1st   4:11:51  (course record)

  Swim  28:05     (5th)
  Bike   2:20:08  (1st)
  Run  1:20:04    (1st)  (run course record)

When I dived into Lake Michigan for my warm up I lasted about 10 strokes before I had to roll over onto my back to defrost my face. It was like slamming into a concrete wall. So cold! Once the cannon fired though I was fine, adrenalin fixes everything!

As usual I was a bit slow off at the start and pretty quickly spat out the back of the women's field. By the first buoy I had got into my rhythm and started chasing down the two girls I could still see in front of me. I eventually caught them about half way through the swim and then practiced 'staying on feet' for the rest of the swim. I'm still not good at all. I came out of the water in 5th place, close behind the 2 I'd been trying to 'sit on'. After exiting the water there is a long beach run to get off the beach and then a long run on concrete to weave into transition. This meant that by the time I got to my bike and out of T1 I was into 3rd place already. Malaika Homo was 1:20 ahead at this point with Helle Frederiksen putting a good 2 1/2 min into me.

I immediately cranked up the pace and by 55km I had finally caught Helle. I took a couple minutes to get in some nutrition, water and then went past to take the lead. I kept pushing hard off the front but Helle was holding on. I tried putting on surges but no matter how hard I tried I could not shake her. With 7km to go we hit a super bumpy section on cracked up concrete road that would last right until transition. Like riding over continuous speed ripples for the next 10mins, I knew there was no dropping her through this rodeo section so I backed off and cruised the rest of the way safely into T2. I unstrapped the shoes and coasted down the last short hill to T2 with Helle close behind. We got off and racked our bikes together. It was exciting to be back under the blaring loudspeakers, in such a tight battle for the lead, with the crowd cheering all around.

I had made the decision earlier in the race, when getting out of the water that I would put socks on for the bike instead of putting them on just for the run leg. My feet were cold and numb from the water and the run to the bikes on the hard concrete wasn't that comfortable on them. Added to that I still had big blisters under my feet from last weekends race. This allowed me to have a faster second transition than normal. I slipped my shoes on, grabbed my Salty Yeti GU gel (which I lost about a mile later when he jumped out of my pocket to begin his own little adventure to where ever he was going. Salty always has fun adventures where ever he goes. GU gels were offered at the aid station anyway, so lucky me) and Zipp visor and was out of there quick, keen to get a little head start.

As soon as I started running I hit my Garmin to start the clock but instead of starting to tick over it was busy 'loading satellites'. Damn! I forgot to load them up in the last few kms on the bike. Every km or so I'd check if they'd loaded up but still nothing. I have no idea which satellites they were trying to load, but they never loaded them, so I was without a watch for the rest of the day. The run was two out and back laps so I got my first indication of the lead at the first turn-around about 5k 's in where Helle was about 1min30 back.  The first 10km I felt really strong and fast. The next 5 I still felt really good but I was starting to feel the big blister under my left foot filling with blood. The pressure wasn't bad enough to effect my pace or foot strike YET but I was well aware it was quietly taking a beating down there.

Thoughts started running through my head... "6km to go, I've got a good lead, should I slow down a little and reduce the pounding to the foot? OR should I pick it up (if I can) and try to get home quicker?". I was trying to work out which would make sure not to repeat the pain of last weekend. I think the blister decided for me as I kept up the same pace until it started affecting the way I was landing then I think my pace might've dropped from then on. Every now and then I'd grit my teeth and put in a surge then I'd back it off and try to land anywhere but on the blister. I was very happy to see the finish chute at the end. For the 2nd weekend in a row, I couldn't wait to kick off my shoes after the finish tape. At least this time, they were not as bad. A few minutes later Helle came through to take 2nd and Lauren Barnett (with energy to spare) for 3rd.

Jared and I were so lucky once again to be hosted by such a wonderful family for race weekend. Kristine, Daryl and the family showed us how good Midwest hospitality can be. They were 'homestay professionals' in managing to comfortably accommodate 3 of us athletes (yes 3!), help us with airport transfers, pre-race and post-race commitments, meals etc... and all in a welcoming homely environment. They made our trip seamless. Thanks again. Can't wait to return.

   
   2nd   -   4:14:13

   Swim   27:24 (11th)
   Bike    2:21:37 (3rd)
   Run    1:21:31  (1st)

Wearing my super fast ROKA Maverick wetsuit, I was confident I could come out closer to the front in the swim but as I sculled on the start line I looked across at the two super fish athletes Laura Bennett and Meredith Kessler only to see they were both wearing the same suit as me! Damn. I exited the water in 11th place but within contact of the main pack with Rachel McBride 40 seconds ahead and Meredith & Laura 2:38 up the road.

I moved into 7th place soon after mounting my bike as I took advantage of running my bike to the top of the steep hill instead of mounting at the bottom. My new bike was in tip top shape thanks to Alex at SRAM who came to see me as soon as I arrived in the States from Australia. He went over the bike with a fine-toothed comb and provided me with a selection of shiny new Zipp wheels with custom World Champ decals. With my bike firing I hoped my body would too after the travel half way round the globe from Australia.

Not long into the bike I passed Melanie McQuaid and Emma Kate Lidbury to move into 5th. Throughout the bike the three of us would shuffle around with Melanie dropping me on the last long downhill - this girl is a demon on descents. 
As I was approaching T2 I was warned there was a sharp turn before a quick dismount but I guess I underestimated how quick it would be after the turn. Before I knew it the dismount line was right in front of me and I was still in my bike shoes, I hadn't even loosened them so I had to jump off with my shoes still on. Not a big deal usually but the run to rack my bike was quite long and all on concrete. I looked like a waddling amateur trying to quickly run into T2. 

I started the run in 4th place, and with a rather slow transition I was told I was now 3:30 behind Meredith but Rachel and Melanie were in sight. A couple of km in I moved into 2nd place, slowly making up time on the leader but by 7km I was in pain. Not a usual racing pain, I could feel the balls of my feet pounding and ripping to pieces. They were starting to feel like I was running bare feet on the hot bitumen. By 10km it felt like I was running on knives so when I got into the nice gravel loop around the Vineyard I stopped and had a bit of a look to see if I could find out why and maybe fix the problem. Everything appeared normal, the tread was still on the bottom of the shoes and there were no big rocks stuck in my shoes. So I continued on and pleaded with my feet to wait another 11k or so and then I'll stop and pamper you as much as you like.

