GREENFIELD — JoEllen Reino added to her legacy at the 36th Greenfield Lightlife Triathlon on Sunday.
The South Deerfield resident finished the race in 1 hour, 2 minutes and 9 seconds to win her fifth consecutive and race-record sixth overall women’s sprint group at the long-running annual event.
“It means a lot to me because the people are so good here,” Reino said after the win. “They make for such a warm, caring race. It’s the nicest triathlon I’ve ever done.”
The 2019 event was forced to undergo vast changes from previous races.
With the closing of Nash’s Mill Road due to bridge construction, the course was altered significantly from years’ past. The main changes came in the cycling course, as athletes were forced to make a U-turn to complete that portion of the race.
On Saturday, the water at the Green River Swimming & Recreation Area did not pass the Bathing Beach Water Quality Test, deeming it unsafe to be used in the race. This forced the organizers to cancel the swim leg of the triathlon, replacing it with a short run before the athletes got on their bicycles.
“I was disappointed because of the integrity of the event,” Reino said. “When we do a triathlon, we want to do a full triathlon but they have to do that because of the safety. They’re looking out for people, they’re not trying to be difficult. I understand why they cancel even though it is disappointing.”
Reino finished nearly five minutes before any other women crossed the finish line, with Astrid Schanz-Garbassi, racing out of Oakland, Cal., taking second with a time of 1:07:03. Melissa Mattison secured third place with a finish of 1:07:13.
Reino considers the bike to be the strongest part of her race, but didn’t alter her approach even with the changes to the course.
“I go as hard as I possibly can,” she said. “It’s different but it doesn’t make a difference in terms of how hard I bike or run. I go as hard as I possibly can and the results happen.”
Luke Sullivan of Groton, Conn. was the first runner overall to cross the finish line, taking first place in the men’s sprint with a time of 51:33.
Sullivan and Greenfield’s Daniel Benson were neck-and-neck after the bike portion of the race, with Benson holding a 31-second lead, but Sullivan finished the 5K run in 18:10 to take the win.
“It was a different race canceling the swim last minute but you have to switch it up,” Sullivan said. “Definitely a great day. It was a perfect day for the race.”
Sullivan signed up for the race earlier in the week when he got work off, making this his third triathlon of the summer.
Benson finished second with a time of 53:42, while Gregory Shea of Lebanon, N.H. (54:45), Matt Cain of Amherst (56:24) and Terry McKeon of Northfield (56:46) rounded out the top five finishers in the men’s sprint.
Ryan Lyesiuk of Orange took the top spot in the men’s international distance with a time of 1:48:23.
It was the first Greenfield win for Lyesiuk, who competed in the triathlon for the fourth time.
Last year, he was close to getting that first victory, but on a steamy summer day, he began cramping and was unable to find the juice to push through at the end of the race.
On Sunday, Lyesiuk began to feel the heat near the end of the 6.51-mile running portion. But at the four-mile mark, he got a cold water bottle, took a few sips and dumped the rest on his head to give him the extra push to finish on top.
“I needed that second wind,” he said.
Lyesiuk came out ahead of Lincoln’s Frank Kjaersgaard, who took second with a time of 1:53:39. Kristian Whitsett of Shelburne Falls (1:53:41) was third overall while Luke Nugent of Greenfield (1:53:48) took fourth.
Lyesiuk considers himself one of the lucky ones when it comes to Sunday’s changes to the race course, especially the omission of the swim.
“It’s one of my biggest wins,” Lyesiuk said. “It’s hard to say because there wasn’t a swim and swim is my weak spot. I’m usually making up a little ground on the bike and run so it would have been a little different but still, a race is a race. Everybody did the same thing so it means a lot to me. It’s one of my favorite races.”
On the women’s international side, Seana Zelazo came through the finish line first with a time of 1:57:53.
This was the first time the Rye, N.H. resident competed in the Greenfield Triathlon, and marked her first-ever triathlon victory.
