Thursday, November 26, 2015

Jarrad's Epic Taiwan Adventure

Jarrad reports below On Taiwan 70.3. Oh and to Answer the question (YES HE DID QUALIFY FOR 70.3 WORLDS.) I'd call that a successful trip!



A last minute decision to enter Taiwan 70.3, with one thing on my mind!! qualifying for Ironman 70.3 Worlds 2016. 
The decision was made just 3 weeks prior to race day, while i was sipping cocktails in GREECE!!

I arrived in Taiwan late Friday night. The prior 3 days was filled with trains, busses, flights and Night shifts. It was awesome to see a smiling face!! what a face it was (guy). 
A quick bite to eat, and it was off to bed. I woke up early, quickly assemble my bike, had some breakfast before heading out for a spin. (we rode to transition)

Once at transition, it was a long (800m) journey to the racking area...  It was going to hurt race day!!

Race day:
With a 25 minute bus ride with Guy and Kate, we were at transition which meant it was time to race. 
As we got off the bus it was true tropical weather (raining and very windy!) -  over the mic all we could hear was  "due to strong winds the bike leg will be shortened", just hearing this is enough to freak out anyone!

I set up my new bike and before I knew it, it was time to put on the wetsuit on - and hit the surf. getting some good waves is an awesome way to warm up... 
About 5.50AM we get the call to exit the water and watch the pro's do their thing, sitting a few rows back it was time to hit the water around 6.10
Lucky i found some rhythm early and stuck to it, exiting the water in just under 30 mins. The swim was nice and clear, few bodies around but very calm and enjoyable (How can i say this about a swim??)

The run to my bike was enough to tire anyone, but before long it was out onto the bike course, for an amazing ride (only the landscape) up hills, and over bridges!! 10km into the bike i had lost one of my tubes so I had a quick stop to untangle them, and lost a few spots in the process. However the new bike basically rode itself and soon enough I had caught and passed them again.. the turn around was a nice down hill before some strong head winds.... coming around to the 2nd lap the course was full of bikes every where, I was yelling bike passing until my voice box hurt !!! 
Coming into the transition i could see guy out in front on the run. I was praying for him...


Onto the run 

It was weird coming into transition earlier that morning as it was windy and cold. And now heading out onto the run it felt like 40 degrees and humid as hell!! 
The run was tough, long and hot. I tried to get into a rhythm early and stuck with it for the first 12kms!! It was really heating up and the cocktails were coming into play, stomach was cramping and the finish line was still kms away. A quick rest at the aid station and it was onto the run again. The heat was getting unbearable and I was stopping at each aid station to cool myself in buckets of water.. Turning one of the last corners, i saw Kate and gave her a quick hi 5 and then the death march was on again.. The finish line was getting close, I was over taken by one or two guys moving quickly in the heat!! the final turn and the finish line (thank god) crossing in 4th place. Kate and Guy were there and we celebrated with an exhausted hug!!. I have never been so relieved to finish a race and it was even shortened.


I must say Taiwan is one race i got a thrill out of.. it had everything, the people were awesome, the after party was the best and the event was generally one of the best I've ever experienced.

Anthony Wilson reports on Mandurah 70.3

Hopefully the first of many race reports from Anthony Wilson. It's a quicker read than most. (not that all reports need to be long) Anthony's doing Ironman NZ in a few months time, So we'll get all the juicy details out of him for that one!! Thanks Anthony and well done!!




A light breakfast of 2 pieces of toast with vegemite & jam, plus threw a banana in there for good measure.

Drank most of a bidon of sports drink leading up to the start, one gel about 30 min before start. Logistics were a bit challenging so consumed these earlier than I would otherwise have done.

A current-impeded swim with the tide coming in so the course was a few minutes slower than last year, probably a 3-4 min difference. Had a bit of shoulder soreness so held back a bit on the swim. 36 min is not a good time for me. 32 min would be typical without current effects.

Ride started out at 260-270 watts, and slowly dropped off. Quad cramped at the start if 2nd lap so backed it off to 240-250 watts for the rest of the leg. Found I needed to concentrate on keeping it there toward the end, not because I was getting particularly tired but losing concentration/getting lazy. 2 bidons of sports drink on the bike and a gel every half hour, total of 5 gels I think.