When I got to a small out and back section I saw I was still a long way behind and I tried to convince myself that if I ran faster, not only may I be able to make up time faster, but more importantly I'd be in pain for less time so I tried to pick up the pace. Every step was a jabbing knife and the faster the pace the harder it hit me.

I've seen several triathletes heel strike when landing - It can't be that hard I thought! So I tried it (along with all sorts of running gaits to try land anywhere other than my forefoot)...without success. There must be some trick to heel striking because I was running on the spot. And still in pain.

There were many times in the last 10k when I was so close to pulling the pin and tearing my shoes off under a shady tree somewhere. It was a constant battle inside my head trying to decide which would be more painful - running on knives or getting a DNF. While the battle continued in my head, the mile markers thankfully continued to tick over.

When I finally reached the line of spectators I knew I was close to being done. I no longer minded that I wasn't winning. All I could think about was crossing that line and kicking my shoes off. When I got into the finishing chute I think I totally forgot I was in a race and that I should be smiling, happy, I was just about to cross the line in second place. And second to the brilliant Meredith Kessler. But instead of taking it all in I passed through the banner, kicked off my shoes and tried to hobble off. All I wanted was a bucket of icy water to put my feet in and a shady piece of grass to sit on. 

A huge congratulations to Meredith for the win. If I had to chose who to come 2nd behind, I would chose her. She was out front doing her own thing all day and none of us could come close till she finally stopped and waited for us all at the finish. Congrats also to Rachael and Melanie, both super strong on the bike and running on to come in 4th and 5th.

The biggest thank you goes to Pat and Barbara for their hospitality during our stay in Santa Rosa. They've been my home stay there 3 times now and it feels like returning to family when we visit. Travelling to Santa Rosa in July has come to be just as much about catching up and spending time with Pat and Barb as it is to be racing Vineman 70.3 on Sunday morning. Can't wait to see you guys next time!

1st 9:28:43


Swim 3rd 50:46
Bike 2nd 5:19:57
Run 2nd 3:13:57


We were created with pain receptors. These pain receptors go off when we are hurt or injured or when we push our bodies to the limit. They are there for a reason, to warn us that something is wrong and you must stop. What a great system. Makes good sense doesn't it. But then there's a small minority of us with our twisted, messed up brains that have discovered we don't have to stop if we don't want. We can keep going as long as we are mentally strong enough to continually tell our brains to "shut up". Why would we want to do this? No idea! For some reason the more we push our bodies the better we feel 'after'. So, some crazy person came up with the idea of an Ironman. Arguably the hardest one day endurance event. 

For some reason the Ironman distance is seen as the ultimate goal or the pinnacle of achievements in triathlon. Maybe because it's the longest distance available (in 1 day) or maybe because the legend of the Hawaii Ironman. So 3 weeks ago I decided I'd give it a go. It worked out to be a good time of the year to try it without disrupting anything else in my season. Lucky for me, if I want to compete in Kona later in the year, I didn't have to win, I just had to finish. I just had to 'get through'. That being said, it was still a race, and I'd be crazy if I said I didn't want to win it. So this is how this crazy Ironman thing works.

First we swim 3.8km. That's 76 laps of an Olympic size swimming pool. Booooring! Thankfully we don't swim in a swimming pool though! With the air temp a freezing 5C I wrapped myself up in my ROKA wetty and couldn't wait to get into the 19C water. Half way through the swim leg was a weir we had to climb up and over. This isn't usually part of an IM but added something different and made for some good photos!

After emerging from the water it's time to run through the spectators, listening carefully for vital split times. In the change tent you are treated to an impressive team of helpers that assist in just about anything you need. You just throw yourself on the ground and the strippers pull your wetsuit off and start dressing you for the bike leg. Before you know it your back on your way out the door and into the 'real world' again. The second leg comprises of a ridiculous 180km of cycling. I started the bike leg 1 minute down - I had a great swim!

I'm not sure who upset the weather gods on this day, but they were whipping up some cyclonic winds, up to 50kph. I held on tight as I worked my way through the bike leg. Gritting my teeth till my jaw was cramping and clenching my abs to stay tight on the bike made for a long 5-plus hours of riding. All the while, Lisa was up ahead, ploughing through the dead roads and getting a good lead. By the time I rolled back to T2, I was 8minutes down, hungry, and tired.

Back in the transition tent, this time the volunteers help us get ready for the final leg - an insane and totally unreasonable 42km run. As if 3.8km of swimming and 180km of riding wasn't already enough. I sat there munching on my mars bar wondering how I could get out of doing this marathon. Meanwhile the volunteers already had the green flags up and were ushering me out of the tent. My shoes were on, my visor, run belt and gels nicely laid out. But I didn't wanna leave. It was warm and comfortable in here away from the wind. Can I just stay a little bit longer!

I got up and walked out of the tent...all the way out...I walked till the big sign said 'Run Exit'. That's where I started my loooong shuffle. No extra running for me today thanks! This was the part of the race I was most unsure about. 42k of non-stop running is a long way for me. Added to that I was already pretty worn out from the freezing, windy bike leg meant I would be taking these first couple laps as conservatively as possible. The run course did 4 laps of just over 10km each. One decent hill per lap, the rest flat, cold and...did I say WINDY. As I ran along the rock wall along the river the cross wind was so strong I was sure this could be my ticket out. I'll get blown overboard. But nope, that didn't happen either. I just kept shuffling. After one lap I got to run through the '1st lap' gate to collect a cool IM wrist band. That brightened my day for like a second. Back up the hill again (that seemed to get a little bigger each time). On this lap, the down hill really got me needing the loo. I stopped at the toilet and when I sat down I thought "This is surprisingly nice in here. I could comfortably stay here for quite a while I think. No-one knows I'm in here right". After a bit I thought I better keep trucking on. 

