THIS Sunday’s inaugural Western Sydney Ironman 70.3 event is shaping up to be one of the state’s most popular triathlon events on the calendar.
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It’s no wonder, then, that Bathurst competitor Tom Hanrahan made sure he was going to be part of it.
The event is a prime opportunity for those in the Central West looking to take part in a half-ironman event without having to travel hours and hours to get there.
“I entered it more or less as soon as I could. I knew that it was going to be very popular and it sold out quickly,” Hanrahan said.
“They’re only going to continue to build on this too. There’s nothing else like it in the Sydney region. There’s Port Macquarie and then there’s Canberra, but that wasn’t on this year.”
Hanrahan wasn’t surprised the event sold out quickly.
He says Bathurst residents have never before had the opportunity to save so much on the costs they would normally spend on these more prominent events.
“I’ve done a handful of half-ironman races now, but it’s convenient to get one at Penrith that’s pretty much an overnight stop. That’s the closest of these events to Bathurst that we’re ever going to get,” he said.
Hanrahan enjoyed a third place finish behind Luke Gilmer and Josh Stapley at the second round of the King Cain Wallabies Bathurst triathlon series.
His race at the inter-club series opening round at Orange last Sunday, his last race before Penrith, may have only been a sprint event compared with the upcoming half-ironman race, but it was a good opportunity for Hanrahan to put his legs to the test.
Despite kicking up to the bigger distance, he believes the Penrith race set-up couldn’t be more ideal – if the conditions on the day are fine, that is.
“The swim in the Nepean is always calm. It should be a nice, quick bike leg on the smooth roads and the run should also be pretty flat and fast,” he said.
“For me, I’m just more interested in competing against myself. I’m not going to be winning myself anything ... I’ve kept the training ticking over through the winter and over the last six weeks or about a month I’ve started to step up the kilometres.”