Naturally, his milestone performance of 1hr 58min. 35sec. was enough to dominate the field at Sunday’s Pembroke Triathlon.
Contested in low winds and only moderate temperatures, the race featured a 1,500m swim in the bay, 40km primarily west-coast cycle with added distance from a loop up L’Eree and down Imperial Hill, and a coastal path run coming up slightly short at 9.75km. Woodhead’s average pace would still have indicated a sub-two-hour finish for the standard distance.
He finished the opening swim 2min. clear of Island Games man Dave Mosley, extended his lead with a strong bike, and was certainly not going to give it away on the run.
Mosley ultimately claimed second in 2-10-38, with the next two positions coming down to a close finish between two veteran Jons – Osborn and Downes.
Over-50 triathlete Downes posted the stronger swim but Osborn worked his way past and eventually finished in 2-18-53, leading in his older rival by 1-31.
‘I’m really pleased with the result,’ the overall winner said.
‘Breaking two hours was a big goal of mine, so to do that and win the race as well was a great feeling.
‘The run was a little short, but that’s just motivation to go sub two hours next time again.’
Amy Critchlow dominated the women’s race to a similar degree.
Off a strong swim, where the veteran left the water behind only Games men Woodhead and Mosley, she consolidated her lead on the bike and run to finish a clear first in 2-20-51.
The real race had been the one for second, an honour that eventually went to up-and-coming triathlete Enya Rabey in 2-31-54.
She had finished the swim as runner-up but with two veterans, Bath Amphibians’ Marilyn Keyford and past Island Games woman Emily Squire, within 5sec. of her.
Keyford had the best transition, with Squire out next, but the two Guernsey triathletes then happened to post identical bike splits as the visitor dropped from contention.
From behind, Rabey made a swift transition and then outran her opponent to finish 1-30 ahead. Veteran Laura Fry ultimately came through for fourth.
The sprint distance option had showed off further talent from improving triathletes, with junior Freddie Furley and converted swimmer Jemima Green taking individual honours.
Furley narrowly held onto his lead established on the swim after a cracking bike leg from older opponent Jack Domaille, who also went slightly quicker on the run.
He consequently won in 1-03-28, just 22sec. clear of Domaille. Nathan Phillips took third in 1-06-07.
Green used her proven swim speed to leave the water second for the distance, just 5sec. down on Furley, only for Games cyclist Jamy Petit-Fulgoni to edge past her approaching final transition.
Green ran well to finish in 1-19-41, with her opponent following more distantly in 1-22-27, as another new face in Hetty Meggy closed out the podium just 14sec. later after consistently competitive splits.
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