Results

Race Diary 19 January 2008

7.00am

There's an air of excitement as spectators line Wanaka lake front to watch the competitors start the 3.8km swim leg of Challenge Wanaka 2008. It's a beautiful, clear morning and calm conditions make for a great race.

7.45am

The leading pack of swimmers are close to finishing the course. The leading swimmers are Luke Dragstra, Chris McDonald, Andrew Black and Gina Ferguson.

7.56am

Stuart Fraser is first out of the water, followed by Andrew Black, Luke Dragstra and New Zealand's Gina Ferguson. The leading athletes begin the first leg of the gruelling 180km bike leg heading to Lake Dunstan.

8.23am

Chris McDonald is leading the bike leg, closely pursued by Luke Dragstra, Justin Granger and Stuart Fraser.

8.32am

Gina Ferguson passes B1.

8.34am

Hillary Biscay is the 2nd woman through B1.

9.00am

The leaders pass B2. Chris McDonald leads by 44 seconds. Luke Dragstra is currently 2nd, Justin Granger 3rd and Stuart Fraser is 4th.

9.09am

The swim leg of the team event is underway. Current air temperature is 17 degrees.

9.09am

Gina Ferguson is the first woman to pass B2.

9.30am

The leaders, at 64.5 km of the course, head towards the third aid station. The weather conditions are perfect with no wind at present.

9.42am

Chris McDonald maintains his lead as he approaches the 70km mark.

9.56am

Chris McDonald reaches the Lindis River bridge. Luke Dragstra is 1min 30 seconds behind him.

10.05am

Hillary Biscay is the second woman to pass B3. Not a breath of wind on course!

10.09am

Chris McDonald holds a 1 minute 30 second lead over Luke Dragstra as they pass B4 Tarras aid station.

10.11am

Justin Granger passes B4, a large group of cyclists follow.

10.17am

Justin Granger holds 3rd place, currently 5 minutes behind the race leader. In hot pursuit are Marc Pschebizin, Keegan Williams, Petr Vabrousek and Stuart Fraser at 5 mins 30 secs behind the race leader. Michael Hoffman follows the group, 10 mins 40 secs behind the race leader.

10.35am

Chris McDonald passes the 100km mark.

10.45am

At B5, Chris McDonald remains the course leader. Luke Dragstra is 2nd.

10.54am

Chris McDonald reaches 113km. Luke Dragstra remains 2nd, Marc Pschebizin 3rd, Petr Vabrousek 4th and Justin Granger 5th. New Zealand's Gina Ferguson is the first woman to reach B5.

11.11am

Chris McDonald heads back from Lake Hawea with a 3km lead over Luke Dragstra.

11.15am

At B5 (102km) Gina Ferguson 1st, Hillary Biscay 2nd, Marilyn McDonald 3rd, Celia Kuch 4th and Wanaka's Merryn Greenwood 5th.

11.25am

Chris McDonald reaches the 127km mark of the cycle leg at Albert Town with a 2 min lead over Luke Dragstra. Chasing the leaders are Marc Pschebizin, Petr Vabrousek, Justin Granger, Keegan Williams and Stuart Fraser approximately 5 mins behind. Reports of amazing crowd support along the course.

11.37am

Course leader, Chris McDonald reaches B7 aid station close to Wanaka township at 11.35am

11.40am

Gina Ferguson is the first woman to pass B6.

11.41am

The lead cyclists head out of Wanaka towards Glendhu Bay and Treble Cone.

12.01pm

1st woman to reach B7 is Gina Ferguson.

12.10pm

Latest weather update: Fine and sunny with light winds. Air temperature currently 27 degrees, expected to reach 33 degrees this afternoon.

12.11pm

Lead cyclist reaches 150km mark.

12.18pm

Leads cyclists reach turnaround point at the bottom of the Treble Cone road. Chris McDonald has slightly extended his lead over Luke Dragstra, Keegan Williams is in 3rd place after breaking away from the chasing pack. Justin Granger is 4th and Marc Pschebizin is 5th.

12.30pm

Gina Ferguson, lead woman, passes the 145km mark. The chasing female pack reaches B7. Hillary Biscay 2nd, Marilyn McDonald 3rd, Celia Kuch 4th and Susanne Buckenlei 5th.

12.32pm

Chris McDonald gains 4min 16 sec lead while Luke Dragstra repairs puncture.

Lead cyclist passes 170km mark at Glendhu Bay.

12.37pm

Lead cyclist 7km from transition area.

12.47pm

Report of one gutsy competitor running with his bike to the Treble Cone access road while mechanical help is on its way.

12.53pm

Chris McDonald has a 6 min lead over Luke Dragstra in the bike/run transition. Be prepared for an exciting showdown between Chris McDonald and Luke Dragstra on the run leg!

