Trying athletics on

Luis Pena

A little mud in the Back Bay couldn’t stop triathletes Sunday as

Councilman Steve Bromberg tolled the bells to begin the 27th annual

Kring and Chung Newport Beach Triathlon.

The triathlon, which started in 1978, is the oldest in the world,

race director Jack Caress said.

The race included three components: a half-mile swim in the Back

Bay, a 12-mile cycle course and a 5K run. This year’s race didn’t go

into Irvine as it usually does, as the course was redesigned to have

the bicycle portion held at Fashion Island, Caress said. The event’s

proceeds benefit the UC Irvine rowing team.

“I think it’s very fitting to have a triathlon in Newport Beach,

since people in this town are very conscious about fitness,” said

Bromberg, honorary chairman of the event.

Once out of the water, swimmers headed toward their bicycles,

where they quickly got out of their wetsuits and into bike gear,

which included safety helmets.

Nine-hundred athletes wore transponders that electronically read

their times when they crossed specially marked mats, Caress said.

Santa Monica resident Matt Dixon, 30, was the first-place men’s

finisher at 57 minutes, 59 seconds. It was his second Newport

triathlon, having finished fourth last year, but Dixon said he

normally races in ironman competitions. Winning the event gives him

confidence for some bigger events, he said.

“It’s funny to finish the race and be muddy,” Dixon said. “It

feels a bit like an off-road race.”

Ian Pyott, 22, from San Juan Capistrano, suffered from stomach

pains and problems getting into his gear, but that didn’t keep him

from coming in second. Seal Beach resident Beth Carlson, 31, took

first in the women’s competition.

“I knew I had to work really, really hard on the bike because she

was definitely gaining on me,” Carlson said of second-place finisher

Christen King, 27, of Huntington Beach.

Carlson said she doesn’t take winning lightly, especially after

fracturing her neck and injuring four vertebrate seven years ago in a

bicycling accident. She feels “blessed” to be able to walk, let alone

compete at an event like the triathlon.

“[Triathlons are] also about the human spirit itself because you

have to push yourself the whole time,” King said. “Sometimes you’re

out there asking yourself, ‘Why do I hurt so much.’”

Young at heart, 63-year-old Richard Mason of Laguna Beach got the

bug for triathlons 20 years ago and said he feels “wonderful” passing

20- and 30-year-olds.

“You can’t train for this and golf too, that’s the bottom line,”

Mason said.

* LUIS PENA is the news assistant and may be reached at (949)

574-4298 or by e-mail at luis.pena@latimes.com.