The Mighty Challenge Wanaka

4.30am on January 21^st I am up and chucking down my Weety Bix Bites, trying to stay awake. Already I can hear the wind outside and it sounds even worse than 2011.  I am getting ready to line up for my first Iron Distance race as a professional and the nerves were definitely there.   Off down to transition and the wind was still blowing strong.

Not being a strong swimmer, I knew the swim would be tough. The professionals start 10m out in front of everyone. I was chuckling to myself wondering where to stand as knew I would be way off the pace and looking behind me at the masses of people on the shore I could see my friends eyeing me up to charge me down.  The lake was a lot lower than normal meaning a very shallow start with me trying to run and duck-dive through the water while trying not to laugh and swallow water.  Lots of age groupers started to rush past me and over top of me. I kept thinking to myself just hold your breath and don’t drown!  By the second lap everyone had spread out a bit and I found some feet to follow.  After a while I realised it was Glen - haha sorry Glen for all the feet tapping but thanks for dragging me around the swim.

(Photos taken by Phil Walter - Getty Images)

Off on the bike and I was excited. It is my favourite part of the race.  I managed to come out of the water at the same time as Candice Hammond, who is a very strong cyclist. We were able to work together (legally, 7m apart!) to make up some time and catch some of the faster female swimmers.  It was definitely nice not having to cycle completely on my own with no one in sight, which can be pretty daunting over 180km. Part way into the cycle we caught up with Julia Grant who was sitting in 2^nd place. She joined our party so there were 3 of us in the fight to hunt Gina Crawford down.   We came within 2mins 20sec of her but she was cycling so well and by the end she had extended her lead to over 3 minutes.  In the last 50km of the race I noticed my headset was coming loose. I looked around to find which bolts were loose but they all seemed tight – it was those dam internal ones that I couldn’t get to.  With 20km to go it got really bad, I could pull my whole aero bars and wing up and down.  I had no choice but to carry on, trying not to put any weight on them. Anyone who has done any variety of cycling will know that not putting any weight on your handlebars while riding is nearly impossible - it meant I could not get out of the seat to climb hills or go fast on the down hills. Not having any tools with me and noticing a bolt fly off my bike onto the road beneath me, I realised I had to do something to try and fix it!  I had some cello tape taping my food on to the bike so I carefully peeled the small remains off and tried to tape my bars tight. Haha I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry but it was certainly an experience I don’t want to repeat!  While this was happening, Britta Martin came out of nowhere and she and Julia busted a move up the last major hill, leaving Candice and I in their dust.  I was just glad to make it off the bike in one pieceJ.

My Patch up job on Trinity.                                                            

                   

                              (Photo by Gavin Mason)

Through transition two I was thinking to myself right here we go, just the marathon left. Don’t slow down.  Also running through my head though was that I had only had 3 bottles to drink on the bike when I knew I should have had 7-8 bottles.  This would cost me later! Starting off on the run I was feeling ok; the legs were not too bad. I was tucked in behind Candice, although I knew I needed to slow down as her pace was faster than I was capable of. 21km down and I had slipped into 6^th place with Simone Maier steaming past me around the 20km mark. After a quick toilet stop (as I was starting to have major stomach problems), I headed off for my final 21km. Things steadily went downhill in the second half. I ended up having to walk through each aid station, as well as other parts of the run. I was so thirsty and dizzy, trying to drink as much as I could but I was finding it hard to swallow anything.  10km from the end Nicole Ward passed me, now I had slipped to 7^th place and thought just hold on…until I could finally see the finish line! Looking up at the clock I saw 10.16, a PB over the iron distance and 50mins faster than my 2010 effort at Challenge Wanaka. Things went even more drastically downhill after I crossed the finish line and I spent a couple of hours in the med tent, sucking back the oxygen and getting juiced up on the drip. Big thanks to the Red Cross team. They did an amazing job looking after everyone.

                                                   At awards brunch, top 10 female finishers

I have just had a recovery week and will start to get back in to some decent miles this week. At the moment I am not quite sure what races I will be competing in this year but definitely hoping to get to some overseas Challenge events. Thank you to Victoria Murray-Orr and her team for organising such a superb race, my family and supporters that were up in Wanaka with me and my sponsors who continue to help me reach my goals.

