Boise

Hello team,

Kate and I have left Australia and are now residing in Boise USA!

It's great to be back here, but we do miss our GKEndurance team, family and our black and white Cat "Ozzy".

The last 6 weeks have flown by! We have been training, racing, bought a Minivan and have planned out our next 6 months of racing!

We are excited that quite a few of you will be coming up to see us this year! Hopefully even more of you will make it up in the years to come!!!

Here are a few pic's of our activities
Skin Checks
Lucky Peak With kate (Swim start of 70.3 Boise)
Boise from 6000 Feet
Long ride stop! (I was broken hence all the food)
Sunday "day beers"

Hope your all fantastic and enjoying your journey!
K & G

Janine Kaye's FANTASTIC race report

The Picture version is here
http://levelzero.com.au/index.php/busso-70-3-race-report/

The Pictures help bring out the emotion of the day!


BUSSO 70.3 | RACE REPORT

I wanted to write this race report as soon as possible while the events of the day were still fresh in my thoughts.. It was a HUGE day and it seems sort of surreal still.. although my aching, tired body is a constant reminder that it was VERY real!:) Grab a coffee.. this could be a long one….

Back in February I started training under the guidance of the amazing Kate Bevilaqua and Guy Crawford who together are GK Endurance. I made the commitment then dedicate myself to following the program they set me to the best of my ability, regardless of how “out of my league” it felt. The last 3 months have been amazing. I have trained harder and more consistently than I have ever done before. Early mornings, long distances, uncomfortable paces, lots of eating, sleeping, juggling and joy! I pushed myself harder than I thought I could and loved every second of it. I met some amazing people, found new fabulous training buddies and leant more about myself than I expected. And on saturday, those 3 months swirled around in my mind as I made my way through a 1.9km swim, 90km ride and 21km run.

The excitement of the week commenced early when we collected our race bags the sunday beforehand. I was thrilled to be a pink cap (yay for turning 40 and moving up an age category!). My wave was starting 5 minutes before my training buddy and 25 minutes before my hubby.. which made me the rabbit and them the greyhounds chasing me down:)It was then a pretty LONG week of tapering in the lead up to the race. I have never trained so hard for something… plus I have never experienced tapering from that level of training before. I was tired, grumpy, hungry, fidgety and fatigued. It was a tough couple of days. By thursday I was feeling a bit more “normal” thankfully and we drove down to Busselton on friday morning to check in our bikes, get our competitor tags and check out the event expo! We were staying with our amazing friends (who were doing the team event together) and they left me a beautiful message on the mirror of the bathroom when I woke up early on saturday morning..Brad and I had a quick breakfast, grabbed all our gear and headed into transition at around 5.30am. Brad checked my bike over for me before heading off to sort himself out. I then spent about 10 minutes fiddling around packing nutrition on my bike and getting my transition area ready. Off to the loo, met up with friends at the North coast tent and wriggled into my fabulous Huub wetsuit. It was about this time my emotional state got the better of me. It was such a weird sensation. I was excited, and a little scared.. but mostly I couldn’t explain what I was feeling. Lots of emotions bubbling under the surface and they were all trying to come out in tears. Thankfully I kept it in so I didn’t make a fool of myself by blubbering my way towards the start line:)I was so happy to have Marie (my awesome training buddy) and Brad (my amazing husband) beside me as we went to the start area.. they both calmed me down and pumped me up which I am so grateful for! A quick warm up swim and I my wave was called to the start area. I stood there trying to just focus on the swim and not let the nervous energy inside me escape. I wanted so badly to do a good swim. I wanted to make myself and my awesome swim coach Paul (Swimsmooth) proud, but also I felt like a good swim would set me up for a good day. I tried to breathe calmly and imagine myself starting the swim in control and staying consistent with my pacing (I have a tendency to go flat out straight away and then die in the arse at the end which I have been working a lot on!).

Goggles check, garmin check and suddenly the gun went bang and we were off. A couple of dolphin drives, some fast arm strokes and then I settled in. We were very bunched up for the first 500m or so and I struggled to get some clear water without bumping into someone. I tried drafting but I got frustrated with their pace and instead just tried to find some clear water and maintain a consistent pace. The course was a U shape out beside the jetty, across and then back in. By the time we got to the top of the U, the field had opened up and I was loving it! The water was perfect. Flat, calm and clear. You could see the bottom the whole way and it felt like swimming in a pool. I worked hard on maintaining my rhythm and focus. I kicked hard for the last 20m and stood up when my hands hit the sand, ready to run under the showers and into transition. I felt GREAT and couldn’t wait to get on my bike!

