Love/Hate/Kurnell...

I don't know why I entered this year. I'm sure it had something to do with pre-season excitement and a certain Pommie fella. But who really knows...

Team Bondi Fit. As loud as ever

I had decided that I wasn't going to race already. It was Saturday morning and it was looking like being a miserable day Sunday. Why would I drag my arse out of bed at 4am to drive for almost an hour for an hour race in the rain on a 'testing' course and then drive over an hour home in traffic... And plus, I didn't have my watch as it was getting replaced under warranty.... Nothing made sense.

But for some reason Saturday afternoon I decided that I was going to race? Perhaps it was the alternative of training for a few hours in the rain instead? Who knows? I still don't know why.

Sunday morning.

Up. Breakfast. In the car. I get a good run down to Kurnell (as you bloody should at that time of the morning!) and get through rego and transition quickly (setting up next to Tommy again for a laugh). As it turns out it hadn't really been raining down there and the roads were almost dry... promising... Although then I noticed the wind. Yay. It was howling. The bike leg was going to be great fun... haha

Regardless, I wandered over to the team tent to see the rest of the poor soles that had ventured down to try their hand (some in their first race!), mind you I was still skeptical that I would even start... Chatting to the team it was great to see so much energy from the rookies and those in their first hitout in this sport that I love and the energy somewhat transferred to me. So much more motivated I wandered down to the swim start for a warm up.

We struck it a little lucky in the swim with the wind giving us some assistance, although as usual my wave swam the most ridiculous curve from can to can... I again decided that I would swim my own line and left the feet of the front pack to do my own thing. Again, hitting the can I ended up back on the same feet as I had left. Joy. Feels good to bust a gut swimming solo only to end up back where you started... oh well at least I didn't lose any ground, that's a positive!

Out of the water on the toes of the front pack

Heading into T1 I saw Tommy grabbing his gear and heading out. I had a reasonable swim crossing the mat in 12:15 which includes the little jog up the beach and into T1 (not that I knew that at the time....).
T1 was an abortion. Pretty sure I dropped everything I tried to pick up 4 times. Considering all I had to pick up was my helmet I would consider that a pretty epic fail. Muppet.
Out of T1 and straight up that magnificent hill with the most beautiful road surface. I hate that hill. I hate that road surface more.

The bike leg was as wind as I had imagined. Heading out along the flats (the part that I actually quite love!) was like playing with fire. Hammering along and then all of a sudden you cop a side wind that blows you sideways 5 feet and sends your heart rate through the roof. I think I counted it happening 10 times before I stopped counting.
Aside from that I quite enjoyed the bike leg. Only getting passed by one bloke was a good feeling and made me confident that (sans watch) I had put in a reasonable split. Turns out I rode quite well (34:27) considering my epic T1 time (that gets added to the official bike time).

Heading back into T2

The run at Kurnell is a shocker. 3 lap 5km. On grass, sand, wooden stairs (yep) and the coast path.
Although the words 'you are a runner' and 'you love running' were going round and round my head. Thanks Sid.
I pushed through and tried to just go as hard as I could. The long ride in my legs from Saturday was a great feeling (who am I kidding?), although I felt myself coming around in the 2nd and 3rd lap. The plan was just to go untill I blow on the run, so without a watch it was all by feel. Turns out I got a little faster each lap and finished strong enough in 20:28. Would have been nice to notch a sub 20min run (even if it was Kurnell) but even so I was pretty happy with that effort.

So with another Kurnell out of the way it was back in the car and time to head home. To be honest I loved it. The thrill of racing is why I do what I do. So no matter what the race and no mater what the pain involved in getting to the start line. When that buzzer goes off it's another race and those same feelings every time!

Love this shit!

On the way home my mind started to wander... What will the next week of training have in store for me? What goals do I need to reassess? What's the next race going to be...?

Noosa meltdown

Thank you Noosa!

Wow, you can take me back anytime you want.

After a week I'd rather forget, the flight to Noosa opened a different world far away from the troubles in Sydney, a world that I could have quite comfortably stayed in...

