THEY went stride for stride, stroke for stroke and pedal for pedal, so it was only fitting that Orange duo Rory Thornhill and Tom Tudor were declared join victors of Tuesday's Central West Inter-club Series men's long course race.
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It is not the first time the pair have featured in the event, hosted by the Bathurst Wallabies Triathlon Club each year on Australia Day.
Thornhill won the 2019 edition before having to sit out last year's race due to a broken wrist. Tudor placed second in 2020 and was the first under 19s competitor across the line.
But Tuesday was the first time that there had been joint winners in the Bathurst Wallabies event.
And it won't be the last time Tudor and Thornhill do something together either.
"Tommy and I are moving down on the sixth of February to join ANU's elite athlete program, so we are going down there together and staying at the same college," Thornhill said.
The pair are also planning to tackle the junior national titles in Devonport at the end of February and have their fingers crossed that will lead to something even bigger.
"That's our qualifier for the junior elite world championships, which will be in Bermuda. If we are the first Australian across the line we will receive guaranteed qualification for that event," Thornhill explained.
That course in Devonport features a leg-burning 400 metres climb, so Tudor appreciated the undulations in the 16 kilometre cycle leg the pair tackled in Bathurst. They also had to deal with windy conditions.
"There are a few hills out here which helped us prepare," Tudor said.
"The headwind was tough going out, but the tailwind coming back was good, we were going pretty fast then so it was fun."
That cycle was one of five legs the field of 56 in the male long course tackled.
It began with a 2.5 kilometre run and it was Tudor and Thornhill, plus last year's Bathurst inter-club event winner Jack Bilton, who led the way.
After that it was the first of two 200 metres swims and Tudor and Thornhill were still neck and neck as they emerged from the water, with Bilton close behind and Bathurst duo Luke Gillmer and Jack Reen rounding out the top five.
On the cycle leg Bilton's bid for back-to-back Australia Day triathlon wins came to an end when the hub in his rear wheel broke. That left Tudor and Thornhill in the lead heading back into the pool for another 200m swim, but Reen had closed the gap on them and was pressuring.
However, the Orange duo emerged from the water together and as they headed out on the final 2.5km run leg, it was clear it was a two-man race.
It was a two-man race which ended up tied as they ran across the line together in a time of 48 minutes, 20 seconds. Reen was third (49), followed Jimmy Byrne (50:19) and Gillmer (51.04).
Thornhill said he enjoyed the grand prix format used by Bathurst.
"It's always a favourite of mine definitely, it's just so good to have this in our own backyard," he said.
"It's short and fast and that encourages participation, it's an event that's sold today. I'm sure a lot of people would have preferred to be sitting a barbecue, so it's great to see people out here showing some Australian spirit."
The third round of the series will be held in Orange on February 7.