NZ Half Ironman Champs – Tauranga

Heading up to Tauranga for my first NZ pro race the nerves were definitely kicking in. I had a lot on my mind and wasn’t sure if I had made the right decision entering. I should have been focusing on the race and feeling confident with the training I had done.  That was my first mistake. Once you commit to doing a race, nothing else should matter. Give it your all and don’t look back!

Race morning was quite overcast and drizzling. This didn’t bother me much as although while at work I sit with the heat pump on max most days, my pasty white skin much prefers racing in the cooler climate.

The Pro field started 2minutes ahead of all the age group men and then all age group women were 2minutes behind them. With over 1000 competitors racing, by the second lap of the swim it was a whirl pool and quite chaotic. I got a huge smack to the nose towards the end of the second lap but you get use to that after a few races.

Out of the water and on to the bike, I had a pretty slow transition. I seem to have a habit of always mucking around with what I want to take out on the bike. Note to self: must remember it is not a fashion parade!  I found myself passing people quite quickly but also getting swallowed up in huge masses of age group men who were “working as a pack”. This was frustrating as it was hard to get in to a good rhythm. They do not seem to like sitting behind a girl.  Heading in to the second lap of the bike things were quite messy with people bunching up and slowing with a few judder bars and corners (I myself am hopeless at corners so was getting passed by the millions).  Starting to settle in to the second lap feeling great and then oh no everything was about to change. A freight train of men passed me and pulled in right in front of me, before I had even a chance to pull back the technical official motorbike was there, whistle, card, next penalty box 3mins! (Long distance triathlon racing is draft illegal, meaning you can not cycle in bunches like that of cycle racing, which is one of the things I love about long triathlon racing as it really splits everyone up. Would rather have been done for murder than “drafting”)

Great I thought! This is just what I need. I am not a fast runner or swimmer for that matter so biking is where I try to make up ground and that is pretty hard to do standing on the side of the road. Any way off to the box I went. I stopped but didn’t realise you had to have both feet out so a bit of time fluffing there before my time actually started. Being a novice at this penalty thing I wasn’t really sure what to do! 3 minutes is definitely a long time when you see bike after bike whizzing past you. I was luck as no females rode past in that time. Right back on my bike fuming, and wondering what on earth had just happened I was heading fast towards the finish. Well at least I thought I was until Gordon McCauley rode past me like I wasn’t movingJ.

Heading out on to the run I knew that I was meant to only be running at half iron man pace to save my legs for Challenge Wanaka which is next Saturday. But I was still mad from hanging out on the side of the road that I ran at a faster pace. I was passed by Hannah Lawerence who is a fantastic runner but was still feeling ok so kept pushing myself. Passing a couple of women I ended up 3^rd across the line. My run had to be the best part of the day with a time of 1.30 which is the fastest I have ever run a half marathon, within a half ironman or stand alone.

A big ups to Joanna Lawn and Cameron Brown for taking the top honours. They are both outstanding athletes and people to aspire to in this sport.

Right 8 days to Challenge Wanaka so it is time to recover, relax and get pumped to race again. Let’s hope for less wind this year, or not, everyone loves a challenge.

www.challenge-wanaka.com

Cheers Tams

South Island Half Ironman Champs & Gore 1/3 Ironman

In the past few months i have done a couple of local races in the South Island to get in some good hit outs to test the body. First up was the South Island Half Ironman Champs held in Ashburton in November. They had changed the swim and run course slightly from other years which I feel definitely made the race tougher and more interesting.. I had an ok race, but didn’t feel particularly strong in any part. I had recently sold my time trial bike and my new one was yet to arrive. I wasn’t feeling very comfortable on the bike but surprisingly had a good fast ride. I ended up with a PB over this distance which was great as the new run course felt a lot harder than in previous years. In fact my swim and run time were slower than usual, so it was through a strong bike ride that i managed 4.39, coming 2nd female.. Next goal will be to try and break 4.30!

I didn’t feel my recovery was as fast as it usually is after a race of this distance so it took me a while to get back in to the swing of things. With a month of steady training it was on to the next race. In early December I went and raced down in Gore. They usually have this race after Challenge Wanaka. This year they decided to have it earlier and change the distance a little in the hopes it would attract more people as a build up to Wanaka. It was now a 1/3 distance ironman race. Its a classic race as the swim is basically in a man made shallow lake well more like a pond in a paddock where you complete 2laps (trying not to get your hands stuck in the mud) to make 1.5km. You then make your way out on to the road for the cycle which is made up of 10km laps with a few really good hills in it. For the new distance we did 6laps. Then a 15km run with more hills and varying terrain through farm land and out on the road. Overall it’s a great course leading up to Challenge Wanaka. I once again found the run quite tough. It was a hot day down there with very little wind. I have to learn how to make the trunks run faster or trim them down! For this race I was able to use my new time trial bike - a Giant Trinity. A huge thank you to the guys at R and R Sport for slaving away, getting it put together for me to fit perfectly. I really enjoyed the bike course. The hills are great fun. I placed 1st female here.