We arrived in Sunny (but not actually that warm) Brisbane Thursday morning, threw the bags in the back of the hire car and went off in search of food. The decision to fly to Brisbane was a good one as there was only one other bike on the flight so we had no issues (unlike some unlucky people who flew into the Sunny Coast...). Arriving in Noosa is always a wonderful feeling and that afternoon was no different, we pulled into our lush apartment in Little Cove and instantly knew that we had made a good decision!
Keeping low key the first night Aimee and I snuck off to a nice restaurant for dinner to try enjoy part of the weekend not related to triathlons :)

Our apartment for the week! Freaking awesome!

Friday morning was a beauty. So Reidy, Donkey and I headed out for a morning lap of the course. A 5:30am departure ensured that the sun was completely up before our ride started (QLD, seriously, daylight savings!).
The course was familiar as some of us were lucky enough to spend a week in Noosa only a few months ago on the Turbo Studio Noosa Camp (which was amazing!) so getting to reacquaint myself with Garmin hill was nice, besides a few over zealous locals in their cars almost killing us it was a nice morning ride and a great way to start the day! A quick coffee with some of the crew on the main street and it was back to the pad.

In Noosa you have such amazing places to train on your doorstep and it would be just rude to not take advantage of them. So Aimz and I got our gear on and went for a great run through the Noosa Heads National Park, I love that place so much I could move there just for that!

Enjoying our run through the beautiful National Park

Capping the day off watching the Eyeline Noosa 1000 Ocean Swim and getting seeing coach get a 3rd place (and bust a lung trying) and the rest of the crew all having a great race as well was great. Sid and I snuck off for a quick swim out around the point and back to stretch the arms mid-race as neither of us fancied the actual race.
Dinner at the surf club (for something different) with the crew and a few sneaky beers was a great way to finish off a great day!

It's all about the photo! Coach starting the Eyeline 1000

Bondi Fit dinner (and beers) Friday night

My old training buddy and partner in crime Tommy got into town on Friday night and it would have been rude to break our tradition of riding the course together the day before the race, so I joined him and Sid and headed off early again (and in full sunshine...) to ride the course. It was quite possibly the highlight of the trip getting back on the bike and riding with these two legends. Always such a pleasure.

Having a ride with these two legends: Tommy and Sid

Tommy departed and Sid and I carried on to meet the Bondi Fit team who were just getting started on their morning of mini-tri's around the island. Seems the Bondi Fit bus arrived the night before as the numbers had swelled dramatically overnight! So we joined in for a few swims and runs and had a good time before all heading off for a team breakfast (man I love breakfast!)

Mini-tri's Saturday morning

One of Sid's sponsors Shotz Nutrition was holding their SSNLRSNWBB Championships (long story) so we wandered down to see the crew and have a laugh while they attempted to body surf the swimming pool that was Noosa main beach... Was good to meet some of the team and also to meet Darryl from Shotz and put a face to a name finally.

The Shotz team debating the rules pre-SSNLRSNWBB Championships

After an afternoon of chilling out on the couch I headed down to rack the bike and hang around for the swim round the island with the team, felt good through the swim and was feeling very relaxed, which was a big change from a few days ago back in Sydney....
I also managed to rack my bike right next to Tommy which was a bit of a laugh :)

The amount of bikes in transition was unreal!

Just like old times. Parking up next to Tommy in transition

The SUBARU Australian Open Mens Criterium was on just after and local bike shop name and friend Ben Johnson was racing so we jostled for a spot to watch the action. Being the first Crit that I had watched it was an exciting race with Robbie McEwen coming through for the photo finish!
A quiet meal tonight and an early night to bed was in order before the big day tomorrow...

Mens Crit race, great to watch!

Sunday morning. Race morning.

Love & Hate relationship. But mainly Love.
Aimee got up (bless her) and helped stick the race numbers on and off I went to setup transition. My wave start wasn't until 8:45 (!!!) but I had to be done in transition by 6am like the rest of the field. Tommy and I were lucky that we found some empty racks on our row so we could move our bikes (shhhh) and space out a bit to make it easier in transition.
At first a start time of 8:45 had me doing back flips, although I soon realised that it would mean I could watch Sid in her first race as a Pro. So it all of a sudden became a great thing I had a late start!

