Revelstoke’s Iron Babes push it to the limit

Rvelstoke's very own Ironwomen — Atsuko Knight, Courtney Rennie, Liz Kozek, Mardi Syrnyk, Sarah Newton and Ann-Marie Gill pose just above the waterline before the start of the Ironman Canada competition in Penticton last weekend.

By David F. Rooney

They may have called it Ironman Canada, but for six Revelstoke women last weekend’s tough endurance race at Penticton should have been called Ironwomen.

Ann Marie Gill, Sarah Newton, Mardi Syrnyk, Atsuko Knight, Liz Kozak and Rennie Courtney trained for months to compete against the thousands of men and women registered for the race.

Here’s how’s they did:

Subaru Ironman Canada 2010 Results

6 records found in “CITY” that contain “REVELSTOKE”:

OVERALL PLACETOTAL TIMELAST NAMEFIRST NAMERACE DIVISIONDIVISION PLACESWIM TIMEBIKE TIMERUN TIMEHAWAII QUALIFIERSPENALTY
67111:36:32GILLANN-MARIEW35-3921/1651:12:096:10:274:03:53
164813:15:46KNIGHTATSUKOW45-4952/1491:26:456:51:334:37:02
2702DNFKOZAKELIZABETHW55-5935/361:20:47
100912:09:35NEWTONSARAHW40-4438/1441:14:026:09:224:36:29
158813:07:23RENNIECOURTNEYW30-3476/1291:08:466:53:274:51:52
170413:21:40SYRNYKMARDIW35-3978/1651:11:386:47:145:10:17

“So what this says,” Newton said in an e-mail to The Current, “is that Ann Marie did the best, coming 671 out of 3,230 starters (men and women). She was 21st in her age group (165 women). I was 1,009 out of 3,230 finishers, and 38th in my age group (144 women).”

Newton suggested that despite all the training individual performances were determined as much by the weather as by individual fitness.

“The weather was everything! We started in calm waters for the 3.8 km swim, and had a terrific tailwind for the first 60 km of the 180 km long bike.  Then headwinds and large climbs on the course challenged us all.  However, the huge support crew of family and friends kept us motivated and smiling!”

Then there was the wind and rain that “made parts of the descent on the bike section very tricky, along with growing fatigue.”

“The run course was exceptionally beautiful, along Lake Shaka, but still mind numbingly hard —42 km long!”

Cheering spectators and attentative attendants at the aid stations along the way also helped athletes through to the finish.

“Revy fans were the most appreciated with costumes to add to the festivities,” Newton said, adding that Revelstoke’s very own Ironwomen “would like to thank the generous support of Flowt Bikes and Skis, The Modern Bakeshop and Café, and Helios Physiotherapy and Massage.”

Welcome back ladies! You were all superb!

And here are a few photos of our local competitors in action:

Swim start! 3230 athletes prepare to swim 3.8 km in Lake Okanagan.
Not so Iron — ah — babes. shows part of the fantastic support crew cheering in the Revelstoke contingent. left to right, Travis Hunt, Rory Luxmoore, Sylvia Wood, cheering on the Revelstoke contingent.
Smilin' away at her 11-kilometre climb through Richter Pass Courtney Rennie manages a wave at her fans.
Ann-Marie Gill halfway up the climb to Yellow Lake, getting a high five from one of her fans.
Atsuko Knight charging over Richter Pass in the bike segment.
Sarah Newton at Okanagan Falls, starting the second half of the marathon- the final stretch of Ironman Canada