Swim: 34:49 (an improvement of over 8 minutes from last year! WOOT! and 3 minutes faster than I expected)

I am a little notorious for being a bit slow in transition.. I think I forget that I am racing .. LOL! This time, I focussed on what I needed to do and was surprised how quickly I got out of there, even after fumbling with my wetsuit and deciding to sit down to put my socks on. Onto my bike and off I went.

T1: 2:45

The bike course was 2 laps, out and back 45km each. The course is flat and fast… and I LOVED it! I decided early on that I really wanted to push hard on the bike.. mostly because I only had around 25 minutes head start on Brad and I really wanted to make it at least onto the second lap before he caught me. My aim for the day was to do the 90km in around 3 hours, 30km/hr, which is a little faster than I have averaged in training. After I started to ride and I felt good, I decided to see if I could push a little harder and tried to make sure I didn’t drop below 30km/hr for as much of the distance as possible. I got growled at by an official at one stage which shook me up a bit (the course was congested in some parts and it was hard not to “draft” when people overtook you and then tucked back in quickly). The course was beautiful and took you out into the Tuart forest and back into town before repeating for another lap. The forest was gorgeous and there was hardly any wind which I was very grateful for. The energy in town was sensational and it was fun to ride back through town and have everyone cheering for you. I felt great for most of the ride and was thrilled to finish 11 minutes faster than I expected. Plus Brad hadn’t caught me !! WOOHOO!!

BIKE: 2:49:44 (31.9km/hr)

Back into transition. Race belt on, runners and visor on and off I went. T2: 2:26

And this is where my race kind of went downhill..:(As soon as I started running, my legs started protesting. I figured it was just a bit more discomfort from having pushed a bit harder on the bike and that it would soon settle.. I was wrong. I stopped to have a quick pee at the first toilet and stretched my calves and adductors before taking off again but the discomfort didn’t settle.. it just got worse. (sidenote : Whilst I was visiting the loo, Brad started his run so it was great to see him as we passed each other in opposite directions) The course was 3 laps, all flat with aid stations at each end and one in the middle. My race plan was to run the entire first lap at a comfortable pace but not to stop at the aid stations (I could take nutrition on but no walking), then on the 2nd and 3rd laps I could walk the aid stations if needed, but try and hold the same pace and give it all I had left for the last 2km. That first 7 kms was a mental battle as my feet felt like they were being rubbed raw from my socks and I debated stopping and taking them off. My arches were aching and my calves had started to cramp slightly. I made it through the first lap, sipping electrolyte as I shuffled through the aid stations. I gladly walked the first aid station on the second lap and guzzled electrolyte and coke. I took on a gel and tried to stay positive as I headed off for lap 2. I was so frustrated that I felt physically fit and strong but my legs were giving out on me. By the 12 km mark, I was in the hurt locker. My calves were experiencing waves of cramping from the ankles to behind my knees and my lower back had started to spasm (I presume from me holding myself funny to try to protect my legs). I just kept plodding along, willing myself to not stop. I was determined to run the whole thing (excluding the aid stations to get nutrition in). And I did… but it HURT! The last lap was so painful. My toes had started to cramp up and had curled up under my feet making it almost impossible to move at one point. About 500m from the finish line, the crowds pick up as you hit club tent alley. As I reached that point, my left leg seized up completely and I had to stop (it was that or fall over). Thankfully a beautiful lady from the tri club was there along with 2 blokes dressed as a crocodile and something else (?) helped me to the curb and encouraged me to stretch my calf. I was almost in tears …so frustrated at my broken body. I felt so close to the end but that 500m seemed like another 21km away! The cramp subsided and I shuffled onwards.As I rounded the bend to the finish chute, the surface under my feet changed from bitumen to carpet and at the top of the 100m finish chute my entire left leg spasmed & cramped up and then my right leg cramped as well. I stopped. I could hear the announcer calling my name ” here comes Janine Kaye.. oh..maybe..? come on Janine..” I could hear him urging me on and the cheers of the crowd next to me but I literally couldn’t move. My toes had curled up in cramps and I was yelling at my legs to just keep moving. I did a drunken looking stumble thing towards the barricade and a lady pulled me over so I didn’t fall. I stretched my calf for what felt like forever but was only a few seconds.

