SIX Tri-Force Herts triathletes survived gruelling conditions to complete the Llanberis International Half Ironman Triathlon, recently.

The athletes battled through a one and a half mile swim, 56 mile cycle ride and half-marathon run amongst the spectacular scenery of Snowdonia.

Paddy Brice was the first Tri-Force athlete home, finishing in a time of 4:42 hours which was well inside his expected time of five hours.

However, despite finishing 57th out of some 1,400 entrants, Brice now faces an anxious wait to see if his time is good enough to qualify for the Great Britain Ironman age group team for the World Championships due to be held in Hawaii next year.

Steve Postlethwaite finished in 483rd in a time of 5:36 in spite of the recurrence of a back injury while the experienced veteran triathlete, Sam Pritchard clocked 5:55 hours.

Chris Morris (798th) and Ravi Dighe (881st) both finished in just over six hours while Lawrence Phillips finished in exactly eight hours despite being short of fitness because of a recent injury.

The race itself was won by the Great Britain international Richard Allen who finished ten minutes ahead of his nearest competitor in a time of 4:07 hours.