The novelty of travelling quickly resides as soon as you realize that the task ahead of you before you can even think about leaving the house is once again pulling your bike apart and somehow finding a way to stick to the airline baggage weight limits.  Never the less I again found myself mentally preparing for this arduous task last week for the fourth time in two months preparing for another flight.  Before I go in to the details of this trip I should probably give you all a quick run down of the last three trips:

 

1. The first trip was to Devonport for the ITU Continental Sprint Triathlon but because of all the flooding that was occurring which resulted in the water we were supposed to be swimming in become contaminated with sewerage and debris the race was changed to a duathlon.  Duathlons are never easy and this race was no exception but I had a great result and finished 6^th, just outside the prize money but managed to pick up some decent ITU ranking points for my efforts.

 

2. The next trip was to Kinloch in New Zealand for another ITU Continental Sprint Triathlon.  Kinloch is a really small town outside Taupo which is a really picturesque place set on Lake Taupo that seems to be a really popular place for backpackers with the snowfields not far away.  The race attracted a very solid field of mostly Australians and New Zealanders and was held over a relentless course that was very hilly and technical on both the bike and run and extremely hot and humid.  I didn’t quite have the swim I was after but finished strongly on the run to finish 16^th.

 

3. The most recent of my travels was down to Geelong for the Australian Elite Sprint Distance Triathlon only two weeks ago.  The men’s race was scheduled for Saturday afternoon but because of some incredibly strong winds and again the possibility of water contamination it was postponed until the Sunday.  Fortunately the weather was better the next day and we were able to race.  It was a great experience racing in an elite national championship with some of the best triathletes in the country as well as some very well regarded international athletes.  I finished 20^th which isn’t exactly the position I had set as a goal for myself but to come off the bike with the lead pack and to have the fastest bike split of the day were real positives and I took so much away from the race that I can’t complain.

 

4. And now to this trip.  I’ve just returned home from the ITU Oceania Championships in Wellington, New Zealand which will also be the first Olympic distance race for most of us for the season.  Lining up on the pontoon with 60 other guys I knew it would be a tough race and fortunately the weather was on our side this year with calm water conditions and not too much wind on the bike and run course.  I was well positioned beside some very accomplished swimmers at the start and this set me up well for a really good swim and as I got on the bike I was well positioned in the main chase pack as we set about pulling back 8 guys that had managed to get away.  Unfortunately we couldn’t get the organization together and by the end of the cycle their lead had extended to well over a minute as we started the run.  Unfortunately I found myself losing time to some of the quicker runners from my pack but still ran strong to finish the race in 24^th position.

 

Back in Australia and only two weeks out from my next race with is the ITU Oceania Cup at Mooloolaba as part of the Mooloolaba Triathlon Festival where I will line up against well over 60 guys, many of the same athletes as in Wellington.  It should be another cracking race where I’m extremely motivated to put into practice all the hard work from training and racing so far this season and have it all come together in one race.

Before I get on to the main reason for this blog which is a review of my new GPS bike computer, the Bryton Rider 50T provided by Next Destination, I’ll quickly update everyone on my racing progress thus far for 2011.

 

It was straight back into it with the first hit out for the year on the 9^th of January.  It was a swim/ run event held up at Kawana and not being known for taking the easy option, myself along with a number of fellow DAT Racing members rode up there from the Zupps on the northside of Brisbane.

 

Here’s the link to that ride and all the details for those interested. 

 

Riding 95km at an average of 30km/hr isn’t necessarily the best way to prepare for a race but with our sights set firmly on bigger goals it was a great way to get a solid days training while also getting some priceless race practice.  To say we were all feeling the affects of this ride during the race would definitely be an understatement!  The race was run over a 750m swim and 4km run.  Exiting the water I found myself in 3^rd place behind Tim George and a pure swimmer and managed to improve to 2^nd place exiting transition.  Unfortunately not even the fastest run of the day could bring me close enough to Tim George but I was still happy with a 2^nd place finish and it was a great way to not only kick off the racing for the year but to also finish a very solid days training.

