Bermudian Laura Farge braved a dawn swim in the waters of the Hudson River on her way to completing the Olympic distance New York City Triathlon.During the 1.5 kilometre swim in the murky waters of the river she encountered unseen objects.“I immediately noticed a distinct difference between this triathlon and the competitions I had entered in Bermuda because the water was incredibly dark and silty and for long sections of the swim I felt my wetsuit bumping up against dead fish, jelly fish and driftwood,” said Farge.Exiting the water with a time of 16 minutes and 25 seconds, which gave her a top ten position in her age group (30-34), she quickly transitioned to the cycling phase of the three-discipline event and completed the 40 kilometre ride in 1.29.52.“We cycled 26 miles along New York’s West Side Highway, normally an incredibly busy road with traffic reaching speeds of 50-60 miles per hour, this time thankfully closed off for us by the police,” said Farge.“After dumping our bikes at the end of the ride we ran across to Central Park to make our way almost six miles around the long loop around the park’s iconic perimeter. As I came into the finish, my husband threw me a Bermuda flag and I raced across the line with it fluttering overhead.”She completed the 10K run in 47.46, giving her a combined time of 2.42.22. She was 959th overall and finished in the top ten percent of the women’s field.Afterwards Farge, 32, who currently lives and works in New York, said: “All in all I was very pleased with my first Olympic triathlon and I have already signed up for SheRox in Bermuda on November 4, which I am also bringing some of my New York friends to compete in with me.“It’s amazing that well over 3,000 people are desperate every year to try to secure a spot in the NYC Triathlon for the dubious pleasure of swimming in the Hudson river with all its dead fish and pollution, whereas there are crystal clear waters and pink beaches less than two hours away.“I would like to convince Bermuda to host and promote more events where athletes can come and enjoy competing surrounded by all our Island’s natural beauty.”