Ashburton co-workers Amy Ferguson and Anna Johnson are competing in this weekend’s Coast to Coast race as a tandem team. Photo supplied.Every person who entered the Coast to Coast had a story to tell afterwards, and Anna Johnson knew all too well that not all those stories had happy endings.

But as the Ashburton woman prepared for her third attempt at the iconic multisport race which took competitors from one side of the South Island to the other via foot, bike and kayak, she was hopeful that this time the story she had to tell afterwards would be a good one.

Not one to do the same race twice, Johnson had entered the Coast to Coast as an individual and in a team before, so this year she was tackling the two-day event as part of a tandem team with friend and workmate Amy Ferguson.

Although they knew each other pretty well from working together at the EA Networks Centre gym, after the experience of training and racing together as a tandem team there probably wouldn’t be much the pair didn’t know about each other by the time they crossed the finish line on Saturday.

That’s because racing as a tandem team meant being within 50 metres of each other at all times during the race.

The pair had a tandem kayak and while Johnson was set to take the lead on her favoured run leg, Ferguson was the stronger of the two on the bike.

Together, they made up a pretty good team.

They said they were at a similar level, so staying within 50 metres of each other wouldn’t be difficult, and they knew they could rely on each other.

They knew that if one of them got down, the other would be there to tell them to pull their socks up, and they knew that they’d have a hang of a lot of fun on the trek from Kumara Beach to Sumner Beach, which was set to kick off on Friday morning.

Having someone she knew so well there by her side, was one of the things that Johnson was most looking forward to.

“When you’re out there by yourself, even though it’s the same distance you’re going to cover, it seems longer,” Johnson said.

For Johnson, 2019 was her third attempt at the iconic race.

She completed the two-day individual race in 2014 and in 2017 she went back as part of a team, but it didn’t go so well.

Another boat clipped hers in the kayak leg and broke her boat’s rudder.

With no jet boats allowed on the Waimakariri until the last of the one-day competitors had gone through, it meant Johnson had to spend nine long hours sitting on the riverbank with a broken kayak, waiting to be picked up.

She could only watch on as hundreds of her fellow competitors kayaked past, including her brother – top multisporter Braden Currie – who was in first place in the longest day event at that point, but went on to finish second.

When you’d put so much into preparing for a race only to have a freak accident lead to a DNF next to your team’s name, it was hard, but she’d come to terms with it.

“Everybody that does this sport has a story.

“There’s not a single person that you could talk to that has done the Coast to Coast that hasn’t got a story,” Johnson said.

Johnson and Ferguson just hoped that their story from the 2019 event would be a good one, because they’d worked hard to get to the start line.

The pair’s story began last year after they both competed at Challenge Wanaka, raising funds for Ronald McDonald House along the way after Ferguson’s niece Ruby was born with a tumour on her spine which resulted in her family spending a lot of time living at the home away from home for families in their time of need.

That was Ferguson’s first big experience of multisport racing.

She raced the half, while Johnson did the full event, and after that they decided to take it a step further by completing the Coast to Coast together.

Ferguson had never been in a kayak before and admitted she was petrified the first few times she took to the water, but with an experienced campaigner like Johnson in the boat with her, she was feeling good.

She was excited – with a hint of nerves mixed in – as race day approached and said she had just one goal in mind, and that was to finish.

There was no real expectation within the team as to what time they’d like to see on the clock as they crossed the finish line, they just wanted to finish.

Simply crossing that finishing line was something that Johnson was eager to experience again after the

devastation of 2017, and it was one that Ferguson never dreamt she’d get to experience.

The closest she’d ever come to the Coast to Coast before was when she went as support crew for a friend about six years ago.

“I just remember thinking these guys are amazing.

“I’m pretty sure I couldn’t even run one kilometre at that time,” Ferguson said.

Now the personal trainer was ready to tackle the 30km run, the 70km kayak and the 140km on both road and mountain bike that made up the Coast to Coast, and who knew what challenge would come after that.

For Johnson though, what came next was already decided.

Like many multisporters, in the past she’d suffered from “post-race depression”.

When you’d put so much time and effort into building towards something and when it was done, you felt a bit lost without a goal.

There were two cures – find another goal, or retiring.

In the past, Johnson had found a new event to work towards, but this time she was looking like taking the other path.

With two kids at home who were growing up fast, she said she’d had her time, and now it was her kids’ time.

She still had places she wanted to go and run, and challenges in mind, but from now on they’d be more from a recreational point of view rather than a competitive one.

The time was right, and it just happened that the time had come in a year when Johnson’s brother Glen Currie was in charge of the race for the first time.

Currie – a former top-class Coast to Coast competitor himself – was the new race director and Johnson said it was fitting that her final race was also Currie’s first in his new role.