Temp on the run was ~26 deg compared to about 34 last year so that accounts for some of the time difference. Started out at a bit over 5 min kms from memory as I warmed up and brought it down toward 5 min, however as the run progressed I knew this was not sustainable with this course and the effort on the bike. Was able to rally last half lap with good pace down the hill then got into a groove as I gritted it out to the finish. Couldn’t have run much faster in the last half lap; felt like I ran it out fairly strongly. A half cup of Endura sports drink at most aid stations but did not try anything solid or gels. Stomach a little delicate for that.

My usual nausea post-race that took a few hrs to subside. A wafer helped things a bit.

So happy with the race and pleased to be under 5 hrs for that course but was hoping to run 5 min kms.

Looking forward to some fun at club champs this weekend.

Monday, November 23, 2015

Dave Bradley's Norseman Adventure

Probably the hardest Iron Distance race on the planet with a huge amount of  climbing!!

Dave Bradley tackled this monster earlier this year!! Here's the report!



After checking and rechecking we had everything the bags were packed. Had to adjust my handle bars and drop the seat to get the bike in its bag but otherwise all went smoothly.
Susan cooked me half a cow, jacket potato and salad which was awesome. Last bit of relaxing before hitting the road.

We set of for the airport at 6:30pm and got dropped off at departures leaving Josh the oldest to drive my nice new shinny car home. We haven't received any messages yet so fingers crossed the car is ok.
We have left the house with five kids aged from 16 to 24 and one dog, three of ours and two girlfriends. Trying not to think about it too hard and I'm sure the dog knows where the food is.
The flight was on an Airbus 380 which was very nice and departed just after ten. We travelled 11 hours through the night and arrived in Dubai around 5am local time having had no sleep. Not a good start to the trip.
Only a two hour layover before heading to Oslo.
When we went to board we were told our seats had been changed, panic set in for about three seconds until the delightful lady informed us we had been upgraded to business class and I think I heard her say something about my good looks and charm.
At this point Susan got very excited and was acting like a kid in a candy shop especially when she realised alcohol was free flowing.
More legroom than I can shake a stick at and champagne with breakfast and the second leg of our journey got underway with great anticipation of a few hours sleep.
Sleep I did but only about two hours. Felt much better for it and being able to sit with my feet up and stretched out helped with the cancles.
On arrival in Oslo it was the usual story, bike and two bags through quickly then a twenty minute wait for the fourth bag. Oh the joys.
Picked up the rental car without a hitch then we headed the 20kms or so into Oslo to fin fair bike shop. This is a result of not being able to take CO2 containers on the plane. Shopping done then on the road to the start town of Eidfjord.
We picked up the bike corse about 90kms from the start. Undulating would be an understatement and nowhere could be described as flat.
The last 25kms into town were down hill which meant they were up hill on race day. It took half an hour to drive down the hill. Scared the pants off of me thinking about cycling up it.
One tunnel on the hill did 1 1/2 complete loops as it descended through the mountain. Very spectacular.


We finally arrived on Wednesday night after 31 hours of traveling. The hotel was a bit weird, but sufficient. We headed into town for dinner where I scoffed down a hearty portion of meat balls and sweet potato mash.
We took our selfs off to bed at around ten with a rum and coke. Slept well until just after five. We made the decision to get up and exercise. I cycled 20ks following the river upstream whilst Susan chatted and took photos. On my return we both went for and easy 5k run prior to returning back to the hotel for breakfast which was very nice.



Thursday was registration and shopping day. Nothing too exciting to report. After lunch it was swim time. Susan went first in her costume. Only up to her waist but that was enough. I donned the wetsuit, hood, booties and ear plugs and dived straight in. We chose a spot near where the river flows into the fjord. Turns out to be the coldest place to swim. The practice swim on Friday is being conducted about a km away for good reason. The face and hands were crazy cold but my head, body and legs remained warm, even after twenty minutes. Looking good for Saturday.
On Friday we get the news the swim has been shortened to 1.9km due to the water temperature being 10 degrees. Bitterly disappointed as I was hopping the long cold swim would have a negative effect on the skinny cyclists. After a relaxing morning it was time for the race briefing. Nothing exciting here except I'm sat in a hall surrounded by the fittest bunch of people I have ever seen. I felt over weight and very heavy. It looked like everybody weighed under 75kgs and had a BMI in single figures.
After watching Susan take part in her duathlon (swim canceled due to water being cold but not for us in the morning) we had a lovely pasta dinner and headed off to bed at 10:30.
After a reasonable four hours sleep it was time to get ready for the big one. Wetsuit and booties on, breakfast then jump in the car and head to transition. After the usual set up, check and re check of all my gear it was time for a few happy snaps before boarding the ferry.