At about 24km I shuffled on past poor Lisa who seemed to be having a bit of a rough patch at the time. I wanted to stop and walk with her for a bit...talk about how crazy-windy the bike was...and how long this run is going on for. I had so much to share with her. But as I went passed, she was walking and I was on a small mission to find the the next loo. Another toilet stop later, and I popped out still in the lead and couldn't see Lisa behind. On my way back to completing my third lap I took a nice long walk through an aid station. I'd been told by a number of people beforehand that I should take my time at the aid stations and even walk because that's what a lot of the best do. This seemed like a good time to try it. It was alright. I got to have a chat with a friendly age grouper for a little while. They were all very friendly along the course. I felt bad that I didn't acknowledge a lot of them while my head was down, shuffling along. I was trying to devote most of my mental energy to staying on track, conserving energy, ticking off my 4.30 k's and repeating the advice Belinda Granger had given me and that was "shut up brain, just keep going".

On my last lap my stomach was very angry. It wasn't used to functioning on just gels for this long. Although I'd only got 3 down on the marathon it still wasn't happy and I seemed to spend a lot of time planning my next toilet stop. I took my last toilet stop about 5km from the finish. After this I walked through the whole aid station before I got back into my shuffle. I heard Jared yell, "you've only got 1 minute". In other words "that's enough stopping, go!". From that point I started to feel pretty good again (relatively speaking) for some reason. Maybe the refreshing water at the aid station, maybe it was that I suddenly realised I only have 5k till I'm finished, or maybe it was that my mind just realised I was 'racing' again. Whatever it was, I broke out of my shuffle and I felt like I took off.

Over the last 500m or so, the crowd was getting thicker and thicker and louder and louder. I finally made it onto the red finish-chute carpet and took in all the excitement from the crowds. I did it! I conquered this crazy thing called an Ironman. I ticked the box. The bitter-sweet thing is I stamped my spot to Kona. The good thing is now I can decide to go if I want. The down-side is I would have to go through all that again. Seems like a pretty twisted reward to me. But I guess that's why I did it in the first place...my mind is twisted...just like everyone else who finished the race. You're all crazy!

Special thank you to the team at Ironman Asia Pacific for helping guide me through my first Ironman experience.
Race highlight video here.

   
   1st    7:24:50

   Swim   44:22      (4th)
   Bike     5:12:05   (2nd)
   Run     1:23:30   (2nd)

   Full race coverage can be found here.
   Race highlights can be found here.

I'm sitting here relaxing at the Yas Marina Waterworld - Abu Dhabi's impressive water park, un-naturally positioned in the middle of the dry, sandy desert. It's the morning after the race and most of the top pros are here, recovering/having a good time compliments of the race organisers. Then there's Greg Welch over on the wave machine by himself (because he's the only one good enough for it) like a little kid let loose. He's been back and forth on his boogey board, dominating the ride for hours, having the time of his life. He's good...but he's gonna be sore tomorrow! Just before this I was talked into going on the scariest ride in the park. The something-or-other "drop". You stand in a tight, clear glass capsule, a voice counts down from 3, then the floor drops away and you plummet straight down. Jared had gone down before me and was waiting at the bottom. But I didn't make to the end to greet him with a big thrilled smile. No, I didn't make it to the end at all. The lady at the top calmly says to our photographer "The light ones never make it". Instead of flying around the loop-de-loop section at the bottom, I made it half way round, slowly came to a stop, then slid backwards to a low point in the slide. A couple seconds of slight confusion later, a nice lady kindly opens a little emergency escape door for me and I climbed out of the slide, through a tiny hole in a fake-rock wall, and back to the real world. It was like I was one of the kids at Willy Wonka's chocolate factory that had to be eliminated. Moments later the green flags went back up from the slide operators and everyone continued on like nothing happened.

The water park was fun. The race yesterday...not so much. Yesterday was the toughest race of my career. One in which I think I'll learn greatly from and has given me extra mental strength of knowing just how far my body will go when on empty. I made some nutritional errors on the bike that I paid for. Also, the week of Abu Dhabi I came down with a head cold. I was quick to get onto the garlic and was pretty confident I'd knock it on the head before the race. I arrived late Wednesday night. Thursday and Friday morning I went for a short spin, while my legs felt unusually stiff and tight I put this down to the long flights and tried to forget about it.

The non wetty 3km swim went pretty well and I exited the water in 4th place. I was about 5:30 behind Jodie, but comparing my swim leg to Jodie's freakish abilities in the water is like comparing my swim to the lead mens pack. Michelle and Svetlana were only 2.30 in front. I mounted my Shiv and as soon as I started pedalling, my legs and gluts were really tight, like someone was squeezing them just like Thursday and Fridays rides. I spent the next hour and a half telling myself they're just tight because the longer swim...that's all...they'll come good. I was still making decent time, I was now about 2.30 behind Jodie and 30sec behind Michelle. By the 70k mark the tight feeling became deep painful stabs and full on cramps. At this point I had passed Michelle, while poor Jodie had missed a turn somewhere, putting me in the lead. I was now leading which was great news...but at what cost, my legs were in pain and I couldn't pedal full circles without my left quad feeling like ripping off the bone.

By 100k the cramping faded, but then returned at 130k . To make things worse, at this point I was getting desperately short on nutrition because I had lost my mars bar at 5k and had lost some gels at 60k. I was having a lot of bad luck trying to get any nutrition from aid stations along the way. The media bike blocked one station, age groupers were all over the next. Then I finally managed to get my hands on 'aqualyte' - a drink that contains no calories! I also managed to get a half-filled water bottle. I rationed it to make it last till the next bottle I got. I was like a fat fat kid rationing his last smarty. I could have a lick but not the whole thing. 

The last 20k was tough, I had no water, no calories and was dizzy, weak and fading. I saw Jared at T2 and asked how long I had (to 2nd place)? He said "a minute and a half an hour ago". That was not good. As I sat in T2, I didn't want to get up but I was in desperate need of water so I slowly pulled myself to my feet and jogged the 500m or so to the first aid statin where I  enjoyed everything they had to offer, twice over. I wanted to stay longer but Jared informed me as I left T2 that I had only a 30sec lead.

Usually with the run my strength any lead I would be happy with, but today I knew this was going to get ugly. The run course had several switchbacks so it wasn't long before I saw Yvonne running me down. There was nothing I could do to pick up the pace if I were to finish this race on my feet. At 7km I could hear Yvonne's footsteps so I slowed a little to prepare for her attack. A couple minutes later she joined me by my side and matched my pace. It was a relief when she didn't try to go straight by and I thought she must be really struggling too. We ran together for a couple km's at a slightly slower pace and I tried to refuel with regular doses of water and coke. I thought if she's content to sit around running this slower pace keeping me in the picture I might still have a chance. At the 10km turnaround I managed to get a small gap coming out of the turn cone. I hadn't planned to make a move here, it just happened as I accelerated out of the turn...so I went with it. I went ahead just enough to get a gap. And any runner knows, you spend a lot of mental energy if you have to try close down a gap that you've already closed down once.

