XTERRA: MOTATAPU

Happy New Year – a bit late I know.
Even though the title of this blog specifically refers to 2013, it seems that life, and indeed racing, goes on in 2014! A year ago, the thought of racing in a World Championship seemed almost crazy; yet here we are, I’ve been over to Hawaii, and managed to survive my very first major event! 

And now I have well and truly got the bug, so it's time to look at qualifying all over again...

  

So my 2014 got off to a rather awesome start, in the picturesque setting of Lake Wanaka and the Motatapu valley.
The event referred to as ‘The Motatapu’ began back in 2005, offering a mountain bike or marathon option, and attracted 1,000 participants. Now, in 2014, it is actually now more of a festival of multisport, with five different events all held on the same day and involving 3,700 participants! Needless to say, I was signed up for the Xterra UDC Finance Triathlon; a 2km swim in Glendhu Bay, a 47km mountain bike through the Motatapu Valley, and a 15km run up and around the Miners Trail above Arrowtown. 

My southern excursion actually began on the Wednesday before the race, with Mum and I deciding to make a long weekend of it, and we flew down to meet my sister Jemma in Queenstown. After finally managing to squish all our gear into Jemma’s car (3+ overnight bags, 2 bikes, and a kayak), we slowly crawled up over the Crown Range to the outlet of Lake Wanaka where we were to be staying. Getting there early meant there was plenty of time for checking out the course and the many other beautiful spots around Wanaka and Arrowtown. It also meant we had a chance to catch up with Nick and Judy who had been so good to me whilst I was over in Hawaii. Nick cooked a delicious meal, and it was so good to catch up and get some handy local hints before the race. 

                    
So, race day; it was absolutely stunning weather! A nice leisurely 10.15am start meant the air was cool, but not cold; the sun was out; and the lake was glass!!
There was a nice relaxed atmosphere at race briefing, and on the start line at the Lake’s edge… perhaps a little too relaxed, because many of us didn’t hear the countdown, and I was still in the process of putting my goggles on when the gun went off! I definitely paid for this a little, getting kicked in the head a few times soon after the start. But I soon found somebody’s hip to stick on for a majority of the first lap; it meant I could relax a bit and ease into the race. No such luxury on the second lap however, and I started to cramp a little towards the end of the swim, and whilst heading up the chute to transition. My first transition was tidy, but a bit more speed would be helpful. Sarah Backler (a Pro competitor from Tauranga) was out of the water close behind me, and her quick transition, along with my niggly cramp, meant she was able to pull away from me soon after leaving the swim-bike transition.

 

I was soon hooking into my electrolyte-filled brew, and after around 20mins the cramp had gone and I was starting to settle in to a nice rhythm. The start of the bike section had a number of fairly shallow river crossings which we great fun as we could hit them at full pace. I’m not sure the runners appreciated getting splashed though…
Overall, the bike was pretty uneventful, no major climbs, and all on pretty well groomed 4WD tracks. But right towards the end we dropped down onto the Macetown track and encountered some fast descents and a number of bigger, deeper, river crossings. Fortunately for me, I had been up here with friends earlier in the week, so I had a good idea of what to expect. These crossings were still mostly rideable, although in typical Hannah fashion, I had to fall off on at least one – and of course it was one where there was a group of people watching! After a quick dip and a giggle, I was back up on the bike and got away without losing too much skin or time.

Arriving into T2, the signs were a little confusing and I managed to take a slight wrong turn – a mistake a few had made apparently. Thanks to Craig who pointed me in the right direction! Again, I didn’t lose a who lot of time here, just looked a little silly having to run my bike into transition as it seemed quicker than getting back on and riding the last little section after having to jump a ditch. After ditching my bike, and switching Camelbaks, I was off on the run.

