RACE REPORT : STU

My race didn’t have a perfect start I had positioned myself two rows back in the middle. as the cannon sounded the paddle boarders were too close and were blocking my swim so I had to go sideways before I could go forward.. From that point onward i tried to relax in the melee that was the swim. Exiting the swim, I felt good, relaxed but knew this was where I could make up some time.

I ride to watts and quickly settled into a rhythm passing the faster swimmers. I’ve recently been Retul’d by Freespeed and my position felt strong even in the Trade winds at Hawi. This gave me confidence and a sub 5 bike was the result!! my first ever in Kona…..

The run was hot, and although I was just off my target pace I  felt like was just hanging in there….I saw a sign at the side of the road that said ’ Pain reassures you that you’re alive’  I was alive alright…. and hurting!!

I was so glad to see the finish, there’s nothing quite like the finish on Alii Drive and I will cherish that forever.

RACE REPORT : TIM

4^th time in Kona (2005, 2008 and 2009).  Best previous result – 9hrs48 (19^th M40-44) in 2008.

Goals for 2010 – I was hoping to go between 9:20 and 9:30 (conditions allowing) and for top 5 in age group, but knowing that top 5 would take a perfect day and even then would be a big ask given the depth of the field in M40-44 (the biggest age group this year with 265 competitors).

Result – 9:29:18, 14^th in AG, 158^th overall and 5^th British amateur.  PB’s on both bike and run (5:02 and 3:10 respectively), but a disappointing swim (1:10).  3 minutes off a top-10 placing, but 9 minutes from the podium.

Worst moments –

Swim – I was hoping for a 64 or 65 minute swim.  Coming out of the water with 70 minutes on my watch was a massive blow to my prospects of achieving my goals for the day had me feeling pretty low for the next few hours on the bike.

Bike – Finding myself on my back, under my bike, at the Hawi aid station (59 miles into the bike section) it started to feel like this really wasn’t meant to be my day.  Another athlete had stopped straight in front of me, sending me straight over my handlebars, landing on my head and left shoulder.  No major damage to me (or at least none that the race adrenaline didn’t mask) and, though the chain was off, along with all my energy bars and the straw from my aero bottle, and the rear shifter was badly bent, everything still seemed to work and I got back on the road in a couple of minutes.  The aid station volunteers were fantastic through all of this, immediately forming a human shield to protect me from other riders.   All I could think was that while I was fumbling around to get my chain on the headwind I’d been slogging through to get up to Hawi might be switching round and I’d miss the tailwind back down that everyone ahead of me had benefited from.  Re-stocked with a couple of Torq bars from my special needs bag however I embarked on the 65 km/h descent (the tailwind was still there for me) fuelled by a little extra adrenaline from the crash.

Run – None.  I finally had my ironman head back on and knew what I wanted to and could achieve.  Running up out of the Natural Energy Lab was probably the most unpleasant time for me – with the breeze at our backs it felt completely still and there was no relief at all from the baking Sun. I don’t think I’ve ever walked through an aid station before, but decided to do so at the next one, to make sure I could get as much fluid on as possible before pushing on for the final 11km back to town.  The final 2k were also pretty tough as I had to put the afterburners on to get myself to the line under the 9:30 mark, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way to be honest - my finish photo tells the story of a man who did not exactly savour the finish chute.

Best moments –

Savouring the atmosphere on the swim start in the final couple of minutes before the cannon was fired, knowing that I won’t be back in 2011 (having decided to take a break after three consecutive years in Kona).

Seeing Declan Doyle (one of my training partners, who has had a run of bad luck in Kona in previous years) going past me early on in the bike section, clearly in good shape for the day ahead (though sadly his reminder to me that our races only start on the bike wasn’t enough to get me feeling positive about my own prospects for the day) and again much later in the day, still looking good on the run course.

Going through 100 miles in 4:30 and thinking I might just squeeze out a first sub-5 hour bike and pull myself back into contention, at least in terms of getting round in about 9.5 hours.

