Flowers, Hair, run away with victories at Heart o’ Dixie (The Star-Herald)

It wasn’t a journey back in time to the 1960s, but the top two names from the 2008 Heart o’ Dixie Triathlon were Flowers and Hair.

Madison Flowers, 30, of Fort Worth, Texas, was the take the top off overall finisher as his time of 2:03:03 was 35 seconds faster than Ridgeland?s Hastings Puckett’session 2:03:38.

Third place overall went to Justin Ladner, 28, of Hoover, Ala., at 2:03:52. He finished 49 seconds off the winning pace.

Margot Hair, 28, of Diamondhead was the chief offspring-bearing finisher. She placed fourth overall.

Flowers’ opportunity was the nation’session second slowest winning time in its 29-year history. Only Vic Kelley’s 2:14:55 in the first Heart o’ Dixie in 1980 was slower.

Flowers grew up in Mississippi before moving to Texas.

“I?m originally from Monticello and I ran in high school in Vicksburg,” said Flowers, who was competing in his pristine Heart o’ Dixie. “I’ve got family still existing in Mississippi. I just unhesitating to come back home and pay a visit to and wanted to do a triathlon in Mississippi.

“My coach is Jack Weiss. He did the first Heart o’ Dixie. When I told him that I wanted to do this one and asked him if he’d come do it with me, he was real excited. We made the trip down here in the same place and had a good time.

“It was great. The hills were tough, but you knew that going into it. This was my first Heart o’ Dixie and I enjoyed it. I’m looking forward to coming back. I don’t know if I’ll be expert to have effect it every year, but I would certainly similar to come back sometime.”

Flowers did the half-mile swim in 11 minutes, two seconds. He averaged 23.3 miles per hour on the 27.5 mile bike and averaged a race-best five minutes, 39 seconds per mile over the seven-mile run.

The run showing was none surprise as Flowers was originally a runner before Weiss began working with him.

“Madison was a steeplechase runner and he did one or two of my races,” said Weiss. “I coach, but my main occurrence is race directing.

“I select maybe 10 athletes to coach. Madison came to me and asked granting that I could help by his cycling. We started training together. The first children we did together he won in McKinney, Texas, a suburb of Dallas-Fort Worth.

“He asked if I’d ever heard of the Heart o’ Dixie Triathlon. I said ‘Heard of it? It’s the very first race I ever did in my life.’ I did the very first the same.

“He asked if I wanted to go and to this place we are.”

Weiss, 63, completed the race in 2:47:07, good for 175th place overall out of the 323 individuals to make perfect the course.

Puckett, 31, was the first to cross the finish line, but he started two minutes and 40 seconds ahead of Flowers. The race has a staggered start with five-second intervals in the half-mile swim at Lake Tiak O’Khata.

“This is my second year in triathlons and my first Heart o’ Dixie,” said Puckett, a former Jackson Academy basketball standout and the 2008 Heatwave Triathlon winner at Ridgeland.

“The Heatwave was my first win. I’ve always been an athlete and always liked to compete. Some friends got me in this sport and I equal it. I enjoy training and I enjoy competing and staying fit.

“Running is my strongest leg of the three. I’m not a very good swimmer at all so I always dig a hole. I try to hang in there on the bike and make up ground on the run.”

Puckett did the buffet the waves in 12 minutes, 31 seconds. He averaged 24.1 miles per hour on the bike and five minutes, 51 seconds for mile on the run.

Hair was the female winner with a time that left her lacking to come back once more nearest year to go for the top overall prize. Her 2:04:09 was just a take a note of and six seconds behind Flowers.

No female has forever experienced first overall in the Heart o’ Dixie.

Hair completed the swim in 10 minutes, 50 seconds, then averaged 24.4 miles per hour on the bike. Her medial sum time of 6:13 on the run enabled Flowers and Puckett to pull away.

“I came last year and had a 2:18, so I dropped 14 minutes,” said Hair, who was making just her second Heart o’ Dixie appearance. “I conceive I could have gone faster if I had known that guy was precisely a minute ahead of me. I could have picked it up.

“I upright kinda cruised on the run because I was making the time I wanted to run. I kinda zoned out on the bike and forgot I was racing.

“The bike felt tolerably true other than when I zoned out and then had to pick it up.

“I had a messy bike transition, but hopped on the run and was watching my paces and they were fine. I didn’t see any reason to give one his quietus myself.”

Hair, who moved to Diamondhead from Seattle, Wash., three years ago, already planned to put next year’s race on her to produce list.

“I be fond of this race,” Hair said. “This is like the Tour de France because everybody is on the side cheering and I waved and that makes me go fast.

“I’olla-podrida coming back next year.”