Sid's first Pro start!

Out of the water and starting her hunt on the bike

Most of the team were down at the swim start for the pro race, and we made sure that we gave Sid her tunnel into the water before her first pro race, much to the surprise of all the other pros and people who wandered what all the noise was about :)
It seemed her first race wasn't going to be without drama with a snake in the water scaring the life out of Moffy just before the buzzer went on the start line! We hung around and waited at the swim exit to make sure we gave her a good cheer before she got on the bike and started her hunt. And hunt she did! Tommy and I quickly ducked off to grab some breakie and got back in time to see Sid come back into T2 having ridden through half the field (into about 7th place) and with a smile on her face that you could see from miles away, super effort!
Starting the run we shouted support at her until she started shouting back something like "I thought it was only a swim and a bike?" when we stopped shouting support and started shouting abuse!

Aimz had wandered down by this stage and it was nice to see her before the race start. Proudly displaying her supporter sticker for the day :)

My biggest supporter! :)

We snuck away and started to prepare for our own race and headed to the swim start, ...like we wanted to race now having been watching people already finish.....! About to jump into the water for my own race I noticed Sid had just come through into the recovery area so I had the chance to go and give her a massive congratulations which gave me the boost I needed to get back into race mode.

My swim was alright. Although I instantly regretted the 2-piece tri suit choice to swim in. Muppet. The top became an instant float and I knew that was going to suck. Oh well. The buzzer went (no snake) and off we went. Pretty sure I threw my fair share of punches at the first can, but I received my fair share as well...
My wave (as usual) swam the most zig-zagged route through the swim, so I had to make the choice to chase feet or swim my own lines. I chose my own lines and pretty much swam solo the whole way again.

Out into T1 and Tommy's bike was still there (he started 3 mins behind) which was a good thing considering how I had been swimming lately. On to the bike (after pushing past countless people stopped on the mount line... Arrgghhh!!!) I heard the familiar voices of some of the team and of Aimee on the sidelines.
I wanted to push the bike pretty hard and set about trying to get into a rhythm. About 5km in Bacon moved past me and I paced off him for a little while before realising that I wasn't going to hold on for long and went back to my own race. Garmin hill came and went quite quickly and before I knew it I was at the turn around. Still no Tommy? or anyone else for that matter... The only person to pull past me had been Bacon which was a good feeling. The return trip down the hill I was lucky that the traffic cleared up lot and I was able to just put the head down and go, nudging 85km/h on the way down.
Back into town and the traffic got worse, I apologise to anyone I screamed at (especially on the bridge) but be stuffed if I was slowing down! Quick look at the watch and it was a 1:02 bike split which made me smile. Nice.
Into T2 I heard a familiar voice behind me. Tommy! Classic moment in T2 together getting our shoes on like rookies, we almost had a picnic... I gave him the news that Bacon was gone, but chase him anyway, turned him the right way around (you still owe me a beer) and off we went.

Data from the bike

Out the gates and the familiar voices were there again. Although this time it felt like my legs had been run over. There was nothing there. It was hot and it was not fun. The whole run I tried telling myself that I felt good and that I love running, but it didn't help, the legs just wouldn't turn over... I managed to hang on to what I could and run a 45min split which isn't what I had in mind. Although the last km was amazing and I would do it again and again no matter what the pain. The banners, the people, the grandstand. the big screen. Awesome. Coming down the chute and having the Bondi Fit alcoholic supporters along with Sid and Reidy hanging over giving the high fives was epic just before hitting the line. Loved it.
If you had asked me to sign up again right then I would have. What an awesome end to a race!

Party time!

Straight to the surf club (after a quick shower) and into the beers! We sank a handful of cold ones with the team there and inhaled a few bowls of food for good measure.

Although when the message came through to get to the Oakley house I didn't hesitate and we headed off for a great night with some great people and athletes. Will remember that one for a while!
Might have even given poor Ashleigh Gentle the freight of her life on the way to get pizza afterwards... Sorry Ash!

