BRENDAN LINES
WAIKERIE triathlete Sarah Kuchel won the women’s 45-49 event at the Murray Man triathlon held at Lake Bonney, Barmera, on the weekend.
Kuchel was part of the field of more than 400 competitors taking on the gruelling 113km long course involving a 1.9km swim in Lake Bonney, a 90km cycle and 21.1km run.
The event has enjoyed great success in recent years and the throng of visitors pump significant money into the local economy.
A contingent of three Riverland Triathlon Club members, Kuchel, Dale Engler and Mark Pfennig, were joined by former Waikerie resident Craig Wilson, testing their mettle in the four-hour plus endurance event, held in less-than-ideal conditions. Despite the weather, a large contingent of locals turned out to watch the event.
Mark Pfennig, president of the Riverland Triathlon Club, said the breezy conditions around Lake Bonney made the bike leg challenging.
“The wind really started blowing in on the bike leg, it was quite breezy and a tough day on the bike,” he said.
Kuchel completed the course in a time of five hours and 59 seconds, exceeding her expectations.
“She had a target time of five hours and 30 minutes…” he said.
In his first attempt at the long-course Engler placed third behind Wilson in the 35-39 event.
Engler said the breeze mixed up the field on the bike leg.
“Overall it was a pretty tough race,” he said.
“Coming back into a 20 kilometre an hour head-wind around the lake was bit of a grind.
“It made some people’s day a bit harder.”
Wilson, a veteran of the Hawaiian ironman event in Kona, finished 37 seconds ahead of Engler.
Engler had the measure of Wilson on the bike leg leading into the run, but Wilson reeled in Engler to claim second on the final lap of the run.
The open category was taken out by 2019 Challenge Vietnam podium-finisher Sam Tebeck, of Adelaide, in a time of 04:09:13.6.