---

Family Affair at Coast to Coast on Day 1

Michael Jacques / 17.02.2010

Speight’s Coast to Coast creator, Robin Judkins, is over the moon. When he launched this year’s 28th version of the 243k race across the South Island Judkins dubbed it “The Year of the Family�, and today, on a perfect day up on Arthur’s Pass, it was a family who shone the brightest.

More than 600 endurance athletes from 17 countries lined up under drizzling rain on the West Coast beach of Kumara this morning. But half way through the opening 55k road cycle the skies cleared to a picture perfect day.

With a healthy tailwind, Palmerston North’s Peter O’Sullivan was the aggressor on this opening stage, and eventually broke away to record a fast 1hr 38min 09secs that missed the record for this opening stage by less than 60 seconds. O’Sullivan’s teammate, former world top 10 Luke Vaughan, added a few more minutes to their lead on the 33k mountain run across Goat Pass and they finished the first day with a 10min lead in the teams section ahead of former teams winners Paul Massie and Robert Loverage.

The highlight of the day, however, were the Welsh-born John family, with 21 year old Rhys leading the individual Two day race and his father Stephen leading his Classic category for athletes aged 50 to 59 years.

Rhys, a medical student at Otago University, led from start to finish, following just two minutes behind the fastest team cyclists and then running the fastest of anyone with a time of 3hrs 13min 39secs for the 33k distance over the 1500m high Goat Pass. His father also led the Classic category all day, ending Day One in an impressive 12th place overall and almost half an hour ahead of anyone his own age.

Both family members have been in this situation before. Dad is competing in his 16th Speight’s Coast to Coast, while Rhys is in his second. The 21 year is making bold predictions either, saying, "Two years ago I led after the first day too, but then on the second day I didn’t have a very good kayak and slipped to fourth. I’m much stronger in the kayak now, but I’m not celebrating just yet.�

Another who isn’t celebrating is individual women’s leader Joanna Williams. The buff 35 year old Irishwoman impressed onlookers when she hung out with the fastest male cyclists, eventually clocking a woman’s cycle record of 1hr 42min 41secs. She then clocked a strong 4hrs 18min for the mountain run to finish Day One 10min clear of Christchurch’s Amy Brazier.

However, with four women within 13min after day one, Williams wasn’t making bold predictions. “I didn’t come here thinking I was going to win. I thought maybe top 10. So I have to just see how the kayak goes tomorrow and hopefully have another strong cycle and see what that brings.�

See All Stories On This Race