Bad luck blighted Matthew Herring's challenge at the US Junior Triathlon Championships but he hopes to put his frustration to good use at this weekend's Bank of Bermuda triathlon.

Herring travelled to New Hampshire for the event which he was using to see just how far he had come in his preparation for the World Triathlon Championships in Cancun, Mexico later this year.

Racing in the Under-19 category, the 16 year-old came 14th out of 24 entrants and fifth out of the Under-17s. But it could have been so much better.

"I made the first pack in the swim and put in a really good performance but then my chain came off in the first few miles on the bike and I lost touch with the leaders," he said. "I was then stuck with six guys that didn't want to do any work to catch them up.

"I had a really good run and I think if my chain had not come off I would have probably finished in the top ten."

Herring said he tried to cajole the riders to make a race of it and chase the lead group down but to no avail. "Nobody wanted to listen to me," he said. "You definitely need people to help you out. It's pretty hard to catch a lead group of about ten people when you are working by yourself."

Herring is now concentrating on this weekend's event and he believes it will be an explosive contest.

Earlier he said it was entirely possible that he, Kent Richardson, Jamie Pedro, Andrew Davies and possibly Neil De St Croix could make the transition from bike to run at the same time. Richardson's stellar performance in last weekend's CD&P Grand Prix cycle race has only served to reinforce his opinion.

"For the last few years Bermudian triathlon has basically been Tyler (Butterfield) and Jon (Herring) or Neil. There has always been somebody a bit superior than the others and it has not really been a race," he said.

"This year though there are five guys of which any one on their best day can win so it should be interesting. It's going to be a great race."