Stephen Garr wouldn't mind having some aspects of last year back, but this certainly makes the trials much more worth it.
After battling through a myriad of injuries and health maladies throughout the 2024-25
Grand Canyon University Club Triathlon season, the Lopes' Head Triathlon Coach showed a summer of recuperation paid off, winning the Castle Creek Triathlon at Lake Pleasant. Garr wasn't the only Lope who gave a great of themselves as in her first college race, Lopes' freshman Nicole Smith finished 18
th overall and in the top 5 among female entrants, while Lopes' 2
nd-year triathlete
Joseph Dabisch came in 30
th.
"Getting to come back for my senior year with a win after managing some difficulties last year was a perfect way to start the season," said Garr. "Now I'm motivated to keep moving forward as we work toward our coming races."
Garr spent much of last fall getting accustomed to coaching the program as well as competing,
and still finished 2nd at this same event last October. Soon after that, Garr encountered issues with his hip and a couple of illnesses that dragged on well into the spring, which forced him to stay on the sidelines for the Tritonman Triathlon. Garr rededicated himself to his training in late spring, and his 68 minutes of work at Lake Pleasant showed it. He was never worse than 3
rd place the entire race, coming out of the water with an overall swim time of 13 minutes, 15 seconds, which was just 13 seconds off the pace of the leader. His 36 minute, 59 second finish getting off the bike was one of just four times that were sub-37 minutes in the entire race, but Garr's overall lead was slim with two members of the University of Arizona in hot pursuit. UA's Joseph Moreno was one of those, and although Moreno bested Garr's running time of 16:49 by 30 seconds, by the end, he was the only other runner in sight as Garr crossed the final tape with an overall finish of one hour, eight minutes and 26 seconds (33 seconds faster than Moreno). The win – Garr's second at Lake Pleasant - was also a "full-circle moment", since his first victory at the lake was
his first career win as a Lope back in 2022.
"I was happy with how my body responded during this race," said Garr. "Specifically on my run, which was inhibited by injuries last year, I felt very strong and able to hold my own out there, building up my confidence for the rest of the season."
From one Lope's final Lake Pleasant race to one's first, and a memorable first one it was for Smith. Less than a month into the club's training, Smith has already emerged as one of their best competitors and showed it in her inaugural college event. Smith – who grew up in the town east of Scottsdale known as Rio Verde – might have fought jitters as she finished the race's swim portion in the middle of the pack but quickly established herself once she got on the cycle. Her two-wheeled performance of 50 minutes, four seconds was 5
th-best among females, and then Smith really kicked into gear on the run with the 2
nd-fastest mark among females (22:05), which was among the 14 best overall. Smith crossed the line at one hour, 32 minutes, 29 seconds, which placed her 5
th among females and garnered her first top 20 finish overall.
"It was amazing to see the work that both Nicole and Joey put in at this race," said Garr. "Both of them have been very consistent in training and it showed with their great times. I was especially impressed with Nicole's top 5 female finish with this being her first triathlon ever. Joey showed great improvement from last year as well, holding his own against a very competitive conference."
Garr hopes to get a few more of his young charges ready for their first race as the Lopes head north to Boulder City, Nevada, for the Pumpkinman Triathlon on Saturday, October 25.
