DASH FOR THE SPLASH TRIATHLON: Nearly 150 triathletes turn out for event

Based on the constant smiles flashed by the 144 participants of the Dash for the Splash Triathlon on Saturday morning, the second annual fundraiser was another huge success.

With sunny skies, pleasant temperatures and a worthy cause adding to their inspiration, the triathletes began their quest at 7:30 a.m. when the first adults entered the pool to open their three-part journey.

In the first Dash for the Splash held last year, the organizers from Sidney Regional Medical Center were able to donate more than $2,000 to the new Sidney public pool and Deadwood Trail Expansion Project.

"It will likely be a few days before we know the total amount (of the 2015 donation)," said organizer Rachel Smith, a speech language pathologist at SRMC. "We're expecting it to be more than last year."

Smith, along with Kristin Schmidt, Kristin Narjes, Ally Benzel and Kyle Brown organized the event. They also had the benefit of about 20 volunteers among their fellow co-workers at SRMC. They also attracted volunteers from the community at large with nearly 40 in all.

The morning began with the first wave of athletes taking to the pool for a 250-meter swim. There was then a bike ride of eight miles, after which a two-mile run guided them to the finish. As an added feature in this year's event, children ages 8 to 13 were included in two different youth categories who participated in an abbreviated format.

As for the younger ones, there was an added bonus upon their arrival at the finish line. They were treated to a slip-and-slide to cool down their overheated frames. Though designed for the youth, there were also plenty of adults who couldn't resist the lure of a fun way to cool down after the race.

"After last years triathlon, we got a lot of feedback and tried to incorporate some of those suggestions this time around," Narjes said. "We heard from a lot of people last year that they'd like to see the kids get involved and we did that. That turned out to be a big success."

Another of the suggestions incorporated from last year were chips issued to the competitors before the start of the race. The chips allowed finishers to see not only their final times, but their splits for each discipline.

With participants from many parts of Nebraska and several states, they raced in two adult categories for male and female.

Nathan Ostdiek of Columbus was the male winner in the 14- to 35-year-old category with the fastest individual time of the day at 47 minutes, 27 seconds. Close behind was John Jerman of Sterling. Colo., who took the top prize for men over 35 in 47:42.

For Jerman, it was more than a race. Rather, it was more like a family outing. He joined his wife Wendy, who finished third among women over 35. Also competing was their daughter Johnna Harris, who was tops among women ages 14-34.

"First and foremost we came out to have fun and we had plenty," John Jerman said. "This is a great way to keep up our training in a fun way.

"But to be truthful, all I really live for is to beat her," he added, pointing to his wife.

Added Harris, "We can get pretty competitive, but that's part of the fun."

Edging out Wendy Jerman for the top spot for women over 35 was Annette Krueger of Sidney, who finished in 51:10. Dana Streff of Sidney was second. Finishing as the runner-up to Harris in the 14 to 35 group was Charlie Brockhaus, a sophomore at Sidney High School.

Three other students from SHS were the winners of the 14-34 team competition. Austin Jacobson, Ryan Aurich and Ryan Birner teamed up to finish the course in 47:23. Jacobson completed the swimming portion, Birner biked and Aurich ran.

In the ages 8-10 category, Sidney's Jaeden Dillehay was the first boy to cross the finish line. He topped second-place finisher Gannon Yocom by 26 seconds. Among the girls, Emily Stutzman of Sidney was the winner with Shawnee Gamble less than half a minute behind.

Sidney's Brody Blome took the top prize among boys 11- to 13-years-old. He was 16 seconds ahead of runner-up Trey Douglas, also of Sidney. Lauren Ostdiek of Columbus was tops among the girls with Kyra McKinney of Evans, Colo., taking second. The winning youth relay team (8-10) included Kayla Westby, Carli Black and Jordan DeNovellis.

OVERALL TRIATHLON RESULTS

Men's Top 10

1. Nathan Ostdiek 47:27

2. John Jerman 47:42

3. Levi Williamson 47:50

4. Kristopher Hubbard 48:00

5. Brent Rawlings 48:10

6. Jason Gale 48:12

7. Spencer Samuelson 48:15

8. Jon Blaha 48:39

9. Tom Sorenson 50:58

10. Dale Walker 51:11

Women's Top 10

1. Johnna Harris 49:27

2. Annette Kreuger 51:10

3. Dana Streff 52:58

4. Wendy Jerman 53:44

5. Jill Yocom 56:32

6. Charlie Brockhaus 56:36

7. Lindsey Dykman 58:36

8. Kelle Dillehay 59:15

9. Karin Williamson 59:27

10. Trisha McKinney 1:00.17