Recovery...

Monday started with a hangover and a craving for breakfast... Sid had mentioned the WITSUP girls were hosting a breakfast with a few of the top female athletes on a panel, so Tommy and I didn't think twice and tagged along for the fun. It was a great event with Liz Blatchford, Emma Snowsill, Emma Jackson and Charlotte McShane there to answer all sorts of great questions. It was one of the better panels I have listened to, led fearlessly by Snowy!

The rest of the day was dedicated to the fact that we had given up sugar for the last 6 months and this was the first cheat day we had! There was gelati, chocolate, chocolate, chocolate, gelati.... It was amazing.
But also not that satisfying... Weird?

Did someone say chocolate?

Aimee and I snuck away for a quiet dinner at Noosa's newest restaurant which was lovely (besides not being capable of bringing me a drink for the entire meal.... again, long story) It was nice to have another dinner and enjoy some non-triathlon time...
We caught up with Sid for some more gelati afterwards and a quick drink to celebrate the trip and her first pro race (very proud!)

Tuesday I decided that I wanted my favourite breakfast that I haven't been able to have for months (sugar....) Eggs Benedict! So Aimz and I went out to a local cafe and sat there patiently waiting for the awesomeness... low and behold, it was rubbish... So I have put it back on the list of things I miss and will search out a better one later...


So until then...

Port 70.3 - The Silver edition...

Port 70.3 was the talk of the town and with a large Bondi Fit contingent prepared to drive 5 hours North through the devastating fires in NSW for a chance at snatching glory (or silver perhaps boys?) it was always going to be an emotional season opener!

Scroll down to the race if you can't be bothered with my pre-race dribble!

The amazing painted rock wall at Port

The team arrived throughout Friday afternoon and all but took over a small motel in the heart of the sleepy seaside town. It seemed as though everyone escaped the fires and made it in one piece, some travelled faster than others (not pointing fingers... AC) and at dinner it was clear that everyone was feeling something ahead of the big day... Some had nerves, some had excitement, some had terror, but one thing was for sure, everyone was starving.

Team Bondi Fit! CHA CHA CHA!

Saturday morning came around all too quickly. Despite it being a little fresher than hoped down at the bike exit (and forgetting the fact I almost didn't make it, as a close encounter with a car at the one set of lights we had to ride through on the way there had my life flashing before my eyes...) it was good to have the whole crew together for a quick ride through of the hilly section of the course in an attempt to extinguish the fears surrounding the infamous hill on Matthew Flinders Drive.

It was hardly a hill (ask me again Sunday morning the 2nd lap round...) and I'm pretty sure that everyone was put at ease after riding it once and then watching head groupie (and newly Pro! Wooo Hooo!) Laura ride it 10 times.

Actually I need to correct that, almost everyone was put at ease. A small dummy spit (definite bike toss) from the token Englishman (yes it is relevant that he is English, it makes the story better) after deciding on Friday night it was the perfect time to (try) remove his chain and thoroughly clean it, resulting in him totally destroying it in the process. As it turns out the token Englishman was only just beginning of his woes for the weekend...

Coffee.... Mothers Milk

Anyway... the standard cafe stop on the way back home made getting out of bed worthwhile with the familiar taste of caffeine hitting the lips thoughts turned to the tasks required for the rest of the day.

This is where 70.3 and I don't get along just yet...

The registration the day before the race I can handle. Coming from a short course background (yes = precious) this was a little different but I was happy to go along with it. But racking my bike on Saturday and leaving it over night? That's going to take some getting used to!
For those unaware (those who are can stop laughing now), I'm a little bit attached to my new Johnson bike (thanks Ben from Noosa Bike Shop and Computa from Happy Wheels!!)... it sleeps next to my bed and is generally within arms reach (or at least eye sight), so having it sit out on a cold metal rack over night was a tough experience... Then it started to rain... I still maintain that I didn't shed a tear, but I may have been visibly upset for a while there....

What? I'm supposed to just leave it here? Overnight?