The cramp eased slightly and I took a few steps towards the line. The announcer called my name again and the crowd let up a big cheer as I shuffled towards the line. I could see Brad standing there waiting for me and I was overcome with pain, embarrassment and frustration.. but the minute I fell into his arms, it all just faded away. He kept telling me I smashed it. I couldn’t really take it all in.I tried to look at the clock and do the math but I was shaking and still hurting too much to function properly. Brad worked out the math for me and I couldn’t believe it, I had smashed my hopeful time of 6hrs 30 minutes ..

RUN: 2:16:43

TOTAL TIME: 5:46:27 ( a PB of 1 hour and 20 minutes! WOOHOOOOOOOOOO!!!)

My beautiful friend Trudy got this photo of me after she asked me to explain the experience seconds after I finished.. it is kind of horrific but also makes me giggle..:)

and this guy.. my amazing husband. What would I do without him, his love, support and maths skills! Busso was his second half ironman and he smashed it with a 30 minute PB, in 4:44!! AMAZING!! SOOO proud of him! I cannot wait to support him when he tackles his first ironman in December!!

Here is my awesome medal along with the words I wrote on my hands that helped get me through the day.

TRUST – my training, my coaches and myself

ENDURE – I read a quote that I loved that said that “the body can endure whatever the spirit believes” and this reminded me of that along with the fact that I am capable of enduring much more than I think! So suck it up princess;)

and a smiley face to remind me to HAVE FUN while sucking it up !!:)

Funnily enough, even though I was in so much pain during the run, I still had an absolute ball and cannot wait to get back into training and do another one! Personal pride in my effort/time etc aside, to be totally honest, the absolute best part of the day was hearing the joy of everyone around me as they chatted about the day and celebrated their success. My husband is just awesome, my fabulous coach Kate won the WHOLE friggen THING! (after coming 2nd 3 x previously), Captain Awesome Guy came 6th, my sensational training buddy Marie smashed her PB (and got the same time as me), and my gorgeous best friends all did PBs in their team event! SO PROUD OF ALL OF THEM!!! It was so much fun to see everyones smiling happy faces and share in all their joy and elation, while I nibbled on the recovery muffins and hurt all over:)You can see how broken I felt in the pic below that Marie’s hubby took of us.. oohh, my broken bottom…;)And there it is.. my second 70.3 but in my mind, it was my first real half ironman where I had trained consistently. Injury free and ready to race, not just participate. I have taken so much out of this experience and I am excited to take that knowledge into my training to get fitter, stronger and more prepared for the next one!:)Thank you to everyone who sent me messages of support and congratulations.. I am honoured to have so many amazingly encouraging people in my life!!! xxxxxx

Andrea Reports on IM Melbourne!

WOW what a day Andrea had at IM Melbourne, Having only coached Andrea for a short amount of time, we can say your potential hasn't been reached!! You will go even faster. scary!! We are very happy you achieved your goals (detailed in Andrea's report below) and we're already excited for the next block of training!!
We are very proud of you and love having you on the team!

Big thanks to Stef at WITSUP for the photo's you see below.






Ironman Melb race report

After watching a friend finish Melbourne IM last year in 2013, I was inspired to run down the finish chute myself at Melbourne IM 2014. I wanted to experience the amazing atmosohere!
The atmosphere was amazing! I'd already entered Busselton IM in December 2013 but my thoughts were, that all going well I should hopefully be able to have a good couple of weeks rest after Busselton then hit another 12 week program to get ready for Melbourne in March 2014.

After supporting some fellow athletes at IM Melbourne 2013 I went to Witsup's 1st birthday party (and if you haven't liked this page on Facebook do yourself a favour and check it out - , Stef Hanson is doing an amazing job promoting women in sport and talking all things triathlon!). Some ladies from Tour de Cure, a charity partner with IM Melbourne, who fund-raisingraise for cancer research were there and I jumped at an the opportunity they offered to partner with Tour de Cure and fundraise for this worthy cause - a personal one for me after losing my dad to pancreatic cancer. The deal was I pay my entry fee and once I've fundraised over $2500 my entry will be released. With great support from friends and family and I hit the target early on and my entry was confirmed.

After Busselton IM I was found myself without a coach, but subsequently and saw a post by Kate regarding GKEndurance. Having a great deal of respect for both Kate and Guy I contacted Kate and enlisted her coaching expertise. I had a goal for Melbourne and that was to qualify for Kona.