The boat was full of contrast from groups of competitors eagerly chatting to individuals trying to find a quiet spot to ponder the day ahead. I was with the latter group.
Smack on 4 the boat pulled away from the dock and a wave of emotions came over me. Mostly "what have you done this time". I sat quietly going through my race plan and thinking about all the advice I had gleaned from Guy Crawford my coach and various other people. At about 4:40 I headed down onto the car deck and started jogging around to warm up. Then it was off to see the man with the fire hose to fill my wetsuit up with water straight from the fjord at 10 deg. Big big shock to the system but just doing as I'm told. Off for another jog then time to head to the loading ramp.
I wait around a bit not wanting to spend any more time than needed freezing bits of me off. A check with a crew member and it's three minutes to race start. Time to jump in. The four metre drop went without drama and due to already being drenched with cold water there were no adverse reactions to the water temperature. I swim over to the waiting kayaks and push through to the front. Only needed to wait about a minute before the boat sounded its horn to start the race and we were off. Lots of bumping and kicking going on from the off and almost all the way to the swim exit. Due to the coldness breathing was shallow and laboured resulting in waves of anxiety whenever a single breath was missed. Not a nice feeling in the dark swimming in a thousand foot deep stretch of water.
I came out of the water in 33 minutes which I was happy with but had no idea how far up the field I was. Legs were going well, no stumbling or dizziness on the run to T1. Half way there I was met by Susan my support for the day. She greeted me with hot coffee that I drank on the fly before getting to my bike.



Not wanting to ride in wet clothes, the only thing I had on under my wetsuit was a pair of bathers. No changing tent and no time to be lost so I was stood in the middle of T1 naked and about five meters away from the crowd who were all cheering like mad. Susan helped me strip down and re dress before sending me on my way with a "love you". The first of many on the day.
The first 100 metres were flat then it was uphill for the next 40ks. I started out easy and had a steady stream of skinny people shooting past for the next hour. The route was spectacular to say the least. From small thin tunnels through the mountain to large road tunnels over 3kms long, then there was the old road which wound around the side of the mountain hugging the cliffs before darting inland and shooting upwards at up to 12% on thin twisty paths with precarious drops to the river below.
After about an hour I met Susan for the first of many pit stops. A quick chat and I was on my way. The hill continued upward until the 40k mark.
At this point a huge wave of relief came over me knowing I had made it up the 1250 meter ascent. So so happy. Then I see Susan ahead. It was time to re supply and rug up before heading across the plateau for the next two hours. Temperatures were around 6 deg. Having sweated up the mountain coupled with so short but very fast descents I found myself colder than I had been during the swim.
Finally got to the half way point of the ride to be met by Susan and a strange man she had picked up. I wasn't surprised as she does it all the time. Turns out his ride had left him behind in order to keep up with there athlete.


I stripped off the warm gear, grabbed more fuel and headed off once more. Rounding a bend shortly after I was greeted by a sign warning drivers of very long steep hills and the need for snow chains. This was accompanied by a lovely graphic showing three whoppers of a hill. My heart sank a bit when I realised this didn't even include the last significant climb.
As I reached the summit of each hill I was greated by Susan telling me how well I was going and offering up drinks and food. All most welcome.
The first couple of long descents were on good fast sweeping roads. I rounded one corner at just over 60kph in my aero bars to be met by a family of sheep in the middle of the road. No time to slow down and needed to choose in an instance which side of them to go around. Luckily I chose the right side as they bolted off into the scrub. Not funny.
The last hill climbed about 600 metres over eight of so kilometres. I was very tired at the bottom of the hill having already been on my bike for nearly seven hours. It dragged on and on. Again I was greeted by Susan about half way up, bubbly and buoyant as ever. Just after that point the road ramped up and I found myself looking for a lower gear. There were none to be found. 12% sat down churning out over 400 watts and barely moving, my heart was sinking faster than the Titanic. All I could think was don't walk, don't walk, don't walk.
Finally got to the top with my legs blown to bits, head down around my forks and sweeting like crazy.

