STRATFORD Triathlon Club duathlon ace Fern Hordern impressed in international action in the Penticton ITU Multisport World Championships in Canada.
Fern competed in her preferred event of the standard duathlon distance – 10km run, 40km bike, 5km run – in the 45-49 age group.
Both the run and bike courses were pretty flat, with the bike course around the edge of the stunning Okanagan Lake.
Fern’s race went fairly smoothly apart from her pre-race preparation when she discovered at 5am that she had lost her bike helmet. Eventually she was reunited with the helmet and the panic was over.
Fern enjoyed the first run around the streets of Penticton and the two-lap bike course over 40km which took the competitors up the west coast of the Okanagan lakeside.
The bike was completed in 1:12:33, maintaining a consistent pacing throughout her ride. It was the second run where things caught up with her and she struggled in the heat over the last mile.
Fern finished 11th out of 30 or more in her age group which exceeded her expectations as she was aiming for a top half finish.
Her finishing time was 2:24:18, making her the second British woman to finish in her age group.
Afterwards Team GB got together to celebrate finishers, medals and race dramas at a bar on the edge of town and the next day Fern went for a week’s cycling holiday in the Canadian Rockies.
STRATFORD TC’s Lisa Whittington declared herself happy with her efforts at the 2017 Cotswold Sprint Triathlon.
Lisa finished 120th female and 20th in her age group in a time of 1:31:19, having clocked 17:40:40 in the 750m swim, 40:05 on the 20km bike course and 30:36 in the 5km run.
She said: “I was happy with my swim, my transitions and my bike. The race itself was great fun and well organised and I will certainly be back next year for this one.”
