Welcome to 2012 a new year!

Well it’s been a while since I last blogged.  I have had a pretty quiet few months in the triathlon world due to my aggravating foot injury.  

It’s been a frustrating journey on the road to recovery, while continually seeking medical advice for a quick fix of my Plantar Facia and heel bruise it didn’t seem to be that easy and rest seemed to be the repeatedly best option prescribed…… so it has been a pretty relaxing summer thus far.  I have managed to keep up my fitness through the recovery period and a bit of part time work has been a good time killer, now it’s time to pound the pavements again!

A few changes/happenings over the past few months:
I am now working with Naomi Fergusson at www.ampedforit.co.nz, she is assisting me in securing new sponsors for the 2012 race season and I am literally amped for it, can’t wait to get back out there!

Taupo is my new training base in NZ, can’t go past the lake swimming and off-road trails!

Started a bit of mountain biking, and far out how fun it is!  The twilight series here in Taupo has a wicked atmosphere and plenty of competition.

At the moment I’m targeting June for races in the States, until then my main focus is getting my fitness back with some good old fashioned training getting my foot used to the road again.  I’ll be racing a few events in the meantime to ease back into things:

25th Feb              Across the Lake Swim, Taupo
10th March         Sand to surf Ocean swim, Mount Maunganui
14th April            Xterra NZ, Rotorua

Also some results from November/December:

13^th November  Harbour Crossing – State Ocean Swim Series - 8^th
10^th December  Russell to Pihia – State Ocean Swim Series - 2^nd
http://www.sportzhub.com/site/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=13561&Itemid=33

Focus 2012 leading into 2013:

Racing by June, back on the podium
Tauranga Half Ironman 2013
Ironman New Zealand 2013
Qualify 2013 70.3 World Championships

Rev3 Cedar Point 8th

Rev3 Cedar Point was to be my last race of my American campaign for 2011, I was pretty happy with how the half Ironmans had gone but was still chomping at the bit to complete an ironman. Well I got an ironman out of my system still not quite the result that I would have liked but at least steps in the right direction after my June preformance.

Race day dawned and I was pretty bloody nervous to say the least. I recall saying to a good friend also racing Chris Mac Donald at the start line, dude why do you do this? I am freaking out here, he replied, I wouldn’t if I could swim like you!!! Awesome.

So I pulled my head together relaxed and embraced what was ahead, a long day!

The swim was in the calm waters of Lake Erie quite a nice sight with the theme park behind us. But due to a few storms earlier in the week there was a lot of sludge build up that we would have to wade through to start swimming, nothing like a bit for mud running to start the day! There are some cool videos that you can find at www.rev3tri.com

Once negotiating the muddy mess I set out at a steady pace with eventual winner on my feet. Half way through the swim I wasn’t in much of a mood to have someone sucking my feet for all 3.8kms so when I saw a slight gap open rounding the half way turning buoy I put in a little surge. I was a bit more relaxed then and managed to pull away and get around a minute lead exiting the water.

With a quick T1 I was out on my merry way, with no experience in Ironman, pacing always scares me but I soon found a comfortable pace and settled in for a long ride. Andrew caught me around the 20mile mark gave me his energy through a friendly hand shack and went to the front. Knowing he was a solid bike rider I wasn’t too sure if the next period on the bike was going to be crazy fast or what but soon found myself riding within 30-40secs of him for pretty much most of the ride.

So with only a hand full of seconds down running out onto the run I was fairly confident that if I kept up the calories I would have a good shot at this race. But Ironman can through you at any time and I was never completely confident that I had a top finish in the bag. Hitting the lead after a couple of miles I had good bounce in my step my foot was manageable and I was enjoying where I was at (I have had a niggling foot injury the past 2months). The next 15miles it was COKE WATER COKE WATER. Going into the unknown after half way through the marathon was both exciting and nerve racking, I was feeling good, but my foot was starting to hurt and I found myself changing my focus to trying to ease the pain in my foot. The pain got worse and worse till I was walking, I kept trying to run/jog hoping just hoping that it would ease and I could make it to the line on the podium but found it unbearable and a long walk to the finish line. I made it in about a 4hr marathon not flash at all but at least a finish time on the results, and more importantly I had a faster time at an Ironman than my mother, probably the main reason I hobbled to the finish!!

It was another experience in the bag, and have got this out of my system, for a while. During the race I missed the competitiveness that the Olympic and Half Ironman races offer, Ironman is a LONG day that can wait a little while longer!

So now I am home in NZ, time to rest this foot. Am not too sure on my plans just yet will work on that once I am able to run/walk pain free again, hopefully in a couple of weeks!!

Lake Stevens 70.3

Swimming with the ducks!

Its great having an “ideal” plan but sometimes they just don’t eventuate to how you would like it to.

The whole trip was meant to be a fun 6hr road trip from Bend, Oregon to Everett Washington in the coolest van on the road the “manvan” with special guest super dog Mili (Matt’s Lieto’s awesome little fox terrier). So Friday morning we were packed ready to roll out, a quick fire coffee stop to start the day was a necessity luckily as the stop gave matt a chance to realise he had left all his drink bottles at home so we popped back to get them and then were on our merry way.

Three quarters of the way through while I was driving (gutted that I was when it happened) in cruise control all of a sudden warning lights started flashing and the steering wheel turned into a jack hammer. Making an emergency stop on the side of the freeway we couldn’t work out what it was but it seemed to be manageable at 50miles an hour so we limpet our way into Everett.

So finding the nearest mechanic the next morning we took it in to be advised that we were lucky to have made it hear, that the drive shaft had exploded along with the transfer case…awesome…car less and a race to do the next day!

Luckily we had some great friends that offered assistance and we were able to make the early morning start and somewhat prepare for a tough and competitive Half Ironman.

I had this great plan to push the pace in the swim and have a handy lead that would allow me to settle and then follow my main rivals throughout the ride. Being an undulating and somewhat technical ride I was confident that this would suit my strengths and I would have a good day. As it was I lead the swim but only by a handful of seconds. Early in the ride I gave up the lead not by choice but because my legs weren’t doing what my mind wanted them too and for the next 30km’s I was riding like I was on a recovery ride, slipping back to 6^th place with the rest of the top 10 not far behind. I then saw Matt on the side of the road with a broken chain, I felt so bad for him that our troubles were still continuing and that I couldn’t do anything to help (was ready to give him my wheel if he had a puncture) I thought I have to muster on and get to the finish no matter what. Pushed on and started to find the legs that I was hoping to have at the beginning of the race, and made my way back through the field. Managing to come in off the bike in third place beside Jeff Symonds a good 3mins down on the leaders we set off into the 13 mile two loop run. Jeff and I ran side by side for the first 6km until the reality of the pace and what I would potentially be like at the 16km mark (more than likely a bit like the manvans drive shaft and casing) I drifted off and settled into a rhythm that I felt a little more comfortable at.

So running into the finish shoot in 4^th place I was super stoked, I could have easily have pulled the pin during this race as things were so awful at points but I hung tough and showed that some will and stick ability you can change the outcome and be proud of a race.

So now I am recovering at the downtown Everett Travel Lodge with Matt and Mili waiting for the manvan to be repaired so we can make our way back to Bend, it’s been one of those trips where everything that could go wrong did go wrong. I’ve decided to miss the Alcatraz triathlon to take care of a few sore spots and get some needed strength back before my next few races in a month time.

Over and out!