LONG journeys paid off for two speedsters at the Terang Gift on Sunday.
Canberra's Clare De Salis and Sydney's Hamish Lindstrom won the women's and men's 120-metre feature races respectively.
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De Salis, 21, and Lindstrom, 19, said standing on the podium made the interstate treks worthwhile.
De Salis, who also placed second in Saturday's Warrnambool Gift, said she was thrilled with her performances across the double-header.
"It ended up being a 12-hour drive, so a bit of a long journey but it was definitely worth it," she told The Standard.
"I've never done Warrnambool and Terang before but they are definitely pretty special now.
"I've been running since I was eight. I haven't been doing the gifts very long but I absolutely love doing the gifts."
De Salis, who ran off 7.5m, won from Chloe Kinnersley (14.50m) and Amelie Burge (6.50).
The university student, who plans to compete at the Stawell Gift at Easter, said making the podium at Warrnambool helped her prepare for her second sprint final in two days.
"Staying relaxed, especially in a final, and the weather was definitely better today which helped considerably," De Salis said.
Lindstrom, who flew to Melbourne from Sydney, said he was pleased to edge home.
The real estate agent ran off seven metres and faced a nervous wait before finding out if he'd won, such was the close finish.
Jasper Nettleford (6.50m) and Michael Moschou (6.00m) joined him on the podium.
"I thought I just got there. It was a very close race and nothing in it really," Lindstrom said.
"I haven't run too many pro meets to be honest; there's not many in New South Wales.
"I am just trying to work on my pro meets and was happy with the win. It was the first one I've ever won."
Lindstrom said he would dedicate himself to training to "see how much I can improve".
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