Carruth cruises in his Rota finale

ROTA—After a day of racing up, down, and around the southernmost island in the Commonwealth, the triathletes who competed in last weekend’s 12th Annual Rota Blue Triathlon walked away from the experience with a mixture of feelings.

Some left with smiles, some with bumps and bruises, and others with memories that they will cherish forever. Saipan’s Rob Carruth definitely had the smile on when he broke the tape under the arch as the fourth to cross the finish line of the 1.5-kilometer swim, 40-km bike, and 10-km run Olympic distance race.

As a racer in several previous Rota triathlons and half marathons, Carruth will also hold on to his fond memories of the event as well, but this time around the feeling was a little different knowing that Saturday’s race was his last.

“This is my last race on Rota and almost my last race in the CNMI. I’ve been fortunate to be able to work out here on Rota and it’s always a beautiful place to visit, and in many ways the prettiest of the CNMI islands. I think it’s the prettiest of the triathlon courses,” he said.

Carruth was the second finisher of the men’s division to cross the finish line by braving Rota’s heat in 2:37:29, and he put a little extra effort into his swan song by boasting top five times in the swim and bike courses with a 26:34 (3) and 1:15:37 (5) respectively, before cruising through the scenic run course in 55:18 (14).

Saipan’s top finisher said that his performance was a product of the added time and dedication to his training regimen. In his last race in Rota before departing for the mainland, Carruth said that he had the opportunity to look at the event in a different light, and that he enjoyed seeing Rota with a new sense of appreciation.

“It kind of makes you take notice a little more as you’re going along on the course. You tend to notice the beauty a little bit more and realize how fortunate we are to be able to race out here and just enjoy the islands,” he said.

Carruth will be moving to Tucson, Arizona where he plans to continue his love of multisport, but said that he knows that it won’t be the same after getting to know the local scene and grow with the local community.

“I’ve already checked out the tri scene out there and there’s a lot going on, but I think it won’t be quite the same as out here because the people are so great and it’s so pretty,” he said.
While he hasn’t made any official plans to return to the CNMI, Carruth said that he does plan to visit in the future to take part in one of the premier races in the region.

“I’m gonna try to come back a year from now—not next year’s XTERRA race, but the year after just to touch base, see everybody, and to do it again,” he said.

Before he takes off for good, Carruth headed up to the top of Mount Tapochau Thursday morning during the Turkey Trot, and finished second in his division.