 

The following weekend was the ITU Continental Cup Sprint Triathlon in Devonport.  Unfortunately due to the flooding going on all over the country the race had to be changed to a duathlon over the distances of a 5km run, 20km cycle and 2.5km run.  In hot and windy afternoon conditions I found myself just off the back of the lead group at the completion of the first run.  Fortunately I was able to bridge the gap to the front group but not before a group of four could break away off the front.  Coming into the second transition myself and two other athletes had broken away from the front group to find ourselves only 20 seconds behind the leaders but were unable to close the gap with them taking out the top four places.  I finished a strong 6^th place and was very pleased with the way I raced and the result.

 

In the next few weeks I will be competing in race 2 of the Stroke and Stride series at Kawana before heading over to New Zealand to compete in the ITU Continental Cup Sprint Triathlon in Kinloch but in the meantime here is my review of my Bryton Rider 50T.  Enjoy!

 

A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to receive a Bryton Rider 50T from Next Destination and now that I have had sufficient time to play with it I thought I’d share my thoughts with all of you.  Before I get into that I’d firstly like to take this opportunity to thank Next Destination (www.nextdestination.com.au), the Australian distributor of Bryton GPS bike computers and secondly Bryton (www.brytonsport.com) for their support and assistance.  Bryton will be my official GPS Bike Computer for the year and I am very much looking forward to working with them to improve my performance and reach my triathlon goals.

 

Bryton make two main types of GPS bike computers.  Firstly is the Rider 30 GPS Cycling Computer, available as the 30T that retails for $299 and includes heart rate monitor, cadence sensor and the ability to wirelessly link with power meters or the 30E that retails for $199 and doesn’t come with the above features but they can be purchased at a later date.  Secondly is the Rider 50 GPS Cycling Computer also available in the 50T with heart rate, cadence and power meter capability and 50E models retailing $499 and $399 respectively.  The Rider 30 models are smaller and lighter than the Rider 50 models and don’t have the colour maps or mapping capabilities of the Rider 50 and would perhaps be more suited to those looking to save a bit of weight and don’t require the mapping features.  There is also a feature on the Rider 30 in the latest Triathlon Multisport Magazine on page 119 so be sure to check that out for some more information but for the remainder of this review I’ll be focusing on the Rider 50T that I’ve been using.

 

I wasn’t able to find much information on the internet about the Rider 50T in terms of reviews but from what I was able to research I was happy in knowing that I was getting one of the very best products available.  Hopefully this review will allow people to have a better understanding of the computer and even influence people that it is the right product for them.

 

The box contains everything you need to get started and includes heart rate monitor, cadence sensor, instruction manual, USB cable and two different mounting brackets with plenty of zip ties and rubber bands to attach them.  To go with the instruction manual included in the box there is also a more detailed manual available in the software that has helped me out on several occasions.  Not being the most technology savvy person and with so many features to navigate through this has been a necessity! 

 

Once charged and mounted on your bike the computer is very simple to get started and with every ride I have been discovering more that I can do with the computer.  There is the option of displaying up to six different information values on the one screen and three different screens that can be customized as well as a GPS map of where you are.  I am yet to explore the full extent of the mapping features but the maps have been very useful in finding my way home on a few unfamiliar training routes already.  Rather than going through every piece of information that is available literally at the touch of a button I’ll share some of my favourites so far: 

• The sheer amount of information that can be displayed; being able to display six values per screen on three screens is sure to please even the most scientific athlete.
• The clarity and accuracy of the maps is amazing and being able to pre-plan a ride then follow the on-screen instructions is very cool and something I can’t wait to use!
• Being able to check out the slope and altitude of some of our regular training loops has been very useful.
• And perhaps my favourite feature is the ability to pair the computer with most wireless power meters, although I am yet to be able to test this out because I don’t have a power meter readily available but am always looking J

 

If you haven’t already figured I am extremely impressed with what the Bryton Rider 50T can do and as if that wasn’t enough I was opened up to a whole new world once I plugged it in to my computer after a few rides.  The Rider 50T is loaded with the Bryton Bridge software that not only uploads your rides to your computer once it is connected but also uploads selected files straight onto the internet on the Bryton Sport website where they are stored in an online community with other Bryton user’s.  This is easily the most useful idea in terms of monitoring training because no matter where I am I can upload rides in a matter of minutes for anyone who has access to the internet to view.  As well as providing a map of the ride and graphs displaying the values it also gives you a summary of all the information gathered during the ride in a very simple to understand way.  Between myself and my coach there is a solid amount of travelling involved and with this software he can view every ride I do no matter where each of us are and plan training accordingly.

