After two days of running in soft dune terrain you might have been expecting NSW runners legs to be a bit sore for the first of the Australia/NZ Challenge races but Lynn Dabbs (Western Hills) and Maureen Ogilvie (Uringa) showed their stamina by winning their classes yesterday in New Zealand.
The New Zealanders dominated on their home turf and swept the majority of classes. The terrain was challenging for the Australians who rarely come across soft complex dune terrain in their national races, but the mapping of this new area for NZ was excellent and highly readable. Course setter Yvette Baker set a thoroughly enjoyable competition for the runners with courses which provided an interesting mix of short and longer legs, combined with quick changes of direction over the highly technical area.
There were good performances from the NSW contingent, with the Central Coast club having a particularly rewarding outing; Nick Dent 3rd, Colin Price 10th (M60A), Julia Prudhoe 3rd, Hilary Wood 12th (W55A), Robyn Pallas 5th (W60A) and Marianne Birch 4th (W21C). Newcastle's Russell Blatchford was 6rd (M50A) with Michael Burton 8th, Daniel Hill GO (M16A) Lawrence Jones UR 10th, Aidan Dawson GO 12th (M18A), Matthew Hill GO 9th (M20A), Kasimir Gregory NTOC 6th (M21E), Fedor Ishakova BNN 3rd M21A, Dale Wallace WP 3rd (M21AS), James Lithgow GO 7th (M55A), Peter Shepherd IKN 8th (M60A), Ross Barr GO 9th (M65A), Basil Baldwin GS 10th (M70A). Joanna Hill GO took 2nd with Sophie Jones UR 6th in W12A, Katie Wallace WP 3rd (W14B), Georgia Jones UR 7th (W16A), Nicola Blatchford NC 10th (W18A), Michele Dawson GO 8th(W20A), Barbara Hill GO 10th (W40A), Barbara Dawson GO 7th (W40AS), Debbie Davey WR 5th(W55A) and Jean Baldwin GS 2nd (W70A).
After a rest day the Oceania carnival moves on to the Sprint races in Wellington on Tuesday.
