Norway Triathlon draws 200 athletes

Photo: Claire Harbage

TO THE FINISH — Dr Zev J Myerowitz Jr., the overall winner of the Norway Triathlon, runs towards the finish, down Route 118, on the last leg of the competition, Saturday, July 14.

NORWAY — Two hundred eleven athletes braved heat and humidity to compete in the 2012 Norway Triathlon on Saturday, July 14 at Penneseewassee Park.

Competing for the gold, silver and bronze cowbell awards were 127 individuals and 29 teams. Ages ranged from 18-69 years, with 40-49 year olds representing the largest age group.  Athletes – 112 women, 99 men – from all over including 16 states, Chile and New Zealand competed.

Winning times for men were tight with Dr. Zev J. Meyerwitz of Cape Elizabeth taking the gold with a time of 1:15:15, Stephen Tenney of Falmouth finishing second in 1:16:30 and Eric Darling of Shelburne, VT taking home a third with 1:16:34. Oxford Hills' own Angela Bancroft took the women’s gold with a 1:16:35, Sarah Pribram of Shelburne, VT came in second with 1:23:51 and Joanna Brown of West Paris placed third with 1:27:59. Team DBF (Brad Demers, Matt Burke and Travys Fecteau) was the top men’s relay coming in at 1:15:41.

Top coed relay team was Team Honeybadger is Back (Ann Freeman, Josh Freeman and Kyle Warren) with a time of 1:22:02. And for a fifth year in a row, the top women’s relay team was Team Good Times (Annie Ware, Alison Chadbourne and Katie Vaillancourt).

A USAT sanctioned sprint triathlon, the Norway Triathlon presents a challenging but do-able course, attracting an athletic spectrum from elite athletes like Paris’ own Angela Bancroft to novice triathletes.

During the pre-race instructions to competitors Saturday, race director Mark White asked for a show of hands from first-time triathletes – more than half of the competitors raised their hands.

This year’s Triathlon was sponsored by New Balance, Anthem BlueCross BlueShield, Café Nomad, Evergreen Subaru, Hannaford Bros., Norway Savings Bank, Bancroft Sign & Fence, Clear Water Carbon Fund, Hancock Lumber, Paris Farmers Union, Rainbow Bicycles, Stephens Memorial Hospital, Fare Share Market, Norway Downtown and Whites Marina.

More than 60 volunteers made the Triathlon a safe and successful event this year. MDOT completed temporary road repairs on the Greenwood Road and the Town of Norway’s road and recreation departments did all they could to assist.

Volunteers from the Western Foothills Land Trust logged in many hours preparing the Preserve trails and assisting the event directly.