 

It is suffice to say that the Bryton Rider 50T is hard to fault.  When paired with the heart rate monitor and the speed/cadence sensor there is a plethora of training information available.  And that is just from what I have discovered so far, from reading the manuals I still have a lot to learn!  Sharing this information through the Bryton Bridge software and the online Bryton Sport community is simply awesome and something you cannot put a price on in terms of monitoring training.  I have no hesitation in recommending the Bryton Rider 50T for anyone looking at taking their training performances to the next level and I am excited to be working with Bryton this year and looking forward to seeing how they can help me work towards my triathlon goals.

 

So it has been over 2 weeks since my last blog now and over the past 2 weekends I have had my last 2 races for the 2010 calendar year and I am well and truly due for a blog update.  The trend in 2’s doesn’t end there and I am happy to say both races resulted in second place positions, although the top step of the podium would’ve been much nicer!

 

The first race was just over two weeks ago now and was Race 2 of the Bribie Island Triathlon Series.  Unfortunately the weather wasn’t the greatest and my entire warm-up was done in what can only be described as a down poor of rain.  Although the rain had temporarily cleared by the time our race started, our 1km swim was made that much harder by several jellyfish scattering the course.  And as if that wasn’t hard enough, without many officials along the course several competitors felt it unnecessary to navigate by following the buoys, instead choosing their own route.  Never the less I felt great in the water and exited in second place, with the leader in sight as we ran through transition.  As we headed out on the bike I was hard at work bridging the gap to the leader when he all of a sudden took a wrong turn on the bike, leaving me in the lead (lesson to anyone out there – make sure you know the course before you race!).  I was pretty cautious at the beginning of the bike because of the rain but as the roads dried up I was able to push harder and by the end of the 30km ride I had a lead of close to 40 seconds and the fastest bike split of the day by the same margin.  Unfortunately this wasn’t enough to hold off the eventual winner, Tim George and at the speed that he was running there was no chance I was going to be able to go with him when he came by me during the 8km run.  Overall I was really pleased with this result and although it was a small field it was still a great quality field and gave me a great deal of confidence going in to next weekend’s race where a much larger and stronger field would be waiting.

 

The second race was the third race of the Queensland Triathlon Series at Raby Bay and was over the more traditional sprint distance.  And as I mentioned earlier a much larger and higher quality field had turned up for this race and similar to last week the rain was again in presence.  It was hard to find clean water in the swim and there were swinging arms going everywhere as you would expect but I managed to exit the water within the top 10 and with the leaders no more that 15 seconds ahead as we all ran through transition.  I had to work pretty hard on the first lap of four on the bike but by the end of lap one I was up with the lead group.  The rain took its fair share of causalities, as did the draft busters for those not willing to comply by the basic rules of a ‘non-drafting event’ and by the end of the 20km cycle I was sharing the lead with Tim George and Josh Maeder and had a 45 second lead to the next group.  In similar fashion to the previous week Tim was just too good on the run and took the win again and I finish strong in second position.

 

That brings the racing for the 2010 calendar year to an end and with the run of results I have been having I am more eager than ever to get back to racing as soon as I can in 2011.  The first race of the new year for me will be the Devonport Triathlon in the middle of January which also doubles as a selection event for the National Elite Series so my Christmas and New Years will be spend getting in some solid hours of training and making sure I don’t over indulge myself!

Last weekend I travelled out to Dalby with one of my training partners, Brayden Tucker to compete in the Dalby Triathlon.  The lead up to this was less than ideal to say the least.  Everything was going so well until Thursday night when I was struck down with a nasty virus that without going into too much detail left me close to 5kg lighter after 24 hours.  Still feeling the effects and struggling to find any energy at all we headed out there on Saturday afternoon because the idea of a three hour drive on race morning wasn’t very appealing.  As we settled into our room we were greeted by some lovely elderly ladies staying in the room beside us and invited us out for the best bar meal in town followed by an ABBA tribute band but as appealing as it sounded we stuck with routine and settled for pizza and a night of rugby on television.