The rest of the run was not pleasant but it was better. It still felt like I was running on fumes from aid station to aid station but my legs loosened and felt a bit springier. I was still nervous the whole way that the body might change it's mind and throw in the towel at any point. I was picturing the old footage of the 2 women crawling to the line at Kona. The long red carpet to the finish felt like it went much longer than previous years. When I finally had the finish line in sight I gave a few weak waves to the crowd and I think I only just made it over the line before my body totally shut up shop.

I promised myself at the 15km mark that if I could escape this close call with a win, I would be allowed to fall to the ground after the finish banner. But if I lost I MUST stay on my feet. This, along with every other little mental trick and bribe I used, is what I was thinking about for that last 5km. And throw myself on the ground is exactly what I did. So, of course Greg Welch sat down, had a little rest himself and joined me for the post-race interview...on the ground.

A massive thank you to Simon for once again inviting me back to Abu Dhabi to race and I'm sorry you once again had to drag me up off the ground. Also thanks to Mark, Nicky & Ryan for all your tremendous work putting on the most glamorous triathlon in the world! Give me a few days to forget about the pain I put myself through yesterday and I'll probably say "see you again next year!"

  1st   4:39:26

  Swim   5th   27:26
  Bike   1st   2:48:07
  Run   1st   1:22:03

I stood on the beach at Subic Bay staring out at the ocean ready for the start of Challenge Philippines. My hotel room, (at the beautiful Camayan Resort) was just behind the start line, less than 20 metres away. Closest I've ever stayed to the start line. Tucked away on a small secluded beach, surrounded by monkey-filled jungles, this was a pretty cool place to start a race. When the starters gun fired I ran down the beach and dived into the warm, clear water. I got to the water first but it wasn't long before the three super fish, Laura, Annabel and Radka left me in their wake. I swam the 1.9km on my own following the marked lane rope the entire way.  I passed over some attractive fish, coral and even an old war-time shipwreck. The water was so clear the entire way around which made for a very enjoyable swim.

As I exited the water I thought maybe I'd been a little too conservative in the swim. You know, having time to take in the scenery below me. Hopefully I hadn't given away too much time. I got through transition and mounted my bike at the bottom of a hill. Difficult way to get going straight up a hill with out having your feet in the shoes yet. I kept tightening my shoes as I climbed up but they kept loosening again. It took me quite a while to get comfortable and get up to pace. Although up to pace didn't necessarily mean 'fast'. Jared was standing at the top of the first hill and told me I was only 2:20 down on the leaders. Wow! Must have been my new ROKA speed suit. Swim faster with less effort is their motto. 

I climbed up and up before a long windy descent. Then it was up, up , up again followed by a bumpy, technical, crazy down. This descent went for a good few km's and was a cracked up old concrete road. Ronny (my bike) and I were bouncing around like kids on a jumping castle. I'd removed my rear XLab drink cage prior to race start because of the bumpy surfaces and removed the triangle fuel cell from my frame to reduce weight for all the climbing. I chose to just use my fuelselage and an XLab cage between my aero bars. I underestimated the roughness of the road surface. As I was descending one of the first hills, my bottle which had all my electrolytes and a lot of my calories needed for the race in it was bopping around and creeping out and then just before it was ready for take-off I managed to catch it. I was flying down this windy, bumpy hill, now with one hand on my bars and one holding my bottle. Luckily, in the morning as I was setting up Ronny in transition I decided to put an empty drink cage on my frame just in case I needed to store another bottle I'd pick up along the way. I moved my front bottle into my frame and survived the first real test.

The rest of the bike course was pretty similar. If we weren't climbing up a hill we were usually descending one. There were only a couple of small sections of straight, flat road but these sections were far from smooth sailing. There was no daydreaming or zoning out with this course. If you didn't have your eyes glued to the road you'd probably be off into the trees or tangled up with a chicken. As I was bouncing around I'd occasionally think "I hope my bike can hold up to this". At one point I was sure my crank was gonna fall off but no, Ronny was unbreakable and got me through all the way back to T2 safe and with about a 2min.

As my whole body was still vibrating when I racked my bike I took the time to sit down and put on my bright orange Compressport socks and matching orange Adidas shoes. It was good to be back on solid ground. I ran out of transition and then of course...straight up hill. The first km was straight up followed by a short down before another good 2kms on gradual climbing. The run course was probably the most spectacular I've done. It was through the jungle. We'd run up hill a km then back down a km then up another km and so on. Very similar to the bike course there was rarely a flat piece of ground. We also ran through a couple of tight windy sandy trails with nothing but jungle and strange rustling sounds all around in the trees.

At around 4km I caught up to three of the men. As I went by, one of them, Macca (Chris McCormack) looked across and said "not again!". The course continued to weave in all directions through the jungle - one huge lap, up and down and with no km markers along the way. Jared would pop up here and there yelling encouragement and giving splits. He said that many of the pro's he was cheering for would continue to ask where they were, how far they'd done, how far to go, ect. All trying to get any info to keep them going as the trails and hills went on forever.  I passed another couple of men to move into 7th position overall (6th if you minus the minute head start for the men). 

I crossed the line and took the win in a very slow time of 4:39. This was one course where instead of people bragging about how fast their bike split was, the talk was more about how long we were out there covering the 90km on the bike or if anyone lost any teeth. This was definitely a race to remember. I think you would struggle to find a bike course this hilly, this technical and this bumpy. Next year I think Ronny might have to stay home and my road bike can come out to race. The run was also very unique. How often do you get a cross country run in a triathlon and monkeys as spectators? It was pretty awesome! We also had the privilege of racing the prince of Bahrain. And his whole entourage of course.

I owe a huge thanks to Dave Voth, Challenge Philippines race organizer, for the invite. He said the trip to the Philippines would be well worth while and he was right. Put this one on your bucket list of adventures!