1.05pm

The lead athletes start the spectacular 42.2km run along the edge of Lake Wanaka towards Bremner Bay.

1.17pm

Gina Ferguson at B8 aid station, approximately 20 km behind lead male athletes. Luke Dragstra, Justin Granger, Marc Pschebizin and Keegan Williams are 5 mins 20 secs behind the race leader.

1.23pm

Justin Granger, Marc Pschebizin and Luke Dragstra pass R1. Keegan Williams is chasing the group, currently 1 min behind.

1.36pm

Chris McDonald is the first athlete though R4.

1.42pm

At R4: Marc Pschebizin 2nd, Justin Granger 3rd, Luke Dragstra 4th and Keegan Williams 5th.

1.47pm

Gina Ferguson remains the leading female, Hillary Biscay is 2nd and Marilyn McDonald is in 3rd place.

1.53pm

Celia Kuch is currently 4th female.

1.56pm

Chris McDonald passes R5 at 1.52pm

1.59pm

1st female Gina Ferguson passes R3 at 13.58pm.

2.01pm

Merryn Greenwood is currently 5th female.

2.05pm

Marc Pschebizin is currently 2nd and Justin Granger is right behind him!

2.10pm

Chris McDonald reaches R6, close to Lismore Park, at 2.08pm.

2.09pm

Gina Ferguson reaches R4, while Hilary Biscay is at R2.

2.16pm

Marc Pschebizin is 2 mins behind the race leader, closely followed by Justin Granger, who is just 10 secs behind Marc. Go Justin!

2.21pm

Hillary Biscay passes R3 at 14.18pm

R6 aid station: Marc Pschebizin 2nd 2.11pm, Justin Granger 3rd 2.11pm, Keegan Williams 4th 2.16pm, Luke Dragstra 5th 2.17pm and David Plew 6th 2.20pm.

Mariliyn McDonald, 3rd female passes R2 at 14.15pm.

Celia Kuch, 4th female passes R2 at 14.22pm.

2.31pm

1st place female Gina Ferguson passes R5 at 2.31pm

Keegan Williams and Luke Dragstra pass R7 at 2.35pm, in 4th and 5th place.

Wanaka's Merryn Greenwood is 5th female through R3. Go Merryn!

2.45pm

Gina Ferguson reaches the 18km mark at 2.44pm, maintaining her dominance throughout the race.

Challenge Wanaka hots up as R2 reports a 1 minute time difference between Chris McDonald and 2nd place male Marc Pschebizin.

R4 aid station reports: Hillary Biscay, 2nd female 14.32pm; Marilyn McDonald, 3rd 14.41pm and Celia Kuch 4th 14.45pm.

2.55pm

R3 reports: 2 leading males pass R3 on their 2nd lap of the course. Chris McDonald leads by 45 secs!

Justin Granger 3rd male is 4 mins 30 sec behind the course leader.

Keegan Williams 4th male is 11 mins 30 sec behind the course leader. A fantastic effort for his first professional race.

Tension mounts on the race course as R4 reports a 10 sec difference between the new leader Marc Pschebizin and Chris McDonald.

3.09pm

Marc edges away from Chris on the Gunn Road section of the course. He now has a 20 sec lead.

3.16pm

Merryn Greenwood, 5th placed female, passes R5 at 3.18pm.

3.20pm

R4 reports 3rd male Justin Granger, 4th Luke Dragstra and 30 secs behind in 5th place, NZ's Keegan Williams.

3.25pm

R5 reports male leader as Marc Pschebizin.

Gina Ferguson, the leading female, passes R2 at 13.24pm.

3.30pm

Gina passes R3 heading towards Albert Town at 15.34pm.

3.45pm

The leading athletes turn onto Lakeside Driveway, the finish in sight. The course leader is 4km away from the finish line.

3.48pm

Marc Pschebizin storms to the finish line in 8 hours, 47 mins, 50 secs breaking last year's record and cheered on by a fantastic crowd lining the finish shoot. After leading the majority of the race, Chris McDonald finishes in 2nd place in 8.49:37 and Justin Granger takes 3rd place with 8.54:08.

4.05pm

Hillary Biscay, 2nd female, passes R3 at 16.05pm.

Gina Ferguson passes R5 at 4.10, heading towards Wanaka.

4.28pm

The lead female Gina Ferguson is 1.5km from the finish and still looks good!

4.39pm

Gina Ferguson from Christchurch, New Zealand wins the Challenge Wanaka women's title, setting a course record of 9.33:46.

4.56pm

Hillary Biscay is 3.5km from the finish, heading towards Lismore Park.

5.10pm

Hillary Biscay is the 2nd female home in a time of 10.11:17

5.31pm

Celia Kuch of Germany is the third female home in a time of 10.32:39