I took two weeks off completely after Busselton and then holidayed in Bali for two weeks. The 12 week program was to start whilst I was still in Bali, however sickness hit. I was still able to run and swim a little but this hampered me for the first two weeks of the program. Not the best start but I knew my fitness was there and for the next 10 weeks I was focused and determined. Not only did i I want that Kona spot, but this one was for my Dad. I wanted to get to the start line in the best shape possible. I was so grateful as so many people had donated along the way and I didn't want to let anyone down by not getting on to the start line. I had a consistent training block and went in to the race the fittest and strongest I'd felt for a long time.

I caught up with Kate and Guy on the Friday before the race. They definitely calmed my nerves and offered some great advice and positive energy.

The race itself:

The swim: The swim start is the most anxious part of the race for me. I knew it was going to be rough out there with so many people. This is also an area I've been working hard on, joining a swim squad on advice from Kate, as well as undertaking other sessions on my own. I don't think I found any clear space for at least 2km. I was kicked, swum over, hit in the head so many times. I kept telling myself to stay calm. When I did find some space I settled in to a rhythm and reminded myself - feel uncomfortable and push a little harder, this isn't suppose to feel easy. I felt I was making good time and was very happy to exit the water in a PB time of 1:02:28 and 9th in my age.

The bike: On to the bike and on to the Eastlink. From previous half Iironman events I haven't got my nutrition on the bike right, and today and I was going to follow my race nutrition plan as it should be. I wanted to nail the bike leg, after being disappointed with my performance on the bike in Busselton. A slight tail wind on the way out and I was feeling good taking in my nutrition. By the first turn around I'd passed a few girls and it was a lonely road back in to town. Riding back in to Frankston the atmosphere was buzzing and it was great seeing some good training buddies cheering loudly on the sidelines. I was feeling good and pumped for the second lap still sticking strictly to my nutrition plan. I was looking forward to hitting the tunnel for the 2nd time, that was so much fun!! I was pushing hard, feeling uncomfortable but I felt good and was enjoying it. The ride back in to town the 2nd second time seemed much harder with the wind that had picked up.



Bike result - 5:05 and into 1st place in age.

The run: I felt great running out of transition and to be doing a different motion to the cycling. I liked the first km or so of the course where you double back and I was able to see a couple of other people I knew heading out for the run too. They offered some great encouragement! I saw my family and friends and they told me I was in 1st place for my age group. I now hoped I could hold on to at least get a top 3 performance.

By the 10km mark my quads were already sore and I knew that this was going to be a hard long run to St Kilda. In hindsight I knew I'd I’d taken off to quick, but even if id I’d pulled back those first couple of km's I'm not sure how much of a difference it would have made. Either way I knew I shouldn't be feeling like this until at least in the early 30kms!! I even had a fleeting millisecond thought of “I don't want to go to Kona anymore” - my quads were screaming!! I can't remember experiencing so much pain while running. I wanted so much to start walking, but I didn't. I slowed and then slowed some more but didn't walk. I had friends along the course that were offering so much support and later after the race I told them that although I may not have given them much back at the time they really helped me along.



Riding Beach road so many times over the last year I was familiar with the course so I just kept picking landmarks and suburbs to tick off. Then as I ran into Elwood I kept seeing people I knew all the way to the finish line. So much encouragement!. I could hear and see the finish. The finishing chute of Melbourne IM is unreal!! I was hurting but couldn't wipe the smile off my face. Then finally, I could stop running.

Run result - 3:42 and 2nd in age.

Final result - 9:55:20 and 2nd in my age. I was spent. I was elated!! I couldn't believe it - a sub 10 hour Ironman. All the hard work had payed off.

I took a moment in the recovery area to myself. A small tear. I was happy. It was so special that my mum and sister had flown over to watch. They definitely kept me honest during the race and it was great to share it with them. I wanted them to be proud. To have so many friends out on the course offering encouragement and support was fantastic. Home town racing definitely has its advantages!! I knew they were all waiting outside so I grabbed some ice cream and left the recovery area to go and find my family and friends.

Now I can't wait to start my next journey with Kate and Guy on the road to Kona! That moment of doubt was so fleeting on the run. I am so excited!! And only driven for more! I always pick my races apart and although I am so excited and happy I know there are areas I can improve on, especially the run. But for now I'll just enjoy this result. For all the pain whilst racing, it's worth it. It's a good pain. I love this sport!!

Aloha :-)

Lisa Luckin's Challenge Mebourne Race report.

