Duathlon marks special day for Ole Dutchman

~ Norton won the event, which was revised due to the overnight rain.

Displaying the passion and motivation that shaped his competitive character when he founded the event over 20 years ago, even 81-year-old Bob Schnurbusch conquered the scorching heat on Saturday to cross the finish line at the Old Appleton Triathlon.

And it was only fitting that he received the loudest ovation of the day.

The "Ole Dutchman," as he is known by family and friends, walked with his daughters Kristi Jansen and Lori Carroll across the new Old Appleton Bridge to the finish line as an honorary finisher of the reincarnated triathlon that he began in 1983. The three were greeted at the end by an emotional applause from roughly 100 standing spectators and participants that beared a heat index nearing 100 degrees to pay tribute to the founder.

"There's been many a mile between here and there," Schnurbusch said. "Sometimes I feel like throwing in the towel, but I hang in there."

Although the Ole Dutchman stole the show, 25-year-old Andrew Norton was by far the best in the field Saturday.

Norton, a former cross country and track athlete at the University of Missouri-Columbia, cruised to victory in 1 hour, 38 minutes, 46 seconds. The second-place overall finisher, Pat Brown, crossed the line nearly five minutes later at 1:43:20.

Norton traveled to Old Appleton in hopes of competing in his first triathlon, but the event was changed into a duathlon when race officials decided the murky Apple Creek water was dangerously high due to heavy rain the night before.

Norton acknowledged that the outcome likely would have been different had the race not been changed to a 2-mile run, 22-mile bike, 4-mile run format.

The race was initially mapped out as a 1/2-mile swim, 22-mile bike, 5-mile run course.

"I was a little disappointed it wasn't a real triathlon," Norton said, "but it definitely worked to my advantage. I probably wouldn't have won if the swim didn't get canceled.

"I was a little bit surprised at how I did. I have a running background, but I just started riding a few weeks ago."

Norton, a Sparta, Ill., native, said he had heard through word of mouth about the competition and was impressed with the effort that was put into restoring the race.

"The organizers and founders of this race are fantastic," he said. "They did a great job with it. There were some people falling over themselves for me to come down here. It was a great experience and a great way to get started in triathlons."

Schnurbusch organized the classic Old Appleton Triathlon for more than 10 straight years before it halted in the mid-1990s. The competitions served as a fundraiser for the restoration of the Apple Creek Bridge that was dismantled in a 1982 flood. A new bridge was built in September 2005, and the triathlon was revived this year by Nicole Schnurbusch, the granddaughter of the Ole Dutchman.

More than 175 people competed on Saturday, including one athlete from Alaska.

"It was a great turnout," said Nicole Schnurbusch. "It's a good number of people for the first year."

Pat Mannhard placed third overall and won the 24-under men's division in 1:44:11.

Erin Hagan was the top female finisher with a time of 1:53:03.

Erin Sucher, Andy Arnzen and Matt Pobst claimed the team title in 1:47:39.

"We came out just to have fun," said Pobst, the biker on the squad. "First place or last place, it didn't matter. It was a great time."