Shebest is the best in 17th Vineman race

Windsor Middle School teacher Bob Shebest picked a perfect time
to score his first major Ironman Triathlon victory on Saturday,
winning the 17th annual Full Vineman in 9:27:12.
The 32 year-old math and science teacher bested some 254
finishers, which included 196 men and 58 women, testing mind, body
and soul to conquer the grueling wine country course.
The Vineman has the distinction of being the oldest full Ironman
triathlon in the Continental United States. The race started at
Johnson¹s Beach in Guerneville and included a 2.4-mile swim,
112-mile bike ride and ended with a 26.2-mile marathon. The
marathon consisted of three loops of 8.7 miles, beginning and
ending at Windsor High School.
The hotly contested men¹s race had Shebest running alongside
35-year-old David Glover of Reston, Virginia during the first two
loops of the marathon run, but gained separation on the final loop
to score a four-minute victory.
³I ran with Glover for quite a while and we carried on a long
conversation,² said Shebest, who finished fourth at the Napa Valley
Marathon in March. ³By the third lap of the run I was starting to
get more confident and knew I had a chance to win.²
Rounding out the top five male finishers in the Full Vineman
were: Brandon Del Campo (29, Boulder, CO 9:43:21), Tim Sheeper (43,
Menlo Park, CA 9:52:49) and Charles McCarroll (27, San Jose, Ca
10:07:09).
Thirty-three year-old Beatrix Blattmann of Edwards, Calif.
captured first in the Full Vineman women¹s race in a fast
10:32:00.
Also contested on Saturday were a Vineman Relay, Barb¹s Relay,
full and half Aqua-Bike events, and the sixth annual Barb¹s Race,
an all-women¹s competition that included a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile
bike and 13.1-mile run.
Top local athletes in the Half Vineman Relay were Healdsburg¹s
Tim Vallery (34, 14:14:29) and Bob O¹Hair (46, 14:41:03), and
Windsor¹s Guadalupe Chavarria (49, 14:06:58).
Top locals in the Half Vineman Aqua Bike were: Clint Hamblin,
25, of Bodega Bay in 1:53:06 and Healdsburg¹s Mark Togher, 31,
3:30:07.