Happy New Year

As I start the last day of 2009, I can look back on they year and say that is has been pretty eventful. It has been a year that has had all the ups and downs of training and racing. From the High of qualifying for the Ironman World Champs at Ironman NZ to the low of an injury that not only derailed my Kona aspirations but could of easily put an end to any future ironman races. Along the way there was also the acquisition of new sponsors, Half Marathon PB's, amazing overseas experiences and to end the year a couple of race wins.

So to highlight my 2009, i have put together my top 5 moments.

1. Winning my age group at Ironman NZ and qualifying for Ironman World Champs.

2. The 3 weeks in Kona for the Ironman World Champs. What an awesome experience, and a great crew to share it with also.

3. Finishing the Ironman World Champs. (Every ironman finish is a highlight)

4. Gaining the supprt of my first big sponsor, ENZA and Turners and Growers. Thanks team

5. The All Whites qualifying for the Soccer World Cup. (Its not all about triathlon).

I will put an hounourable mention in there for the sheep shearing cartoon that is funny as (oh yeahh!), and the screen door incident and the laughs it bought on. I will cop it if i don't mention it.

Heres to an awesome 2010.

Happy New Year everyone and take care over the holidays.

Mike.

A Pain in the Hip.

The last few weeks have very much been about slowly getting back into training and working on my injured hip that slowed me down in Kona. After what has been 6 weeks since the big race I have finally got to the bottom of the injury. After bouncing off various sporting specialists which concluded with a trip to see the Surgeon in Auckland last week, I have been diagnosed with a femoractebaular impingement - or in other words the head of my femur has been impinging on my hip joint becuse it is not symetrical.

There has been alot to get my head around, however in no terms is this serious. Alot of strengthing work around the joint and visits to the Physio have got me back up and running pain free. I am now free to train over the next 6 weeks towards the Tauranga Half Ironman before it assessed again.

It has been a very frustrating time as i have not really known where is was going to be heading and the health system in NZ doesn't really help as everything takes so long to happen. It aslo doesn't help that our government changed ACC regulations, thanks National, I hope our taxes come down now. However the team of specialists I have been seeing have been fantastic and with all there hard work I am back up and running.

Bring on summer and the season ahead.

Kona Race Report

Well I have been a bit slack over the last couple of weeks getting things updated, but finally the race report from the Ironman World Champs is here.

Dawn, the 10th of October in Kona was the same as all the others had been in the 2 weeks leading up to the race. Not a cloud in the sky, calm pacific waters and thousands of trim looking athletes from all over the world hovering around the peir. The only difference was today was the day to get down to business, yah finally after 6months of hard slog. But the Kona ironman was not like any other race day, I knew Madam Pele the island god was cooking something up when a local volunteer at check said "be careful out there today it is going to be hotter than hell", apparently she could tell by the way there are no clouds around the Volcano that stood nearly 9000ft above Kona. Boy was she right.

Swim Start: 7am

2000 athletes just does not go into a area no wider than 50 meters and I was made very aware of this over the first 2 km of the swim. After getting my ear drums blown out by the massive cannon that started the race I was caught in a frenzy of athletes fighting for the same peice of water.

After an eventful swim that invovled a few kicks and elbows to the head I was out in the late 1:04's which wasn't to bad but still 5 or 6 mins slower than what I know was capable of and wanted to do. I can put that down to a tactical error as where to start the race, next time I start further left. Next up 180km of Hell on Wheels across lava feilds.

On to the bike and I went out hard, as I usually do for the first 20 to 30km, by that time we were well out of Kona town and on the Queen K Highway heading out to Hawi. Having trained on the course for two weeks I became very familar with the next part of the course through the lava feilds and into the feirce trade winds. This was a part that if you went to hard early could ruin your day further down the road so I settled into comfortable pace up to the turn at Hawi. Things turned a little pear shape here when my specials needs bag with my special nutrition for the last half of the bike didn;t turn up. Oh well these things happen but it meant I rode 7 miles with out any fluids and 14 miles with out food. This may have been the beginning of the end but I soldiered on and actually put the foot down heading back into the lava feilds for the run home. At this stage tempratures had been turned up, 43 - 46 degrees according to tempreture readings on my SRM and the famous head winds had come to play. By the time I had got back to town and T2 I had been oven roasted nicely by the Kona conditions. My Bike time was 4:59 and I rode within myself the whole way staying below my watt targets. I knew I would need this on the run.