All jokes aside (I'm not really joking) the day before the race was a very relaxed day, people pottered around doing bits and pieces and nobody was showing any signs of stress. It was a relaxed, stay out of the sun, hippie vibe going on all day. Yep it was strange. But nice.
Spent some time wandering round the expo and started to realise where all my registration fees had gone! Ironman have everything! Then on top of that if you don't have everything you can buy it at the expo. I'm pretty sure that it's compulsory to buy merchandise if you do something IM branded. It's a cult. For sure.
Side note it was great to see my nutrition of choice Shotz being the partner for the race! Can't speak highly enough of their stuff and it was great to see the team there fielding questions from all walks of the triathlon world all day.

A quick swim in the afternoon was a great way to get a feel for the water, see (guess) the course and get an insight in to what it takes to get a 6 foot Italian into a wetsuit...!

This is where things started to get interesting... the dinner conversation (at a Triathlon friendly 5:30pm) was a little different from the previous night, with the addition of our head groupie, talk turned to goal times... followed very quickly by a round of complex bets... all started by which individual? (yes for those of you playing at home, the correct answer was AC)
Wow, that got out of hand quickly, I'll summarise the boys outcomes only as the discussion was one that will never be forgotten!

Scenario 1: Each individual is to set a goal time, furthest from that time buys the first round. 
Scenario 2: AJ should beat AC in every leg of the race. If so then AC will buy a round of beers 
Scenario 3: If AC beats AJ in 1 leg of the race AJ will buy a round of beers 
Scenario 4: If AC beats AJ in 2 legs of the race AJ will buy beers for AC for an hour 
Scenario 5: If AC beats AJ in all 3 legs of the race, beers are on AJ all night!

Let the banter begin.....

9:00pm. Bed time. Some very welcome encouraging and supportive words from good friend and head groupie before putting the head down for a typical restless night-before-race sleep.

Race day...

4:30am. Awake. Poo (sorry but that's just the way it works race morning alright), quick shower, some toast, poo, quick check of the transition bag, think about having another poo... nope, out the door and down to transition.

At this point I'm pretty happy to see my bike still where I left it, so I set about setting up the transition for the first time of the season. I feel like a rookie again, but I'm pretty sure I have everything laid out and strapped on that I need, towel, helmet, glasses, shoes, hat, race belt, electrolyte bottles, 14 gels (Jebus yes 14) and some trusty nut cream (I'll explain later....)
Wetsuit goes on and we start the wander down to the swim start, stopping for a cheeky look at the pro start to see the line they take (they actually looked right this time....), quick gel and some final motivation from head groupie Sid (thank you, I owe you) and it's into the water. Before I know it I'm floating on the start line of my first 70.3....

Boys getting ready to tear it up!

My plan for the swim was different than usual, I actually wanted to make sure I built throughout the swim this time, rather than busting my gut to hold the quicker guys until they slowed enough to be comfortable.
It didn't work so well, but probably as my swimming leading in to the race was hindered by a little bike crash that kept me out of the pool for a few weeks... Either way I'm pretty happy with the lines I swam, direct can to can as per coaches words of wisdom the day before, swam almost the entire leg by myself as I watched the pack drift around cans and weave their way through the course...
I'm being honest, getting out the water and seeing a time of 35mins was less than ideal. But it's too late by then to let it worry you so it was on and through T1.

Now, the aforementioned token Englishman will brag at this point by beating me in T1, even with the fact that he ran through with his bike shoes on, stopped at the line, clipped in, then rode off, so I'm going to list off some excuses from the Norrish Handbook: #1: It took me 3 times to get my helmet on (rookie), #2: you may have crossed the timing mat 4 seconds ahead of me, but by the time you had mounted your (un)reliable steed I was off in the distance #3 It's all about the look.

Out of T1 and into the shoes...

The bike leg is an interesting one, the first half of the lap is rolling hills, all the time climbing slightly, followed by a (roughly) 22km stretch of road that is pretty much flat, then up the infamous hill on Matthew Flinders Drive and back through the rolling hills much more rapidly thanks to the gradual downhill.

I had my race plan based on power this year thanks to the time spent at Turbo Studio and the new Quarq power meter I had acquired.