Heading out onto the run course feeling pretty good (especially compared to last year when I had nothing in my legs at that stage) and knowing that a 3:10 marathon would get me to the finish in under 9:30 (in nearly all previous years a podium-worthy time).

Being told by my girlfriend Lindsay at about mile 8 on the run that I had moved up from 45^th to 33^rd in the first 5 miles – at that rate of progress I started to believe that I might after all claw my way back up into the top 10 as I was feeling strong and was increasingly confident about running a good marathon.

Looking round after the finish to see 9:29 something on the clock, closely followed by a jug of iced water being poured over my head by one of the volunteers (I think I may have declared my love for him at the time).

Overall, despite a poor swim, some bad luck on the bike and spending a large part of the ride feeling fairly negative about my day (or as my coach, James Beckinsale, put it “with my head up my backside”), I am happy with my race, particularly the run.  Top-10 (less than three minutes ahead) was definitely possible if things had all gone my way, but realistically top-5 (9 minutes) wasn’t within my grasp on this particular day and I’m comfortable with that.  I will be back at some point to have another crack at the podium, but I don’t have any of the burning sense of disappointment I was left with last year when my race was hampered by a virus and I didn’t feel I’d been able to give my all on race day.  The whole build up to the race this year was great and I loved being in Kona with so many of my training buddies and the other British (and other) athletes I have met over the last few years.

RACE REPORT : DEC

I can’t really start the race report without a little prefix, summarising the last three visits to the big island, which had all been less than great to be honest. In 2007 within two miles of  the bike start a giddy German on aero bars decided to get up close and personal to my front wheel, resulting a death defying leap from my saddle over the front wheel hitting the ground at 25miles an hour. From that point on it was a long painful for day. 2008 left me wondering where I had left my legs as I couldn’t even get close to the watts I use to warm up on a normal training ride. It got worse on the run and spent 10 mins lying on the ground at the 23 mile mark, coursing this sport swearing I‘d never do another one.  2009 almost didn’t begin as walking down to the swim start, the anxiety of being battered for 20 mins got the better of me and my full belly decided to donate it’s contents to the Kona concrete beside the swim entrance. As you can imagine it didn’t make good viewing for all the other nervous souls entering the swim. And so 2010 loomed, could I finally race this event or would it be another “heroic effort” to get the finish line. A “completer” or a “compeeter”  which would it be?
 
Goals ? Simply to race well and have a result indicative of my ability. Time wise, to finish under 9.30 would make me happy.
 
Race morning was a first for me, as I had actually slept more than 1 hour.  I decided to have a lighter breakfast than normal with the hope that it would be easier, to hold in what I had when the butterflies woke up. It’s a such a familiar feeling now, fear and excitement mixed with  the internal dialogue which repeats,
 
“you are in control, you have done the training, nothing to fear”
 
Each year I usually get picked up by Tim Bishop a fellow competitor who I train with in London. The journey is always the same, enter the car, a blast of bravado such as “ Tim, I think I might actually win this race overall” which is greeted with chuckles and then silence. It really feels as you are about to do something very special, almost meet your maker type of stuff. Then leaving the safety of the car we head to transition and body marking, the point of no return. The atmosphere is so thick with nervous energy that if someone lit a match I reckon the whole place would go off.
 
I headed to my bike to load the days nutrition, check everything is working and battle with the race day gremlin that shouts:
 
“everybody looks faster than me, jeez look at that bike set up… why didn’t I think of that”
 
On goes the battle gear, swim hat, goggles and blue seventy “this will make you faster” swim skin.With 20 mins to go, I force down a carbohydrate gel and begin the slow procession to the water. With every stroke as I swim to the start line , I repeat to myself .
 
