Two Comox Valley Triathlon Club members represented Canada at the Long Distance Triathlon World Championships, held June 1 in Belfort, France.
Robert Lundine and Donald Blacklock wore the Maple Leaf within their 65-69 age category, having qualified by winning similar events during 2012.
The Long Distance Triathlon Championships usually consists of a 4K swim, 87K bike and 20K run. However, due to the excessively low water temperature of 12C, the swim section was removed in accordance with International Triathlon Union Rules. The race became a duathlon, with the swim section substituted by a 9.5K run.
The two local athletes almost crossed the finish line together, with Blacklock being two seconds ahead of Lundine. This placed them overall 13th and 14th respectively within their age group. However, they were the highest placed Canadian finishers within their age group. Blacklock’s overall time was 7h-18m-40s and Lundine’s was 7h-18m-42s.
The run course was on pavement and woodland trails, providing good variation and only one significant hill. The bike course, which was on roads closed to other traffic, took competitors through quaint French communities, where locals encouraged the racers by calling out “Allez, allez!’ as they cycled past. The bike course also contained a 13K hill, with a temperature at the top of 3C and obstructed visibility due to fog and mist.
“Don and Robert enjoyed taking part in the event and consider it an honour to represent Canada at an international event like this,” a CVTC spokesperson said. Lundine had one experience from the event that he says will be a lasting memory. “During the bike section, we were going downhill fairly fast when we unexpectedly hit a section of very rough cobblestones. My body and bike were both rattling so severely that I yelled out in a voice loud enough for the entire town to hear, ‘I think I just lost my dentures!'” He believes this to be an appropriate comment considering the age group they were representing.
Meanwhile, four other CVTC members took part in the Subaru Victoria Half Ironman June 16 at Elk Lake, Victoria. The swim of 1.9K took place in Elk Lake, the bike section of 86K around the Saanich Peninsula and the run of 20K was two laps around Elk Lake.
Cindy Steuart and Marcia Marchenski both achieved podium finishes in their respective age groups. Steuart came first in her age group (F45-49) in a time of 5h-16m-06s, with Marchenski finishing second in the F50-54 age group in a time of 5h-22m-19s. Kim Griffith and Sandra Rowland finished the race in 5h-38m-43s and 5h-58m-52s respectively.
– Comox Valley Triathlon Club