 

Sleeping in until 7am on race morning felt like a bit of a novelty and definitely gave me a chance to gain a bit of energy lost over the past few days.  Standing on pool deck (yes, the race started with a mass start in the local pool) I was completely unsure what to expect from myself, whether I’d have the energy to go with the leaders or to even finish the race.  Fortunately the swim went smoothly apart from having to dodge a few novice swimmers and I exited the pool on the feet of the leader in a nice group of three.  Knowing that the bike is my strength I moved to the front and tried to push the pace and by the second transition had established a small lead of about 25 seconds heading into the 5km run.  To my surprise I felt fairly good on the run and was even able to extend my lead and win the race from Brayden who finished second.  Overall it was a successful trip for both of us, picking up 1^st and 2^nd places respectively.  And since returning home I’ve been hard at work trying to put on the weight I lost, which isn’t as easy as it sounds!

 

I was hoping to be able to include a few more photos from the weekend but haven't been able to track down whoever took them and where abouts they are so that's not to be.

 

I’ve got a couple more races to finish off the year but what’s more exciting is that I’ll be going to watch day 1 of the Ashes this Thursday at the Gabba.  So stay tuned for more blogs coming soon.

So it’s been a few days since Noosa and I’ve finally found the time to sit down and put pen to paper so to speak.  I had grand plans of sitting down over the weekend and having this blog ready to go come Monday morning but as is always the way at the Noosa Triathlon, there are so many things to do and never enough time. 

 

I won’t go into the details of every event from the weekend or about Noosa in general because I think almost every triathlete knows Noosa and I’ve already had time myself to read through some of the great articles on this site and they pretty much cover everything, but I will give you all a rundown of my race.

 

Even before I made it to the start line I knew it was going to be my toughest race to date.  It was undoubtedly one of the strongest fields assembled for the Noosa Triathlon and throw in the added excitement of Craig Walton making his comeback and Courtney Atkinson aiming for three in a row it was going to be on from the start.

 

The swim was chaotic to say the least!  The first bouy was probably 200m from the start and I don’t think any of the 40 guys in the elite wave didn’t end up swimming all over each other.  It almost took the first 500m for everyone to settle into a rhythm and after 1500m there was little that separated the field.  Luckily for myself I managed to stick on to the back of the main group out of the water and was very happy to be on the bike in the second group on the road.  Although Noosa is essentially a non-drafting event there wasn’t much separation between us which can get frustrating especially when in a pack of about 10 guys only a few are prepared to do any work to chase down the front group and the rest are happy to just sit in.  But as we reached the turn around and were able to see the leaders the situation was almost exactly the same.  I couldn’t believe how good I felt on the bike and spent as much time as I could pushing the pace to try and make up as many places as I could but with the quality of the guys ahead that was always going to be tough.  As we came in to transition I made sure I was on the front of the group to lead them into transition and have a clear run through and out onto the run.  Onto the run I was able to get into a good pace and run my own race and gradually run past some of the guys that had set off at a cracking pace.  Coming into the final straight and past my club tent with them all cheering me on (thanks guys!) I was able to catch one last guy that meant I finished in 15^th overall in a time of 1:52:00. 

 

To say I’ve had some bad luck at Noosa over the past few years would be an understatement, being sick and having some poor performances but this year was definitely an exception.  I was extremely pleased with my result and even more it gave me a great deal of confidence in my abilities at the elite level. 

 

I’m still waiting on some photos to come through from the weekend so I’ll get them posted as soon as possible and I also have another road trip to a race out in Dalby in a few weeks that I’m sure will provide another interesting story but until then it is back to training for me.

I’ve just returned from New Zealand where I have spent the last week holidaying and visiting family.  To say the weather conditions are a little different would be a massive understatement to say the least!  Running in long tights, long shirts, gloves and a headband is something you wouldn’t even consider in Brisbane, in fact I don’t think I’ve run with a shirt since I’ve been home, but in cold, wet and windy conditions it was almost mandatory!

 

We arrived in Queenstown where we would be spending a few days in an apartment up in the hills.  For anyone who hasn’t been to Queenstown it is amazing and provides some of the most incredible views I have seen.  Just looking out our windows we were greeted with views looking out over the lake and surrounding mountains, topped with snow.  To accompany this I found some great running trails and was never short of some great hills to train on.  After doing all the usual tourist attractions, my favourites being travelling down the river on the Shotover Jet reaching speeds up to 80km/hr and the gondola ride up the mountain and the luge track at the top, we drove down to Invercargill to spend the remainder of our trip staying with mum’s side of the family.  It’s hard to match the scenery of Queenstown and the ongoing sleeting rain certainly didn’t help the situation but I still managed to fit in some quality running. 