Back home in Dunedin getting stuck into some decent training preparing for the next races...and not over indulging at Christmas.  January is going to be a big month with the Port of Tauranga Half Ironman and then two weeks later Challenge Wanaka. Cant wait :)

Training pic of me running in Ross Creek in the rain! Hope summer hurrys up :)

A huge thank you to all my sponsors. Especially Physio Plus who have increased their sponsorship for 2012. It all helps in such a big way to me being able in race in this sport.

Beijing World Standard Distance Tri Champs…

Well after deciding at the beginning of the year that I wasn’t going to do any shorter triathlon races, clearly I couldn’t help myself. With gaining a spot to compete in the World Age Group Championships in Beijing I decided China was worth a visit and it sure was.

China is very different in many ways from New Zealand or even other countries I have visited. Communication and food were the biggest obstacles.  Apart from an injury I was carrying, staying healthy and trying to eat like I would back home was a big challenge during race week.  Where we were staying in Changping the closest thing that reassembled a supermarket was still a fair distance away.  So we ended up eating most of our meals at the hotel we were staying at as we had no cooking facilities either.  Ordering the food was another challenge with the staff at the restaurant not speaking a word of English. They did however have some translators from an English School that were a good laugh. Easiest thing was to point at pictures and hope it was what it looked like!

Another thing was the toilets. I can’t believe what they use!  I managed to avoid them till the last 2 days and I guess they are not that bad. People should definitely shut the doors when they are on them though!

Because I was leaving the day after the race I tried to have a bit of a look around beforehand. We visited the Great Wall which was really cool.  I never realised just how steep it is. It is amazing that people run a marathon over part of it.

Another place I visited was the Silk Markets. This is where you barter with the locals to get cheap knock off items. The best deal of the day would have to be getting Nike Free running shoes for $20 NZ.  The bartering part is probably the best part of it as they are super funny trying to convince you to buy things. Most things you get for a tenth of what they start at.

Weather was pretty good while over there and I managed to get a bit of training in. Wasn’t feeling overly fit as had 3 weeks off before heading over due to having an injury in my foot. It was holding up though which was great.  Couldn’t get over the fact that what looked like an overcast day was actually smog.

On to the race….

Race morning had great weather which was good as the day before I froze watching the men’s elite race in the rain.  It was a non wetsuit swim with the water being 24degrees. Not so great for me not being a strong swimmer, but they had removed the dive start which was good. Haha as if you have seen me diving you will know 1 out of 5 successes is not great odds!  I had a surprisingly ok swim for my first non wetsuit race, but can’t wait to test out my new 2XU Project X one in the cold Dunedin waters.

On to the bike I was feeling ok but just had no speed.  The bike is my favourite part and with there being a few hills on the course I was hoping to excel in this area but just couldn’t find my legs.  I was behind people I am usually in front of so that was a little disappointing.

On to the run things didn’t improve much with me running a steady pace but not really able to push the speed up a notch. To be honest I was feeling like I wasn’t enjoying it as much as I should be and already thinking about other races I was focusing on next, which is not a good thing.  Crossing the finish line I didn’t feel exhausted and felt as though I could have kept going that pace for a few more hours. I was a little gutted at this but I honestly couldn’t get my legs to go any faster so did my best.  I ended up 7^th in my age group with the top 3 women overall being from my age group also.

This race made me realise what I had already been thinking at the beginning of the year.  You cant (well I cant) train for a race that takes around 2.5 hours at the same time as training for a race that takes 10.5 hours and do well at both.  Long distance racing is where I want to be so will stick with putting my time and energy in to that.  It has been a busy time with 3 overseas races in 4 months and working full time. I am very glad to be back home for a few months and work on building a solid base for the summer.

When I got home I decided to try something different with my training for this summer and am now being coached by Keegan Williams under www.vo2coach.com. I am really excited about this change and training has kicked off to a great start.

A big thanks to all my sponsors as I could not manage with out their ongoing help.