“it’s ok, you can do it, don’t be afraid”
 
But the truth is I am afraid. Always have been, water scares  me, water with 1700 “ A” type personalities, all willing to climb over you scares the bejesus out of  me! I manage to find Tim and tell him I will stay on his feet. At least the fire might be friendly at the start. A minute to go…. Everybody looking for space, believe or not, you actually get kicked before the gun goes off, people just become a little crazy. Booom, we are off. Now this is really make or break time for me. I will usually get to about 30 seconds  from the start before the little voices that tell me to panic start to talk and by then I‘m searching for the rescue canoe!. However this time I was so intent on swimming on someone’s toes, the voices must have been talking to someone else because I never heard them.  2 mins of fighting go by and still nothing! Game on! Tyson could hit me now and I wouldn’t stop, time to think about racing, not just surviving for once. What a relief!
 
Whilst not a great swimmer I can be confident enough to know that after a while I will get space and about 1k in this is what happened. The only problem is that if you don’t have the initial speed to get out of the melee early and grab some quick feet, you usually end up on your own. I decide that at least I would swim the shortest line possible if I couldn’t draft. This is what happened and  I’m out of the water in 1.10, 3mins quicker than ever before.
 
Transition went smoothly, and I was out on the bike quickly. Time to do some damage! It’s a crazy first couple of miles going through town as there are so many bikes close together, everybody is riding hard and people are excited and can be all over the road. I pass the place where some of my skin still remains on the pavement from 4 years earlier.  I am always now a little extra cautious around this point.
 
Soon we hit the the fabled Queen K Highway. The first part is super fast and one can easily hit 50km+ without much effort. I pass people with ease, this is normal at the start of the bike, but it continues throughout the ride. At 40 miles I am passed for the first time, as always, you check out who has the audacity to pass you. I noticed that this guy looked like Pappa Smurf and was at least 100 years old. I recognised  him as Joe Bouness from California. He is a multi time age group winner but  he much do the run with a zimmer frame! I decided to up it a little more but still in the comfort zone and drop the pensioner. I see the leaders go past on the ocean side of the road. I get excited that I am actually in a race with these super stars. The urge is to start cheering for them but side winds make sure you concentrate on staying on the bike. Every aid station I collect carbohydrate drink  and water. I decided to use a normal helmet instead of an aero variety as it could help keep my core temperature down, something that has been a problem in the past. I also wear white kit for the first time. Developed by Fusion, it has special heat resistant features and I also cover my arms with a arm coolers that when wet become extra absorbent so they hold cold water to the skin. Pretty nifty stuff. I hit the halfway point and check my watch, 2hours 38mins. I thought that this was pretty slow and a little frustrated  and decided to push on once again. It was only later  I realised I miss read my clock and I was actually 2.29.
 
The side winds just after Havi were at their gruesome best. It is amazing to see the angles of the bikes approaching you from the other side of the road, they look as though they defy gravity due to leaning so hard into the wind. One poor lady actually could not control her bike and veered across the road on a collision path for me. She somehow managed to unclip her pedals and slide to a halt, complete with sparks from her cleats, right in the middle of road. After the wind tunnel fun, I continued to push waiting for the inevitable fatigue to set in around 120k mark. It didn’t happen I continued to pass people. It is one of the few benefits to being a slow swimmer as you have continuous targets on the ride all day. I came close to town and looked at the clock and couldn’t believe the time. I felt great and It was my fastest bike split ever placing me in the top 20 amateur  bike splits on the day.
 
Again transition was smooth, deciding to take on some salt tabs and a gel flask, something I haven’t done before. Exiting the run is a special time, it is full of support, and if you are not careful that support can push you into the red very quickly. My plan was to run on how I felt, and I felt good. I clicked off the miles averaging 6.50sec per mile and got to half way in 1.29.  I thought :
 
“ok,  if I can hold on I will do 3 hours.”
 