 

As the week came to an end and I’d reached the goal of 100km running it was time to return home to Brisbane.  Unfortunately the rain seems to have followed me home because it has hardly stopped raining here all week now!

 

But on another note it is good to be home and even better when there is a parcel waiting for me on return.  I’ve been using Linebreak compression gear for almost 2 years now and they have just recently come on board to offer me their support which is great news.  My Linebreak compression pants definitely got a fair bit of use over in New Zealand!

 

For now it is back into full training and with races ever 2 weeks for the next 2 months it is certainly a busy time of year and I’ll be sure to share all the experiences with everyone.

The first race of the season is often an opportunity to dust off the cobwebs and reacquaint ourselves with that feeling that can only ever be achieved in a race situation.  This was well and truly the case last weekend where I competed in my first race of the season down in Forster, NSW.

 

Myself, my coach and a few of the guys I train with loaded up the car and trailer full with all of our bikes and racing gear and set off on a bit of a ‘boys trip.’  Just over 8 hours later or 2 movies, a sleep and a lunch break later for those of us not at the wheel of the car (thanks for your efforts Craig!) we arrived at our hotel that was perfectly situated only 200m from where transition was being set up.  Our race was the following morning and was the first race of the NSW Shimano Pro Tour.  It was a sprint distance draft legal race and was the perfect opportunity to test how training has been progressing now that I’m completely over all of my injury issues and back into a full training schedule.

 

The swim was fairly uneventful and I exited the water in a good position with only a few athletes ahead of me.  The long run up the beach and through transition is definitely where I felt the intensity of racing again and probably the toughest part of the race in my opinion.  A few guys managed to get a decent gap coming out of the water and through transition and worked well to hold that gap on the bike.  It was always going to be difficult to chase down a group of 4 guys working well together, especially when we didn’t have the best organization in our group of about 10 and I actually think we were lucky to maintain the 20 second gap coming into the second transition.  Unfortunately my running legs failed to find me until almost half way through the run so I was left chasing to the finish.  I finished in 9^th overall and am happy to say that my training seems to be heading in the right direction and the race has given me some things to work on.  It was definitely worth the road trip and it was good to hang around for the Olympic Distance race on the Sunday to watch the guys from training who had made the trip with us and cheered us on during our race.

 

It is now only 6 weeks until Noosa and I’ll be having one more local race in about 4 weeks to fine tune my preparations.  In the meantime I am off to New Zealand for a family holiday for a week.  Hopefully I can avoid the snow storms they have been having and I’ll still be able to get some good run and swim training done over there!  So until I return I hope everyone is well and truly getting stuck into their own training and all your Noosa preparation or other race goals are all on track.

 I have recently returned home from my most recent trip to Yeppoon for the Capricorn Resort Half Ironman and although the result ended up in a DNF for yours truly it was still a trip that I learnt a lot from. 

 

The pre-season plan had been to really test myself over the longer distance and to also build a solid base for the upcoming season but persistent injuries forced a bit of a re-think that resulted in a swim/bike before pulling the pin.  So instead of sharing with you a lengthy race report, I thought I’d share some valuable lessons I learnt from the weekend:

 

1. Apart from the 3:45AM alarm to make it to the airport for a 6:00AM flight, flying is still a far better option than the 8 hour car trip that many of my training companions endured and at a cost less than one tank of petrol it also ends up being cheaper.
2. The water temperature in Yeppoon is still cold and leaving your wetsuit at home means having to make a trip to the race expo to source out the latest new wetsuit.  And on a side note, wetsuit technology has greatly improved since my last wetsuit purchase over 5 years ago so possibly turned out being a good decision!
3. There is no way to avoid the inevitable race suit tan lines when you are out racing for hours on end.  So if don’t enjoy looking like you still have your race suit on 2 weeks after the race this is definitely not the race nor the distance for you!
4. Never underestimate how important the spectators and your support crew are.  My club, DAT Racing, had about 10 people in the race and even more spectators that definitely pushed everyone to finish the race and some awesome results at that too.
5. And perhaps the most important lesson that I learnt from the race was that there is nothing like a race atmosphere to inspire you to do something new or improve on something.  Not only did I hear rumors of DAT Racing entering more individual and team entries next year it has also reignited my desire to regain my race fitness to be competitive at the top end this coming season.