By Erin Tasker © The Ashburton Guardian - 7 February 2019

Oliver Davidson.Hard fought win to Davidson - Oliver Davidson’s continued improvement on the bike was evident on Sunday when he secured victory in the “A” grade section of the Tinwald Cycling Club, Paul Wylie Cyclerama, 48km graded scratch event around the Wakanui Beach block.
Davidson had the best of a 4 up sprint, seeing off the challenges of Brad Hudson, Steve Hand, and Tony Ward. The quartet rode the distance in 70.37.
“B” grade spoils went to Ross Templeton in another tight sprint finish.
Templeton timed his final kick to perfection to get over second place getter Richard Kirwan.
Paul Macfie charged into third place, with Craig Roulston continuing his good season form securing fourth spot.
Wayne Whiting put his recent block of training to good use, finding the line the strongest to secure the win in “C” grade.
It was a hard fought win, with Paul Chapman hot on his heels in second place.
Roger Wilson showed plenty of dash to secure third place with Paul Williams in fourth position.
Mark McDonald rode a super race to deservedly secure the major spoils in “D” grade.
Lucy Kirwan matched her husband’s efforts, with a solid ride to take second place.
Kerry Clough was in the thick of the finish securing the final podium position with the ever improving Liz Wylie rounding out the top four.
The juniors and division 2 contested a 16km event.
Jack Templeton rode a super race, to take home the prizes, covering the distance in a good 32.35.
Division 2 was a tight fought affair, with the Skinner stable securing the quinella. Andy took victory, getting the better of his wife Debbie in the charge to the line.
Emma Hudson took third place with fourth place going to Brian Ellis.
Next week the Club travels to the hills to contest a 50km handicap on the Terrace Downs – Coleridge course.

© The Tinwald Cycling Club - 4 February 2019

With all eyes on returning a forehand during the Mid Canterbury Tennis A grade competition on Saturday was Aidan Mitchell. Photo Robyn HoodTinwald remain the frontrunners to take out round two of this summer’s Mid Canterbury Tennis A grade competition after just sneaking past Southern in Saturday’s latest round.

Heading into the third match-ups of round two Tinwald held a slender four-point lead over first round winners Allenton, but with Allenton suffering a narrow loss to Fairton, Tinwald are now in the box seat.

Tinwald’s 4-2 win over Southern was set up by wins in both of the doubles matches, with the four singles matches shared.

In the top doubles, Peter Leonard and Cameron McCracken combined to make a formidable combination which proved far too good for Southern’s Jason Feutz and Gareth Evans, winning 6-1 6-0.

Ashleigh Leonard and Larissa Allan beat Aidan Watt and Mathieu Lucas 6-3 6-3 in the bottom doubles.

McCracken’s stellar singles season continued with a 6-1 6-1 win over Feutz, while Ashleigh Leonard took the number two spot for the singles and lost to Evans in a third set super tie-breaker.

Southern’s second win came in the three singles in another super tie-break, with Watt beating Allan, while Tim Groves came into the Tinwald side for the number four singles and beat Lucas 6-2 6-3.

Tinwald only winning 4-2 meant if Allenton could win big, they could narrow the gap on the leaderboard, but Fairton had other ideas and moved into second spot after holding the round one winners to a 3-all draw on matches and then winning on a countback of games 54-50.

Wins were hard to come by for Fairton in round one, but they were on fire on Saturday, taking out both of the doubles matches.

Rhys Cromie and Neil Fowler combined to win the top doubles for Fairton, beating Andre van Rooyen and Bryn Looij 6-4 6-3, while Phil Crozier and John Leslie also took a win for Fairton, beating Matt Bubb and Jacob Pye 6-2 6-3.

Other than Cromie’s 6-1 6-0 win over van Rooyen in the top singles, the singles matches belonged to Allenton.

Fowler was making his first appearance in A grade tennis in some time and he lost his singles to Looij 6-2 6-4 at two, while Bubb beat Crozier 6-4 6-1 at three, and Pye beat Leslie 7-5 6-2 at four.

The day’s other match-up between Hampstead and Methven was won by Hampstead 4-2, and just like in the other two matches it was a win set up by wins in both doubles matches.

Aidan Mitchell and Connor Brosnahan ook out their top doubles against Lee Gilbert and Pete Kirwan 6-2 6-1, while Michael Kerr and Erin Connelly-Whyte beat Josh Jones and Marty Amos 6-4 6-2 in the bottom doubles.

Jones and Amos turned the tables completely in the singles matches though, with Jones downing Matthew Hopkins in the three singles 6-1 6-4 and Amos beating Connelly-Whyte 6-4 6-1 at four.

Hampstead wrapped the tie up at the top of the order, with Mitchell beating Gilbert 6-0 6-3 in the top singles, and Brosnahan beating Kirwan in a third set super tie-break.

Meanwhile in A reserve action on Saturday the Allenton Wekas beat the Allenton Kakapos 6-0 and Hampstead just edged out Southern/Wakanui on a countback of games 52-49.

By Erin Tasker © The Ashburton Guardian - 3 February 2019