Business owners place in Ironman
Lakewood Ranch Fitness Together and Clark Endurance Training co-owners Nicole and Nick Clark competed in the Ironman 70.3 San Juan.
Nicole placed sixth in her age division to qualify for the Ironman 70.3 World Championships set for Las Vegas in September.
She swam 1.2 miles in 37:56 before transitioning to a 56-mile bike ride that took 2:43:48.
Clark finished off the competition with a 13.1-mile run through the Puerto Rican city’s famous Fort San Felipe del Morro and past 16th-century Spanish architecture, according to a news release.
She clocked in at 1:54:01 for a total of 5 hours, 22 minutes and 22 seconds including the transition times between swim-to-bike and bike-to-run.
Nick Clark finished in 5:29:58 to place 41st in his age group.
Record turnout
The third annual Twilight Robinson Preserve 5K attracted about 1,500 participants. The timed road race was the largest ever in Manatee County, according to a news release.
Tampa’s Ryan Ripley was the overall male winner with a course record of 15 minutes, 17 seconds.
Clearwater’s Kristen Prouch clocked in at 17:42 to capture the overall female title.
Bradenton’s Chuck Van Duzee and Longboat Key’s Maria Georgieve won the male and female veterans divisions, respectively.
Other division winners included Bob Garcia (male masters), Melody Jackson (female masters), Jonathan Dunford (male grand masters), Melissa Trammel (female grand masters), Vincent Cafferty (male senior grand masters) and Tuula Pakula (female senior grand masters).
Little League has own night
Manatee West night at McKechnie Field is April 15 as the Bradenton Marauders take on the Fort Myers Miracle in a Florida State League South Division showdown.
Players from Manatee West Little League teams get to parade on the field at 6:30 p.m. prior to the game, wearing their team jersey and hat.
They also get to take photos with the Marauders mascot, Marty the Pirate.
A Marauders mug and a free fill voucher comes with the $5 ticket. Those are just some of the festivities. Paper forms can be found at the G.T. Bray concession stand. The deadline is April 10.
For more information, contact Peggy Willrodt at 798-3771.
Baseball competition
The Manatee Adult Baseball League is hosting Major League Baseball’s Aquafina Pitch, Hit and Run competition on Saturday, April 16.
The competition starts at 11 a.m. and concludes at 2 p.m. on Braden River Little League’s Field No. 7. The address is 5201 51st St. E.
Clare joins FC Tampa Bay
Former Bradenton Academics soccer player Matt Clare, who scored one goal in 10 matches in 2009, performed well enough in a trial with FC Tampa Bay to latch onto the club.
The forward signed with the North American Soccer League team, which has a club option for 2012.
FC Tampa Bay began its inaugural campaign last season and is scheduled to open the 2011 slate against the Montreal Impact Saturday, April 9.
Jason Dill, sports reporter can be reached at 745-7017 or via email at jdill@bradenton.com.
This story was originally published March 29, 2011 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Business owners place in Ironman."