Mattapoisett triathletes finish strong in high heat
Jul 24, 2022
Samantha Ball, the fastest female finisher from Mattapoisett, gets ready to mount her bike. Photos by Gillian English
Gerald Lanagan and Liz Adams with their father, Jim Lanagan
Emily Cluck grabs her bike for the second portion of the race.
Young triathlete Eshe Stockton won first place for the female 1-19 age group.
Liz Adams of Mattapoisett finishes the race to cheering family members
Liesel, a fluffy and massive Newfoundland, cheered people on from the sidelines
MATTAPOISETT – There’s bravery and then there’s running a triathlon during a heat wave.
“It was actually a good day for it,” said Gerald Lanagan of Mattapoisett, who ran the Mattapoisett Lions Club Triathlon on Sunday, July 24. “It was hot, but there was a breeze in the beginning.”
Cloudy skies seemed to hear the pleas of runners that morning, which remained gray until runners completed the race. By 10 a.m. when most of the runners were finishing up and chugging water, the sun finally came out.
The triathletes swim .25 miles from the Mattapoisett Town Beach and back, bike 10 miles around town, and then return to Town Beach where they run a 3.1 mile loop toward Ned’s Point Lighthouse and circle back to the finish line.
Lanagan has been running the race for the past 20 years on and off with his family members, who also live in Mattapoisett.
“My brother motivates me,” said Lanagan’s sister, Liz Adams, who added that the family often trains together when they can.
Adams said the swim and the bike portion are “the fun part” for her, and at least “the run isn’t too long.”
She added that the volunteers do a great job every year, and it keeps them coming back.
Due to the current weather conditions, the Boston Triathlon happening on the same day was rescheduled this year. This brought more runners to Mattapoisett, who still wanted to run a triathlon that day – including some from all over the world.
All the way from Spain, Aner Larreategi had ambitions to run a triathlon while staying with a host family in New Hampshire. He wanted to do one so badly that when Boston canceled its event due to the heat emergency, he made his way out to Mattapoisett, where he placed second in the men’s group and third overall.
Leading the women was Emily Tato, who finished second overall. Tato is a professional triathlete and physical trainer from Boston.
One hundred and twenty-one people registered for the race. The top 10 finishers are as follows:
Tony Delogne, 49:53
Emily Tato, 50:57
Aner Larreategi, 51:00
Jon Chesto, 51:48
Ryan Fleischer, 53:25
Kenneth Rampino, 53:34
Kristof Redei, 55:15
Kyle Thetonia, 55:50
Lachlan Bishop, 56:25
Rebecca Padera, 56:34
