Christopher and Brittany Braden, two former track and cross country standouts at Dos Pueblos, finished among the top 10 in their respective divisions at the USA Triathlon Collegiate Nationals in Lubbock, Texas last weekend.
Christopher Braden, competing for Colorado University, placed 10th in the individual men’s race to help the Buffaloes win the men’s and coed team championships. He finished the 750-meter swim, 40k bike and 10k run in 1 hour, 54 minutes, 35 seconds. His time was the eighth fastest in the team competition.
Competitors had to deal with adverse conditions. The race-day water temperature was a chilly 54 degrees, and the weather was 48 degrees, mixed with light rain. That led USAT officials to cut the swim from a planned 1500 meters to 750 meters.
Chris Stehula, of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, won the event in 1:48.54, beating out Braden’s teammate Cedric Wane (1:149.17). Stehula, who finished 12th in the professional division of the 2009 Escape From Alcatraz triathlon, overcame a 33-second deficit to Wane after the bike.
UCSB’s Brittany Braden placed 10th overall in a time of 2:11.26. The women’s winner was Nicole Kelleher, a 28-year-old medical student at Virginia, in 2:03.10.
In addition to undergrads, the field for the USAT Collegiate Nationals includes graduate students and professionals.
The UCSB women finished fourth in the team competition behind the U.S. Military Academy, Colorado and the U.S. Naval Academy. Members of the Gaucho team were Kathrine Warren (6th, 2:10.40), Lauren Capone (18th, 2:16.43), Kristina Hill, 23rd, 2:20.02 and Elizabeth Whiteley (34th, 2:22.29).
