When Hurricane Fabian tore through Bermuda in September, Island triathlete Steven Petty feared his aim of competing at next month?s World Triathlon Championships in New Zealand would struggle to become a reality.

In the confusing and disruptive period of the storm?s aftermath, Petty was forced to shelve his training schedule for three weeks ? a move necessary in the circumstances, but one which he believed at the time would prevent him from making the trip.

?Everything was going quite well until Fabian came along,? he said yesterday.

?I?d been training hard all year. I did a half Iron Man in June which was really to get my base fitness up to scratch. And then for three weeks I hardly did anything and when I started again I obviously noticed a significant drop in my fitness. I have to admit I was debating packing it in at that stage.?

As the weather cooled however, and following an encouraging performance at the Bank of Bermuda Triathlon in late September, where he placed 21st out of a field of 63, Petty gritted his teeth and ?just decided to get on with it.?

?I had a fairly reasonable event back in September which surprised me, given that I had basically stopped training,? he conceded.

?The end of the hot weather also helped as I was able to do a little bit more than I usually do without wearing myself out. The National Championships went well on Sunday so I think I?m pretty much on schedule.?

The veteran, who was a competitor at the inaugural World Triathlon Championships in Avignon, France in 1989 and will join Tyler Butterfield and Kris Hedges at this year?s event, went on to say that ?he did not profess an ambition to win anything? but was hoping for a spot in the top 25 finishers in the 50 to 55 age group category.

He was also confident that the course, which is situated 300 metres above sea level and involves a 1,500 metre swim in an upland lake, a 40 kilometre bike ride and a ten kilometre run, will not pose any significant difficulties.

?I don?t think there is anything there that will cause too many problems,? he said.

?The bike course is meant to be a bit hilly but nothing I can?t handle. The run is predominantly across a golf course and looks to be nothing more than undulating and the swim will obviously require a wetsuit which is, if anything, a help. So everything should be fine.?

If and when he crosses the finish line in New Zealand on December 6, and is engulfed by the pride and relief of having successfully completed an impressive nine World Triathlon events, the Bermudian insists that he will not be tempted to call it a day and put an end to the years of physical duress.

?I hope to continue for as long as I can,? he said.

?I really enjoy the training and having goals like competing at the Worlds forces me to work hard and do the required amount of work. Also, my whole family is very involved in the sport so it is very much a part of our life. Physically I feel fine. There are guys there every year who are 70 to 75-years-old so there is still hope for me yet!?