Well done again Lisa. We are very proud of your achievements over the last 12 Months. Lisa now taking a little R&R before running the Great wall of China Marathon and then it's onto the big dance at the Ironman Worlds Champs in Kona.
You'll be hearing from Lisa again soon!!

Lisa writes below!!

Andy and I made our way over to Melbourne on the Friday morning arriving Midday.

It was a much more relaxed feeling leading into this race is it was not an ‘A’ race for me, just a chance to get back

into it and most importantly have some FUN!

After a quick engagement dress shop in the city, we caught up with Karl Hardy and Heidi – Schnell for afternoon

drinks and dinner. We were shown over the course, given some local tips and shown around the area which was

great!

Saturday was the usual registration, pre bike/run before setting up the bikes and packing the bags ready for the

Check in on race morning.

The GKEndurance crew that made the trip over from Perth all rocked up into transition with our new GKE trucker

caps on and set up in the dark!! As usual time flies and we found ourselves heading to the swim start for a brief warm

up and then on the start line!

The swim course took place at Brighton Beach just south of the Green Point Reserve. It was a mass start for

the females so I went hard at the start and found myself in a little pack of 6 girls at the first buoy. I felt like I was

swimming well and sticking with these few leading girls before looking up and having to be re-directed back on course

by the life guards! – Lesson learnt!

Swim – 31.30

It was quite a run to transition as we headed up the ramp towards the Transition Area in the Green Point car park. I

was on the toes of one girl in my age as I ran past her to mount my bike and take off!

T1- 3.35



The 90km out-and-back bike course starts by heading south for the first of three laps on the bike course. We headed

southbound past Sandringham and Black Rock before turning at Centreway and returning to transition. The course

was beautiful. Awesome conditions and it felt fast! or was the just my Schnell wheels??!! Schnell = Fast!

Karl had told us it is a tail wind out, head wind back so I wanted to take advantage of the tail wind! Heading back

there was not much of a head wind at all. As I completed my first lap, roughly 2 km’s down the road I had just got into

a rhythm and then a FLAT! My first puncture in a race. I pulled off to the side and changed this pretty quick! I was

proud of myself. I didn’t panic and it was great experience for me as I have always worried about this in a race. Andy

has taught me well! I stopped two times after just to check on my clincher as I wasn’t too sure if I had done it right as

it didn’t take me too long.

Back on my bike I rode hard for the remaining 55km not knowing where I was now sitting in my age. I was ‘hunting’

any girl down thinking surely some had passed me during my flat.

Bike – 2.31.50

After my final transition I was onto the 21.1km run, continuing along the beach pathway towards Sandringham the run

course consisted of three, 7 km laps. A shower straight away and aide station with sponges and ice was great and I

kept reasonably cool from the start.

T2 – 1.49



My cheer squad mum and dad were there and they were great!! I felt good, quick and reasonably fresh. Again, I ran

hard as I did not know where I was in the field. To my surprise we ran the first 2km or so on the path before heading

onto a dirt track that was windy, uphill, downhill, steps, a steep decline and then a long uphill run before returning

back onto the path along the coast again and onto the next lap! It surprised me but I had great fun on this congested

but exciting course. I also felt like a local! Awesome supporters, loads of cheering and some from some boys who

Andy knew but I did not! It was awesome. I loved it. I pushed hard for the remaining 3km on the run and finished

strongly with mum and dad waiting for me at the finish line! Always my favorite part.

Run – 1.31.17

I had just enough time to get back on course and watch Andy finish, then the rest of the GKE crew, Kate and Ruth.

By then it was really starting to heat up. We stayed for presentations as Dad had gone to check the results and to my

surprise I had finished 1st in my agegroup, 4th amateur female and 11th female overall.

It was great to get up on a ‘podium’ with a finishing time of 4.41.00, placing 1st Also being an inaugural event I

am proud to have set the course record for my age and hope this can remain for a few of years!

Justins race report from IMWA

Justin has been training with GK Endurance for a good few months now, We are VERY excited to see the training working for him and seeing new PB set. Justin details his race at Ironman Western Australia below.
An exciting 2014 is ahead with plenty more PB's to come.

