Barracudas smash record

The Broome Barracudas team broke one of two records smashed at the 2012 Lake Argyle Swim near Kununurra last Sunday.

They were part of the biggest ever field of 117 competitors who splashed down in the freshwater to race for a win in one of five categories.

Scarborough athlete Keira Macfarlane crossed the finish first in the gruelling 20km solo race with a time of just five hours and 16 minutes.

Moira Wigley and Ron Griep from Darwin clocked in first in the 20km duo contest and broke a race record with their time of five hours and 17 minutes.

Meanwhile, four of Broome’s talented teenage swimmers – Joe Handscombe (15), Talara-Jade Dixon (16), Fraser Jeffery (14) and Noah Chapman (14) – broke the team record as they crossed the finish first in the 20km quad race, completing the race in four hours and 56 minutes.

The 10km solo race was won by Northern Territory swimmer Mark Fitzsimons, who went the distance in two hours and 42 seconds.

The Silver Hobblers team of Lisa Russ, from Derby, and Scarborough man Steve Toth, won the 10km duo race in two hours and 35 seconds.

Kununurra team Croc Bait made the East Kimberley proud by taking home the title for the 10km quad team.

Sarah Althorpe, Peter Firth, Jenkins Kroon and Lariez Kroon finished their category in three hours and six minutes. Race director Taneille Anderson said the event was growing so rapidly the committee were now devising strategies to cope with the number of entrants, which almost doubled this year from 63 in 2011.

She thanked East Kimberley residents for supporting the locally-run event.