Next up a 42.2KM Marathon run through the gates of hell (ok maybe an over exageration but it was probably as hot).

The run didn't start great when I seized up in T2 and required a bit of medical assistance. For those of you who may not have been aware I was carrying a back/hip injury into the race which had forced me off all running up till Sunday before the race. This started to give me some trouble at this stage, but some treatment and some time at transtiton helped that and I headed out on Ali'i drive for the first 10 mile out and back section. I was running pretty well to start picking up alot of places. But at 8 miles things started to un ravel very quickly and at 9 miles I new I was in trouble when I started to feel bad. Then at the top of the big hill up Palani rd !BANG! DENTONATION!!,OH THAT HURT. Everything went at once, my legs felt like they were going to fall apart and was not going to be able to walk to the finish. But I did not come all this way to the World Champs to pull out, so the next 16 miles was a long lonely walk along the Queen K highway through the lava feilds and back to the finish line along Alli drive. I did manage to run over the last mile, the presence of the huge crowd and the prestige of this race had me determined to run the last 800m down Ali'i drive to finish, that hurt alot but it was worth it.

After a 4hr plus marathon I finished in a time of 11hrs 1 minute. A little dissapointing as I knew close to 9hrs was a possibility. But as Mark Watson said to me after the finish, "you should be proud you have finished the hawaiin Ironman" he was right and that alone made me alot more positive about the experience, also alot more determined to come back in future and make up for unfinished business.

Finally let me say what an amzing experience the whole trip was, one that I enjoyed from start to finish. I must give a big shout out to my fellow house mates Craig Kirkwood, Richard Swan, Andy McKay and big Jo Carrel thanks for all the laughs and good times. Also to Kylie Kirkwood and Leslie who turned up on the Thursday before the race and were a fantastic to have around in the days leading up and during the race. Thanks for the support.

Also to my sponsors ENZA in Association with Turners and Growers, Bay Canvas, Young Read and Woudberg, Smiths Sport Shoes Tauranga, Jamis Bikes, Leppin Endurance Products and Bodyzone Health and Fitness with out your support this all would not of been possible.

Now it is rest time, then bring on 2009/2010 Season.

Beating the winds.

Well we are a t - minus 4 days until the start of the Ironman World Championships here in Kona on the Big Island of Hawi. Since i last posted i have been busy getting to know the course and finish off my race preparations.

I have been down to the swim start at Kona Pier for a open water swims with fellow kiwis Craig Kirkwood, Richard Swan, Jo Carrel, Andy Mckay and Cameron Brown. It is an awesome swim, the water is crystal clear and you can see all of the fish swimming and reefs below you.

Over the weekend it was out to Waikoloa where a group of us rode up to the Bike turnaround in Hawi. The conditions were pretty kind to start with as the trade winds seem to be hiding but as we got closer to Hawi, bang they decided to jump out at us and I mean that literally. It can be fairly calm at one stage then bang the wind kicks in and your in for a ride. The ride back down was awesome as you decsend from 700 ft with views of the Kona Coastline and the Pacific ocean with the wind at your back.

We concluded the ride by making our offerings to Madam Pele (the Hawaiian Volcano Goddess) in the Lava Fields on the Queen K and an afternoon on the couch with some American College football followed.

Sunday and it was out to the famed energy lab for a run in the afternoon heat. Now I have had a niggling injury in my hip and back which has been preventing me from getting some quality run training in. After some good imporvements I tested it out in the lab for a 70 minute run and seemed to get through the run well with out any major complications so all is on track for Saturday.

Rock n Rolling on the Big Island.

Well it has been a few days since my arrival in Hawaii and it has already been actioned packed.

My first morning the island decided to put on a show in the form of a rather large earthquake, what proceeded was a high tsunami warning in Kailua Kona so no swimming off the peir at race start and a number of large after shocks through out the day and night. I later learnt that a tsunami did occur and whipped out the islands in American Samoa, not great stuff at all.

Kona and the big island is one of the most amazing places I have ever been. The landscape is a amazing you are at the foot of a 13,00 ft volcano ( thats taller than Mt Cook) which goes straight up from the ocean. Out on the queen K highway which is what you ride on come Ironman race and it is lava flows as far a the eye can see, it is described as riding on the moon which would be a pretty fair description. Then there is the heat, in town it is hot but bearable but out on the Queen K oh man is it hot, MY SRM read 46 degrees yesterday out in the middle of the lava flows on the way to Hawi. Oh and not to forget the wind, i thought it can be windy in Tauranga but nothing can prepare you for those trade winds out on the bike course. You gotta hold on tight.