1st 4:30:29

Swim 2nd 31:07
Bike 1st 2:29:14
Run 1st 1:27:35



Mum said she was holding her breath for 4 1/2 hours - I think she thought I was gonna take a little snooze out there. My last race of the season. My favorite race of the year. Besides my very first race this year where I crashed out and ended up in hospital I have not been off the podium all year. My season has been everything I could have wished for. Now I just need to finish it off with a bang!

Tuesday, two days after Laguna Phuket Triathlon and 5 days before Challenge Phuket the relaxing holiday was suddenly turned on it's head. The stomach started feeling upset soon after lunch and by 8pm that night I couldn't move too far from the toilet. Every time I thought I was ok to go to bed, minutes later I was running back to the loo. Something I ate was not going down too well. My stomach was aching and I felt as sick as a dog. Two rolls of toilet paper down and it was now midnight. I'd lie in bed, no more than 15-20minutes I would spend there at a time. But then it got worse. This time it was coming UP. I bolted back to the toilet and brought up what I thought MUST have been everything I'd eaten that day. It was painful vomiting but I was hopeful that'd now be the end of it.

I showered and hopped back into bed around 1am. I got maybe half hour this time before I was back in my favorite spot for the night. Another episode of vomiting, half a dozen more visits to the loo and
it was then 3am. I was dead tired but could not lay down. Every time I lied down I would feel like puking. Finally 6am rolled around and I'd hoped it was late enough for the doctors to be open. Not in Thailand... 9am! I waited another painful 3hrs before I went to see the doc. Some advice, medicine and electrolytes for a lot of Thai Baht and I was confident I'd be back on my feet real soon.

Fast forward to Friday. I still couldn't eat but I dragged my weak body out of the hotel-coccoon and down the road to do an interview with Bob Babbitt on his show "Breakfast with Bob" (link to interview here). When I got there I had to apologize when I almost passed out. I then ask Bob if I could keep my sunnies on during the interview. I took a deep breath, put a smile on and tried to be as bubbly as I could - tried. Annnd cut. Finished. I dropped my head to the table and admitted to Bob that I had no idea how I was going to get myself on the start line in two days. Later that afternoon I started to feel like I was finally starting to improve a little. I went along to the pro cocktail party in the evening to let off the traditional lanterns into the night sky.

The day before the race I was able to keep down a little bit of porridge in the morning, some bread through the day and a quarter serve of rice with boiled eggs for dinner. I also got a little dip in the ocean in the morning and a 10min jog in the evening. I was not feeling great by any stretch, BUT I was feeling the best I had since the start of the week. Race morning I ate my porridge with honey - not too much. I was nervous. And nervous in a way I'd never been before. I asked Jared "will I be able to do this?". Neither of us knew the answer but he was positive "you got in some food last night, you ate this morning, there is some fuel in there now". That was just what I needed to hear. Never mind I hadn't eaten much more than dry crackers and coconut water for four days.

As we ran down the beach I automatically flushed any negative thoughts out of my head. I had another good swim exiting the water in 2nd place with Belinda right behind. I was 2:30 down on Radka this time with a 90km bike leg to follow. I jumped on my bike and started to crank up the speed. Almost immediately my quads tightened, it felt as if someone was squeezing them, compressing them. I briefly panicked thinking "oh no, this is it, I'm gonna cramp, I'm dehydrated, I'm running on empty, it's all over" but then I realized I wasn't cramping, my speed was high, I was fine. The feeling of someone squeezing my legs continued but it wasn't painful. It wasn't slowing me down, or at least I didn't think it was. I had nothing to lose. I had to keep pushing. I knew IF something were to go wrong it'd more than likely be on the run leg. Running requires a lot more energy. It'll be really hot and humid by then too and I'll be more fatigued after having swam 1.9km and rode 90km. I HAD to catch Radka before the run. But not just catch her. I wanted a good lead going into the run. Just in case I needed to walk parts of it and/or make regular toilet stops.

So at 25km I passed Radka and kept pushing hard. I kept checking over my shoulder to see if she jumped on. I could see someone, assuming it was her I pushed a bit harder. Eventually I realized it was a couple of guys that I'd passed earlier that were sitting on my wheel, not Radka. When I reached the first really steep hills (22% gradient) I thought I was gonna fall off my bike. This is where I really felt my quads tighten up. The lactic was building. Once I reached the top the guys took off down the other side. I wasn't risking it, not after last weekend. The roads were dry but the outsides were covered in damp moss. I didn't see another rider the entire bike course.

The next crazy steep hills were at 75km and these hurt even more. And to make things worse I dropped my chain on a roller. I tried to madly get it back on while riding but it got jammed on my frame. I had to quickly hit the
skids, jump off and put it back on before climbing up the next hill. Soon I was back in T2. Jared was yelling to me "you've got at least 2:30". Bugger, I thought. I was hoping for more like 4. But I knew I still had to take it easy to give my body the best chance of finishing. If I bolted out of transition at my usual pace I would almost surely blow up. I needed to relax. So I sat down! I put on my socks, followed by my Compressport calf sleeves. Then my shoes. I wasn't ready to get up but I pulled myself to my feet, grabbed by GU gel ad visor and was on my way.

Relax, stay level, don't bounce and TAKE IT EASY! This is what I was telling myself as I ran out. It's not easy to 'go easy' when you've just jumped off your bike traveling at 40kph and then hit the cheering spectators and enthusiastic commentator.  But I knew if I wanted to make it to the finish I had too. I started out at 4min pace. But then Jared popped up a few km in to tell me "you've got 5 1/2 minutes". WHAT! He repeated it then said "you can run 4:45pace if you want to". 4:45?!? That's a whole minute slower per km than I'd usually run. I automatically backed it off and hit 4:10. That felt comfortable. At 8km Jared was there - this time I yelled to him "is 4:10 ok?".

