Local triathlete competes in Europe

Contributed Photo – With the Alps providing a very scenic background Scott Bradley gets off his bike as he transitions to the run portion of the triathlon in Austria.

From the Adirondacks to the Alps it has been a busy summer of pro triathlon competition for Lyndonville native Scott Bradley who capped off that stretch with a personal best time of 4:01.11 for a 70.3 triathlon at Augusta, Georgia on September 24.

Bradley’s busy summer started in late July when he competed in his only long distance triathlon of the year at the Ironman Lake Placid which included a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike ride and a 26.2 mile (full marathon) run.

Coming out of the water 20th out of 21 Male Pros, he moved up to 12th after the bike ride and then posted a time of 3:27.36 in the run to finish the day 14th out of 21 Male Pros and 23rd overall out of 2,325 participants in the race.

Next it was off to Europe where triathlon competition is a major sport. Interestingly, as it turned out he literally represent his country as he was the only Male Pro from the United States to compete in the Ironman 70.3 events in Dublin, Ireland on August 20 and Zell am See-Kaprun, Austria on August 27.

Bradley in action during the run portion of the Austrian triathlon.

In the Dublin competition he placed 14th ou of 17 Male Pros and 22nd overall out of 1,536 entrants as he posted the 12th fastest bike time of the day and finished the event with a total time of 4:17.43.

Unfortunately Bradley came down with a head cold the day before the competition in Austria. Battling the congestion and the toughest bike course he has faced to date, he finished 18th among 30 Male Pros and 42nd out of 2,246 with a total time of 4:30.04.

Despite having to compete while battling a cold, he placed the Austrian course among his favorite 70.3 races of his career noting that it was as professionally run  as any that he has competed in and the scenery was absolutely breathtaking.

Bradley then wrapped up his busy summer with a “rebound” 70.3 event in August, Georgia where he finished 10th out of 22 Male Pros and 10th overall out of 2.557 competition. It was the fourth top 10 finish of his pro career and his overall time of 4:01.11 broke his own personal record time for a 70.3 by over three and a half minutes.

He came out of the water 19th out of the 22 Male Pros but only 3 minutes 22 seconds behind the first Male Pro. Then riding the seventh fastest bike time of the day, he climbed to ninth among the Male Pro.  The fourth fastest time of his career in the run (1:24.20) enabled him to finish 10th among the pros.

Bradley, who is the Assistant Principal at Byron-Bergen Junior-Senior High School, will next be competing in the Miami, Florida and or Austin Texas events this month.