The last few days have been a bit of whirl wind really and i am ready to settle down and get into race mode over the next few days. I have just come from the Kona Aquatic center and a pool session which was done with the ironman stars. In lane 1 was 2004 & 2006 Champ Norman Stadler and his team of european Pros, Lane 2 2007 Champ Chris McCormack, Luke McKenzie and NZ's own Terrenzo Bozzone and then there was myself in Lane 3 with 2008 World Champ Craig Alexander and fellow Turners and Grower sponsored kiwi athlete Joanna Lawn, pretty awesome.

I have also been able to catch up with fellow Tauranga athletes Brain Foster, his wife Margie and Lyndy Wickham for a bbq by the beach at sunset last night. I am now looking forward to the rest of the crew to arrive including Craig Kirkwood and moving into our condo along Alli Drive.

Next stop Kona

Well after 6 months the time has finally come to head off for Kona and get ready for the World Ironman Champs.

Tommorrow morning I head off at 8pm, and have just finished the final pack of my bike into the box and am now sitting baack relaxing with a bowl of banana and frozen yoghurt at my uncle Kens and Aunt Judies up in Auckland.

Bring on tommorrow.

Thrilling Taupo

Last weekend i headed down to Taupo for a weekends training as a guest Jamis Bicycles who were sponsoring the Day Night Thriller 12 hr Mountain Bike race. I love Taupo and with the weather we have been recently having was really looking forward to getting back down there. Unfortunaltly the sun dissapeared for the weekend but i didn't take the shine of Taupo at all, the place is great even if it is raining.

I was put up in a gaint holiday lodge in the center of taupo with most of the Jamis team and a number of there sponsored Mountain Bike riders who were competing in the event. This place was cool, along with being huge it had 12 beds , 400 couches thats styles looked like theyed gradually evolved through the years and a spa. This is would be the ultimate place to stay for an ironman training camp.

After training I did manage to get down to the event and check out the race. I must say I was blowen away with the skill these top guys show on a Mountain Bike, the Jamis elite team who won there section were pumping out lap times of a 9km twisty forest track in around 21 - 22minutes in the light and not alot slower in the dark either, thats about 26km p/hr avg. Dam thats fast, hats off to them.

Also I have to make a shout out to a friend of mine Phill who won the 12hr Enurance solo, that was a solid effort 10.30 am to 10.30pm on a Mountain Bike non stop. Good one mate, must of been that Leppin Enduro Booster.

Thanks to the team at Jamis for the invitation and a great weekend. I might have to get out there next year and give it a blast. I hope you enjoyed the tab.

The Icing on the Cake

It is just over 4 weeks till the big one in Kona and over the next couple of weeks I will be finishing up putting the icing on the ironman cake. I say icing because a training program for an event like an Ironman is like a recipe, where a number of ingredients are put in over a number of weeks or months and is finally topped of with the icing, the hard work that is the final stages of an ironman build up.

This past weekend a large layer of icing was spread on, with a solid couple of days up on the beautiful Coromandel. Day 1, Saturday, myself and Craig Kirkwood headed off with bikes on the roof to Whangamata for the Whangamata Half Marathon. We were greeted with a lovely Sunny day but the presence of a bitterly cold strong southerly made things interesting. This race was always going to be used as a tune up for Octobers World Champs and things went really well. On a tough course made a little harder by a strong head wind on the way back to town i managed a PB of 1:19 good enough for 8th Overall. Well done to Craig for winning and in a course record 1:10.


After a 90 minute spin later in the day, and some great pizza from Lerenzos thanks to Kirkie, we bunked down for the night at a local backpackers for some much needed rest. Because the next we had a bit of ride around the Coromandel to worry about. 192 km with about 1500 - 2000m of climbing around the Coromandel Peninsula or K2 as it as known.




We were greeted with a fantastic day, and fantastic views all around the peninsula. It is truly one of the most beautiful places in New Zealand to be on days like this.

Spring is in the Air

It has been nearly 4 months of cold, wind and rain but the signs of spring coming to New Zealand have been very prominent this week. Lots of sun, warm weather into the 20's in some areas and little lambies in the pasture is very promising.