Race Report

This has been a huge year moving/selling a house, beginning the building/designing of a house, a huge work load and two Half and two Full Ironman’s planned. Here I was lining up at Ironman WA for my second Ironman for the year. Mandurah 70.3 had been about 4 weeks earlier and it had not gone to plan and leaving me feeling a little stressed going into Ironman WA. Kate had told me not to worry, Mandurah it had just been a training day. So now two weeks out from IMWA and a visit to the Dentist with troublesome wisdom teeth I was feeling even less confident. I did minimal training as the antibiotics were knocking me around and then the last week before Ironman work also went crazy! But if getting to do an Ironman was easy, everyone would be doing it!

Thursday morning before race day and headed off to the physio for some trigger point release and then packed my kit, wife and baby daughter into the car and we headed to Busselton to register and relax.

Coach Kate checked in and organized a ride /run for Saturday morning. During the ride we discussed race plan and went over how my new running program was working for me. I am a heavier set guy trying to loose some weight (15kgs this year). Kate had suggest a 10 min run, 1 min walk plan to minimize/prolong me fatiguing. The couple of long runs I had done leading up to Ironman had worked a treat. We also discussed the rest of my race plan and I intended to follow it. I had never had a race plan previously. I also had unfinished business with IMWA as the previous year I had not made the start line due to a prolapsed disk.

The Saturday morning ride and then 10 min run off the bike with Guy, Kate and Lisa was was just what I needed to clear my head and focus. Bike was all checked in mid afternoon along with my transition bags and all I needed to do was get some sleep and sort myself out in transition Sunday morning and keep hydrating.

Sunday morning I was up at 4am with a broken sleep and was in transition by 430am. Loaded my bike with nutrition, checked everything over (literally took 5 minutes) and then put my wetsuit on and sat looking out of the bay for a while. The weather was perfect. A quick warm up swim, watched the pros get off and it was then my turn on the start line! I was strangely calm and composed and positioned myself mid field. My wife and daughter had not made it to the start line as we have discovered the logistics of travelling with a little person has changed things dramatically. Finally the announcement, “In starters hands” and before I knew it I was off. I planned to go hard for 400meters to get some clean water, find someone to draft behind and then settle into my own rhythm. This ended up being more like 1klm before I settled into a good rhythm and before I knew it I was at the end of the jetty heading back to shore. I finally exited the water in 1:15:12 and 807 place. My best swim over this distance although my Garmin after the event showed 4.31klms, my track line however was perfect and I swam the jetty as Paul Newsome from Swimsmooth had suggested. Transition was not great at just over 6 minutes but I was onto the bike feeling comfy with Kate’s words echoing in my head to pace myself and not go out to hard to fast!

The bike leg was steady and I averaged 28 klms an hour over the 180 klms. The wind was there although not unmanageable. Although nutrition didn’t go to plan with my normal product not working for me at all. So two gel shots and a bar were all that I took on the bike. I just focused on getting through each lap and on the last lap counted riders heading the other direction to take my mind off things. I climbed off the bike in 6:27:38 followed by a better transition of just under 4 minutes and onto the run course exactly on the schedule I had given my wife! Legs felt good and I settled straight into my run plan feeling comfortable for a PB.





Kate and I had discussed my run plan as this is definitely my Achilles heal. Kate suggested 10 min run, 1 min walk for the first lap; 8 min run, 1 min walk for second lap; 6 min run, 1 min walk third lap and then 5 min run, 1 min walk on last lap. I was pushing for a 14:30 finish as my first Ironman had been 15:49 at IMWA in 2011 and my second this year in June at 15:08. My first two laps went okay although I felt a little tapped of energy due to my lack of nutrition on the bike. I was taking coke on every drink station with watermelon and water. This was helping and exactly as Kate had told me; once you are on coke stay on coke. Third lap and the wheels were coming off until I walked past the “Break Your Limits” and “Fremantle Triathlon Club” tent clubs. A good friend of mine was telling or yelling at me (not quite sure at this stage) that all I had to do was run and a PB was in my hands. I dug deep and although couldn’t quite manage a 5 minute run 1 minute walk, I was able to run the distance between three power poles and walk for one. Whatever it takes I thought!!! The sun was settling onto the horizon and I pushed harder to finish before the sun went down. My wife met me at 2 klms out of town which was perfect and gave me the final boost to push me to the finish line.





Before I knew it I was in the finish shoot and I literally sprinted across the finish line with a 14:03:02 and a 1hour 5 min PB - Super happy. I have already registered for Ironman WA 2014! Two days after and my legs still feel trashed – stairs and hills are very daunting. I feel happy with my race day and and feel content that I left nothing in the fuel tank! I cannot thank Kate enough for getting me to the start and finish line and with a great outcome. All the little bits of information and suggestions Kate gave me along the way helped so much on race day and made sense! Really have enjoyed the journey so far as Kate has only been coaching me since June. I am so looking forward to seeing what next year will bring!

