Close to 300 athletes competed in the six races of the new look Forbes Triathlon last weekend, which now forms part of the NSW Tri Series.

In the longest of the six contested dis- tances of a 1.9km swim, 90km bike ride and 21.1km run, Nick North from Bathurst won in a time of 4.00.48 with Rhys Clarke (4.06.46) from Werombi second and Leigh Chapman (4.12.00) of Penrith third. Nick said he was grateful to have a race in his own backyard.

In the Women’s Ultimate distance it was Jessica Richards of Orange that took the win in a time of 4.37.43 ahead of Alex Larkman (4.47.41) of Bondi and Shannon Chapman (4.52.35) of Mudgee in third place.

Jessica said the course was deceptively tough with winds increasing in the afternoon and the flat topography of the bike leg meant there was no rest on downhills as there was on other courses.

Saturday’s event was made possible by droves of volunteers to raise funds for local community groups and charities. “The Forbes triathlon festival is only made possible by the hard work of our fantastic volunteers,” said Jody McClaren the volunteer manager at Elite Energy.

The Outlaw Team Spitwater from Forbes made its public debut in the Australian V8 Superboats in front of more than 10,000 fans in regional South Australia last month.

For Justin Roylance and his team, the event was their first real opportunity to debut their all-new Outlaw Team Spitwater package, which had been developed by two young V8 Superboat talents from JRE Race Engines.

“Our aim was to put the boat back on the trailer every run, and we achieved that.” Despite qualifying sixth fastest, Justin missed the cut for the second final after an electrical gremlin put paid to their chanc- es of making the podium. We’ll take away what we learnt and come back at Griffith over Easter looking for a podium.”

Like the Keith event in South Australia, Griffith is arguably the toughest V8 Super- boat challenge of the year.

For more information on the 2017 Australian V8 Superboat Championships, visit www.v8superboats.com.au or www.face- book.com/theoutlaw67

In 2008 Kinesio tape (K tape) was donated to 58 countries for use during the Olympic Games. By the 2016 Olympic Games it was hard to miss; brightly coloured strips of tape decorating the arms, legs and torsos of many high profile athletes. With this exposure, the use of K tape has become increasingly popular amongst the general population. The question must be asked – does it really work?

In a nutshell, K tape is brightly coloured, stretchy tape that is designed to stick to the skin. Proponents of K tape claim the adhe- sive backing on the tape lifts the skin, creating channels of less pressure. They claim it increases blood flow and lymphatic drainage and reduces pressure on nerves, muscles, tendons, stimulates mechano-receptors, improves sporting performance and decreases swelling and pain after injury.

The inconvenient truth for any K tape believer is that for every research paper that shows a positive effect there is another one that shows little or no effect. Numerous systematic reviews have analysed the research data and none have reached any firm conclusions.

Many therapists will argue; if the athlete thinks it helps with pain and performance why not use it? I do not agree. If pain is helped by the use of K tape then it is unlikely there was significant tissue damage in the first place. In this case, tape isn’t needed and shouldn’t be used as a crutch.

Sure, an athlete may feel better after putting some tape on but I prefer the athlete to get better and back to sport by moving without fear. For the fitness of you.

Linda Reilly