Times-Advocate from Escondido, California • 21

TIMES-ADVOCATE, Escondido, Monday, September 11, 1989 C3 Molina wins triathlon series and $25,000 By Jeffrey Parenti Times Advocate Sportswriter SOLANA BEACH For the past three seasons, the United States Triathlon Series has been dominated by Mike Pigg. Pigg, the most powerful cyclist in the sport, has used that leg of races to give himself such a great lead that he can practically coast on the run. The championship of the Grand Prix standings, which reflects the best triathletes in the series, has been won by Pigg since 1986. Scott Molina, the man known as "The Terminator" for his ability to terminate the competition in the run-stage of the race, set a preseason goal to stop Pigg's streak win the Grand Prix points this season and the $25,000 that goes with it. Sunday morning in Solana Beach, Molina escaped a tight seven-man pack in the early stages of the 10-kilometer run and won the Chargers Continued from page C1 pable of scrambling around.

We weren't necessarily close to winning the football game at that point. "We weren't playing very well," he added. "There was no need to continue with Jim as long as we weren't in the ball game." Although the Chargers were down by 21 points with 11:44 left in the third quarter and McMahon was still in the game, when they closed the margin to 14 points and got the ball back five minutes later, they "weren't in the ball game," according to Henning. So, while the man the Chargers are counting on to provide leadership and experience stood on the sidelines, they turned the ball over to a journeyman quarterback. As bizarre as the McMahon af- Padres Continued from page C1 mussen entered McKeon's office in search of a reason why he was pulled so quickly.

McKeon's answer was as quick as his hook: Rasmussen was continually falling behind the Dodger hitters and from McKeon's vantage point the veteran lefthander wasn't challenging the hitters the way a winning pitcher should. "I just wanted to know why I was taken out," Rasmussen explained to reporters. "I don't know why, I really don't. "Yeah, I was surprised. He said he was tired of me pitching behind in the count and not challenging people." Rasmussen (8-10) had gotten off to one of his typical bad starts, allowing a two-run homer to Mickey Hatcher in the first inning.

This season, he has yielded 27 runs off 39 hits in the first innings of his 30 starts. He opened the second inning by Shoe Continued from page C1 "I know Harry is with us, too," the man once known as 'Silent Shoe' said in a soft voice. Before Shoemaker took the microphone he was introduced by Ernie Myers. "He is a winner, a class act with 888 winners here at Del Mar," Myers said. The ceremony of about 10 minutes consisted of proclamations for Sunday as Bill Shoemaker Day in the cities of Del Mar and San Diego and induction as a lifetime member of the San Diego Hall of Champions.

Then Myers spoke of Shoemaker's competitiveness, telling a story about the 4-foot-11, 98-pound man playing in a charity basketball game about 12 years ago. As the story goes, no sooner had Shoe- 10th of an 11-race series and clinched his points title in the process. Molina of Boulder, Colo. terminated unknown surprise Andrew Carlson five miles into the 6.2-mile run to win in 1-hour, 49-minutes, 2-seconds. Molina, who won't collect his Grand Prix winnings until the National Championships in Hilton Head Island, S.C.

on Sept. 30, still left Solana Beach Sunday with the race's $2,000 first-prize. Carlson of Laguna Beach, who was in his first race since turning professional last month, collected $1,300 for his 1:49.16 finish and 18-year-old Australian Miles Stewart earned $800 for his 1:49.46 third-place finish. And Pigg? He's been training at Ironman distances of late in preparation for the Oct. 14 Hawaiian race, hasn't been effective on short courses recently, and decided just to stay away.

fair was, it still 1 couldn't overshadow the Chargers' poor performance in which their defense was dominated and their special teams play was horrendous. Nor could the McMahon situation take away from the Raiders' fine play, especially on offense. The lopsided result was unexpected based on preseason play. The Chargers lost by only three points to Super Bowl champion San Francisco and routed Chicago, a team many pick to go to the Super Bowl this season. The Raiders struggled, losing all four preseason games for the first time in their history, and looked bad doing it.

But Sunday, the Raiders turned it around. Ironically, they also lost their starting quarterback, Jay Schroeder. However, there was no controversy over his injury a separated left collarbone. Schroeder suffered striking out catcher Rick Dempsey. John Shelby then beat out a slow roller to the right side for an infield single.

But Mike Sharperson followed with an inning double play. It looked as if Rasmussen was about to rebound from his early problems. Meanwhile, the Padres had tied the game on Roberto Alomar's single in the second. Then came the third. Pitcher Ramon Martinez punched a single up the middle.