I held this pace until 6km to go. But then something just swept over me, like the devil just sucked all my energy out. I went from running comfortably to feeling completely drained. I hadn't taken my gel. Instead I'd been sipping coke at EVERY aid station. I took three gels on the bike - that's almost more calories than I'd gotten in all week. I didn't want to overload my temperamental digestive system with gels. I knew one thing for sure - if I had diarrhea during the race it'd all be over. I could not risk that. 5km to go and I was out to 4:20 pace and struggling. I had to do something. I ripped open my GU and started sucking on it. Only a tiny bit at a time. Three km to go and Jared was there again... You've still got over 5 minutes. Pheeeew! I shuffled on and told myself that once I hit that carpet, once Candy jumps in with me, I'M WALKING! But once I hit the carpet I forgot about everything. I found a little extra energy to run that 100m down the finish chute to break the tape and take the win! Ecstatic, relieved, buggered! Couple interviews straight after, a quick awards presentation and then another hour or so in medical with a refreshing IV drip in my arm and I was done. (Link to post race interview here)

My Mum was finally able to take a breath. I also thought there was a good chance I'd take a nap out on the course today but nope! I made it! I beat the food poisoning! Is that all you've got...?

1st 2:45:24

Swim 2nd 27:26
Bike 1st 1:31:40
Run 1st 44:06

Who could  resist the offer to spend 10 nights in beautiful Phuket staying at the famous Banyan Tree Resort? Not me! So this year I decided to tackle the double for the first time. Today I took on the prestigious Laguna Phuket Triathlon. This was it's 20th year running and it has attracted some of the most well known names in triathlon history. And then next weekend I will race Challenge Phuket Half Iron distance.

I sprinted down the beach and dived over the crashing waves. It's a 1400m triangle in the beautiful ocean to start. Belinda and I both managed to catch a good wave in which brought us right up to Tamsin as we ran out of the ocean and then up and over a sandhill before diving back into the not so 'fresh water' lagoon. 600m across to the other side through seaweed and dark warm water before running into T2. I managed to beat the other girls across the lagoon so entered T2 in second place with Radka only 1:35 ahead. I had a great swim for me.

The roads were wet and the course was technical with sharp twists and turns. I don't have a very good record riding in the wet so I took it easy and "tried" to stay upright. I got to the first hill, less than 5km in and passed Macca. I knew Radka would not be too far away. But after I climbed up the first hill I had to descend down this crazy ass mountain that was like a slip and slide with an extra twist at the bottom for good luck! Plus there was moss all over the damp roads. It was mighty scary. It was a yellow flag zone which meant under 20kph - thank god! I survived (this one).

The next climb I thought I could make up the time I potentially lost on the descent but then... another crazy descent. And this time it was a green flag. Are you serious? No hay bails on the railings for this one? If only I had my bubble wrap suit on this would have been a blast. I was slipping and sliding and having a jolly ol time. But then it was crunch time. Slide over the edge of the guard rails or take a little tumble along the road. I opted for the second option. As carefully as I could I tipped my bike over and slid down on my hip. That wasn't too painful I thought.
I was hoping that all the sketchy sections were now outa the way but I as
wrong. The next few km's I was like a toddler on a bicycle for the first time. I was absolutely crawling around the corners and almost cried when I saw the next roller coaster hill. I got to the top and I remember saying out loud "are you serious?". I started braking but my brakes locked up. My front wheel starting sliding then my back. I started pumping my brakes but my wheels were just sliding down almost sideways and at the bottom was another sharp right hand turn. I wasn't going to make it. Quick thinking and remembering a story Holly Bennett told me of her experience last year saw me unclip and slid down on my feet. That was quite an experience. And painless. I continued on.

After the crazy hills - about 15km in I figured there was no way I was seeing Radka until the run unless the rest of the course was straight or dry. Or both. The rest of the course was a windy mess. It felt like I was just doing circles and by now I had absolutely no confidence on the bike. After almost walking the corners and two stacks Macca had caught back up. I'd drop him on the straights but he'd almost run up my ass on the turns. On one turn he came right up beside me and apologized for getting in my way. I said back to him "go ahead, I'm terrible, I've crashed twice, I just wanna make it back to T2 in one piece" but as he wasn't having a great day and didn't want to interrupt the girls race he was happy to sit behind.

Eventually I caught sight of Radka but after some more tight turns I was happy to have just 'seen her' and still be upright. With about 8km to go I could finally get up some speed and managed to catch and pass Radka and I entered T2 first.

Macca flew through Transition super fast, while I took the time to put socks on. So we ran out almost together and ended up running side by side for a bit over 5km before I put on a surge to drop the multiple Ironman World Champion. No biggie - just another day at the office ;-). The next 7km went pretty smooth. I had a good lead and got to enjoy the friendly spectators and acknowledge the amazing volunteers. The last km passes by the chapel,  past the canal village, through the elephant park before entering the home straight where Candy, the baby elephant joins me for the final 100m run down to the finish chute. I wave the Aussie flag while Candy waves her trunk. After we cross the finish line I hold the banner up high over my head while Candy takes the opportunity, while I'm distracted, to plant a big fat kiss on my cheek.

Apart from nearly wetting my pants on the bike I had an absolute ball out there. Swimming in the beautiful ocean, riding around the local streets of Phuket and then running through the elephant park. Can you believe this is my job? And THEN having Candy run down the finish chute with me - just awesome :-)

    1st    4:03:46

    Swim    4th    23:39
    Bike      1st     2:14:49
    Run      1st     1:22:49

It was 6:18am, my wetsuit and cap were on and I was ready to dive into the canal for my warm up. I pulled my goggles over my head and... SNAP! My goggles broke into my hands. Sh*t! I panicked and handed them to Jared. He always knows what to do... Then I remembered we had electrical tape in our bag. We taped them up checking to see if there was any gaps where water might leak in. They looked good. Well... sufficient. I very carefully put them on and didn't touch them till I was out of the water and heading into T1.

We took off at 6:33am. I started next to Laura Bennett as the plan was to jump onto her feet, have the swim of my life and come out of the water with an Olympian! Well... it didn't quite go exactly like that. I crawled on her legs like a little pest for a few strokes (Like Tenille once taught me) before she sent me packing. After no time at all I was in clear water, well behind the lead 4. I got to the first buoy at the end of a long straight and turned right around it while practicing my polo skills until I found some splashes up ahead. I soon came up on Melanie, tickled her feet for a bit then decided to move on. Again, no idea where to go, so I just headed 'straight', or as straight as I can swim...when following a curved canal.

