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Four from four for Stoltz
Wednesday, 17 June 2009
Conrad Stoltz made it four victories in four races when he won the XTERRA Atlantic Cup in Richmond, Virginia on Sunday 14 June.
Looking at the statistics he seems to make it look so easy, after-all four races on the trott would indicate complete domination. But Stoltz picked up a serious injury minutes before the race. Helping to put a course bouy back in place, Stoltz sliced open the top of his foot shuffling across the bottom of the James River.
"The cut was so deep I could see tendons," said Stoltz. Dr. Kathy Coutinho helped wrap plastic around the wound literally seconds before the start.
The swim in the James River is tough. Approximately 400m through a cross current – including rocks to navigate around over to Belle Island. Then there is a short run on the muddy banks of the Island before swimming back. Stoltz thinks the “bandage” came off on that run as he could "feel the wound flapping in the water" on the way back.
Stoltz was treated with peroxide and had his wound bandaged in T1, incredibly needing only 46 seconds! "Dr. Matt was waiting by my bike and it was like a Nascar pit stop, took no time at all," said Stoltz, who went on to have the fastest bike split (1:01:44) and hit the run with a one-minute lead over Middaugh and Dan Hugo. He was never challenged.
Stoltz’s nickname is the Caveman and a tough “caveman” he was indeed. After crossing the finish line, Stoltz was back with Dr. Marchal getting cleaned up, stitched up (seven in all). It was his fourth win in five years in Richmond and fourth win in five XTERRA Cup Series races this season ."I thought about not racing but we put in so much effort with the training and the travel and this Series is so very important to me I just had to go. The adrenaline runs so high," said Stoltz. "I felt fine on the bike, it didn't hurt at all, and it wasn't until the run that I started to get tired and a little woozy and I wasn't sure if it was fatigue or blood loss."
Behind Stoltz, last year's Richmond winner Josiah Middaugh was doing his best to recreate 2008 when he flew past Dan Hugo just a mile before the finish to steal the win. It wasn't meant to be, however, but a strong finish nonetheless, just 22 seconds back.
TOP PRO MEN
1 Conrad Stoltz - 1:54:57
2 Josiah Middaugh - 1:55:19
3 Nico Lebrun - 1:55:44
4 Mike Vine - 1:57:14
5 Dan Hugo - 1:57:27
6 Brian Smith - 1:57:33
7 Ryan DeCook - 2:01:26
8 Craig Evans - 2:05:57
9 Will Kelsay - 2:07:20
10 Seth Wealing - 2:08:37
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