Jake Bamforth earns pro ranking in the sport of triathlon

Local Sussex Tech graduate Jake Bamforth moved to Colorado two years ago to pursue a master’s degree in public health and take a shot at his goal of becoming a professional triathlete.

On Oct. 21, he traveled with his Colorado State Tri Team to Las Vegas to compete in the Pumpkinman Triathlon, where he had to finish in the top three to earn his pro card from USA Tri. He was fourth overall by a few seconds.

“I had some trouble in [the second transition] getting my running shoes on and lost 10 seconds, and the pack got away a bit,” said Jake.

Next stop on the way back to Fort Collins was the America’s Triathlon Championships in St. George, Utah. An event called The Super Sprint was held consisting of a 300-meter swim, a 13.3K bike ride and 1.67K run. Jake finished fourth again.

“The race was super fast and very technical, but I raced pretty well,” said Jake.

The main attraction in the America’s Triathlon Championships came at the U25 Elite Development, consisting of a 750-meter swim, a 20K bike ride and a 5K run.

Jake found himself in a bike pack of five to six riders midway through the 12-mile bike and went with a breakaway, opening up 10 seconds on the field.

“I was worried that the break might backfire with the chase pack working together to catch us,” said Jake. “But we worked hard together and held them off going into the 5K run.”

Jake pulled away and went into the lead during the run and was able to hold off the field closing quickly to take the win, his first major win, with a 17:00 5K to cross the line for a total time of 59:56.  

There’s two years of training and many crazy challenges he can look back on. His 14.6-mile swim from Cape May to Cape Henlopen where he set the fastest time ever. His three-day Ultraman in Fort Collins (6.2-mile swim and 90-mile bike on day 1, a 171-mile bike on day 2, and a double marathon of 52.4 miles on day 3). His bikes to the top of Estes Park and through all the valleys of Horsetooth. And last and most important are his quality workouts and continued support by his teammates – the Colorado State Triathlon Team. What lies next for Jake Bamforth as a pro triathlete? Dad has no idea, but time will tell.

Ortiz, Stazzone break Cape course records

Mariner sixth-grader Allison Ortiz shattered the Cape Henlopen middle school 3K record of 13:20 with a time of 12:18 Monday afternoon in the Beacon/Mariner season finale. Ortiz, winner of three invitationals this season and one of the hottest young runners in the state right now, went to the front early and was challenged by Beacon’s Shiloh O’Grady, another sixth-grader. O’Grady came on strong in the month of October and gave Ortiz all she wanted until the final half-mile of the race. O’Grady finished second with a time of 12:32. Eighth-grader Lily Noonan of Beacon ran her final middle school XC race, finishing third in 12:38. Beacon’s Izzy Daniel was fourth in 13:02, followed by Chloe DeForrest of Mariner in 13:29. Erin Noonan, just a sixth-grader, rounded out the top five places in 13:32. Beacon girls topped Mariner 22-39.

Beacon’s Riley Stazzone ran his final middle school cross country race and broke his own 11:55 record with a time of 11:12 for the 3K distance. Asher Woods, just a sixth-grader, went back and forth with Stazzone for the first 2K of the race before Stazzone pulled away for the 10-second win. Woods was second in 11:22, while a tough Ethan Thompson was third in 11:23. Beacon’s Nicholas Petito was fourth in 11:46, while Mariner’s Brayden Redd was fifth in 11:55 to round out the top five. Beacon topped Mariner 21-40.

Henlopen XC Championships

This Saturday at Killens Pond State Park will be the Henlopen Conference Cross Country Championships with a record 16 teams competing. I have followed Henlopen cross country for 38 years, and I do not remember having 16 teams in the championship. Some outstanding races have been held this season downstate, and Saturday should be no exception. Katie Kuhlman will lead the Cape girls as they try to hold off a young, tough Sussex Academy team that tied them in the Sussex County Championships, with Cape winning on a sixth-runner rule. Don’t count out Smyrna and CR, as they will be in the mix. Brynn Crandell of Indian River should run away with the individual title, as no one has challenged her all season.

The Vikings boys are the team to beat, as they have dominated all season. Cape eliminator Ryan Baker is racing faster than anyone has ever raced downstate, coming off a Sussex County win in 15:23. Not too many runners have broken the 16-minute mark from downstate teams at Killens Pond, but Baker has a great shot. Kevin Murray of Charter ran a record 15:20.6 in 2015.

Baker has a lot of support from his teammates as Julian Callaway, Joey DeGregory and Liam O’Donnell race together within 10 seconds of each other. Chase Sims from IR will be in the mix up front, coming off a 15:39 finish at the Sussex County race, and the dynamic duo of Matt Gatune and Kenny Guy from Polytech will be up front and can never be counted out. It should be one of the best up-front battles in Henlopen history for the boys’ side. The JV races start at 2 p.m. and the varsity will follow at 3 p.m.

352 turn out for Sea Witch 5K

It was a successful Sea Witch weekend with 100 runners completing the half-marathon classic on Saturday and a big field of 352 runners turning out for the 5K run Sunday for the Seashore Striders. Jake Landon, 22, ran 16:58.9 to capture the male title, while Lauren James won the female title in 20:52. Mark Evans won the male masters in 18:47 for third place overall, while Beverly Benzon won the female masters in 23:33.  Kai Mundok, 9, won the 9U division in 22:36, while Ruby Leps ran 28:51 for the 9U win. Jack Louden ran 22:47 for the 10-13 win, while Striders Shiloh O’Grady and Mia Thompson ran 22:39 and 22:46, respectively. Katya Geyer ran 21:23 to win the 10-13 age group. Soccer player Michael Daniello ran 20:01 and could easily be an 18-minute guy with some 5K training. A costume contest, custom awards, a cool long-sleeved T, the Striders Bake Sale, and it all felt like a normal Sea Witch again. Congrats to all the finishers.

Talking Chute

Mariner and Seashore Striders runner Allison Ortiz will race this Saturday in the Delaware Junior High Championships at Winterthur Park in Wilmington as a sixth-grader against the state’s best fifth- though eighth-graders.

Tyler Muse and Martin Rodriguez went 1-2 in the inaugural Sea Witch Half Marathon Oct. 30, while Mike Sewell won the masters race. Cindy Conant won the female overall title, while Rebekah Hicks won the female masters.

Ben Bamforth was hired at Friends School in Wilmington to coach middle school track & field this winter season. Friends School requires all kids to do a sport each season, so numbers will not be an issue. Ben will work with newly named high school coach Leah-Kate Lounsbury, formerly of Delaware Tech and a tough distance runner in the state. Friends School will compete at Tower Hill on the 180-yard oval, the same place where his dad ran for Cape Henlopen in 1984 and 1985 to win four state titles. Talk about going full circle 37 years later ... over and out!