Gloucester Alumni

By Gail McCarthy
Staff Writer, Gloucester Daily Times

The water off Pavilion Beach yesterday morning took on a neon confetti look, as hundreds of racers wearing colorful swim caps dipped into the harbor shortly before 9 a.m.

"It's like Fiesta all over again," said Ann Sanfilippo, who watched from the family homestead on Beach Court, overlooking all the excitement.

Despite the hundreds of participants and thousands of spectators, the occasion wasn't a second version of St. Peter's Fiesta. It was the first Gloucester Triathlon, which carved out its own niche in the city's heart yesterday morning.

Ethan Brown of Lowell and Alicia Kaye, a Canadian who now lives in Maynard — both professional triathletes who compete all over the world in events such as this — won the men's and women's divisions, respectively, of inaugural Gloucester Triathlon, which included a third of a mile swim off Pavilion Beach, a 15-mile cycling course that looped twice from St. Peter's Square to Magnolia and back, and then a 3.2-mile run through the downtown streets of America's oldest seaport.

But yesterday's race — a benefit expected to raise up to $50,000 for the Gloucester Fishermen Athletic Association, Wellspring House and the Pine Street Inn of Boston — wasn't just about elite athletes such as Brown, Kaye and the many others who took part. It was a people event from even before the start.

The ordinarily languid Sunday morning at the downtown waterfront buzzed with excitement as more than 800 athletes readied themselves for the event.

Dave Gross, 54, of Clifton Park, N.Y., and Wingaersheek Beach, prepared himself for the race at the beach.

"I always get nervous before the start, but what a beautiful day," said Gross, who has competed in triathlons for the past 12 years.

The race was run under a nearly cloudless blue sky. Air temperatures remained in the low 70s and the sea water was around 63.

"Many triathlons are in lakes, but the Gloucester water is always freezing," said Gross, who, like most of the swimmers, wore a wet suit, both for its warmth and for buoyancy.

Some families had several members taking part in the race, and that helped bring out the thousands of onlookers. Gloucester native Mike Gillis and his brother Bob Gillis, a veteran runner, were among them and also basked in the goodwill that was prevalent in the ambience of the event.

For Mike Gillis, this was his second triathlon. Not wearing a wet suit, he noted that brother Bob did. When asked if he was competing against his brother, Mike Gillis simply said "only if I beat him."

Before the race began, the organizers shared a few words outside the former Birds Eye building, and the crowd sang an a capella version of "The Star-Spangled Banner."

Then, competitors organized into their groups as they prepared to start with the swim. Each wave of swimmers was separated by the colors of their caps, starting with white for the elite division, then with caps of green, pink, orange, blue and yellow. The competitors had their numbers marked on their upper arms and their age on their calves.

After the completing the swim, each ran from the beach up to St. Peter's Square, which was a sea of hundreds of bicycles readied for the competitors to peel off their wet suits and prepare for the ride.

Police and other rescue personnel from the Fire Department, Coast Guard and the Essex County Sheriff's Department all kept a close eye on the event and the competitors from a safety standpoint.

There were a number of reports of cyclists being "down" at various points on the course, and at least one needed ambulance transport to an area hospital. But there were no apparent reports of cyclists colliding with cars — a concern, with most of the cycling race course out Western Avenue to Magnolia open to auto traffic. And none of the reports indicated serious injuries; one cyclist needed emergency aid after crashing along Western Avenue near the western entrance to Stage Fort Park. He injured his leg, but was stable at the scene, responders indicated.

Rescuers were kept busy off Pavilion Beach during the 1/3-mile harbor swim. The Police Department's incident command post, anchored by Lt. Joseph Aiello, called out at least eight cases of "swimmers in trouble," but lifeguards and kayakers on the lookout for racers struggling in the waters responded to all. And all but one or two competitors declined any emergency transport or medical attention.

All in all, the race, the city and the course drew rave reviews from the triathletes, including the champs.

"It's a spectacular venue," said Brown, 24. "The event is a great showcase for the city, and many of those competing are likely to stay around and have some lunch and look in some shops."

Both said there were struck by the community support and the cheers of encouragement, instead of motorists yelling at them to get out of the way.

"There were so many people there at the finish," said Kaye, 25. "We're not used to that kind of support. The people were so welcoming."

It wasn't just the elite athletes who drew the cheers.

Former Mayor John Bell, who was part of a relay team, swam the first leg of the race. Not being a runner, he said he found it harder to race from the beach to St. Peter's Square than the swim itself. He was on a team with Dick Powers and Pat Salony.

"It was a total blast, very well-organized and it was a big Gloucester event that worked perfectly," Powers, an insurance agent, said after the race. Powers said that, when Bell asked him to take part, he said he could handle the biking portion. Salony was the team's runner. Mayor Carolyn Kirk also ran as part of another relay team.

Powers said it was wonderful to have the support of the community.

"They were out cheering in Magnolia and then downtown," he said. "All the people were encouraging."

Gloucester's Michael English was another of the local competitors. He took time out from the stage with the Annisquam Village Players in "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat," which closed last night. He conceded his legs may have been a bit more tired in that last performance after yesterday's race.

"But I can't tell you how excited I am that this event is here in Gloucester," he said.