The joys and agonies of Challenge Roth…

My time in Germany was very short but loads of fun.  Including travel time I was only away 10 days, with 30hours each way being travel time. It was well worth it though.  The Baum’s Family took such great care of me and I can’t wait to go back next year.   I didn’t have a lot of time to look around with only a few days over there but made the most of it seeing Roth, Nuremberg, Schwabach, Munich and Rednitzhembach (where I was based with my home stay). All these towns had beautiful old stone buildings and cobblestone roads, some buildings even had golden roofs!

  

The race course was a great setting. First we swam in a canal, then rode 2 laps around village towns and finished with a single lap run which was mostly along a track following the canal, but also popping into a few forests and through a couple of towns ending up at Roth with huge crowds waiting to cheer us to the finish line. There is nothing similar to the spectators at Challenge Roth. This year they estimated over 180,000. You never swim, ride or run more than 2km without seeing someone.

Right on to how my race day panned out…

The morning started off as usual. Early breakfast around 4.15am then on the road to travel to the swim start.  The day was mild, no wind about and an expected high of 25degrees. I knew it would be over 30degrees though if the other days were anything to go by.  Into transition to make sure my bike was ready to go then into my wetsuit and down to the swim start.  My wave was the third to start so there was a good chance of catching some slower swimmers. Boom and off we went. The swim was one 3.8km lap.  My swim felt ok. Not fast but not slow. When I got out of the water I forgot to listen out for my time so I didn’t find out until after the race what it was.   My swim was 59minutes. I was very pleased with this as it was a PB by 7minutes. But can not wait to get into my new 2XU wetsuit and shave some more minutes off that time.  Next a quick transition and on to the bike, reminding myself to stay on the right hand side of the road, which is harder than you might think!

First 90km lap of the bike went well. The crowds are amazing and keep you going. You do have to watch that you don’t get distracted with everything that is happening around you though.  On to the second lap of the bike things started to go downhill. My legs were still feeling great but I started to get really bad stomach cramps. Trying to push through I started to get slower and slower.  I had to get off the bike a couple of times as anything I was putting in my body was coming out one way or another!  With my performance starting to deteriorate I turned the speed screen off my cycle monitor and continued to ride the best I could.  Off the bike and into transition two.  In Challenge Roth there are two transitions. It is set out very well though and you get to give your bike to someone else to deal with as soon as you hop off which is nice.  I did however get given the wrong transition bag though but laughed it off.

Trusty Newton Racers on (with much looser laces this time to pamper my chubby feet) and off I went. Legs were feeling great. I was thinking my slower performance on the bike may actually help improve my run time. O no that was until I got 1km down the road and knew that if I didn’t find a toilet asap I was in serious trouble!  I won’t give you all the gory details but basically every 2km of the marathon I was thanking my lucky stars that there was a toilet and that it wasn’t it use because it was hard to know what end I needed it for but in need it was.  Apart from that problem my running felt great in between my 12 or so stops on the run. Was just a shame that it slowed down my overall run time. It does give me great motivation though for my next race knowing that my running legs are improving.

So at the end of a stressful day and feeling very ill and dehydrated I decided I had to be proud of my result. I had an overall personal best time of 10.23 with PBs in all 3 disciplines even despite all my stops.  I had come all the way from Dunedin where it was -4 when I flew out to race at Challenge Roth where it was over 30degrees. I went from feeling very ill and hard done by at the finish line to wanting to register the very next day for next year and so I have. Challenge Roth 2012 here I come. Can’t wait J

No good finish line shots but here I am with my best pal the lolly o and Sara J who came over to watch. It was great having her there. Hmm not sure who the guy is with his eyes on my lolly!

I must give a huge thank you to all those in New Zealand who helped me fundraise and support from 2XU, R&R Sport, Newton, Physio Plus and Active Electro with my trip to Germany. My sponsors did a fabulous job of getting my equipment and I to the start line in top shape. Also to my new family away from home – the Baum’s family.

Hot Hot Cairns

I am back in cold Dunedin so I thought I would write up my race report on the Cairns Half Ironman to warm me up.

Before the race I had a good few days at Trinity Beach getting use to the heat. A big thank you to Glen and Mark for training with me over there and being some extra bait for the crocodiles.  It was fabulous. Pretty much the same temperature as I set the heat pump to in my office at work so the heat wasn’t bothering me too much.  Really enjoyed getting up early in the morning and only having to wear a single and shorts to bike or run in. The water at Yorkeys Knob where the swim start took place was nice and warm. The only scary thing was the signs everywhere saying no swimming, beware of crocodiles! We had a practice swim a couple of days before the race though and were feeling safe enough with the jet boats following. To be honest, the water was so cloudy that you couldn’t tell whether it was someone’s hand touching your foot or a crocodile anyway.