Eventually I saw a buoy. Tagged it! "Now what?" I stopped, looked around to try and get some clue of where to go next...sighting bouy?...turning bouy? Left, right? It made feel a little better to find out later that the lead male also had trouble navigating the course and went in the wrong direction around one of the bouys. I eventually saw some splashes in the distance, took a sharp right and followed them. A few more polo strokes a little later and I got a glimpse of more splashes and finally the last turn buoy. I got around it and started heading back. When I saw the exit ramp I was relieved that was over...I found the finish in that maze of canals. But I was nervous to hear how much time I'd lost already.

As I ran the long transition to my bike Jared yelled "1:45 to Radka and Laura, 1min to Annabel". I almost had to ask him to repeat it but I was sure I'd heard correctly. I carefully listened to Pete Murray commentating as I entered T1 as well to be sure. And yep, he was right. Omg! So maybe they had trouble sighting on this course too. It's a beautiful swim in the Mandurah canal and I'm sure from the sky it seems pretty straight forward but I felt like an ant frantically searching for a way out.

Less than 2min down - that's a pretty awesome feeling! I was able to relax. I jumped on Ronny and instead of madly rushing to put my feet on my pedals and get stuck into it I slowly slid my feet straight into my S-works Trivent bike shoes. And surprisingly it all went so smooth and a lot quicker than when I'm trying to rush. Being so close already also allowed me to safely and slowly get out of town, through some roundabout and sharp turns. Once on the straight I put the power down and passed Laura about 5km in. I kept pushing and soon saw Annabel and Radka up ahead. Radka was in the lead but Annabel had already caught up. Once they were in sight up the road I was able to relax a little more and take my time. I closed the gap to the lead 2 at 25k. We now had a tail wind all the way back into town before repeating the lap. Instead of just going on by which I usually have to do when chasing people down I decided to sit around for a bit. I practiced pulling my drink bottle out of my Xlab drink cage mounted on the back of my bike. This is new to me so I'm still not very good at it so it was good to have a few practice goes at it. I even managed to get my bottle back in which I was really happy about. I took in my nutrition and began to think a little more tactically rather than just all out from the gun.

I was happy to see the technical officials (aka draft busters) sitting with us. During my (short) tri career I have hardly ever seen any draft buster with the womens field. Maybe they are there, but I never see them because I'm usually too far back. Annabel lead us back into town and out for lap two. The wind had really picked up by this point. I was pretty excited about this as my biking had been going really well. Once we turned back into the headwind, I was still behind for a little longer and then I went for it. I made the pass and it was a shock to the legs to get going again for the first few km's but then I felt good. I felt strong and kept pushing right to the far turn around. It was then a nice strong tail wind all the way back. A lot of time can be lost into a tail wind if you ease up so I kept the pressure on and reached T2 with over a minute lead to Annabel and close to 2 1/2min to Radka.

After I racked Ronny and headed out for the 21km run Jared told me I needed a 1:19 flat to break 4hrs. We'd discussed prior to race start what I could run today and 1:19 was definitely doable. Thats 3:45 pace. I took off, maybe a little too keen with the first 4km all under 3:40 pace. My fifth km 3:45. Perfect. I have a little time up my sleeve I thought. The first 8km felt good. I was still on pace at 10km but by 14km I was hot, dehydrated and running out of steam. I think I underestimated the temperatures today and I was definitely starting to feel it. The aid stations seemed so far apart and on some I had to slow so much to take in as much as possible. The electrolytes out on course were not my trusty GU nutrition so I stuck with water which was not enough given it was 40plus degrees out on the road. At 14km Jared told me I was 10seconds behind. I knew that'd be near impossible to pull back given the way I was now feeling, so my aim now was to cross the line on my feet. I backed off a little and got to enjoy running down the long straight into the finish chute. Spectators lining the barriers and too many hands out to high five everyone. I crossed the line in 4:03 again! I've done 4:03 a few times now but I was happy. Australian champ for another year! Annabel came in second with Radka rounding out the podium.

3rd 2:01:42


Swim   13th   23:33
Bike     1st     1:02:03
Run     3rd    36:04

Nobody needs an excuse to go to Noosa. It's a beautiful little holiday spot on the beach and once a year it hosts the largest triathlon festival in the Southern Hemisphere. The multisport festival has all sorts of different events over the entire week leading into the weekend. My long weekend at Noosa began with a 1km ocean swim on Friday. Jared and I went in the 'mates' wave so we could race each other. Jared started off super strong getting down to the water first and putting a good distance into me with his awesome dolphin diving skills. My hours in the pool kicked in however and I took the lead and didn't look back. But Jared did lose his goggles, got stung by a jelly fish and lost a leg when the shark bit it off, or so he tells me.

Saturday, between watching the criterium and the 5km bolt I participated in the Legends Triathlon - a fun teams Tri with athletes from all different sports. My team included a Surf Ironman, a Moto GP rider and myself. For some reason I was put on the run, again I think Ky Hurst and the Grimsey boys requested they not challenge me in the swim! It all started off well until Emma Carney (the original Emma as she likes to be known as) cut the bike a lap short. With Crowie first out on the run the other teams knew they had to do something special to win. And that they did. A runner up ahead jumped the little barriers on the road to get a short cut (much to the crowds amusement). This passed down the line and before I knew it everyone was jumping across. I was now in last place and HAD to come up with plan. I revisited my steeplechasing days and threw myself over the foam barriers, rejoined the group finishing mid pack. Great fun and a big crowd-pleaser.

Now for the main event, The Noosa Tri. The womens' race start was almost delayed because of a sea snake terrorising poor Emma Moffat in the water. Somehow I was the only one on the start line that didn't see it (fine by me, I would've had a heart attack if I saw a snake in the water), but I'm told Emma has quite an impressive scream that could ward off anything/anyone. Even Delly Carr got a pic of it. I must've been too focused getting a good start. My swim ended up going pretty well, 13th place I exited the water - yep, lucky 13. I knew I was going to do something special today, like maybe... stay on my feet! This is my fourth year racing the Noosa Tri and I haven't stayed on my feet for the whole race yet! Amazing record hey. 2010 - I'd been doing tri's for a few weeks at this point - I came out of the water over 5minutes down. Falling over coming out of the water was the least of my worries. 2011 - I took a dive UNDER the winners banner at the end of the race. Thought I was scoring a try for the Broncos or something. And 2012 - Shivy and I took a slip and slide on the wet cambered round about during the bike leg. Not the best record here.

