Although most triathletes look on the North Shore Spring Triathlon as an opportunity to get back in the swing of things, judging by the results, our local athletes appear to be already up to speed. Four local competitors finished on top in their age divisions and another five finished in the top-five.
The North Shore Spring Triathlon is a sprint, which included a 750 metre swim, a 20 km bike ride and a 5 km run. Because of its timing on the race calendar, the event typically attracts more than 500 participants, and this year was no exception. There were 535 competitors in the elite, adult and youth divisions.
Leading the way was Whistler’s Daniel Havens, who finished 10th overall out of 189 racers in the adult men’s division. He also finished first in the men’s 45 to 49 age group with a total time of one hour, one minute and 34 seconds.
"It’s not that competitive, just a way to get back into racing, and get race-ready for the season," said Havens, who admits that his transition between stages needs a little work.
"When I got out of the water I put my running shoes on like I wanted to skip the bike," he said. "Someone pointed it out to me, and I put the right shoes on, grabbed my helmet, and away I went."
Havens is one of the top triathletes in his age division in the province, and attended many of the Triathlon B.C. events last season.
This season he says he will step back from the provincial series to concentrate more on Ironman Canada in Penticton this August. Last year he qualified for the Ironman Championships in Hawaii, but opted to attend another event instead. He is also taking a break from events to heal a broken bone in his foot.
Next on the Spring Triathlon leader board was Whistler’s David Higgins, who was 25 th overall and fifth in the men’s 30 to 34 group with a time of 1:04:13.
Hot on his heels was Tracey Pope, who finished 26 th overall, second among women, and first in the women’s 30 to 34 category with a time of 1:04:15.
Paul Suter finished in 1:05:36, where he was 34 th overall and fourth in the men’s 40 to 44 race.
Christine Suter was 59 th overall, and first in the women’s 35 to 39 age group with a time of 1:09:40.
Another first went to Dawn Weberg-Titus, who won the women’s 45 to 49 race with a time of 1:10:53. She was 70 th overall across the line.
Claire Daniels finished second in women’s under 20 group with a time of 1:13:16, and was 100 th in the overall standings.
Marilyn Hellier finished just three spots back of Daniels with a time of 1:13:39, and was fourth in the women’s 35 to 39 race.
Marie-Anne Prevost was fifth in the 30 to 34 group with a time of 1:15:02.
Megan Wastle finished in 1:20:28 and was 12 th in the women’s 25 to 29 race.
Jody Wright was ninth in the 20 to 24 group with a time of 1:20:39.
Finishing a little further back were Sylvia Reed, Caroline Heaney, and Jane Hogue, who finished with times of 1:26:07, 1:36:31, and 1:49:21 respectively.
Brandi Higgins, a strong Whistler competitor, took part but did not receive a time due to a technical error.
According to Havens, the Whistler competitors have been training together as part of the Whistler Triathlon Club. They go for early morning bike rides together, and meet every Tuesday and Thursday to swim as part of the Masters club.
From Squamish, Ray Wilburn finished 71 st with a time of 1:11:00 to win the men’s 55 to 59 category. Helle Wilburn was 159 th , winning the women’s 50 to 54 group with a time of 1:18:44.
Beth Dubeck was 12 th in the 35 to 39 age group with a time of 1:21:13.
Heather Sidsworth finished second in the women’s 55 to 59 group in 1:33:13.
