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McQuaid fastest woman in Squamish Tri

Whistler athletes claim top spots as records broken
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Nice Tri Whistler's Paul Suter was the top Whistler racer in the Squamish Triathlon this past Sunday, placing 11th overall and second in his age group. Photo by David McColm

Dozens of Whistler and Pemberton athletes lined the shores of Alice Lake last Sunday for the start of the 11 th annual Squamish Triathlon. Conditions were exceptional, and at least two course records were broken.

The top male this year was Jeff Symonds of Pencticton, who completed the 1,500 metre swim, 38 km bike, and 10 km trail run in a time of one hour, 57 minutes and 12 seconds — 35 seconds off the record time set by Andrew Russell in 2006. In the process, Symonds run time of 35:57 was a new record for the course, beating the time of 36:11 that was also set by Russell.

On the women’s side, Melanie McQuaid finished fifth overall and first among women in 2:08:35 — besting the previous women’s record time of 2:13:16 set by Sarah Baker in 2006 by almost five minutes. McQuaid also set a record on the bike leg with a time of 1:04:14, beating Baker’s previous record time of 1:06:29.

The top local athlete in the Squamish Triathlon this year was Paul Suter, placing 11 th overall and second in the men’s 45 to 49 age category with a time of 2:19:29.

Julie Mountifield was 43 rd overall, eighth among women and second in the women’s 25 to 29 category in 2:32:33.

Chris Hodkinson was 55 th overall and 11 th out of 32 competitors in the men’s 35-39 category in 2:35:46.

Liz Cullen just missed the podium, placing fourth in the women’s 25 to 29 group in 2:36:55.

Christina McKean was sixth in the same category with a time of 2:38:22.

Karen Blaylock won the women’s 50 to 54 age category in 2:38:46.

Laura Henderson was eighth in the women’s 30 to 34 group in 2:41:40.

Danny Ng was 22 nd in men’s 35 to 39 in 2:53:34.

Jennifer Leigh was second in the Athena category in 2:54:40.

Tom Barratt was fourth in men’s 55 to 59 in 2:56:13.

Francesca Cole was fourth in women’s 45 to 49 in 2:58:27.

Jen Carroll was 10 th in women’s 25 to 29 in 3:02:07.

Michael Groot was 27 th in men’s 35 to 39 in 3:06:25.

Nicole Leddy was 12 th in women’s 25 to 29 in 3:06:52.

One spot and one second back, Melanie Bigney was 15 th in women’s 30 to 34 in 3:06:53.

Jodi Westbury was 16 th in women’s 35 to 39 in 3:12:39.

From Pemberton, the top racer was Natalie Morel-Wood, who was ninth in women’s 30 to 34 in 2:43:36.

Scott Whelan was 21 st in men’s 35 to 39 in 2:49:00.

Carlee Howell was 13 th in women’s 30 to 34 in 3:01:07.

In the relay category, The Whistler team Downhill Divas Distracted placed first with a time of 2:19:24, almost 11 minutes faster than the second place team from Squamish. In third, from Whistler, were the Squamish Physio Tri Tarts in 2:30:14. We’re Tri-in was seventh in 3:05:09.

In the men’s relay, the top Whistler team was 2 Forty Somethings and a Fourteener, placing fourth with a time of 2:33:26.

In the mixed team category, the 99ers from Whistler were sixth in 2:24:32. Team Escape Route was 19 th in 2:51:25, and the Mountainview Mauraders were 23 rd in 2:52:09.

Complete results are available online at www.raceheadquarters.com.

The previous week, four Whistler athletes took part in the Persona Desert Half Iron Triathlon at Osoyoos, swimming 2 km, biking 90 km and running 21.1 km in scorching conditions.

Whistler’s Ollie Blake, recovering from an injury, placed fifth overall and was fifth in the men’s pro category with a time of 4:20:35.

Greg Sandkuhl was second in the men’s 60 to 64 race with a time of 5:28:37.

Christine Suter was third in the women’s 40 to 44 race in 5:29:18, boosted by the 35 th fastest swim of the day.

Brandi Higgins was eighth in women’s 35 to 39 in 6:17:13.