I took the first lap pretty easy, consciously taking the hills easy and watched everyone cruise past me, by the time I hit the flat section I was relaxed and feeling good. A quick check of the power data showed I had chewed more than I was supposed to, although given the hills I though I would just focus on putting out my goals on the flat section and see where that got me by the end of the first lap.
Early on the flat section a group of 6 or so riders went around me one by one, I decided to lift the pace a little and use them to pace off, although I quickly realised that I was over my target by a fair margin and decided to back right off and let them go (yes it was hard...!) and focus on my race.

First time up the infamous hill, trying to take it steady

By the turn around after the first lap I noted that they had put 2-3 minutes into me, not to worry, my lap time was better than I'd hoped and I was feeling good so I set about round 2.



This time I took a similar tactic into the rolling section, pushing maybe a little harder but wanting to conserve so that I could give it to myself a bit on the flats to see what I had.
I hit the flats and pushed a bit harder, feeling really good, and enjoying the feeling of going past people I had been watching ahead for the 1st lap.
Also at this stage I saw the Italian Stallion very close to that token Englishman, which made me smile knowing the bets that were flying around last night were about to get interesting!

Over one of the rolling hills and back on the bars

By the far turn around point I had pulled back to within less than a minute of the majority of that pack that passed me in the first lap, that was a massive boost! Turning around I found the headwind, it had picked up a fair bit since the first lap and was proving to be a bit of a pain in the arse... never the less I put my head down and worked away, and to help ease the pain I started to pick off members of that group in front as I went. This boosted the confidence again!

Round 2 up the hill, pushing a little more this time

Up the hill on Matthew Flinders for the 2nd time, where head groupie was as loud as ever shouting and screaming at me, I don't think I even gave her a look let alone acknowledged that she was screaming at me (encouragement of course!). Round the bend at the top and I caught sight of Joe, some quick motivation on the way past and it was on to the quick descent, with coach Pink Tiger Pants in sight ahead, again a quick 'we love hills' on the way past and it was on to finding the last member of the pack that went past me earlier. Going through town I caught sight of him and in the last few hundred metres I snuck past him, ensuring that I went into T2 with a smile :)
A bigger smile later when I realised that I'd ridden a 2:36, with a negative split for good measure! Pretty stoked!

Data from the bike leg.

Check the lap splits! Gotta be happy with that!

I remember a conversation with Reidy I had a few weeks earlier that involved a painful lap of the run looking for the lady on the point with a tub of vaseline... so I was prepared with a tub of my own nut cream in T2. A quick handful down the pants (not in front of the kids Spotty...) what a life/nutsaving decision that turned out to be!

Starting the run I had a goal to hold 4:45's (or 4:30's according to my pushy parent), so I let my legs settle down and 4:35's felt comfortable, so that what I went with (Yep, I made that typical mistake so many triathletes make...). The first lap I felt pretty good, I was that annoying person chatting to people on the way past, smiling and enjoying it, asking spectators if they wanted to run a lap for me, etc, etc.. Then I realised that I actually had to do a second lap.

By this stage I had seen that AC had got the better of AJ, with the poor English gentleman looking rather broken making his way towards the line.
And it was about now that my feet started to burn... it felt like I was running on fire for the last 10km, and I lowered myself to walking through aid stations so that I could take on as much water and electrolytes as possible... It was a painful final 10km... between aid stations I still held 4:40's although with the added slow sections my time blew out a little... I managed to push through and cross the line with a 1:41 half marathon.

4:56:36. Sub 5. Stoked ! Broken !

Happy to be finished? You bloody bet!

I ran into the boys at the massage tent and there were some pretty broken faces looking back at me.
Turns out the Italian Stallion got the better of the token Englishman (AJ) in the bike and the run. AJ may have blown up on the bike, but his knee injury got the better of him on the run. So we can't be too harsh...


Regardless, AJ escaped the first round at the pub (after a quick burger and chips) with Joe, having a day to forget and being the gentleman that he is, carrying the first round. From then AC enjoyed the open bar provided by AJ, although he was polite (or still not warmed up) and didn't bankrupt the poor boy. The whole team was now back together at the pub and many a war story was told over many an ale. So many great efforts by everyone on the day, the team was full of smiles and broken bodies.