I hit the energy lab loop and started to feel fatigue for the first time in the day. It is usually the hottest part of the course and it was the first time I felt hot. The thermometer which someone mashistically placed towards the end of the loop said it was a cool 40c.  On leaving this section I saw my pace drop. It is amazing how hard 7 min miles seem when you are tired. I again begin to talk to myself and this is where experience actually becomes so important. In every run there is a stage roughly 25/35 k when  your body says “listen, I’ve had enough, stop hurting me! But if you ignore this for long enough, it actually goes away! So I concentrate on drinking at each aid station, think about my technique and put a target on the guy in front. The pain know set in,  there is an overwhelming need to stop, just for a min, but again experience tells me once you stop, you are gone, so I shuffle on at 7.30 pace. With 5k to go I feel ok again and push for home. It’s around this point you ask yourself all the questions that you fear you may not have the strength to answer. I could shuffle home now and everything will be ok,
 
“I have  had a decent race and everyday will be happy”
 
but it’s not in my thoughts, leaving it all out on the course is something I can honestly say I have done in every race and it wasn’t going to change.  Two guys pass me and I hang onto the back of them.  We get to the last turn on alii drive and there is only three mins running left. One surges and go with him, both in my age division so after 9 hours racing it comes down to an 800 foot race. The surge leaves just two of us going hard, now this my quads are screaming “mercy!“. But I ignore and hold on, knowing that there is no way he will beat me in a sprint ( my reasoning behind this confidence?) he had skinny legs! We see the finish line, he goes, I go and as soon as my shoulder passes his, he drifts backwards. I’m safe! However I still have 30 meters to go, do I slow? The sprint has brought me in shooting distance of another target. This time my head says no but my body says faster. 5 metres left and I’m on his shoulder, he seems surprised and matches me for speed. 2 metres left and eyeballs are out and teeth are on display.  I dip for the line and ruin his finisher photo. Mine too come to think about it. But it’s a race and today I was a “compeeter” rather than a completer
 
I finished with a time of 9.21, swim 1.10, bike 4.52, run 3.11, finishing in the top 50 amateurs in the world and 16th in my age group.
 
A special thanks to Team TBB and Brett Sutton, my training buddies Tim and Stu and Jenny at Freespeed, my brother Colin and his wife Katharina who have witnessed all my disasters in Kona, and finally to Tam, I couldn’t have done this without you.

The buoys are all out on the swim course, the finish line is nearly complete and the promotional Ford cars are being rolled into position… 12 hours to go…

We’re all racked and ready to go. I’ve eaten early and now just lying in bed hoping for some sleep…..

I feel very good about this race and am really looking forward to it. The only thing I find daunting is the wind gusts on the descent off Hawi but I’ll have to leave that up to the weather gods.

Have a look at the transition pics - it’s pretty special to have transition on a pier in a Hawaiian ocean

Aloha and mahola for following our week. Will check in after a long day…

Jen

24 hours to go now and soon the new World Champions will be crowned. Richard was at the press conference yesterday and all the main contenders looked relaxed and looking forward to getting started.

Jen’s predictions for the mens race:

Andreas Raelert

Rasmus Henning

Terrenzo Bozzonne

For the women’s race I predict that Julie will make things very interesting……

You can add your predictions on the comments

Today was all about the Kona underpants run. This is an institution that started as poking fun at the Euro athletes wandering around town in their speedos. It is now an event in itself and needless to say the Freespeed team were there in force.

We had a fun evening tonight as guests of TriGrandPrix at a concert at the Sheraton hotel by Howie Day. Wherever you go at the moment in Kona you get a goodie bag given to you containing lots of products that you never knew you needed. The girls seemed to appreciate them on this occasion though.

Last night we met up with Sebastian from SLS 3 and tried out his compression socks. These are the real deal - medical grade compression - and they were so comfortable no one took them off to walk home.

Dec is wearing the normal style while the rest of us are sporting the special Kona issue with wikiwiki down the back of the sock - the Hawaiian word for quick. 

A short drive up the road from Hawi gives you some pretty impressive views and three of the team created a bit of a stir at the lookout point in their brand new Fusion cooling kit.