The first race of the year for the Hamilton Hammerheads Triathlon Club was the C3/Kinetico Kids of Steel Triathlon held in Caledon on May 29, 2011.  This was the 11th annual KOS for C3, which shares Coach Barrie Shepley, originator of the KOS program and a former Olympic coach, with the Hammerheads.

In all, 10 Hammerheads, as well as siblings and friends, competed in this year’s race.  Hammerhead sibling Isaac Shenker participated in a new national record: the most kids under 7 to do a triathlon.  In the timed age group races, Liam Yoell came first in the 8-9 year-old boys’ race, with a strong all-round performance despite kicking off both shoes during the run.  Adam Shenker came ninth with a fast, smooth swim.  In the 10-11 year-olds, Shanze Yoell came fourth, with a top finish among girls on the bike.  Avery Webber’s bike time was a close second, but she was hampered by a cramp during the run and finished a respectable 10th.  Sydney Flageole-Bray performed well in all the legs of the race, and placed 12th among the 10-11 year-old boys.  In the 12-13 age group, Josh Shenker placed second among the boys, and Rachel Webber placed fifth among the girls, both with particularly strong performances in the run.  In the draft-legal race with pre-swim, Rui Xu placed first among boys in the 16-19 age group, with strong performances in both the bike and the run; and Yinze Xu placed third, with bike trouble and a cramp, among the 14-15 year-old girls.  Finally, Coach Dave Harrison finished a strong second in the adults’ triathlon.

Hammerhead athletes and parents, Grant and Scotia Brailsford, Autumn Crockett, Sean Crockett, Peter Summers, and Elizabeth Weretilnyk volunteered throughout the day, contributing to the success of this well-run and well-attended event.  The day was capped with a celebratory barbecue in Dundas, courtesy of the Shenker family.

Scotia Brailsford and Garnet Delsey both competed in the Ancaster High School triathlon on May 27.  Scotia had very strong performances for the swim and bike, but struggled through cramps in the run to finish a courageous seventh in her category.  Garnet was 3rd in his age group with a super-fast run.