Time for the promised descent. Couldn't find it anywhere. Turns out I had another 10ks of rolling hills to cover. Another blow to the confidence.
Started descending and quickly realised what they meant at the briefing when they said they were most worried about the final descent.
The road had lumps, bumps and dips in it. All very hard or impossible to see. Some were in excess of 30cm high or deep. One switchback had them mid corner. Luckily I wasn't on the brakes but even so I was nearly thrown out of my saddle. To make matters worse I got stuck behind a support car which meant I couldn't see the road ahead until it was to late. Not wanting to go any slower than needed I was left with no option but to over take. Pulled out and went for it on a nearly straight bit of hill. Glanced down and sore 76Kph. Not what I wanted on this road but it was too bumpy to hit the brakes. Just one of a few scary moments.
Finally I made it to T2.
The Garmin doesn't lie (that's alot of climbing)

Susan was waiting for me with all my run kit laid out. Thank you once again Dear.
A quick change and toilet stop and off I went.
On leaving T2 I was informed I was 211th. Can't tell you how I received that news but I wasn't happy. What a lousy ride I'd had.
Back to the running. The legs felt really good for the first 500 metres then fell off really quickly. I found it hard to run more than a few hundred metres before I needed to walk. The first 25km is advertised as flat. Turns out to be as flat as running laps of kings park.

As always Susan caught up with me every 2km and kept me fed and watered with what ever I wanted. I shouted chocolate, I got chocolate. There was only one problem and that was when I asked for salt tablets. I didn't have any for the run so off she went pestering everybody until she found some. That's my girl.
I was struggling more and more and km times were stretching towards 6 min km's.
Just before the 20km Mark we rounded a corner and there was the mountain in all it's glory. All nearly 2000 meters of it. What a wonderful sight.
I knew being so slow off the bike the chances of me finishing with a black tee shirt were very slim at this point. Another pit stop with Susan consisting of chocolate, coke and a bucket of caffeine and off I went heading to the start of zombie hill at the 25k mark.
Just before the start of the ascent the road is visible spiralling up the mountain at what appears to be a very steep angle. The next 12ks average 9% on good roads. I don't try to run but instead set a fast walking pace and manage to maintain 9 minute km's without to much difficulty. I'm catching other competitors every km or so. With a quick hello and "how you going" I push past and set my goal on catching the next person. All awhile Susan is driving ahead then running back down the hill to meet me before walking a few hundred metres with me then doing it all again.
I get to the check point at 32.5 km's to find out I've missed going up the mountain by about 20 minutes. Gutted but happy with my progress up the hill having overtaken 30 or so people. I set off on the alternate route to the finish.
 
I quickly discover my legs don't want to run on the flat or down hill but are happy running up hill so I'm doing the opposite to almost everybody else. After 4 km's I arrive at the hotel with two 3km laps remaining. I'm joined by Susan and we push on as fast as my legs would allow. Every time we go past one of the restaurants the patrons notice the Australian flag Susan is wearing and we get a huge cheer and loads of encouragement which spurs the legs on.
The last few hundred metres are down hill and we break into a slow jog crossing the line together waving the flag. Hugs and kisses all round then time to get into the hotel and off my legs.
What a race, it certainly lives up to all the hype and uses the word extreme in its title for good reason. 
I had a good enjoyable swim, underestimated the severity of the ride and suffered badly then made the best of the run on blown legs completing the run in just under five hours. No black tee shirt this time but still very happy with my performance. 226 km's and just over 4000m climbed in 13h 55mins.
Thanks Guy for the training program, I wouldn't of got there without it. To all my fellow triathletes at GKE and Fremantle Triathlon Club, thanks for the encouragement, support, best wishes and company on training rides and in the pool.
Lastly thanks to Susan, my wife and triathlon widow. She has put up with me never being around or with me being constantly tired especially over the last month when training went past twenty hours a week.
On race day she provided me with everything I needed and when I needed it from warm clothing to nutrition and everything in between as well as moral support and encouragement. Susan also organised the whole trip from start to finish. I couldn't of done it without you and I hope I can give you as much support on your Ironman journey over the next four months. Love you.
 