I have decided to make the most of this lovelly weather and headed up to Auckland for the week for a big training week. What was to follow was 5 days of some big miles in the hills South of Auckland and the Sea Bird Coast a favourite area of mine and yes Kirky I actually did see some this time.

I am 3 days in now and have just got back from 18Okm ride through the Hunua ranges. Tommorrow I am off into the country side again for 2.5 to 3hours run, so I am busy packing in the Calories and Leppin Endurance products to get me ready to hit it all guns balzing in the morning.

The weather has been fantastic so far I have even managed to get myself bit of a cyclists tan, lets hope it stays this way for a while.

Watt the!!!

Now alot of us will identify Triathletes out on the road, they will be the ones with the latest blinged out time trial bike generally from Cervelo, Scott, Giant or one of other the big bike manufacturers. This is all is the quest for more speed come the next big race. .However this quest for speed does not stop at bikes. It goes on to expensive deep dish carbon race wheels, fancy carbon aero bars, special aero dynamic shaped helmets and even specially designed aero drink bottles and holders. This is known as a training buddies wife says "Tri Bling".

Now I am not going to say that these things do not make a difference, because they do and when you are racing for the top these are very important things to have. They are all investments into speed, In that way I am very fortunate to have the support a fantastic bike sponsor in Jamis Bikes who kit me out with the latest Xenith T1 tri bike.

However I have just recently acquired the ultimate so called "tri bling", or as I see weapon to unlocking my potential on the bike, A SRAM SRM Power meter. This is built into the cranks and chain ring (as pictured) and mounted on the bike. What it does is measures the force going through the crank on every pedal stroke I take and sends the power in Watts to a Powercontrol computer (pictured above) I have mounted on my bars. It allows me to see the effort that I am putting in during a training ride or race and then control this power within a certain zone depending on the type/intensity of training I am doing that day. When I get home I then upload this data to my computer and can analyze my training in a way that helps me understand what my strengths are and what I need to improve on. Its like having your coach with you on the bike all the time.

I have been using it for 3 weeks and I would have to say outside a good bike, this is the greatest investment that one can make into going faster.

KONA PREVEIW

Check out this cool video. This is what the World Ironman Championships and the ironman itself are all about.

90 more.

Its 90 days to Kona and the Ironman World Championships, that means its time for some big work to go into training.

This last week has been a chance for me to have a break from training, relax and re charge the batteries before the big work starts. The break has really been the trick as I am now itching to get out there again and build on a good base i have built up over the last few months. Come monday morning I will be firing to go again.

Then its a case of let the countdown to Kona begin!!!

Lets go Racing.

Its been a while, nearly 4 months to be exact since my last race, Ironman NZ. So I thught it was time to put the body and mind into race gear again by competing at Montys Duathlon in Whakatane this past weekend.

On a very cold, but beautiful Bay of Plenty day I headed down to Whakatane with Paul from Jamis Bicycles. The 12km run - 27km Mountain Bike - 8km Run course from Whaktane to Ohope had gorgeuos scenary but some big challenges in terms of steep, rocky coastal terrain and a steep, technical Mountain Bike course. Oh did I mention I had only been on a Mountain bike for a month.

In summary the day went well. I was amongest the leaders on the first run before we went down hill, having had a calf injury early in the year this was time to be a little conservative and think about the big picture. I was on to the mountain bike after a good run in 2nd and was riding well untill the course got technical. At this point I learnt a few things about Mountain Biking.

1. It is hard work
2. You have to have an element of crazy about you.
3. Bushes make good crash pads, trees don't
4. You can't really draft
5. did i mention it was hard work.
6. Its great fun.

After spending the last hour getting up close and personal with our native flora, it was on to the final 8km run. I finished very strong with a 27 min split (fastest split) finishing 6th Overall and 4th Open Male in a time of 2hr 32 mins. So the first race is out of the way for the season and I am happy with the progress so far, it looks like the run work I have been putting in is paying off as I have seemed to turn a real corner with my running. Onward and upwards I say.

Thanks to Paul who crewed for me on the day, the team from Jamis Bikes, that new Dakota was great, Merv and Roz from Bay Canvas for your support and major sponsors ENZA Kiwifruit.

New Sponsors

Well as I said a couple of blogs ago there was some big news coming.

This is it.

I am very please to announce that I have obtained title sponsorship from ENZA International Kiwifruit brands.

It is a very exciting time for me having a organisation as Kiwi as ENZA supporting me in my journey to the Ironman World Champs in Kona and beyond. ENZA is Group of Turners and Growers who also are responsible for brands such as Jazz Applesand Bonita Bananas, the later is a name that is very previlant in the sport of Ironman.