So I was only 2:40 behind the main contenders out of the water this year, pretty happy with that! But that soon went out the window when the other girls ran through T1 as if the sea snake was still chasing them! Why didn't I see this damn snake??? Once I got going on Ronny It felt like I was flying past a lot of the competitors like they were standing still. The feeling you get when you have too much caffeine and everything is flying past at a million mile an hour. As I approached the turn around I saw Emma and Ashleigh motoring along. They were flying as well. Must've had their caffeine too. They looked like they were on a mission just like me. But theirs might've been stay ahead of Mel. I dropped off Ronny in T2 and somehow the girls STILL thought the snake was in transition. ITU girls don't spend much time in transition! Out on foot next and back on the chase.

I was 4th starting the run leg. But I felt like I'd just ridden 200km not 40! I could feel my hammy's seizing up from blasting an all out 40k. My calfs were tight. I felt like I had no knee lift. I was stiff and tight and wasn't sure how I'd get through the 10km run. I passed Liz about a km in, still feeling rather ordinary. At about 4km I was starting to loosen up but I still didn't feel great. My legs felt heavy and sluggish. It wasn't until about 5km when I actually started to feel good. I picked up the pace but the lead two had put time into me in the first few km's while they were duking it out for the win. I pulled back a whole minute in the last 3km and finished ON MY FEET in 3rd place! This was the first time in my triathlon career I'd finished in 3rd place (Emma ended up 1st and Ashleigh finished a close 2nd). Something different. And this was the first time I stayed on my feet for the whole Noosa tri. So all-in-all a pretty good weekend.

   1st   4:03:27

   Swim   21:03      4th
   Bike     2:19:23   1st
   Run     1:18:59    1st

Last year, the current in the Savannah River was moving at 5000 something-or-others (aka fast). My kind of swim course...'down hill' so to speak! The days leading into the race this year the hot topic on everyone's lips was about  the current being a whopping 8000 or even up to 12000 something-or-others (aka faster!). There was even a story being thrown around about a packet of chips with a garmin attached that had made it down the course in 34min. I like the sounds of that. By race morning though, it had all become 'just talk'. The water-releasing dial upstream had been turned back to 'normal'. Not quite the rapids predicted, but still plenty strong enough to give us all a helping hand along the way.

To prevent us floating away before the start of the race, we had a diving start from the jetty rather than a deep water start. I think the siren must've broke so instead of the 15 of us all diving in together it was...well, pretty funny for the spectators. The clock had started counting down but no sound alarmed so we all stood there waiting. About 6seconds later an official yelled "go, go, go". We all didn't quite know what was happening. None of us wanted to break but we didn't want to get left behind. The girls on my far right fell into the water. I looked to my left then to my right and we kind of exchanged a "yep, I think we're good to go" nod then dived in. Not quite the explosive diving start I expected but I did get off to a good start all things considered.

I was super pumped to smash this course today! The swim was dead straight so you'd think very little sighting. If I trusted my navigation completely I would have kept my head down and not sighted until I thought I was near the end but I'm not completely confident that I can swim dead straight so I probably sighted a little more than I really needed too. The sun was right in our eyes so sometimes I did a double take to sight the buoys. These are the few things I went back over after the race thinking "maybe I could have got a few more seconds here and there" but other than that... I swam hard! After the long run transition I got to my bike just as Emma Kate was leaving. "Whoa! Either she has had a shocker of I'm going well". The later was what I was hoping for. As I jumped on Ronny, Jared yelled "that's the lead just there...you and Emma Kate". I was stoked. I rolled out in control and took the lead 4km into the bike. I'd never been in this position before. I'm always madly chasing on the bike which I guess makes it easier to keep the pressure on. How do I push when I'm already in the lead and my strongest leg is yet to come? 

Sub 4! That's what I was thinking about. Keep pushing. I really wanted to break 4hrs. I started pushing hard but then we hit the bumpy, cracked, ripple filled roads. I was bouncing around like I was on a bull at the rodeo. I zig zagged from right to left trying to find the smoothest line. It didn't exist. I was getting so frustrated cos this course was perfect for me. Long steady rolling hills. But I just couldn't get into rhythm. After 40km the roads got better, for a bit. I tried to use it and kept pushing. 

Just before I dismounted my bike I took a quick look at my Garmin. 2:19. Damn! Only 1min faster than last year. I won this race last year in 4:06-high. Somehow I needed to cut 6+ minutes and I'd only made up 1min on the bike. I didn't know what I'd swam but I was hoping it was mighty fast. 

I threw my socks and runners on then grabbed the usual - race belt, visor and gel. I was in such a hurry this time though that I dropped my GU gel. I looked back briefly then thought "stuff it, the clock's not going to wait for you". Luckily I knew GU was the race nutrition sponsor so I could grab one at an aid station. Maybe not Salty the Yeti, but I'd get one. As for rushing through transitions I also dropped my goggles running up the swim exit. Clumsy! I also left them.

So onto the run my trusty husband Jared appeared to give me an update. "Your 2 1/2minutes ahead of last year, you need a 1:16 run, that's just under 3:40 pace". I quickly absorbed everything he said. I processed it and thought... I'm gonna give it a shot!

3:34, 3:33, 3:38, 3:39, 3:38, 3:38, 3:40. Hold onto it Mel, you can do this! 3:42, 3:46, 3:48... 10km done, still on pace but legs are tiring. It was a tough ask. I haven't done all that much since Vegas (3weeks ago). I've been on my semi-break. But I was gonna keep pushing to the line. Get as close to 4hrs as possible. I did the following 11km around 3:50 pace which wasn't fast enough to break 4hrs but I crossed the line in 4:03:27. I was still very happy! I got the win. I had an awesome swim. And I finished around 3minutes faster than last year. Next year 4hrs in going down!


A massive thank you has to go to so many people in the TriCoach Georgia squad and the Dream Team Youth Tri squad for making the whole trip possible. It was like an intricately orchestrated human relay performance to get Jared and myself everywhere we needed to be. In particular, thank you so much to Tony Creed (not his best day on the course but still showed he can soldier on to the very end, get it done...and take home his medal) and his wonderful family in Augusta. And to Harvey 'Slayer' Gayer (the 8-foot giant with a rocket 2.22 bike split aboard his foaming monster Shiv) and his incredible family in Athens.