Pady and Bridges top the Peterborough Half Iron
Hot, windy, and humid weather added to the challenge of the distance at this annual popular stop on the Ontario calendar, but in the end, Mono’s Richard Pady and Pembroke’s Kristen Bridges claimed victories at the Peterborough Half Iron.
Pady takes the win
Peterborough’s Kirk Hopkins led the 2 km swim (25:38), followed by Pady (25:52) who then cranked up the pace during the 90 km bike, posting the top split of 2:18:10. Meanwhile, Queensville’s Francois Cote rode 2:20:13 to get himself into the closest position of all the pursuers (4:18 back) to track down Pady. Cote managed the second best run of the day (1:25:23) but that was not good enough to catch Pady who closed with a 1:27:57 half marathon to take the win in 4:13:25.
“The run was very tough. I fought with my body for 21km. My mind wanted to stop at km 1 when I double quad cramped. I had to fight with myself each km,” revealed Pady, who battled the stomach flu last week. “Having Francois behind was actually the best things for me today. He is a good friend and former client, I know what he can do and I respect his fitness and he forced me to keep pushing. It wasn’t a pretty race but when you are training for Kona the challenges I faced today I think gave me a lot of good mental strength I’ll need in October. “
Top 5 Men
1 Richard Pady Mono, CAN 4:13:25.3 M40-44
2 Francois Cote Queensville, CAN 4:15:11.3 M30-34
3 Kirk Hopkins Peterborough, CAN 4:24:23.4 M35-39
4 Tommy Ferris Toronto, CAN 4:28:37.2 M35-39
5 Joe Morrow Toronto, CAN 4:29:13.2 M35-39
Bridges edges out the defending champion
The women’s race featured a close two-woman battle between Bridges and defending champion Kimberly Fabian of Kitchener.
Fabian got out to an early lead by swimming 30:48, while Bridges swam 32:45 (Peterborough’s Beth Halford had the top swim of 28:07). Bridges then threw down the top ride of the day (2:36:18) to wrestle the lead away from Fabian, and started the run with a 5:30 gap over the defending champion. Fabian outran Bridges, but her 1:32:12 half marathon came up just short as Bridges ran 1:36:30 to hold her off for the 4:47:40 victory. Batawa’s Jutta Merilainen used the top run of 1:26:42 to move up into fifth position.
Top 5 Women
1. Kristen Bridges Pembroke, CAN 4:47:40.8 F40-44
2. Kimberly Fabian Kitchener, CAN 4:48:53.9 F40-44
3. Andrea Zezelic Toronto, CAN 4:55:01.9 F35-39
4. Brittany Dunbar Stouffville, CAN 4:59:55.1 F20-24
5. Jutta Merilainen Batawa, CAN 5:07:05.9 F40-44
Toronto’s Charles Bedley (4:16:35) and Mississauga’s Tammy Purdy (4:44:03) won the Half Iron Duathlon (2 km run, 90 km bike, 21.1 km run).