Right on to the race...
Got to transition nice and early arriving in our van from Rent A Bomb. Lucky the weather wasn’t any hotter as no air con.  Was pretty dark and I was feeling a little nervous. I entered in the open section for this race and it was my first time in this category.  Wetsuit on and down to the start line. My wave started one minute after the open men. It was good to be starting in the earlier waves as once that gun goes off the nerves leave.

The swim was sort of an M shape so was a little hard to tell where we were going. Seemed like a lot of back and fourth. Also felt as though I had been swimming forever and thought I was having a really slow swim. That was ok though as I was use to playing catch up out of the swim.  When I got up to my rack in transition I realised there was only a few bikes gone and thought this can’t be right I must have missed part of the swim! (Don’t worry I didn’t).

Off on to the bike I was feeling good. I hadn’t been eaten by a Crocodile or stung by a Box Jellyfish and was on to my favourite part of the race. The majority of the roads were smooth and I was speeding past people. The course was quite full with people by this stage as Challenge Cairns Iron Distance Race had started before us and was out on their bike leg also.  Yay I made it to the turn around and was still feeling great. Was looking well on track for a PB on the bike but thought it was time to slow down a little as the run was going to be tough in the heat.  On the way back I wasn’t quite sure of my placing but knew there must have been a couple of girls ahead of me.

20km from the end of the bike and oh no, I hit something. I saw my friend Glen on the side of the road who was also competing. He had a flat tyre and it sounded like the same had just happened to me. I stopped to check but all was fine. Hoped back on my bike and said "ill see you soon" as I was expecting him to come screaming past me again. He never did. Turns out he punctured both tyres at once and only had one tube. He ended up having to ride the rest of the bike on his front rim. Poor guy and poor front wheel which now looks a little square!

There was a little head wind towards the end of the bike but nothing major. Was time to get the bike back into transition and put those trusty Newtons on my feet. Was trying to stay positive as I knew I had 21km to run left and it would be on the side of a hot hot highway road with no shade and one big straight line!  It was going to brutal but hey I didn’t take up this sport because it was easy.

Starting off on the run I was feeling ok. It was hot but the heat wasn’t bothering me and my breathing was fine. A few people were yelling out "the lead female is just ahead". I was thinking that is cool I must be in second place. Hmm now to keep it.  That brick wall we all know came mighty early. I hadn’t even hit the 3km mark and suddenly my feet were killing me. Harden up I thought, you still have bloody 18km of this to go. Hit the 4km mark and could feel myself wanting to stop. Oh no! My legs are not even tired, my breathing is fine, the heat isn’t bothering me so what the hell is up?  My feet were swelling in the heat. It felt as though I was running on stubs. Come on chubby feet I still have a lot of energy in me, don’t quit on me now!  The rest of the run was a battle.  I had to stop at every aid station for at least 15-20secs and pour about 4cups of water into my shoes. I am sure I was giving the volunteers a good laugh.  At around 6 or 8km two open females passed me. I wasn’t too worried as my race plan had turned into just wanting to finish. Its amazing how small as having burning hot feet could ruin my race. I didn’t go all that way over there not to finish so I had a plan. Shuffle to each aid station. Stop. Pour water on feet. Run. Repeat.

YAY I made it to the finish line. That was after previously already trying to run down the finish before I had done a lap around the pier (I have a habit of always doing something dumb on the run)!
Those dark moments on the run were worse than the brutal head winds on the 180km bike in Challenge Wanaka for me. Now that is saying something.

Fourth female in my first professional race. Had a great day apart from frustrating hot feet but ah what can you do.  I got PBs for my swim and bike. My run was a disappointing 7mins slower than usual.  But I learnt a lot and can’t wait to race again.

Time to head in to my new sponsor Physio Plus for a rub down to get the body ready for another event.

A special thanks to the McSkimming clan for their hospitality and my mum Lynley for supporting me over there. Couldnt have done it without you guys.

Operation Chedder

 A HUGE thank you to everyone who purchased some cheese rolls. Also to the many that helped me make thousands of them. Definately on the road to being able to compete in Challenge Roth :)