McClusky takes the Bass Coast Series win

THE Bass Coast ‘Summer Series of Aquathons’ finished on a great note last Saturday with record entries in both the Little Penguin Dash and the 31^st Cowes Classic, which was the final leg of the Bass Coast Series.

This means that all four Aquathons – the Cape Paterson Aquathon, the San Remo Channel Challenge, the Little Penguin Dash for Juniors (U/15) and the Cowes Classic all set new records for the number of competitors entered into each event.

Last saturday again saw ideal conditions and at 10.30am there were 140 youngsters lined up to participate in the increasingly popular Little Penguin Dash (LPD) for seven to fourteen years old juniors.

The previous best number was 108 last year and this event has seen increased entries in each of the five years that the event has been held. The LPD is not conducted as a race, with times not recorded, and no prizes for placegetters, but the emphasis is on participation and ‘having a go’ and every youngster that makes it to the finish line receives a medallion for having finished the event.

Then later, when the competitors in the 31^st edition of the Cowes Classic lined up at the start at 2.00pm, it was very satisfying for the organizers from the Phillip Island Football Netball Club and the Woolamai Beach SLSC, to note that the 393 competitors who were entered exceeded the previous record by 80 – “a terrific result for all involved.” said special event organiser Ron Nicholson.

“The highlight of the racing was undoubtedly seeing top Australian triathlete, Callum McClusky, make a clean sweep of all three Bass Coast events, and we wish him well in his quest to represent Australia at the Paris Olympics,” said Ron.

There was also an impressive effort by local competitor, Justin Tilley, who is in the O/40 Masters category, as he recorded the second fastest time of all competitors in the Classic.

Another local, Zoe Adams, was first home in both the Senior Open and Local Female categories while another local girl, Emma Moore, also won both of the O/50 Veteran Female categories.

For the third time this summer we saw local O/40 competitors - Justin Tilley, Mark Rowe and Stephen Noble - finish 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd in both the Open and Local O/40 categories. Local boy, Callum McLeod, again did well to push a V.I.S. competitor in the Open Junior Male section and win the Local Junior Male category.

The Cowes Classic was the third and final leg of the Bass Coast Series and the cheques for each of the twenty category winners were presented along with the prizes for Saturday’s event.

The closest finish was in the Veteran Local Male category where Kris Harris and Jim Corbett entered the final leg all square on points and in the deciding race only 14.5 seconds separated them over their 25-minute race.

The Bass Coast Series was expanded this year to include a category for competitors for those competitors over 60 years of age (Super Veterans) and it has been a popular concept which is definitely one of the reasons for the increased numbers at each event this year.

There is a great deal of satisfaction for those who enter and finish in all three events each summer and the Bass Coast Series (BCS) is fully sponsored by the Bass Coast Shire who were represented at the presentations by Deputy Mayor Cr Rochelle Halstead.

“It also an enjoyable challenge for the local competitors to take on the visiting contingent and this year congratulate the four locals who won both the Open and Local sections of the Bass Coast Series:

Callum McLeod Junior Male Open and Local

Justin Tilley Masters Male Open and Local

Sarah Smith Masters Female Open and Local

Emma Moore Veteran Female Open and Local

“It has been a fantastic summer of events for the organisers from the Woolamai Beach SLSC, Cape Paterson SLSC and the PINFC as well as for the competitors who travel from far and wide to participate in these events which bring many strands of the local community together and we all hope to see even bigger numbers at the events in 2025,” said Ron.  

“The organisers also wish to thank the many sponsors and organizations who make these events possible as it is a big job, and an expensive one, to put these events together and without the support from the local community they may not be possible.”

Bass Coast Series Results

Open Senior Male Callum McClusky

Open Senior Female Mia Foster

Local Senior Male Andre Hetebrueg

Local Senior Female Tiarnie Ellingworth

Open Junior Male Callum McLeod

Open Junior Female Erin Maloney

Local Junior Male Callum McLeod

Local Junior Female Abbey Clarke

Open Masters O/40 Male Justin Tilley

Open Masters O/40 Female Sarah Smith

Local Masters O/40 Male Justin Tilley

Local Masters O/40 Female Sarah Smith

Open Veteran O/50 Male Aurel Wachter

Open Veteran O/50 Female Emma Moore

Local Veteran O/50 Male Kris Harris

Local Veteran O/50 Female Emma Moore

Open Super Veteran Male Mark Knight

Open Super Veteran Female Janice Stephens

Local Super Veteran Male Bill Yusko

Local Super Veteran Female Carol Brewster