Home

Steamboat Springs — Five local athletes have earned their entries in today's Steamboat Pentathlon.

Bob Furman, Tracy Colombo, Gerry Verdoner, Jess Branch and Jess Wain - aka "Team Rehabie" - all suffered serious injuries in the past. All endured painful surgeries, long months of rehabilitation and lingering questions about whether their sporting lives would ever be the same.

Today, they'll take another step in straightening things out, combining as a team to compete in the pentathlon.

Nearly 250 competitors are expected to participate in today's event, the 17th annual competition that casts residents and visitors hiking, skiing, snowshoeing, biking and jogging into the early-spring air. Temperatures today are forecast to be in the 40s, with plenty of sun blasting through a few clouds. The pentathlon begins at 10 a.m. at the foot of Howelsen Hill.

"It's a great incentive to continue the rehab process and also to have some recreation while doing it," Furman said of the event. "It's difficult to rehab inside, so being able to do that outside has helped a lot."

Furman injured his shoulder while skiing about two years ago and had to have major surgery. The rehab process was slow, he said, and frustrating. He managed to recover enough to be a last-minute substitute on a pentathlon team last year. The benefits from taking part were immediate.

"Being able to participate and finish the race was a real boost," said Melissa Baumgartner, a physical therapist and the owner of The Center for Sports Medicine. The team facilitated Furman's participation last year and helped set up the team full of rehabbing patients this year.

"All of them have been done with their official rehab for awhile, but for Bob last year, it did give him some good motivation to get out and do more," she said. "They can say 'Look, I still can do stuff. I can get back to my normal activities.'"

The pentathlon combines five separate disciplines. They can be performed either by one person or by a team, like the rehab patients plan on doing.

Skiers first climb 400 feet up Howelsen Hill, then ski back down. A three-mile snowshoe course is next for the experts, with a 1 1/2-mile short course as an option for less-serious competitors. A lengthy cross-country skiing course then awaits, followed by biking and running sections that are either 2 or 5 miles.

The 246 expected entrants is down from last year's 290, a fact Steamboat Springs sports program coordinator Kit Rice credited to the Steamboat Springs School District's Blues Break. Still, she said it's a big improvement from the 190 competitors in 2006.

"We have a lot of Front Range people participating. We have more kids teams this year, as well," Rice said. "People are excited in the community, and people look forward to it every year."

There's certainly a buzz among members of Team Rehabie, who ensured the team wouldn't win, but were equally confident the results won't do much to dim the bright hopes of the competitors just eager to get back to enjoying one of Steamboat's signature events.

"It just took forever to finally feel strong again," Colombo said of the path back from a devastating knee injury. "I just want to have fun. My only plan is to get out, enjoy it and meet new people."

- To reach Joel Reichenberger, call 871-4253 or e-mail jreichenberger@steamboatpilot.com