Morgan Hill – The local Wolf Pak triathlon group sent seven
members to the Great Colorado Triathlon in Longmont, Colo. last
Sunday to compete against the top 16-19-year-old triathletes in the
country.
Morgan Hill – The local Wolf Pak triathlon group sent seven members to the Great Colorado Triathlon in Longmont, Colo. last Sunday to compete against the top 16-19-year-old triathletes in the country.
In his first year in the Junior Elite division (16-19-year-olds) Sobrato High School’s Lance Wolfsmith finished the triathlon in 1:00:38.9, taking 13th place overall and seventh out of the American competitors.Â
While the Great Colorado Triathlon serves as the National Championships for U.S. Junior Elite Racing, the Canadian National and New Zealand National teams, as well as some South American individuals also participated amongst 69 total triathletes.Â
At only 15-years-old, Wolfsmith is one of the youngest racers in this elite group, yet he is already staking out a place at the top.
“All the other guys were 18- and 19-years-old, so they’re all going to college next year,” Wolfsmith said. “Some will have one more year in the age group but after that they’re gone, and I’m still there.”
Wolfsmith was last year’s national champion of the Youth Elite group, which is comprised of the top 13-15-year-olds, and he ran a 15:36 5K last year as a 14-year-old.
To compete at such a high level at such a young age, Wolfsmith was happy with his own and his team’s performance in the Junior Elite division.
“I had a really good run,” he said. “Out of the swim I was way behind … something like two minutes back, which is a huge deficit, but I pulled it together on the bike, and on the run I passed 14 people.”
Other Wolf Pak triathletes Derek Pesta, 17; Matthew Sosa, 15; and Kyle Benton, 17, also have a few years to compete amongst the best in the Junior Elite division. Pesta finished the Great Colorado Triathlon in 44th place with a time of 1:08:43.1, Sosa finished close behind in 45th with a time of 1:08:51.1, and Benton finished in 48th place with a time of 1:10:43.6.
“We’re a young group, and next year these guys will be in the top 20 finishers,” Wolfsmith said.
Wolfsmith has competed in four triathlons this summer taking him across the country to places like Pittsburgh, Penn. and Des Moines, Iowa where he trained with the Junior Elite National Team at a week-long, all-expenses paid camp at the end of June.
Comprised of 18- and 19-year-olds, the Junior Elite National Team invited Wolfsmith on as the 10th member, and affectionately called him the “15-year-old giant” as he was youngest member of the team.
Every year the three fastest members of the Junior Elite National team go on to represent the U.S. at the World Championships.
This year the World Championships take place in Hamburg, Germany and next year they will be held in Vancouver, British Columbia.
“Our ultimate goal is for him to qualify for the world championships,” Wolfsmith’s Dad and coach Dave said.
Along with being the president of the Wolf Pak triathlon group, Dave Wolfsmith is also the Varsity cross country coach and the distance track coach at Sobrato.
“In cross country they compete against other teams in their division” Dave said. “Last year they gave awards to the top 10 individuals out of about 200 that made it to state, and Lance was ninth.”
But going into the 2007 school year Lance Wolfsmith is ranked 27th out of all the divisions combined throughout the state.
“I can’t remember the last time anyone from Hollister, Gilroy or Morgan Hill has been ranked that high,” Dave said.
While Lance enjoys competing for Sobrato on the track and cross country teams during the school year, his focus is on triathlons.
“Overall the track and country seasons are for training and to prepare for triathlons,” Lance said. “Individually I take those sports as far as I can during the season, but then once the season is over it’s back to triathlons.”