With it being her first time, Zelazo enjoyed the course. She said she didn’t mind not swimming, considering it is probably her weakest area of the triathlon.
“It was really nice,” Zelazo said. “It was hot though. It had a good mix of uphill and downhill.”
Paige Kouba of Davis, Calif. (2:01:25) took second in the women’s international, while Maddie Leopold of Pawling, N.Y. finished third (2:02:46). Madeline Nagy of Hatfield (2:06) and Amy Woods of Brewster (2:07:23) completed the top five
Team 2 Gulotta’s ran away with the two-person sprint relay, finishing in 1:04:47, nine minutes ahead of the rest of the field and Team Sloomis’ time of 2:29:04 was the top finish in the two-person international relay.
In the three-person sprint relay, Smell Ya Later lived up to their name, finishing first with a time of 58:23 while The McPitts were first in the three-person international with a 2:16:14 time.
Sophia Wolmgren of Williamstown topped the 0-14 age category in women’s sprint with a time of 1:23:21 and Kemp Wagenback won it on the men’s sprint side with a 1:21:37 finish.
Julia Holmgren (1:16:11) and Adam Carlisle (59:38) were the winners in the 15-19 age group for women’s and men’s sprint, while Sierra Loomis (1:09:45) and Phelan Muller (1:18:16) were the top female and male finishers in the 20-24 sprint.
Greenfield’s Rebecca Drew took first in the 25-29 female sprint (1:14:30) and Paxton Belcher-Timme had the top time on the male side (1:13:47). In the international race, Ashley Johnson (2:52:07) and Ian Mccahill (2:18:22) were the top female and male finishers in the 25-29 group.
Corey Miner was the top female sprint finisher in the 30-34 age group (1:14:36) and Elias Bildner’s 1:06:39 finish was first in the male group. Stephanie Duncanson (2:18:19) and Denis Schapira Wajman (2:10:40) were the top international runners in the age group.
In the age 35-39 group, Amanda Koppenheffer (1:10:24) and Ben Barshefsky (1:03:07) were the top female and male finishers in the sprint and Heather Stinson (2:43:00) and Derek Bushey (2:01:21) topped the 35-39 group in the international race.
Jennifer Segerson came atop the female sprint for ages 40-44 while Robert Levine (1:02:23) won it in the male group. In international 40-44, Amy Woods (2:07:23) was the top female and Ben Whitbeck (1:59:23) was the first male to cross.
In the 45-49 category, Jodi Stevens (1:09:31) had the best female time while Cain was the top male time in the sprint. Alfie Alschuler (2:12:31) had the top male international time in the group while Adelle Condon (2:23:00) held it on the female side.
Kathryn Flodquist (1:08:39) and Christian Lagier (1:02:55) were the top female and male sprint finishers in the 50-54 group while Elizabeth Bianchi (2:15:45) and Eric Howe (1:57:14) were the top female and male finishers on the international side.
John Reino (1:01:49) finished ahead of the pack in the 55-59 age group in the male sprint, while Maxine Stent (1:12:14) took the top of the group on the female sprint side. Ann Domigan (2:16:40) finished well ahead in the female international 55-59 group and Gary Maynard (2:02:12) did the same in the male international side of the group.
Christina Petersen (3:01:52) and Carl Fetteroll (2:33:09) were the lone female and male international athletes in the 60-64 age group, while Lisa Eisenberg (1:24:45) was the top female sprint finisher in the group and Greg Grinnell (1:19:20) the top male finisher.
Joan Lapierre (1:13:06) was the winner of the female 65-69 age sprint while Paul Rabenold (1:10:12) was the top male finisher in the sprint.
Greenfield’s Margo Jones (1:28:16) and Shelburne Falls’ Bob Welsh (1:16:54) were the winners of the female and male 70-plus group. Dean Paxson (2:57:40) was the lone competitor in the male 70-plus group on the international side.