Meet Isa’s Lockhart monster spotted at Lake Moondarra

Like the famous Loch Ness Monster – Lockhart is Scottish and spends a fair amount of time in large bodies of water.

But don’t fear, the friendly Scotsman is the new training coordinator for the Isa Rats.

The hills of Mount Isa are a wee bit different to the lush green slopes of Scotland for 25-year-old Daniel Lockhart.

“It has been an adjustment. In Scotland it is very cold, very wet, very windy and very dark, pretty much the opposite of here,” Mr Lockhart said.

The keen triathelete moved to town earlier this year to take a job as a physiotherapist at the Mount Isa Hospital.

Mr Lockhart said being a part of the Isa Rats helped him settle into town and make new friends.

“The rats is a really great club with a great sense of community, everyone is there to support each other.

“It has definitely helped me with my work/social life balance and opened up a lot of opportunities.”

Mr Lockhart will be joining Kimberly Alcorn, Ben Alcorn and Josh Brock at the Emerald Triathlon this weekend.

The foursome will tackle the Olympic-distance course (1500 metre swim, 40 km bike ride and 10km run).

“We are trying to support other rural and remote triathlons and get as many people attending these events because they struggle for numbers and sponsorship.”

Another handful of Rats are heading to the Sunshine Coast later this month to compete at the Noosa Triathalon. 

With the local swimming pool still out of action, triathletes have ramped up training out at the lake.

The Splashez Aquatic Centre has been undergoing upgrades which were delayed after alleged vandals inflicted around $10,000 worth of damage.

“We have been training once a week out at the lake on a Saturday afternoon,” Mr Lockhart said.

“It has been pretty tough not having the pool, it really is affecting our training, but it has also been good to promote more open water swim training because that is where we compete.

“We are not worried about lice, we go out every weekend and nobody has ever gotten duck lice.”

Mr Lockhart said the Isa RATS are an inclusive club for all abilities and experience levels and encouraged people to come along to running training on Mondays and Wednesdays or the Saturday swim at the lake.

“It is a great way to get fit and even if you are not interested in competing, you can still come along to training. If you want to get involved search us on Facebook where the training schedule is put up every week.”

While you're with us, you can now receive updates straight to your inbox each Friday at 6am from the North West Star. To make sure you're up to date with all the news, sign up here.