 

I hope these lessons can be just as useful for others as they were for me but if not I’d definitely recommend making the trip to Yeppoon in 2011 and see what you can learn for yourselves.  Not only is there much to learn and gain from tackling the longer distance, it is a great place for a race.  Never before have I been able to literally walk onto my balcony and into transition and the resort atmosphere is so relaxed and enjoyable that I am already looking forward to returning next year.

 

For now it is back into some solid training and building up that race fitness again over the coming months.  With the Noosa Triathlon only about 8 weeks away being the first race for many triathletes, myself included, it is time to ramp up that training and get stuck into it!

Hi Tri Tribe,

Wow the TdF the TdF !!!!  

Sarah, my NZ friend and I, hired a car on the net on Thursday the 15th of July, picked it up Friday and that afternoon were heading for the Pyrenees. It took around 7 hours to drive so we got down there very late. So late, it might have actually been early morning. We pitched a tent in a rest stop somewhere between Quillan and Axat, camped there for the night and woke up to see 4 other tents set up. 



On Saturday morning we decided to go back into Quillan and ride from there, along the tour route to Ax 3 Domaines. This would give us two good climbs up Port de Pailheres and Ax 3 Domaines, it would be a total of 80kms there, and then we would turn around and have to ride home. With another two climbs and a total of 160kms for the day. As it was the day before the tour was heading in, we found the roads were buzzing with riders, camper vans and alike. It really was an awesome experience, riding up the hills and getting cheered on by so many people, who had picked their spot and set up camp for the Sunday. 



Half way up Port de Pailheres we got to the clouds and had to climb through them to get to the top. I have never done this before and found it very exciting, looking down to the clouds. Well coming down the hill,  wasn't so exciting! With the busy roads and the section of cloud to go through, it made for a very slow and cold decent. I was looking forward to heading up to Ax 3 Domaines, to warm up again. This time arriving at the top, it was still in the clouds. We were stopping here to eat and got cold very quickly. So we decided not to stay too long, as we now had to ride all the way back to the car at Quillan, starting with the cold decent back to Ax Les Thermes. 



Well I only have the standard 39/53 chain rings on front and 11-23 cogs on the back. So climbing up to Port de Pailheres, for the second time with only a 23 on back was smashing my legs. I am sure this is fine for the pro TdF men, but for me getting to the top was bliss. Both Sarah and I were stuffed and looking forward to an easier ride back to Quillan from there. By the time we got back, it had taken around 7 and a half hours for the 160kms. This due to 3 large hills of climbing and slow, cold, wet descending, (which by the way, is the furthest both of us have ridden), we were buggered!!!! We cleaned ourselves up and went off for a pizza and ice cream. After dinner we drove up to Rouze, where we set our camp up and waited for the tour on Sunday. It was amazing to sit and watch, all sorts of riders taking to the hill. From experienced riders to beginners who were already walking their bikes up. There were still many cars and camper vans coming in, but at 12 noon so did the police. Only authorized cars seem to get through then. The whole atmosphere was getting excited with the promotional car throwing shirts, hats, key rings, food, papers, and much more. Everyone knew the riders were getting close and it was an amazing feeling, just such a high. Then they arrived and everyone jumped around, cheered and it was over so quickly. For us, it was hit the road as quick as possible and try and get back before midnight. We did spend some time looking for the stray drink bottle tossed to the side from the peleton, but no such luck. Driving back I had a sad feeling that this great high had suddenly come to a screaming holt. That it was all over!!! I wanted to stay for a few more days. I wanted to see a start, a finish, I wanted to collect a drink bottle, talk to some of the riders. Ask what gears they ride in the hills. It really took a few days to get over this feeling. No better way than to race the following weekend 25th of July at Settons for my third and last GP race. 



Well I know they say the men are bad, but the girls are just as bad. I was pushed over at the start, and fell forward. The girl who pushed me then swam over the top of me, which was a very scary moment, while being trapped under her and not able to breath. I think after this I was is last place, and very restricted to move on the way out to the first turning buoy. Hitting the first buoy sorted everyone out a bit and I managed to power along the back straight and give it everything on the way home. I got out in 14th and 30 seconds off the pace. This meant I missed the first bike pack, and found myself in the second. This second pack wouldn’t work with me, and we ended up getting caught by the third. This made the bunch very large, so I made sure I was at the front heading back into transition. I was also first out of transition, but two girls passed me, on the run so I took 16th place at the finish. I feel that the first minute stuffed the rest of the race, but I gave it the best shot to recover as I could, so am still happy with the effort (not the result).



