Michelle Reaume showed why two out of three isn't bad at all.

The Coquitlam triathlete would have preferred to make it a perfect three-forthree, but when the organizers of last week's International Triathlon Union Long Distance championships cancelled the swim portion early in the day, Reaume went with the flow.

The 46-year-old completed the shortened race in Henderson, Nev. with the sixth-best time for the women's 45-49 age group.

When chilly water and air conditions deemed the four-kilometre swim as unsafe just an hour before race time, every participant had to mentally prepare for a twolegged competition instead. That still left a 120 km bike ride and a 30 km run.

It wasn't ideal, but Reaume made the most of it. As No. 898 out of the gate, she was starting at the back of the pack already.

"It was disappointing, for sure," Reaume said of the swimming cancellation. "I was hoping to gain on my competitors."

Instead, she started with her strongest event, the bike, and proceeded to make up ground in the 120 km course. She followed that with a strong run to place sixth.

Aiming for a top-five finish, Reaume said her result was very satisfying.

"It was awesome. As you get older you get excited maybe easier," she said with a laugh.

A member of the locally-based Pacific Rim Multisport Triathlon Club, Reaume said the transition from bike to run was where she made a major adjustment.

"I started at the back, but with the run my coach always tells me not to go too hard on the bike and make a smoother transition (to the run). So that's what I did," she noted, crediting her coach Shaun Callaghan.

Having prepared herself for that opening swim, the sales associate with Nike Canada said a cancellation of part of the race didn't make it any easier.

"It changed the dynamics of the event, because you are now doing two sports instead of three. The mental side of that was the hardest part. When they announced it, I didn't know wat to do - should I eat, sit down, or what?"

The Nevada course featured a 7,000-foot climb on the bike, and an additional 2,000 elevation gain in the run. Her final time was 6: 48.03 (4: 03.53 via the bike, 2: 40.39 on the run).

The Burnaby-born athlete's previous race was the Ironman Coeur d'Alene in June, where she finished sixth in the 4549 group and 73 rd among all women.

Last May, she qualified for the worlds by placing third at the Half Ironman at Wildflower, outside of San Francisco.

Reaume, who teaches spinning classes in Port Moody, said she's been doing triathlons for 20 years. She noted that even before that first Ironman event, she was directed towards it in high school as a member of the Burnaby Central Wildcats under the tutelage of longtime coach Ken Taylor.

"That's where it all began. (Taylor) told me that I should go into the heptathlon. The appeal for the triathlon grew from there."

sports@thenownews.com