By John RittenhouseThe 24th annual Minnesota Border-to-Border Triathlon made its annual return to the streets of Luverne early this week.The event, which usually is scheduled to begin on the first Tuesday in August, started one week earlier this summer.With threatening skies and rain predicted to fall, the annual parade was abbreviated as many of the teams opted out of the opening event on Monday afternoon.Temperatures in the 50s with winds blowing in from the North greeted the contestants on race day Tuesday morning, which also featured a change.With road construction still underway on Highway 75, the race didn’t begin at its usual starting point in front of City Hall. The race began on Blue Mound Avenue, near Casey’s, where the competitors headed north before making a brief jog to the west, where the contingents reached Highway 75 and headed north again.Sixteen teams formed the 2005 field, with no local athletes entering the event.The field consisted of eight four-person teams, two three-person teams and six two-person squads.The race began Tuesday with a bike race to St. Cloud and continued on Wednesday (July 27) with a bike race from St. Cloud to Eveleth.Competing teams will run 50 miles from Eveleth to Cook today. A 50-mile canoe race on the Vermillion River to Cook serves as the final obstacle of the event on Friday.