We didn’t have too long to find our running legs before we hit the first hill; a seemingly never-ending hill! I was soon red-lining, although the legs didn’t feel like they were making much progress up the steep gravel track. We had about 45-50mins of pretty solid climbing until we reached the highest point of the race (phew!). The one aid station on the run was ideal! There were heaps of kind and enthusiastic volunteers that gave me not only a nice cold coke, but also a huge dosing of encouragement, explaining that I was 5^th overall (and first non-pro). With my new-found motivation, I made my descent down the hill as fast as I could, with a few dodgy moments on the slippery grass! The views from the top were incredible, but it was hard to find time to look up without ending up going head over heels. The last part of the run was back on the same track we had followed for the bike section, which meant going back through the river crossings from earlier in the day. This was also good fun, and I found myself bounding through the water as hard as I could – probably looking like a bit of a goober, but I didn’t care!

Running into the finishing chute was a fantastic feeling. There was a huge amount of support at the event, and I felt pretty special getting so many cheers as I ran up to the finish. The event was the longest I have completed so far, so I was glad to make it home, still smiling, and in one piece. Position-wise, things stayed as they were at the top of the run course, and I came home as 1st Amateur Female, and 5th Overall behind 4 very talented girls in Nicky Samuels, Renata Butcher, Liz Orchard, and Sarah Backler. But perhaps most importantly, I had qualified for the World Champs in Hawaii all over again!

                         

Thank you to all the event organisers and volunteers; it is an incredibly well run event and is in probably one of the most beautiful locations in the world – aren’t we so lucky here in little old NZ?! Congratulations to Nicky and Braden on their wins and to Nick, Pete, Will, and the many others I have met through events who were also out there smashing it.

Thanks to my coach Brendon for all his help with training and the lead up to the race; to Massey University Sports academy; and to my awesome race support crew, family, and friends - Craig and Wanphen, Mum, and Jem – who did so much for me on race day and in the days leading up to the race.
Bring on The DUAL.

XTERRA: THE RACE

The racing format we now know as Xterra, started on the island of Maui in 1996. It began as a duel of the fittest, largely between mountain bikers and triathletes, but it has gone on to attract a variety of outdoor enthusiasts since. Although it had very humble beginnings, Xterra is now a global brand, and the fastest-growing multisport event in the world. The Xterra points series consists of more than 70 races in the US. Further afield, the Xterra World Tour holds championship events in Saipan, New Zealand, South Africa, the Czech Republic, Italy, Brazil, Japan, Germany, France, and Switzerland. The top ranking athletes from each of the national championship events are invited to compete at the Xterra World Championship each October in Kapalua, Maui.  For me, this meant racing alongside over 800 other athletes, with 9 women in my 20-24 age group.

I arrived on Maui at around midday on Tuesday the 22^nd October along with my trusty support crew – Mum, Dad and my sister Jemma. We hired a car, and headed north east around the island to our accommodation in Kahana; around 10mins drive from race HQ. I was fortunate enough to get in touch with a few of kiwi’s who were competing; largely through friends of friends. Two of whom were Nick and Judy Kensington. Possibly the loveliest people you could ever hope to meet. They had spent a year living in Maui, after competing in the World Champs the year before. Nick and Judy were awesome, and kind of ‘took me under their wing’ for the last few days leading up to the race. I was able to go over the swim course with them a few times, as well as the bike and run course. I biked the MTB course on Wednesday with Judy and although it was soon clear that the course was fairly tough, and it turned out to be longer than previous years; but we just cruised around and had an awesome afternoon. It turned out that biking the course on Wednesday was a wise decision, as the heat only worsened over the next couple of days, and being such a long, tough course, my tapering would not have been as effective if I had tackled it a day or two later.

On Thursday I meandered around the run course after a morning swim and I was stoked to discover that most of the hill climbing was over and done with in the first half of the run. After completing the run on Thursday I had now seen the entire course, and I was super excited. It was going to be very hot, but a lot of fun! Leading up to the race I was careful to taper well and stuck closely to the programme that had been set for me by Brendon (Thanks Brendon!). This meant that when it came to race day on Sunday, not only was my body well rested, but I was mentally amping for a race! Bring it on!!!

The race started at 9am, after a quick blessing from a local chief and the American national anthem. The pro’s started us off, bang on 9am. Two minutes later it was the men and after a further two minutes I found myself sprinting into the water with the women’s field. I was pretty happy with my swim, and I came out of the water first in my age group; still feeling pretty fresh. The conditions were the calmest they had been all week with next to no surf!