All smiles post recovery, even the Tiger was happy!

I can't thank the team enough, Bondi Fit is such a great team and the support flows from everyone at all times! There are a few individuals who deserve a special mention, although they won't get it here (they know who they are! :) ). The one special mention goes out to my wonderful fiancée for being so understanding of my time consuming addiction! Finally the volunteers at the event deserve a massive thank you, they were outstanding all day and I still can't believe that they are so enthusiastic and energetic that entire time...

Thank you!!!

PB Festival at the Gong!

A weekend full of PB's!

Glorious day for a swim!

Well what a weekend for a race!
It wasn't so much the weather or the place, but the people. Specifically team Bondi Fit.
It seemed that everyone was out for a PB. And boy did everyone deliver!

After getting down the Gong late Saturday arvo to erect the Bondi Fit temple in the most obtrusive position we could find (in the process upsetting one of our medal hopefuls with our casual attitude...) it was a gentle ride of the bike course that got the blood flowing for the following days race. It was fast. Gloriously fast!

So off to the pub we went to discuss tactics, by tactics I mean how to safely dodge the beers coming from the coach rather than race tactics, everyone was looking forward to it and it was early nights all round (I think...)

Team Bondi Fit! (photo by Bondi Fit)

Sunday morning was a beauty, little bit of wind around but mainly clear.
It was a bit of a late start with some confusion with the buoys on the outside of the harbour, they didn't want to stay put, and I still don't think they ever got them to stay put... hence the swim was a bit of a nightmare. Not to mention the shape of the swim... perhaps "Squashed M" is the best way to describe it... It was brutal. head on collisions all over the place due to swimmers drifting mere meters off the straight line between the cans. Wasn't much fun!

Although lets not let the brutality of it get in the way of the fact that it was a fast swim and there were PB's flying around!

Spot had a ripper in his category, again coming out of the water leagues in front of anyone else (although on a results check it seems that young Scotty may have got the upper hand...!)

Spotty killed as usual

A 20:53 was a massive PB for me, shaving off over 4 minutes! It was bloody nice getting out of the water, looking at the watch and seeing those numbers staring back at me!

Feeling good about the swim

Although it was a little short lived as I jumped into T1 only to find Tommy Tuckerbox's bike wasn't in the rack... Surely not. Little bastard.

It felt great to get out on the bike. After the ride the afternoon before I was really looking forward to getting stuck in to that course.
Quickly found my rhythm and settled in with 2 other guys sharing the work (not drafting I swear!) over the first 2 laps. The road surface was sensational and it was a very enjoyable ride.
There were a few little bursts from each of us trying to drop the other 2 over the first 2 laps but we all managed to wind it back in... I was still feeling strong so put a big effort in at the turn around to start the 3rd lap and managed to put a big enough gap on the other 2 that I didn't see them for the rest of the ride. That was a good feeling!

Off the bike and into the run. That bloody run that breaks me everytime.
For the last half a lap on the bike I had been going over my strategy for the run and trying to get myself mentally prepared. It was getting hot as well which I knew was going to cause some issues, but I threw a gel down and went into T2 strong.
My plan was to hold 4:45min/km's for the first half and then try and build.
I know I should be able to run much quicker, but time and time again the run has broken me, so I wanted to simply run well and run to a plan to get some confidence.

Feeling good early

The first 3km's I ran to plan, but I could already feel my legs wanting to give out. I tried to grab a mouth full of Dextro at each aid station to try subdue the feeling but it really started to slow me down. From then it was a 5km mental battle with myself to stop listening to my legs and just bloody run.
The final 2km's I managed to get to a stage where I was able to convince myself that the pain was only going to be short lived and push through.
Although, coming past the crowds on the way to the line, I was able to put some pace on (gotta love that crowd boost!) grit the teeth and go for it!

Until...

That last 1km...

The final brutal km...

