TRARALGON HARRIERS KING & QUEEN OF THE MOUNTAIN.
The 2006 King and Queen of the Mountain delivered a great event with some outstanding displays of courage and determination. The King of the Mountain Daniel Smith ran a strong race right from the start and finished with a great time considering the hot conditions. The Queen of the Mountain Sandra Timmer-Arends won her eight title and then she ran back down again as she prepares for the world 100km Championships in Korea in October.
Greg Semmler again showed great climbing skills and endurance and only faded in the last 7km after sitting second for a fair bit of the way. He is only 20 so he is going to be some runner when the endurance sets in with maturity. Jeff Van Den Brand showed some good form finishing 5th overall and just holding out the ever calm and cool Rob Embelton. Richard Comber and Steve Mcleod were both fully
spent when they tackled the last 700m of the climb but both were that stuffed they really didn’t care who beat who.
Ian Heafield looked strong when he came in just in front of Mark Peek and Ken Lancaster who looked like they were out for an easy Sunday run. Jenny Pruscino, Louise McMahon and Lee Graham all had solid runs and looked good at the finish.
John Jervis hates hills so he did exceptionally well to finish the event. Paula Lucas continues to push her self along to new heights and conquering the mountain was definitely one of them. She was so sore and tired after but very happy. Race director Bruce Salisbury thought it best he direct the traffic from all the support crews so he pulled out at Traralgon South. In typical harrier fashion there was widespread support by many members. Many cameras were flashing, with many on bikes, in cars and all along the route giving drinks and support. Thank you to all and especially those who took the effort to supply food.
If you are looking for a challenge that is a little different than a Marathon but just as challenging you should consider this run next year.
Results- 1st Daniel Smith 2:01:23 (King of the Mountain and 1st Open Male),
2nd Ian Twite 2:18:27 (1st Vet Male), 3rd Sandra Timmer-Arends 2:23:17 (Queen of the Mountain and 1st Vet Female), 4th Greg Semmler 2:24:58 (2nd Open Male),
5th Jeff Van Den Brand 2:28:43 (2nd Vet Male), 6th Rob Embelton 2:29:44 (3rd Vet Male), 7th Richard Comber 2:49:49, 8th Steven McLeod 2:50:30 (3rd Open Male),
9th Ian Heafield 3:05:55, 10th Mark Peek 3:10:25, 11th Ken Lancaster 3:10:26,
12th Jenny Prucsino 3:27:27 (2nd Vet Female), 13th Louise McMahon 3:27:27 (3rd Vet Female), 14th Lee Graham 3:27:27, 15th John Jervis 3:39:00, 16th Paula Lucas 3:45:00 (1st Open Female), 17th Bruce Salisbury D.N.F.
Lots of pictures in the gallery page