Justins race report from IMWA

This has been a huge year moving/selling a house, beginning the building/designing of a house, a huge work load and two Half and two Full Ironman’s planned.  Here I was lining up at Ironman WA for my second Ironman for the year. Mandurah 70.3 had been about 4 weeks earlier and it had not gone to plan and leaving me feeling a little stressed going into Ironman WA. Kate had told me not to worry, Mandurah it had just been a training day. So now two weeks out from IMWA and a visit to the Dentist with troublesome wisdom teeth I was feeling even less confident. I did minimal training as the antibiotics were knocking me around and then the last week before Ironman work also went crazy! But if getting to do an Ironman was easy, everyone would be doing it!

Thursday morning before race day and headed off to the physio for some trigger point release and then packed my kit, wife and baby daughter into the car and we headed to Busselton to register and relax.

Coach Kate checked in and organized a ride /run for Saturday morning. During the ride we discussed race plan and went over how my new running program was working for me. I am a heavier set guy trying to loose some weight (15kgs this year). Kate had suggest a 10 min run, 1 min walk plan to minimize/prolong me fatiguing. The couple of long runs I had done leading up to Ironman had worked a treat. We also discussed the rest of my race plan  and I intended to follow it. I had never   had a race plan previously. I also had unfinished business with IMWA as the previous year I had not made the start line due to a prolapsed disk.

The Saturday morning ride and then 10 min run off the bike with Guy, Kate and Lisa was was just what I needed to clear my head and focus. Bike was all checked in mid afternoon along with my 
transition bags and all I needed to do was get some sleep and sort myself out in transition Sunday morning and keep hydrating.  

Sunday morning I was up at 4am with a broken sleep and was in transition by 430am. Loaded my bike with nutrition, checked everything over (literally took 5 minutes) and then put my wetsuit on and sat looking out of the bay for a while. The weather was perfect. A quick warm up swim, watched the pros get off and it was then my turn on the start line! I was strangely calm and composed and positioned myself mid field. My wife and daughter had not made it to the start line as we have discovered the logistics of travelling with a little person has changed things dramatically. Finally the announcement, “In starters hands” and before I knew it I was off. I planned to go hard for 400meters to get some clean water, find someone to draft behind and then settle into my own rhythm. This ended up being more like 1klm before I settled into a good rhythm and before I knew it I was at the end of the jetty heading back to shore. I finally exited the water in 1:15:12 and 807 place. My best 
swim over this distance although my Garmin after the event showed 4.31klms, my track line however was perfect and I swam the jetty as Paul Newsome from Swimsmooth had suggested. Transition was not great at just over 6 minutes but I was onto the bike feeling comfy with Kate’s words echoing in my head to pace myself and not go out to hard to fast! 

The bike leg was steady and I averaged 28 klms an hour over the 180 klms. The wind was there although not unmanageable.  Although nutrition didn’t go to plan with my normal product not working for me at all. So two gel shots and a bar were all that I took on the bike.  I just focused on getting through each lap and on the last lap counted riders heading the other direction to take my mind off things. I  climbed off the bike in 6:27:38 followed by a better transition of just under 4 minutes and onto the run course exactly on the schedule I had given my wife! Legs felt good and I settled straight into my run plan feeling comfortable for a PB.

Kate and I had discussed my run plan as this is definitely my Achilles heal. Kate suggested 10 min run, 1 min walk for the first lap; 8 min run, 1 min walk for second lap; 6 min run, 1 min walk third lap and then 5 min run, 1 min walk on last lap. I was pushing for a 14:30 finish as my first Ironman had been 15:49 at IMWA in 2011 and my second this year in June at 15:08. My first two laps went okay although I felt a little tapped of energy due to my lack of nutrition on the bike. I was taking coke on every drink station with watermelon and water. This was helping and exactly as Kate had told me;  once you are on coke stay on coke. Third lap and the wheels were coming off until I walked past the “Break Your Limits” and “Fremantle Triathlon Club” tent clubs. A good friend  of mine was telling or yelling at me (not quite sure at this stage) that all I had to do was run and a PB was in my hands. I dug deep and although couldn’t quite manage a 5 minute run 1 minute walk, I was able to  run the distance between three power poles and walk for one.  Whatever it takes I thought!!! The sun was settling onto the horizon and I pushed harder to finish before the sun went down.  My wife met me at 2 klms out of town which was perfect and gave me the final boost to push me to the finish line.