Jose Gonzalez followed with a fielder's choice to first. Dave Anderson then hit a pop-up near the Padres dugout. First baseman Jack Clark gave chase, but the ball popped out of his glove for an error. Anderson then singled to center, giving the Dodgers runners at first and second. That's when McKeon ordered Rasmussen's exit.

Asked if he agreed with McKeon's assessment that he had not challenged the hitters a and was not pitching aggressively, Rasmussen said: "Hell no, I don't buy it I gave maker stepped on the court, he took a couple of dribbles and buried an 18-footer. "He's a 10-handicap golfer and plays a real good game of tennis," Myers said after the ceremony. For Shoemaker, it was just another stop on a yearlong farewell tour that takes him through North America, Australia, Asia and Europe and concludes at Santa Anita February 4. Shoemaker will then turn his concentration to training. He already has two colts for his training stable and hopes to add more horses soon.

"It won't be my last day (at Del Mar)," he said. "But riding it will be. I know I'm really retired. I'm just doing this tour. It has been great." His other mounts Sunday consisted of a sixth-place finish on Blaze Flame in the first, a thirdplace finish aboard Bold Byrn, a Breeder's Cup winner is 'On The Line' for Klein of more than 200 horses in a November dispersal sale in Kentucky, saw On The Line become the seventh millionaire he has owned during a six-year stint.

The hard-knocking 5-year-old horse led all the way in a fourhorse field and had enough left in reserve to hold off Good Taste by a neck after a furious stretch duel. Lively One finished third. On The Line covered the mile in 1:33 only a fifth of a second off the track record set by Precisionist in the race last year, and paid $4.20 to win as the favorite. On The Line scored his 1 14th victory in 34 starts and raised his career earnings to $1,110,810 with the $115,400 first prize. Laffit Pincay, replacing the injured Gary Stevens, rode the winner for trainer D.

Wayne Lukas. By Steve Schuelein Klein, who will sell all his stock Special to the Times-Advocate DEL MAR Gene Klein of Rancho Santa Fe hit a high note in his final Del Mar meet as an owner when On The Line scored a pulsating victory in the Del Mar Breeders' Cup Handicap Sunday. Klein, 68, hopes to close out the Del Mar meet with a bigger bang on closing day Wednesday. Klein's Bite The Bullet is one of a dozen 2-year-olds entered in the $372,100 Del Mar Futurity, the richest race in track history. Bite The Bullet will leave from post eight in the Grade I mile race in quest of the record first prize of $241,600.

The Spectacular Bid colt, a $215,000 yearling purchase, has won two of four starts in the East, including the Sanford Stakes at Saratoga. The men's race was the tightest yet of the 11 U.S. Triathlon Series races, as eight competitors remained in an interchangeable pack from the end of the 1.5K swim through the 40K bike. Into the run, all but one of the group was together, as separated first, Mark Montgomery, through seventh, Carlson. Molina, however, was patient as riders jockeyed for the lead throughout the bike race and was sixth into the transition to the run.

"With a group that big, it's really hard to pull away," Molina said afterward. "I didn't want to kill myself. I had a good day today and this is the best I've felt on the run all year. This is probably the biggest, most significant race of the series." Within two miles of the run, Molina had moved to the front. But terminating Carlson wouldn't be as easy and Molina began to worry about the stranger on his the injury on the first play from scrimmage when he was blinded by linebacker Leslie O'Neal.

Schroeder stayed in the game long enough to throw a 53-yard bomb to speedy wide receiver Willie Gault to the Chargers' 21. Gault beat the double-coverage of former Raider cornerback Sam Seale and safety Vencie Glenn. Gault also beat Seale in the third quarter on a 39-yard TD pass that gave the Raiders a 28-7 lead. After a penalty, Schroeder connected with running back Vance Mueller on a crossing route for a 26-yard touchdown and a lead the Raiders wouldn't surrender. Gault burned the Chargers on four catches for 131 yards and one touchdown.

Fellow wide-out Mervyn Fernandez had four receptions for 65 yards and a TD. Los Angeles didn't slow down with Schroeder out of the game. Sub Steve Beuerlein replaced panicked in the heat of a pennant race, Rasmussen said: "I would rather not comment on that. Go ask No. 15." That's the number McKeon wears.