The 32 km mountain bike started off awesome also. The first few miles were mostly uphill with plenty of meandering corners and sandy patches; making for a slow but interesting first few miles. The course was also pretty congested with competitors, adding to the challenge. I held a pretty consistent place amongst the bikers around me in the first few miles and was happy with how I was going. After reaching the highest point of the race, we began the first major descent. All was going well until we hit a steep section of single track that had a fair few tight corners and sandy patches. It was here that things got a wee bit nasty for a few of us!! I seemed to be in a relatively big group of riders at the time which I found tricky (I definitely need more practise riding in bunches). At one point during a downhill section my handle bars clipped a tree and the next thing I knew I was down a bank with my bike on top of me. No major injuries though so climbed back up, checked my chain and gears, and jumped back on… only to fall straight back off and down the bank... again. I hadn’t even notice that my seat had been twisted 90 degrees in the first fall, so when I went to get back on my butt slipped straight back off again, duuuhhh!!

I was still all in one piece though (mostly), and my bike was still in order other than the fact that my handle bars had been turned so far that they had been forced over the top tube. I have since deduced that this came about when the handle bar jabbed me in the ribs. After a few seconds of pulling and a bit of swearing under my breath; I managed to correct them. And this time I was careful to straighten my seat! After having a wee giggle to myself about my ‘muppet’ moment I was back on the bike. I had lost a bit of time with this incident though and was now a bit sore. I was also now missing my drink bottle, and a couple of GU’s which had become dislodged during the tumbles.

Why it pays to stay on your bike...

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the last of the blonde moments (perhaps I should try dyeing my hair another colour). After reaching an aid station and getting another Gatorade bottle into my bottle cage, I was hot and thirsty and desperately wanted a cold drink... but I should have waited for a more convenient time. Riding downhill with one hand on the handle bars and one hand holding a bottle is not a smart move; over handle bars again, and this time onto stones. Rats!

My trusty bike and I were still all good though so I didn’t lose too much time. The biggest knock I got this time was a knock to my confidence. Knowing that I still had over an hour to go on the bike, and then 10ks of trail running, meant that I was now just keen to get through without any more major falls. Stepping back my speed on the downhill meant that I was able to get through more or less unscathed (only one minor fall when I hit a deep patch of sand). And after some more climbing, meandering, and a few downhill sections, I was back to T2, and was in third place in my division.

Because I had backed off a bit of the last section of the ride, my legs still felt pretty fresh. I loved the run, and managed to make up some of the time I lost on the bike. There were a lot of people really struggling with the intense heat on the run so I was able to pass a fair few (although mainly men). Although we had tattoos on our calves illustrating out division, it was really hard to see them by this stage of the race and I was unsure about where I was placed in the field. Overall the run was incredibly hot, but relatively uneventful. Seeing the finish line in any race is the best feeling ever , but on a scorching day like today, in the company of such fantastic athletes and with my family watching on from the side of the finishing chute, it was extra special. I was incredibly stoked to gain 2^nd place in the 20-24 age group, and also the 3^rd fastest under 25 finisher. Not only had I completed the race and absolutely loved it, I had achieved my goal of finishing in the top 3 in the world, in my age group. Stoked.

I just want to thank everyone who helped me get there and make it all happen. Thanks to my sponsors; Lysaght consultants, Cycle Obsession, Smiths Sport Shoes, and Ocean Blue Gym for your support. Also, thanks to the entire North Harbour Triathlon Club, and in particular those who I have been training with a lot. The North Harbour Squad has been an awesome and very welcoming club to be a part of since moving to Auckland earlier this year, and I have met the most amazing, inspirational and hardworking people. Also thanks to those back at home in the BOP, including my awesome team mate ‘Crazy’ Craig Jones, Steve Lake, and many others who have helped me out with trainings, advice and encouragement; it has all meant a lot. I would also like to make mention of the Hoare family (family friends of ours from Te Puke) who adjusted their travel plans to come over to Maui and cheer me on. Thanks guys!

Last but certainly not least, thanks to my family (also known as my support crew, photographers, managers, organisers, and well actually everything-ers). You guys are awesome and I am stoked you all jumped at the opportunity to come over and share the experience with me. Oh, and we are already planning for another trip next year hopefully!!! Wooohooo!

