University of Massachusets Athletics
McHugh, Menks Earn Top Marks in Greenfield Triathlon
August 10, 2016 | Rowing
Rowing coach, student-athlete duo take first place in respective age groups
"It was so much fun to try a new event like this," McHugh said. "I've always thought I wanted to do a triathlon, but hadn't raised the courage to register. Being a weak swimmer I appreciated that the run was last and I was able to gain momentum as I went through the race. It was certainly a new challenge!"
McHugh won the Female 25-29 Group with an overall time of 3:28:32.8, nearly 11Â minutes ahead of the next participant in her class. She finished the swim in 24 minutes, 29 seconds with a 1:55:24 time on the bicycle portion of the event and a 1:05.59 mark on her run. Menks outpaced her coach with an overall finish of 3:22:09.8, broken down to 20:08 (swim), 1:37:46 (bike) and 1:22:08 (run). She topped the leaderboard for the Female 20-24 Group.
"The Greenfield Triathlon was an amazing way to start off racing in triathlons," Menks said. "Rowing is more of a sprint sport, so being able to compete in this long endurance event was an eye-opener. After the .7-mile swim, 30-mile bike and 7.2-mile run the first thing I said was, 'That was one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life, but that was great!' I was really happy to see my time after the race - especially my bike leg - because I averaged 18.6 miles per hour, which was faster than my goal pace. Finishing this triathlon was so rewarding and now I just can't wait to compete in another."
Follow the Minutewomen on Twitter (@UMassRowing) and Instagram (@umass_rowing).
Players Mentioned
