and staged event.”
About the Rocketman Triathlon
The Rocketman Triathlon is put on by Team Rocket Tri Club each year in late summer. Proceeds benefit the Huntsville Madison County Rescue Squad. The event has traditional Olympic distances. Competitors started and finished at Ditto Landing. The swim portion was in the Tennessee River, the bike route along Hobbs Island Road and the run along the Aldridge Creek Greenway.
After the swim and biking events, competitors transitioned in the transition area of the Ditto Landing parking lot. Bike racks were provided. Athletes must walk in the transition zone; running is prohibited. The run took them around Ditto Landing along the river, through the parking lot out to the greenway and up to Green Cove Road to the turnaround.
Temperatures were moderate to begin but were climbing quickly by 9:30 a.m. after the top finishers had crossed the line.
See the Rocketman Triathlon results here.
More Rocketman Results
Hunter Vitello, 32, was second overall in the event, crossing comfortably in 2:15:57. Jordan Jones, 29, was third in 2:23:12, with Ryan Rhodes, 37, close behind at 2:23:35.
Caroline Myers, 30, was the female champion, finishing 10th overall in 2:37:16. Chelsea Bankemper, 19, was second (13th) in 2:40:17, and Melisa Miller, 39, was third (16th) in 2:42:19.
MAIN PHOTO: Alex Woodard (205) of Birmingham moments after crossing the line to win the 2022 Rocketman Triathlon in Huntsville. Woodard won by four minutes. (Photo: Alan Clemons/TVO)
