CANMORE – Three locals were among the top triathletes to conquer land and water at the 2019 XTERRA and Canmore Road triathlons on Sunday (Aug. 18).
Canmore's John Burroughs and Olivia Peterson finished first overall in the men’s and women’s Canmore Road Triathlon full distance (1,500-metre swim, 40-kilometre bike, 10-km run), clocking times of 2:38:26 and 3:18:51, respectively.
Canmore's James Kendal finished third overall and first in his age class (50-59) at 2:44:20. The race in Kendal's Rocky Mountain backyard and his results had a strong significance for the cancer survivor. It was Kendal's first post-cancer podium finish.
"The big takeaway for me is being able to 'push myself and overreach' as an athlete and survivor," wrote Kendal in an email. "I’ve found that post cancer I can dig deeper and race with purpose and race for those that have passed and cannot compete anymore."
Calgary’s Lorin Inglis came in first in the Canmore Road Triathlon sprint distance (500-m swim, 20-km bike, five-km run) at a time of 1:14:40. Lisa Guest was another local winner, finishing first overall in the women's category and fifth overall at a time of 1:37:53.
The triathlons started in the chilly waters of Quarry Lake on Sunday morning, where racers then transitioned to bikes and headed to the Canmore Nordic Centre for the XTERRA or along Three Sisters Parkway for the road portion. All running was at the Nordic Centre.
Triathletes are out in #Canmore today for the XTERRA and road #triathlon. pic.twitter.com/cXoO64XF3u
— Jordan Small (@jordiesmall) August 18, 2019
Trotting to the finish, Guest gave a big thumb’s up as she ran down the final stretch of the triathlon.
“It’s great actually because I didn’t think coming into it I’d place that well … and I’m happy that I could do that in Canmore. I’ve never done that before,” Guest said.
She started aggressively in the open water swim, but said the triathlon’s other athletes made things tougher on her during the bike and running portions.
“There’s a lot of strong competition in Canmore and I’ll be honest, that’s what it is,” she said. “Canmore is very competitive and you don’t know where you sit.”
In the XTERRA triathlons, West Kelowna’s Lincoln Hoel dashed to first in the full distance (1,500-metre swim, 27-kilometre bike, 10-km run) at a time of 3:00:55.
“My strategy was to go really hard from the beginning and get a gap from most people,” Hoel said.
He admits the technical side of mountain biking isn’t his strong suit, so he tried to make up for the time he lost in swimming and running.
The crown came down to a foot race between Hoel and James Needham, also from West Kelowna, as the pair entered the triathlon’s final five-km lap separated only by seconds. However, Hoel turned on the jets and broke away from Needham in the “best he’s felt” running all year.
“We came together pretty close at the start of the run and then we ran together for almost the entire first lap. I’m a bit heavier, so on the downhill in the second lap, I opened up my stride,” he said.
Finishing first overall for the women was Lindsay Glassford of Panorama at 3:35:24.
The top placing local was Canmore’s David Percy in sixth place overall at 3:24:13.
In the sprint distance (500-m swim, 14-km bike, five-km run), Hinton’s Kevin Myles finished in first, clocking in at 1:33:38. Canmore’s Bradley Skinner finished second overall at a time of 1:37:18.
Michelle Spadafora of Cranbrook finished first overall in the women’s category at a time of 1:47:33.
For a full list of results, visit www.zone4.ca.