I am going to be represtning the ENZA Kiwifruit brands of ENZA RED, ENZA GREEN AND ENZA GOLD. As i said before this is pretty cool, cause how much more kiwi can you get than ENZA and Kiwifruit. The later of course has great significance to my home Region of the Western Bay of Plenty, which is known as the Kiwifruit caital of the world.

I am really looking forward to represnting ENZA Kiwifurit and Turners and Growers in my racing both in New Zealand and around the world over this next year.

Spotting Chicks

How does someone training for ironman kill a Saturday? The answer is spending 8hours in the saddle riding 220km Tauranga to Auckland. Thats exactly what myself and training buddie Craig Kirkwood did on Saturday. We thought it would be a good way of kicking off the ironman base phase of training.



On the Jamis T1 At 7am rugged up in as much winter cycling kit as we could, we set off from Tauranga, expecting variable weather but more importantly a tail wind (well thats what we thought). The first 3 hours of the ride took us from Tauranga thru Katikati to Paeroa, where much needed nutrition in the form of a couple pies were taken on. At this stage we were looking forward to getting to Ngatea so we could turn north and get out of the stiff head wind we had been riding into since Katikati. Boy were we mistaken, by the time we got to Miranda and was heading up the so called Seabird coast towards Kawakawa Bay the head wind was still there.

This was good time to enjoy the lovelly veiws across the firth of Thames towards the Coromandel Penninsula and also spot some chicks, well i mean Sea birds from which the coast apparantly gets its name. I must say that the day was not a good one for spotting Sea birds, however Craig did seem to get some excitement out of seeing a couple of Seaguls in the carpark at Kaiaua. This theme of trying to spot seabirds carried right on up the coast untill we turned and started the climb up over to Kawakawa Bay, oh and we still had a head wind now stronger than before. Kawakawa marked the 165km mark and what would be the final part of our ride.

From here we had Clevedon, Whitford and two nasty climbs ahead of us before we hit Auckland streets. One of these climbs i was later inform as one apparently no one in the Auckland cycling community would do, just due to the share steepness of it. But after 180k of riding you still need a bit of a challenge even if that is the last time you will feel your legs for 24hours. Thanks for that one Kirky.

From sandstone hill the ride was pretty much flat all the way to Mangere bridge where we would finish up, with a hot shower, a cushion and a bowl of hot fresh Pumpkin soup kindly prepared by Craigs Mother in Law. So around 220km all up, 200 of that into a head wind (good prep for Kona) in excatly 8 hours.

Oh and i got up the next morning and went with my Uncle Ken and Aunty Judy to ride with the Counties Manukau Vets Cylcle club on a fairly quick 65km Ride which resulted in a fairly fast last 10km and a sprint finish which I managed to get up to take out. I celebrated with a couple of cream donuts.

Thanks to Craig Kirkwood, for not only the idea but the company and those great tips, they might come in handy soon. Ken and Judy for your accomodation, the Counties Manukau Vets Cycle Club for putting up a great ride and ausome company and Kylie Kirkwood and her Mum for the transport home (in a car, yahh) and the post ride hospitality.

Big things coming

It has been a long time since my last blog but there have been some big things happening. Stay tuned for some big news very soon.

My new ride for 09

Check out my new Jamis bike for the 2009 season.

After a much anticipated wait I have finally taken hold of the 2009 Jamis Xenith T1.
It's always a sad time when you make your old ride redundant. My 2008 Jamis Xenith T2 was fantastic helping me to some top age group bike splits at both Long Distance World Championships and Ironman NZ 2009. But part of being a traithlete is you have to constantly upgrade to make sure you have the best equipment possible.

First impressions of the new 09 Zenith are great. With the Jamis patented wind shield brake set , top carbon Sram componantary, profile design cobra carbon aero bars and new FSA carbon crank set this new and improved bike feels awesome.

Thanks to the team from Adventure Brands and Jamis Bikes. Here's hoping for more fast bike splits this year.

Back into the swing

Hey guys, its been a while since my last post but I have been enjoying a well earned break after
Ironman NZ.

This past weekend was time to get back into some form of structured training and start thinking about my preperation for the season ahead. So I headed north of Auckland to Whangaparoa to kick start it with the Orewa Beach Half Marathon.