Connections connections..... love those connections. Anais, a team mate, has a boyfriend that works at the Dijon bike store (Valandro) who has become a very close friend, and managed to get us VIP tickets to the Dijon Pro Criterium cycle race. He also got us in to ride the Gentleman's ride before they started (a lap around the course before they start with a pro rider). It was so much fun, and Roger Beuchat was my Swiss pro rider. We managed to win something (I think we must have been the fastest with our lap time), but my French is so bad, I am not quite sure what. I just went with the flow, while Roger was taking me onto the stage. It was a fantastic afternoon and I even spoke to Mark Renshaw (but forgot to ask about the gears they ride, darn it!!), does anyone know????



Now we are almost up to date with the 1st of August taking me to Gray for an Olympic tri. After GP I decided to take the far outside swim start position. It was a bit longer to swim, but was good to be out of the mass pack start, because I didn’t want to be beaten up again. I was out of the water with two other girls, and we were the leaders. I went hard on the bike to come off first. It want was meant to be a non drafting ride however I'm not too sure that was adhered to by everyone. I had a handy lead over the next 5 girls, who I saw when I was running out. Two of them still managed to get me by the 10k mark, so 3rd for the day’s efforts!!!! 



I am not to sure what’s next for me right now, but will let you all know once I do!! So until next time!!

Stay safe and happy training Yvette

I mentioned in my last 2 blogs that I was gearing up for the Sun Herald City 2 Surf. It is an iconic Sydney race where it feels like the whole city stops, and runs from the city to Bondi. On the start line staring down William Street, for the first time I wasn’t nervous and I was intrigued if the solid winter training in the cyclonic conditions had paid off.

There was healthy rivalry with my coach, Spot – and a few weeks ago, Spot publicly announced that he thought that I wouldn’t be able to beat him, and he was so sure of it; if I did beat him he was shouting everyone in the squad and whoever else was there at North Bondi Surf Club after the race.  So the pressure began to build up, to the point where I had become sick two weeks out, and ended up having a two week taper for a race that would take me less than an hour.

The run is only 14km, but it can be a little soul crushing – they don’t call it heartbreak hill for nothing.  So I needed a plan and whatever it was I needed to stick to it. So I decided (which potentially could have blown up in my face – pun very much intended) to go out hard and see how long I could hang on for. Because to run sub 53 (my goal time & to beat Spot) I couldn’t risk having to claw back time in the end.

After a kilometre – I was just in front of Spot, and made the decision not to run with him (he had promised to pace me and it was every man for himself with 200m to go)  in case he was too slow to make the sub 53. So I took off, and felt great until the hill – and it was here I had called myself an idiot and there was a lot of negative self talk. Once I started the very long undulation to Bondi, I called myself an idiot one last time for talking such rubbish and got a move on, because sub 53 was not going to wait for me.

As I ran past North Bondi Surf Club, I heard the  cheers from the girls and spurred me on to pick it up with 1500m to go.  It is here that I was well and truly broken, but remembered nothing is achieved in your comfort zone. To run down to the finish and seeing the time tick and it was 52.45 – and finally crossed the line in 52.52. Spent and on all fours, I saw behind me (almost a minute later) Spot run through. Whilst the officials were looking for a paramedic for me, I jumped up and almost crashed tackled him in excitement that I beat him, and under the time I wanted.

True to his word he shouted everyone a beer at the Surf Club, but not before he stood me up on a chair and told everyone how he got CHICKED. It was great to finally have the bragging rights back, and even better to have a coach who I know who will be willing to cop it until City 2 Surf 2011

I was 6 minutes behind the winner and finished 18^th female overall. 10 positions better than last year, and a 4 minute PB. It was a great feeling to achieve my small short term goal, and all the tension and pre race nervous energy has got me very excited about the upcoming season.

But above all that, everyone from our squad did an awesome job, and I heard of plenty of PBs, and being able to relax and celebrate with everyone was a perfect way to spend a warm winter’s afternoon, before getting back into training on Monday morning.