A day after finishing his first Olympic distance triathlon, Folsom’s Richard Hunter was thrilled.

Hunter, who is legally blind, finished Sunday’s 1.5-kilometer swim, 40-kilometer bike ride and 10-kilometer run during the Folsom Olympic Distance Triathlon in 2 hours, 33 minutes and 16.8 seconds, with his guide, Justin Waller, leading the way.

It was a big accomplishment, as Hunter is registered to compete in a Half-Ironman Triathlon in Augusta, Ga. on Sept. 27. That event is longer, featuring a 1.2-mile swim, a 56-mile bike ride and a 13.1-mile run.

“I was stoked all day; I was so happy,” Hunter said Monday morning. “I was thrilled that everything went well, especially the swimming portion.”

Swimming is new to Hunter and the event caused him some anxiety. However, Hunter and Waller, tethered together with a length of cord, completed the .9-mile swim in 30 minutes and Hunter felt great.

“The 1.2-mile swim isn’t that much longer than .9 miles so I’m really excited,” Hunter said. “I know I can do that.

“I felt really strong on the bike and the run was fine. It was a great day and I feel good about it.”

Evan Rudd of El Dorado Hills also had a great race, finishing sixth overall and first in the 20-24-year-old age group with a time 2:01.18.

Rudd, 23, a 2003 graduate of Oak Ridge High and a 2008 graduate of Cal Poly, is preparing for the triathlon world championships in Australia next month and was pleased with his performance.

“Being from El Dorado Hills, this is my home course so it’s nice to do well,” Rudd said. “I’ve run this race four or five times, but hadn’t done it in a few years.

“It got a little hot during the run but other than that it was a great race. It’s a fast course, but it’s still challenging. There are some good hills on the bike and the heat makes the run tough. It’s one of my favorite venues.”

Rudd’s time of 2:01.18 was impressive, as it was several minutes faster than his previous best time at the race.

While at Oak Ridge, Rudd competed on the cross country and track and field teams as a distance runner. While he has a running background, the bike is his strongest event of the triathlon. He came out of the water fourth in his wave, but by the end of the bike had moved into second. He wasn’t quite close enough to challenge race winner John Dahlz, however, who beat him to the line by a few minutes, finishing in 1:56.49.

“Dahlz, 24, lives in San Francisco and graduated from Cal in the spring. The collegiate national champion was arguably the odds on favorite to win the race and he did.

“It’s a great course; I’m happy with my time and everything felt good,” Dahlz said. “It was a calm swim. I tried to push it on the bike and I had a nice run. It went smoothly.”

Dahlz felt a little tired at the end of the race, but other than that, was great.

Kirsten Cherry, 45, of Walnut Creek, had a goal of finishing in 2:54, her husband Steve’s finishing time at the same event four years ago. Cherry, whose sister and brother-in-law live in Orangevale, finished third in her age group in 2:55.24.3.

Steve was also at the race, as her support staff. Among his roles were to be her bike mechanic, as well as her gopher.

Cherry, who has completed nearly 20 triathlons, simply loves the sport.

“I like it because it’s just not one sport,” Cherry said. “It’s a little bit of everything.”

Cherry said she got into the sport as a mid-life crises type of thing where, “instead of buying sports cars, I started doing triathlons. It’s very addictive,” she said.

What never gets old, however, is finishing a triathlon.

“It’s always a joy to cross the finish line,” Cherry said. “After I catch my breath, I just want to drink a lot and I’m really happy and so glad I did it.”

Cherry said the post-race high she experiences lasts all day, especially on Sunday, as her and Steve headed to a bed and breakfast in Napa following the race.