At this stage of the year I wasn't out to break any records, it was all about some time on my feet and to see how I have pulled up after my ironman efforts. It was a nice wee course around the beach side town of Orewa, there were a couple of hills and tricky beach run but apart from that was a fairly simple course. Anyway I completed it in a time of 1hr 36mins, a little dissapointing but the legs failed to really fire after the first half, I would of compared it to running with a couple of 4 by 2 planks strapped to my feet. But in the end it is all money in the bank for my training towards Kona in October.

With thanks to relatives and fantastic supporters of mine, Heather and Jeff I was able to spend a few days chilling out in Whangaporoa while I was up there. This gave me plenty of time to catch up with the Maadi cup rowing on Sky TV, do some swimming at the fantastic beachs and to think about my plan for the long upcoming season.

So now it is time to get real and focus on some good quality training for the next few months.

Catch you soon

Ironman New Zealand

Well the end of a very long triathlon season has come to an end and a successful end at that.

Saturday the 7th of March saw the running of the 25th Anniversary of Ironman New Zealand and my second crack at the Ironman distance. After an rollacoaster 2008 which had some awsome training in Belgium and Holland, sickness at World Champs in Holland and a total mental shutdown at Tauranga Half Ironman I was keen to have a good race. I went in with the goal of qualifying for the World Ironman Championships in Hawaii later in the year and what came out of it was pretty cool.

Race day dawned overcast and damp, but conditions were calm which made Lake Taupo perfect for the 3.8km Swim. Unfortunately I did not have as good a swim as I could, getting caught up in the washing machine that is the ironman swim i struggled for a consistent rhythm. I exited in 57minutes about 2 minutes slower than what is was capable of. As soon as i exited the water I felt good and had a spring in my step that would set the tone for the day. Out on the 180km bike and onto the Broadlands I quickly got into my work and spent the next 30km riding hard to catch the top age group bunch. I joined this group around 30km and quickly moved to the front where I set pace along with another age group rider until the bottom of the climb at around 70km.

By 90km I was feeling good and riding well so after picking up my special needs of Enduro Booster and Nuun Caffeine Electrolytes put the foot down a little more and with another athlete Tony O'Hagan put some distance on the chasing group of age groupers. The thing i didn't realise at this time was we had ridin through the age group field and were first amateur athletes overall. I did not click on this until the final turn at Reparoa. On the return home I stepped up the pace again and doing long but legal turns with Tony O'Hagan who also rode really well, put more time into the chasing amateur's.

By the time I hit t2 back in Taupo I had riden 4:55 (fastest amateur split and something like 12th overall) 3km into the run and into my stride I was nearly 4 minutes up on the next amateur athlete so was set to run the Marathon a hunted man. I really ran well for the first half picking up a number of pro athletes (apparently getting as high as 11th overall) and by 22km had 6 minutes on the next age grouper. The feeling of running thru town as the first age grouper was one of the best feelings ever with thousands of people lining the roads, I have to say the support that I had on the course was awsome. Unfortunately my run strength started to fade and at 30km lost the amateur lead to Craig Kirkwood (a Commonwealth games and World Champs Marathon representative). Still having a big lead in my respective age group this did not phase me and I made my way methodically back into town. The last 7 - 8km was the hardest I have ever experienced and had to go to a very dark place, but with plenty of coke, leppin squeezy and some good old caffeine in the form of Powergels I got there to become an ironman 'again'.

Finishing in a time of 9hr 18 minutes, 1st in 25 - 29 age group, 19th overall (including pro athletes) in a international ironman event in only my 2nd year in the sport was pretty cool. To go with that I also booked a spot at Kona (World Ironman Champs) in October, this is the super bowl of ironman triathlon and one of the biggest sporting events in the world so to be going there after only a shade over two years in the sport is very exciting. As For now though i have a few weeks rest to look forward to before even thinking about training again. Oh yeah that means eating heaps, sleeping in and doing those things that you don't have time for during the season.

Before i sign out I would like to thank a number of people for the support you have given me over the last year, without you i would not have got the experience that i did overseas last year and also not been able to race like i did at Ironman. So thanks Rozz and Merv at BayCanvas, YRW Chartered Accountants, Jamis Bicycles, Bodyzone Gym and Health Club, and Peter Leitch the Mad Butcher.

I now look forward to updating you as I get ready for Kona.

Welcome

Welcome to my new blog. Where you can keep up to date with all my happenings as i race, train and have some exciting adventures.

It all starts now