Wow, that was cruel. Having to run past the crowd and the finish chute and off into the distance for a painfully hot and long loop before being able to turn and shoot for the line once again... Definitely a blow mentally and it took a lot of digging to find enough to carry that pace over the line...

2:16:03 - Massive PB of over 15 minutes. Gotta be happy with that!

Tommy smashed out a 2:02:24 for 4th (he was robbed by a Kahlefeldt who killed it in 1:57:20!)

And there was Gold for Lisa in 2:13:39 (I'll get you one day soon Lis....)

Gold Gold Gold! (Photo by Lizi Hamer)

 What a ripper weekend of racing!

Huski Tri Festival - Long Course

And I thought Saturday was a good day!

Sinking beers with the team while enjoying some pasta and listening to some of the worlds best, including  Macca, talk about their careers and their passion for the sport I thought the weekend couldn't get much better

I was wrong

Macca went and made a comment about Spot and before you know it Pete had a mic in Spots hand and there he was on the panel. Gold.

 

Photo credit: Laura Siddall

Waking up Sunday morning, again at the crack of dawn, I was able to experience for the first time, life on the other side of the fence, as a part of the groupies.

WHAT A BUZZ!

Starting the morning off down on the beach, watching our first three guys getting ready for their Long Course race I could see the look in their eyes, and I knew that I had that same look the day before, although with the beauty of sitting on the side lines relaxed I could now notice it in others, where as previously it wasn't something that I have ever noticed. A quick pat on the back and a rev up and it was time to watch the pro's hit the water.

They are an uncooperative bunch. The men starting well forward of the line even while the race director barks at them, the women while initially holding back were just as quick to move of the start line a good 10m before the starter went.

Spotty was his usual entertaining self on the start line, showing of his gut and doing his best to sneak off the line. It wasn't enough though, and with the pro girls only 5mins ahead he threw the challenge out to catch the girls. Much to everyone's laughter.

Untill he caught them

Our two boys had great swims and both came out of the water looking strong heading up the stairs to transition.

It was a good feeling watching the team race and the support crew grew and grew as the morning went on.
Some breakfast while waiting for the next start group and the first bike lap was just what the doctor ordered and I was relishing in the relaxed atmosphere of the day.

Then all hell broke loose

Before we knew it, the bikes were punching out laps, controversy with Spot still out in front at the end of the second with our man in the sin bin (guilty as charged!), there was swim wave starts for the rest of team Bondi Fit, more laps on the bike, run transitions, more laps on the bike, more running, more cheering, more everything!

I think from the time I finished breakfast I didn't stand still for more than 30 seconds for the next 5 hours.
There was so much action that I spent the entire day running around the course cheering and taking photos.
I didn't even get to see any of the pro race as Team Bondi Fit were everywhere!

I think I was honestly more excited Sunday than I was Saturday. Don't get me wrong, I had absolutely no desire to be out there on the course with them, but it was exciting to see them push themselves and succeed!

There were so many good moments although the following highlights are what have stuck with me:

Adriel Young

A.K.A Bacon. This bloke is a machine. His ability to punch above his weight is amazing. Coming through the field to finish in 3:51:41 to finish in 10th overall is incredible. More incredible is the bloke rode the 220km home from Huski the next day.

"Lassie"

This bloke was having such a good day on the course that there were 3 specific times that he made me realise that there is more to it than your finish time. You have to love this guy.

#1: Blowing a kiss to the photographer as he strolled up the stair case

#2: Sneaking a kiss off his better half as he left T2

#3: The dog paddle, mid 20km run

Macca & Ambrose

These guys were out for a training run as part of a team. Some training run. They ran shoulder to shoulder for 19.5km at about 3:50min/km, then the race started. The last 500m was as exciting as it gets with an all bets off, elbows out sprint to the line! One for the memory bank!

Tommy v Macca

Our man, Tommy "The Kid", as part of the Bondi Fit long course team with Laura and Scottie, after winning his maiden gold the day before and polishing off some beers in celebration, put together a sub 76min 20km sprint to NOT ONLY snatch team gold for Bondi Fit, but to out run Macca by a full 15 seconds.

Man of the match: