Lagerstrom wins & Laundry fourth again at 70.3 Steelhead
Eric Lagerstrom wins after recovering from injury and Jackson Laundry recovers from poor swim to finish fourth
On August 12th, Eric Lagerstrom, known for his videography skills on the tri circuit and his short course racing, won IRONMAN 70.3 Steelhead. Lagerstrom got to an early lead in the swim and was able to hold onto that lead as Andrew Starkykowicz tried to chase him down on the bike. The two would exit T2 together with Igor Amorelli. Lagerstrom would pull ahead in the run with a sub – 1:20 half marathon off the bike.
Lagerstrom finished in 3:48:02, with a 25:37 swim, a 2:00:19 bike and a 1:18:17 run. Starykowicz would come second (three minutes back) and just 35 seconds ahead of Amorelli in third. Canadian Jackson Laundry would finish fourth for the second year in a row at Steelhead.
“I struggled in the swim and got out of the water nearly three minutes behind the leaders, the furthest I’ve been back all year,” recounts Laundry. Lake Michigan can be unpredictable with waves reaching 3-4 feet even in the early morning. “Swimming in choppy waters is something I have to work on,” says Laundry. On the bike, Laundry put in some good work, posting a 2:03 bike split to move into fourth. “I rode strong, but lost time to the guys out in front (all posted two-hour or less bike splits),” says Laundry. Then on the run, he posted another solid 1:20 half marathon, closing on second and third. “Fourth is not what I was hoping for, but I’m pleased with my bike and run,” says Laundry. And rightfully so, this year has seen Laundry’s run improve, especially the last 5K.
Though it wasn’t the result he wanted, Laundry is optimistic and knows what he needs to work on for next year. Up next for Laundry are a few local races on the Multisport Canada race schedule, before doing a few fall 70.3 races.
