.. With a choice of five race options, tradition was stood on its head, with 26 competing in the kayak-bike-run multisport event, 16 the shorter sprint triathlon, nine the standard triathlon (usually the most popular race) and 10 choosing one of the two duathlon distances.

Trevor Voyce was last year's Coast to Coast runnerup, but that didn't deter Daniel Busch, who powered off from the first stroke of the kayak leg, covering the 8km course from Kerr Bay to the mouth of the Buller River and return in a brisk 30min 47sec, entering the transition to the bike side by side with veteran Andrew Martin. John Harris was next in 33.04, with Voyce and JJ Wilson a further 40 seconds adrift. Photos - 3rd-eye.co.nz

Three-time Coast winner Emily Miazga led the women from the water, with Sophie Hart and Rachel Voyce at one-minute intervals. Jodie Fa'Avae and Helen Chittenden were right on Voyce's heels.

Busch didn't mess about on the 40km bike course, cutting out the quickest split of 1.08.47, three minutes quicker than Trevor Voyce.

Miazga showed what a tough competitor she is, with the next fastest bike time ahead of Martin, Harris and Wilson. Ian Shapcott from Marlborough shrugged off his 62 years to record the next quickest split.

Voyce clawed back 20 seconds on Busch in the 10km run, both with sub-40-minute times, but it was clearly Busch's day, as he ran through the finish nearly five minutes ahead. Martin was consistent in all disciplines to take third ahead of Wilson and Harris. Next to finish in a fine show of strength was Miazga (right), but Hart showed she's a force to be reckoned with, only three minutes behind, gaining two of them in the run. Fa'Avae took third, with Rachel Voyce and Chittenden rounding out the top five.

With some serious racing to do over the ironman distance at Wanaka in six days, Richard Ussher was ready for a sharpener over the sprint distance. Nobody would guess swimming was his weakest discipline as he emerged from the 750m swim right on the heels of Jon Linyard, one of the region's sharpest swimmers. Young Jack Thornton, 15, looked every inch a champion of the future just a few seconds later.

Josie Wilcox has a running scholarship which will take her to the US later this year, but she's using the time until then to hone her triathlon skills. She showed a huge improvement in her swim form as she left the water in fourth place, ahead of Nigel Burgess and Chris Whitaker. Ussher (right) took a solid lead on the bike, with Linyard, Burgess, Whitaker and Wilcox having the next fastest times to consolidate the first five positions.

The undulating 5km run doesn't encourage fast times, but Ussher nailed it in 18.20, with Burgess the only other runner to duck under 20 minutes.

With the fastest splits in all disciplines, Ussher was a clear winner ahead of Linyard and Burgess, with Wilcox slipping past Whitaker for fourth.

The years of consistent Ironman training are paying off for Hayden Harper (right), who dominated the standard distance triathlon with the quickest times in all disciplines to win by more than six minutes from national triathlon rep Rob Hoult from Christchurch.

Dave Lawson, Danial Bremner and Paul Thornton took the next three spots.

Sam Drew was too strong in the longer duathlon, scoring a clear win over the team of Liz Peters and the solo race of Marlborough's Juliet Wiseman.

In the short duathlon Thomas Young's bike ability pulled him through against the quicker run talent of Jono Drew, with the old dog Ian McNabb consistent throughout to take third in his longest duathlon to date.

Anja Goldbach and Susan Drew were the first of the women.

Full results at nelsontriclub.co.nz.