Before I knew it I was in the finish shoot and I literally sprinted  across the finish line with a 14:03:02 and a 1hour 5 min PB - Super happy.  I have already registered for Ironman WA 2014! Two days after and my legs still feel trashed – stairs and hills are very daunting. I feel happy with my race day and and feel content that I left nothing in the fuel tank! I cannot thank Kate enough for getting me to the start and finish line and with a great outcome.    All the little bits of information and suggestions Kate gave me along the way helped so much on race day and made sense! Really have enjoyed the journey so far  as Kate has only been coaching me since June. I am so looking  forward to seeing what next year will bring!

Lisa's blog on 70.3 Mandurah and Kona qualification! YAY

A blog from Lisa on her VERY awesome performance at 70.3 Mandurah!
Lisa didn't miss a session through the winter months and is reaping the rewards now.
Next up is the big dance at Ironman Western Australia!!

Well done Lisa. You have some very proud coaches!!


Mandurah 70.3.
Qualifying for Kona!

Race day was finally a few days away & was the most calm i have ever been during race week. Excited actually!! Really excited! Ready to R n R.
Andy and i packed Friday night, with Henry our boxer pup 'unpacking' for us as he picked things up, out of the room and ran outside with them.
A good nights sleep found me waking up early as usual so I got my pre ride and run done before heading off at lunch time to Mandurah.
Checking into transition it was hot!! Tomorrow was going to be tough!!

Race morning.

Transition done, wetty on, good luck kiss from my now fiancé! and off to the swim start with Kate, Mum and Dad feeling excited. I had a quick chat to Guy before I entered the water and wasn't really nervous but felt a big expectation on my shoulders due to a bit of pressure I had put on myself. I have never stood at a start line with my personal goal to win my AG although the ultimate goal was to get a good hit out for Busso IM, but i wanted to be first!!



I positioned my self just behind some quick toes for the start. The gun went and we were off. It was fast and I pushed hard to get some clear water before the leading 5-6 girls pulled away. A good, comfortable solo swim and i has happy to exit up those stairs with out stacking it. I reached transition with one girl in my age at her bike. I had a quick friendly 'chat' before cya… i was out of there leaving T1 to my 'screaming' fans, Mum and Dad!!
I pushed hard out. It was windy. Real windy. I was thankful to reach the turn around and to have a tail wind pushing me on the return. At one point I could see this lanky giraffe running in the distance… it was Guy and he cheered me on!! The turn around heading out onto the second lap was great and again lots of support which i appreciate so much. The second lap, more pain out, joy back :-)



I ran though T2 like there was no tomorrow!! Put my shoes on to run out but quickly realised i had collected some prickles in my socks and wiped them off to clean them out!!
I felt good on the run straight away. Comfortable and in the zone. It was hot though and I really felt that. Water, Ice, water. I think the aid stations where my highlight!! By the second lap I still felt strong so I just went for it, trying to finish strongly. I heard a motorbike next to me, initially seeing the bike from the corner of my eye thinking they are keeping an eye on me for drafting. After remembering I was on the run I realised they where filming me running and i felt a little like a rock star!! Seeing Kate and Guy with 2km's to go was great. Im so grateful to have them cheering me on and I loved every second of their support.

It felt like forever running up the small return before heading down to the finish line but i could not stop smiling!!!
First in the 18-24 AG with a 4.39.51 and proud to be 4th Female amateur across the line today. Super, super stocked!! And yes, a spot to Kona which i quite happily took. :-)



I went straight through the recovery area out to find my mum and dad an other family friends that came down to support. Its their support that is the highlight for me and gets you through these tough days. I will never forget how proud my mum n dad were as they ran looking for me to give me a huge hug!! It was awesome :-) Then time to cheer on Mark, Andy and Kate. :-) A long day in the sun!!

Andy had a great race getting back into some training after many months off after IM Cairns. My twinny 2nd with a spot to Kona also and my sister finished her half in a great time. I'm super happy for her. My remaining IM training buddies had a great day and thanks to Jono, Sean and Macca for pushing me on these training days which reflected in my race result today!!
GKE. awesome coaching, awesome training, awesome friends = awesome result. Couldn't be happier :-)