The season kicked off with a bang this morning with the Duathlon at Albert Park with a record number of 35 participants taking part. A fantastic mix of old faces and new faces to the club – some completing their first triathlon event which was fantastic to see.

Dreary conditions overhead, the rain held out for the most part – the bike a challenging little course for those who took part, with the nasty hill up next to the race course a test for all. Some flat tyres ended the cycle leg early for a few participants, but they persisted on and finished the run legs which was great to see.

Ruben De Silva-Smith showed that he will be the one to chase down this season – with a blistering race. Leading from the first run leg he set the challenge to chase him down, coming across the line in first place in a hot time of 42min 11sec. Ruben was followed in by two club stalwarts Andy Ryan in second place (45min 35sec) and Jade Frankel (47min 06sec) rounding out the placing’s in third.

The experience of Jenny Dowie prevailed in the ladies division – with a strong performance at her local event after a fantastic international season. Jenny completed today’s event in 53 min 58sec. Jess Hayes who travelled from Hamilton to participate came in second place (59 min 14sec) in the ladies event, followed by Alison Kenna ( 1hr 1min 58sec) taking out third place.

We also had 5 teams competing today which was great to see – with the formidable force of the ‘Heavy Hitters’ – Travis Greening and Luke Taylor combining in a time of 44min 4sec to take out 1st place, followed by the ‘2 Carr’s’ duo of Chris and Hayden in a time of 45 min 12sec. Rounding out the placing for the teams was John and Susannah Ryan in 47min 15sec.

We then moved onto the kid’s event – however they weren’t so lucky with the weather – just on the starting siren the rain came in and the wind picked up, making for some testing conditions for the kids (and the parents watching!). 18 juniors from ages 6 to 12 braved the conditions as they ran and rode their bikes around the tracks within Albert Park. Thanks to Pete Varley who gave them some lessons on Duathlon and bike safety. Big shout out to Saputo Dairy Australia for supplying the kids with flavoured milks as they crossed the finish line – it sure is a real treat and reward for the kid’s efforts, and brings a smile to their faces.

Congratulations to everyone for having a go at today’s events – it was fantastic to see so many out and about being healthy and active!

Thanks to Danielle Buzaglo for a stella job as Race Director for the open event and to Peter Varley for coordinating the junior events and to all the Volunteers who helped out on the day – setup crew, Marshall’s and those who stayed around to help pack up. If anyone has any feedback on today’s event, be sure to drop us an email at admin@warrnambooltriclub.com

Shout out to our sponsors for the season – Saputo Dairy Australia, Optus, Taits Legal, The Cally Hotel, UPR, Central Storage, WCC, Vic Health and This Girl Can, and Wannon Water. And a thanks to Jason Lamb for allowing us access to the splash factory bathroom facilities.

Next on the calendar is the Couch to Coast weekend on the 23rd/24th November – kicking off with FREE Ladies Only non-competitive triathlon and kids triathlons on the Saturday afternoon, followed by the Open events on the Sunday morning. For more details check out the website, and keep an eye on Facebook for updates. We hope to see you all there having another go – and why not challenge a friend or family member to have a go, the more the merrier!