June 29, 2008—Boulder, Colorado resident Amanda Lovato made a return to the Med Express Spirit of Morgantown Half Iron intent to improve upon her third-place finish from 2007.  Buoyed by the success of her second-place finish at the Columbia Triathlon on May 18^th, Lovato arrived in West Virginia confident she could make a strong push for the podium once again.

On race morning, athletes were greeted by cool temps and overcast skies; a welcome departure from warm and muggy conditions typical of a WV summer.

Not even the world’s fastest swim skin, blueseventy’s pointZero3, could keep Amanda in contact with the swim leaders.  Exiting the water over five minutes down, and in fourth place, Lovato had her work cut out for her. 

As smooth as a chilly, flying-mount transition could be, Amanda adeptly made her way through T2, anxious to put the pedal to the metal on her flashy Scott Plasma Contessa.  The sluggish feeling that characterized her swim followed her to the start of the bike leg as well.  Pushing through the discomfort, Amanda found her form 20 miles into the ride, and proceeded to catch and distance her self from the swim leaders. 

As cloudy skies turned to a rainy downpour, athletes everywhere were yielding to cautious riding, or paying the road-rash price.  Amanda’s self-proclaimed status as Safety Sally did not prevent her from entering T2 with the fastest bike split, and the overall lead.

After the turnaround on the hilly two-loop run course, Lovato found comfort in seeing she maintained a moderate seven-minute gap to second place.  Soaking up the gracious Morgantown praise, Amanda Lovato crossed the finish line in first place. 

With two podium finishes thus far in 2008, Amanda turns her attention to her preparation for Subaru Ironman Canada on August 24^th.  Along the way, she will compete in her hometown race Boulder Peak Triathlon on July 20^th.