WELL DONE DAVE!!! AND HE'S RACING IMWA!! 
GOOD LUCK TO BOTH SUSAN AND YOURSELF!!
 



Thursday, November 5, 2015

Brad Kaye at Duathlon World Champs


6 weeks to worlds
“I just read this.. Was it HOT? We need to get you fit” .. with this short feedback to my first (and only) attempt at a MAF test from Guy, I had the sinking realisation I was in for a painful 6 weeks.  I had done the test at the end of my “Asian tour of duty”, my yearly work trip around Asia, living out of a suitcase, hopping between countries and various hotels for about 4 weeks, all the while trying to maintain a base level of fitness on the back of too much wining and dining with customers.   I had thought my fitness was holding up ok this time around , but Guys words snapped me back to reality.

And then it began … a series of long endurance sessions mixed with high intensity interval running and bike efforts.  I had only ever done about 2 fartleck and 3 brick sessions in my life , I was now doing 2-3 a week!  I won't bore you with the details but needless to say it was not an enjoyable month, but slowly and surely the speed and fitness improved and I was ready for the first warm up race

2 weeks to world’s. 
The Armidale duathlon was scheduled nicely two weeks out from world’s, a good opportunity to test out myself over race distance at pace.  It was also the first hit out on the TT bike since Fiji … (what seemed like a simple 24 hr repair on my slipping seat post turned into 3 months …).  With Armidale being only my 3rd attempt at a duathlon, I was still learning about how hard to pace myself throughout, but managed to run into 2nd place after strong bike leg.  Importantly, I also learnt a lot about how to approach these races before the big one in Adelaide.  To celebrate my efforts, Guy “refreshed” my program to include one last brick” session that he described as “ ..evil, but GREAT  ..” .  Warning to the other GKE athletes – if he sets you this, ... run away ….

3 days to worlds
One last quick bike session at home turned into a 6k run pushing the bike back home thanks to 2 flat tyres… and then it was pack the bags, grab the kids from school, and off to Adelaide we go.  With Janine being in the middle of IM training, we decided (on Kate’s suggestion) that we would add to the degree of difficulty by both of us travelling with bikes.  Once we arrived, it was time to settle in, register, take part in the parade of nations, which had the added enjoyment of getting to parade with fellow GK e athlete Justine Bolton. Then before I knew it, it was race day
Race Day
We had just converted all our body clocks to Adelaide time by race day (luckily) so the early start for transition set up was not too painful.  A quick warm up run was achieved by the dash to the toilet at the railway station nearby thanks to the organising committee thinking 5 portaloos for 1500 competitors should cover it … And then time to head to the marshalling area.  The 40-44 males was one of the larger groups (37 in total) and was also one of the  last to start. Some friendly chat with shared amongst the group, but you could see all were eyeing off their completion for the mad dash that was about to happen.  The hooter fired  and we were off. 

Run #1 : Being a short course distance I expected the pace to be high, but within 500 m the first 20 or so guys had cleared out and I was left with the sinking feeling that this was going to be a long, and potentially embarrassing day.  Whilst I had not expected to be at the pointy end of the field, I had at least expected to be competitive.  The timing chip at the 1Km turn pick me up in 22nd place, but I had I knew that there was still a long way to go so I just had to trust and stick to the plan.  The 4.8k run remained hectic the whole way, as the path was narrow and crowded from closing in on some of the waves in front, and also getting caught by the freaks in the wave behind.  By the end of the run I had worked back to 12thplace, as the pace was obviously too hot for some that went hard early, but the gap to the leaders was already close to 2 minutes (and I thought I could only get that far behind swimming..)  Running into transition, I spotted the guy that had beat me at Armidale 2 weeks prior (Target #1) ,  and I had the first flicker of hope for the race that was unfolding. My plan had been to run harder in the first leg to not give him as much of a lead and looked to have played out that way.

