Race #117

The second event in this season’s Structured Finance Stroke & Stride Series saw a break from tradition with the men’s field allowed the honour of starting first.  However another entrenched tradition held resolute and that was to be Brent Foster leading out the swim.  Another year may have been ticked off on the calendar and was the fantastic Fozzie once again going to lead from the front on his way to yet another Series Championship?

Conditions were again close to idyllic down on the beach at St Heliers Bay as another massive field tackled the 750 metre swim before heading off on the 4 kilometre run.  Brent Foster (9.22) did indeed lead the way out and around the swim buoys and as he sped through transition morphing from swimmer to runner he could look back at a 20 second lead over the field and then even greater gaps back to his strongest opposition who had revelled in his absence the previous fortnight.  Doing their best to hang on was Ben Riley (9.43) Matthew King (9.44) Clark Ellice (10.04) James Elvery (10.38) Liam Scopes (10.40) and Thomas Hahn (10.42)

While the men’s field flooded the transition area the women’s field were set underway with the added incentive for some to catch as many of the guys as possible before the finish line.  Out on the water it was Kirsty Whiting who upped the ante on the field and she hit the beach in a time of 11 minutes 7 seconds with a small break of 4 seconds back to the chasing duo of Sam Warriner and Debbie Tanner.  Then came a host of pursuers featuring the likes of Vanessa Palmer (11.22) Carmel Hanly (11.38) Rebecca Spence (11.40) Marisa Carter (11.52) and Nicole Cope (11.53)

The out and back run to Mission Bay was subjected to a slight headwind on the way out and if this makes the going a little tougher then it only makes Brent Foster even happier as he hammers his way to the turnaround. He then sits on a comfortable lead as he enjoys the run home for yet one more victory in a Stroke & Stride event, he has now recorded 51 wins and we’re still counting.  Clark Ellice was the ecstatic victor at Race #1 and this time he was still smiling as he settled for being the best of the rest coming home in the runner-up position with the day’s fastest run having hauled him up to within 14 seconds at the finish.  Liam Scopes always seems to have a stellar run in the bag and used it to repeat his third placing from a fortnight ago leading home James Elvery and Thomas Hahn.

Samantha Warriner prefers to do her racing at the head of the field and it wasn’t far into the run that she claimed the top spot in this race.  Tamaki Drive must surely be one of the most beautiful stretches of road in the world to run on at this time of year as the Pohutukawa trees come into blossom.  Beneath these trees it was Samantha Warriner’s lead that also blossomed out to more than half a minute by the end of the picturesque 4 kilometres.  And in another repeat from the first event it was Nicole Cope doing all the chasing as she stormed home in second overtaking our early leader Kirsty Whiting in the final kilometre.  Carmel Hanly snatched fourth place and another armful of those all-important points and Debbie Tanner held on for fifth.

Two from two gives Samantha Warriner the best possible start to the season and a 6 point lead over reigning champ Nicole Cope in the Series Grand Prix with another 6 points back to Carmel Hanly and Kirsty Whiting going shoulder to shoulder in third.  Our reigning champ on the men’s side, Brent Foster is currently back in fifth equal place and staring down a 17 point deficit at this stage of the season as Clark Ellice sits atop the standings with his 37 point total and a 7 point lead over James Elvery and Liam Scopes.