PORT Macquarie Triathlon Club has taken the bragging rights in the annual aquathon.
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The tri club beat out Port Macquarie Surf Life-Saving Club by 20 points at Flynn’s Beach, with Tacking Point Surf Club also fielding a handful of entrants this year.
Tri club members were in the top two places in the senior race.
Mitch Robins grabbed first place in the event, with Cameron Pensini securing second spot and Jeremy Smith, from Tacking Point Surf Club, in third.
Flatter surf conditions meant not many competitors were able to catch waves and sneak away from the pack.
“The waves were small,” Robins said.
But he said it was still pleasant in the water. “The water was beautiful,” Robins said.
He was visibly tired, but Robins said he handled the race well.
“It was short and sharp,” he said. “But good fun.”
Tri club president Andrew Lister was thrilled to beat out the rival club.
“It’s really, really great,” he said.
Sand running, and the surf conditions, tested out the tri club members.
“They don’t do a lot of training on the sand,” Lister said. “It’s something all runners should do.”
A couple of the club’s juniors, Tom Lister and Jack Pilgrim, stepped up to the full distance this year.
“That would have been a bit of a shock,” Lister said.
Surf Club president Jade Zaicew was disappointed with the result. “The conditions really suited us today, but we still couldn’t produce the winners,” he said.
Club members must have thought they were in a with a chance of victory after the swim leg, when Joe Wright emerged from the water first.
“He blew them away on the swim, but got blown away on the run,” Zaicew said.
Zaicew hinted at a new aspect for the aquathon next year.
“We’d like to introduce a teams event,” he said.