Bike – the course was fast!  Most of the roads had all been resealed, and little or no breeze meant for some high top end speed, only interrupted by a short sharp climb up along Adelaide oval.  The family were positioned at the start of the long out and back section, I could hear the cheers and screams but I had entered into some sort of strange zone and was only focussed on the road in front.  The first lap was crazy again with bikes everywhere, almost impossible to keep a 10m drafting zone, but within the lap I had caught and passed Target #1.  The plan was simple – keep spinning the legs hard, build as much lead on him as possible to at least reverse the results on him.   As I neared the end of the second lap I came up on another two guys in the AG – including the guy that had won the entire event last year at Adelaide (Target #2) – amazing what you can find with a bit of google searching .  This was flicker of hope number two – he was a freak of a runner but I had closed the gap on the bike.  Into transition I then saw Target #3 leaving (also courtesy of google plus I had ridden into transition with him at Busso, before he scorched me with a 1:20 ½ to finish ..) Still didn't know my position but maybe that podium finish we had joked about was a possibility ..? Bike racked, shoes on and run Forrest run …

Run#2 -  Target # 3 was gone by the time I left transition, and I knew Target #2 was going to fly past any moment. I had only got a 20m or so lead on him which was going to require something to go wrong for him to not close.  Anything can happen in the quick 2.7Km so it was run as hard as I could and be prepared for a last 100m sprint if needed. Target #2 passed me and I had to let him go. It still felt like it could be a good day if I could stay consistent. The standard distance athletes were into their 2nd lap of the first run so there was still plenty of traffic on the path, and the unknown of who might be coming from behind was more of the focus.  The sound of some footsteps closing when we hit the road for the final 400m was enough to push me to empty the tank. The finish line was cruel making you run past it, then do a 180 and run back down the finishing chute.  The announcer called my name as I neared the line  and made some other comments but it was a bit muffled (was probably due to the lactic acid leaking form my ears at this stage) – Did he just say unofficially 3rd place..?  Into the recovery tent to grab a drink and a bit of fruit and then straight out to try and find the family. They had been trapped on the other side of the finishing chute so it felt like an eternity wandering around looking for them.  Finally I saw Janine running to me with a smile the size of Texas – confirming what I thought I had heard – you got 3rd ! The time 1hr and 27 secs.  I had wanted to go sub 1 hr after being so close at Armidale… but the 3rd place was enough consolation. (I will blame the extended transition distances for the extra 27 secs).  In total, 70  seconds was all that separated the top 4 – with Target #1 finishing 4th and #3 and #2,  first and second respectively.  The afternoon was spent cheering on the para athletes, which was a great reminder of how friggin awesome the sport that we all love is, and how it really is for everyone to enjoy.  An early family celebratory dinner to make it to the medal celebration was not how we expected to finish the trip, but I don’t think anyone was complaining. 

For the next 12 months, I can keep the tag of the 3rd fastest 40-44 “Old Bloke” duathlete in the world (as Janine has affectionately christened me) It was a world wind six weeks, as much of the last year and a bit has been since becoming part of the GKE family.  Guy, as always – could not have done it without you mate.  I must not be the easiest person to set programs for, but my one redeeming feature is that if you tell me to do it, it gets done! The work you have drilled into me, especially around pacing myself, paid handsome dividends that day.  Thank you! Behind every great man is a greater woman – nothing more needs to be said there about you Kate.. thank you too!  And the same comment goes for me, as always the person that believes in me so much more than myself is Janine.  It's a bit of a running joke when Guy asks me what races I have entered in for the coming season, the answer is “not sure, check with Janine …” But without this “encouragement”  it could not have happened. Hopefully the podium moment was enough to make it all worthwhile.  

What’s next – well just a minor change of focus from short course duathlon to Mandurah 70.3 .. I was feeling fit and excited coming out of Adelaide, but a minor sudden stop with my bike onto the asphalt a week out from the race has put a bit of a dampener on things, but hey, it is what it is.  I may get some even better "pain face" running pictures than Guy produces if I can make it to the start line.  After that, there is the biggest challenge for me yet – putting on the supportive dude shirt to cheer Janine though her first IM.  She was there every step for me last year- can't wait to repay the favour.