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Tuesday March 30, 2010
Northside Hire - Mooloolaba Open Elite
Mooloolaba, Sunshine Coast.
I had the Northside Hire Mooloolaba Open Elite race on Sunday and came away with a very satisfying 2nd place. Held during the Mooloolaba triathlon festival, this race is always one of my favourites on the triathlon calendar. Such an awesome place, and a course that favours my strengths with an ocean swim and a hilly run course. The race went pretty much to plan. I had a good swim for me, coming out with the leaders and straight into the first pack on the bike. The bike to Coolum and back was relatively uneventful, with a few boys trying to make some unsuccessful breaks. My aim here was just to sit in and conserve all my energy for the run. Onto the run, I was able to get up to the front straight away, and commenced a tough little battle with Sunshine Coast local Tim George. Over the next 10 kms we preceded to attack each other and just plain run ourselves into the ground. Coming up Alex Hill for the final time, I upped the pace, and felt I had Timmy under pressure. Unfortunately for me, he hung on, and showed his class by putting on an amazing sprint and taking first place. Of course it would have been nice to come away with a win, but I am going to enjoy this result nonetheless. I have been training better than the shit results that I have had would suggest, and this weekend was a nice start to better things to come(hopefully).
Thursday March 18, 2010
Back home in Australia.
Back into training for the upcoming Mooloolaba Open Elite Race on Sunday, 28th March and then ITU Singapore Continental Cup on Saturday, 10th April. Motivation is high.
Sunday March 14, 2010
ITU Oceania Championships
Wellington, New Zealand
Not the happiest of race reports this time! Wellington Oceania Champs were on the weekend, and it was a bit of a disaster. After a decent swim, I found myself in the second pack with some good riders. Boom. I just had nothing on the bike and was dropped for the first time in any race I have competed in. I 'grovelled' to stay with the final group on the course. Onto the run, things were not much better. Summary, very disappointing day, finishing outside the top 20. At the moment I am in Rotorua with Dad spending a few days catching up with his old family and friends. Enjoying this a little more than the race on the weekend!
Monday March 1, 2010
Australian National Elite Series - Race #2
Raby Bay Triple Super Sprint
Well the final race of Australian’s triathlon “Elite Series” is now over, and I guess it was again a little disappointing from a personal perspective. The race was the Raby Bay Triple Super Sprint - 250m swim, 5km bike, and 1.6km run… three times. To summarise my performance, I finished about mid pack (22nd out of 40ish?!) in all three races and overall. Nevertheless, I am a little more positive about the weekend than what the results suggest. This type of racing is all about transitions, which is something I need much work on. I have made great progress since last year, and even since Race #1 at Caloundra. Difference between first and myself was a little over a minute! Not much. Congratulations to Dan Wilson on three straight wins for the day! I am now looking forward to Wellington this weekend and finally getting a chance to use all of this training towards a good performance at the Oceania Championships. I think the old man is also going to show me some of his local hangouts as a juvenile criminal!
Monday February 8, 2010
Australian National Elite Series - Race #1
Caloundra Enduro
Race #1 of Triathlon Australia’s Elite National Series was raced at Caloundra on Sunday, and for me, this was a rather disappointing weekend. The race was a 250m swim, 7km bike, 2km run, completed twice in succession (no break). I had a big, dirty DNF! Not something I like at all. After having a decent swim, it all went pear-shaped very quickly. Shocking transitions, stupid mistakes – lessons learnt. Congratulations to Courtney Atkinson who schooled us all in the art of "Sprint Racing". I am now looking towards Race #2, and more importantly the Oceania Champs in Wellington with some specific things I have to work on! Disappointed because I am a lot better athlete than this performance!
Sunday January 17, 2010
Queensland Gatorade Series - Race #4 - Robina
Well the Robina leg of the Queensland Gatorade Series was held this morning. The race was a 750m swim, 20km bike, and 5km run. In summary, I came a very close 4th place to a quality field. I had a shocking swim, missing both the first and second pack. From here, Taylor Cecil and I rode our “Balls Out” to try and minimise the damage. The feeling was fantastic on the bike, but was a very difficult task to try and pull back time on a group of 20. On to the run, I was 1.30min down on the leaders. Having no other choice, I threw caution to the wind and went as hard as I could. I ended up running a 15.04 5k (a personal best) and finished 25 seconds behind winner Drew Viles. You always want to win as an athlete, but I am taking some positives out of this race.
Monday December 14, 2009
Queensland Gatorade Series - Race #3 - Raby Bay
Race #3 of the Gatorade Series was held on the weekend at Raby Bay, and I am glad to report, I grabbed my second win of the season. I had a fantastic swim, coming out 4th or 5th from the water, with all the front guys. Onto the bike, we pushed the pace early to ensure a few stragglers didn’t get back on. In the later stages, the pace was backed off and games were starting to be played. After a quick transition, Adam Fitzakerly and Anthony McSweeney “lit it up” for the first kilometre. My aim here was to hold on and see how long they could last for. The pace briefly slowed, and I put in a little attack just to see how they were feeling. No one came with me, so I maintained a comfortable pace, and managed to put in a little bit of time to those following. It’s always a good feeling winning, no matter the size or importance of the race. Nevertheless, we all know what races really matter this season, and this is simply just a stepping-stone to those bigger goals.
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