"I've got plenty of guys in the bullpen," explained McKeon. "Grant and (Greg) Harris were well rested and they have both done a superior job and I decided to go that route." It was a bumpy route to travel. Grant lasted an inning, allowing four runs (all earned) off six hits, including a three-run homer to Eddie Murray in the third. That was only the beginning. Af- up an 0-2 pitch to Martinez that went up the middle, I get the next guy out and I go 3-2 on Anderson and Jack makes a tough play.

Obviously, they (the official scorer) thought he could have caught it. Then I give up a base hit and I'm out of the ball game. "Obviously, (McKeon) felt I couldn't get Hatcher (the next batter) out and I didn't deserve a chance to pitch to Hatcher." Asked if his manager may have coupled Charlie Whittingham entry, in the third and a seventh place on Northern Colony in the sixth. But it was the performance in the ninth that people came to see. "Come on Shoe," came the collective plea from the crowd prior to the race and through the home stretch ride.

"Shoe, Shoe, Shoe," came the chant as he raised his whip and allowed a smile after the victory. In the winner's circle, a wave to the crowd, a handshake with Addie's Bro owner Mike Mitchell and a kiss from wife Cindy. As he walked east along the outside rail, he could not ignore the pleas for autographs. One man jumped onto the track to get the legend's signature. He obliged.

Others waited patiently for their turn as Shoemaker signed them all. "You're the greatest I've ever seen," he was told by more than one stranger. heels. "I didn't know how well Andrew could run," Molina said. "I wanted to push up the hill (at five miles) and see what he could do." In the women's race, Sylviane Puntous left Colleen Cannon in the dust midway through the run and earned the $2,000 first-prize in 2:02.10.

Cannon came home 50 seconds later and 1 Puntous' identical twin sister Patricia was third in 2:04.0, just three seconds ahead of charging Kirsten Hanssen. In winning, Sylviane moved to within 22 points of Cannon in the Grand Prix standings with just the one race remaining. Whoever finishes ahead Sept. 30 wins the $25,000. "I don't want to think about it," Puntous said.

The race attracted the maximum 2,100 competitors and 100 relay teams. Schroeder on the second series and completed 15 of 22 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns. "Jay could have gone back in, but Steve went in and responded like I knew he would," said Raiders Coach Mike Shanahan. After Butts, making his first NFL start, went 50 yards on thirdand-1 for a touchdown to tie the score 7-7 in the first quarter, the Raiders came right back with two touchdowns. Beuerlein led a 15-play, 78-yard scoring drive with Fernandez catching a TD pass.

After Charger Lewis Colbert was forced to punt from the 3, Los Angeles got great field position at the Chargers' 49. From there, it took the Raiders nine plays to score with Marcus Allen scoring from the 1 to give Los Angeles a 21-7 lead, a margin it took into halftime. ter Dan Murphy gave up one hit in two-thirds of an inning, lefthander Eric Nolte yielded six runs (all earned) off seven hits in two innings, bringing his earned-run average to 27.00. "It was just ugly after I left," Rasmussen said. "Mud (Grant) didn't pitch very well and nobody got the job done today It was my game, my Tony Gwynn (sore left Achilles tendon) and Chris James (jammed right shoulder) both missed their second consecutive games.

McKeon said it may be another day or two before either starts. AUTO PAINTING BY $100 OFF SALE MAACO'S SUPREME PAINT SERVICE REG $39995 NOW $29995 ESCONDIDO Offer expires in two weeks. Rt 78 Not good with any Mission Rd other offer 454 Enterprise Street, 619-741-5077 Escondido Enterprise OCEANSIDE 3215 Production 2 Rd. Avenue, Oceanside Airport Ave 619-757-8964 Mission Ave WHY WAIT? FREE BRAKE INSPECTIONS Jones Bros. WHEELS ALL FOUR Complete Reline Most American Cars Light Trucks.

Disc Brakes $1000 Extra. Met. Pads Slightly Higher Brake Specialists Since 1947 Jones Bros. BRAKES Open Monday-Friday 8-5 316 E. Pennsylvania, Escondido 741-2373 Wednesday is Closing Day.

If you need any more incentive, cut this out. Don't look now but another season of live Thoroughbred racing at Del Mar is coming down to the wire. Which means you better get in gear to catch the big finish. Closing day features the Grade I estimated $350,000 Del Mar Futurity. A race which has spurred horses like Music Merci, Tasso, Roving Boy and countless others on to fame and fortune.

So before the last precious moments of live action pass you by, high tail it be kicking yourself from out to Del Mar. Or you'll Del Mar here til next summer. Ends September 13.