I hope to have a further post up in the next few days, just looking back at the journey to Xterra. But for now, you can find more photos and information here:
https://www.facebook.com/Hannah.Wells.Triathlete 

THE MOTU...

The Horizon Energy Motu Challenge is regarded as the North Island’s, and one of the country’s, premier multisport events. It is a demanding but fun event, which caters for many levels of athlete; from the first-timers having a go in the team’s event; to world renowned elite athletes such as Richard and Elina Ussher, and local favourite Sam Clark, who are vying for the individual title.

The race has four stages: a 65km Mountain Bike; a 17km Run; a 52km Road Cycle; and a final multisport stage involving a 27km Kayak, 8km Road Cycle, and a 3km Run. For this years event I teamed up with ‘Crazy’ Craig Jones again as Team Lysaght Consultants Racing. ‘Crazy’ would be doing the MTB and Multisport stage, and I would be doing the Run and Road Cycle.

We arrived at the legendary Ranui Motel in Opotiki on the Friday night, before Saturday’s race. After settling in to our cosy room, we headed off to the race briefing which was in the local theatre just down the road. The race briefing was in typical multisport fashion – relaxed and casual. After the briefing I had some of Mums amazing smoked salmon frittata for dinner and got into bed for an early night. At about 2am we were woken by a massive storm that had come over… ‘Arghhh I had to road ride in this tomorrow!?’ I soon realised there was nothing I could do about this at 2am and I managed to get back to sleep.

Luckily, the storm came and went pretty fast, and when I woke at 5am it was much more settled. We headed down town to the start of the race; the Mountain Bike stage. After seeing ‘Crazy’ off, Mum and I headed through the gorge to the MTB/Run/Road Cycle transition. The drive took a couple of hours and by the time we arrived the wind had picked up massively! We weren’t going to escape the notorious Motu winds after all.

After setting up my road bike in transition I had a bit of time to wait and watch as the mountain bikers began coming in, as well as getting ready to run. While waiting in my running gear for ‘Crazy’ to come in and hand over the transponder, a lady came up to me in a bit of a panic and asked if I was riding the ‘black and yellow Scott bike’. “Yes?” I replied hesitantly. She went on to inform me that my front tyre had just blown… Rats! Luckily I had plenty of help around me, and my wheel was taken away to get a new tube while I completed the run leg (A big thanks to Craig and Jim). Poor ‘Crazy’ had been suffering with the flu for the entire week before the race; he had a bit of a tough time on the Mountain Bike leg. When he came in I could see he his lungs were giving him trouble, and we had a bit of time to make up. So off I went...

17km of bush running. I was in my element! Actually, I got a bit too excited and ended up reaching the 4km mark in just under 15mins. I quickly reminded myself I still had a long way to go (including a 52km road bike) so I pulled my pace back a wee bit. The run was just awesome. I managed to pull back 11 places over the 17km, finishing in 1 hr and 16mins. Time went by reasonably quickly on the run, and once I got back to transition I realised I had forgotten to eat anything! Oops. I shoved a chomp or two in my gob as Uncle Bruce, ‘Crazy’ and Mum all helped me put on my bike shoes, helmet, glasses and gloves. During transition ‘Crazy’ told me that Heather Logie (Crazy’s friend – and soon to be my friend) was only a couple of minutes ahead. Heather was part of the Cycle Obsession Team – who are good friends of ours (and who also sponsor me) so we had a bit of friendly rivalry going. It was all on! :)

I had about 4 cars of supporters (consisting of the family and the Lysaghts Consultants employees) tracking me during the ride. They were stopping every so often to cheer as I rode by. Every time I went past I couldn’t help but give them a big smile. Good work team – you guys were awesome! I caught up to Heather not long before the notorious Trafford’s Hill. She was struggling a bit with cramp after the run and was riding with two other guys in a bunch. The guys ended up dropping off, leaving Heather and I to tough it out together. I managed to create a slight gap on the way up Trafford’s Hill (with my strength being climbing). However, she soon came whizzing past me on the downhill. I managed to jump on the back of her as she flew past, and I wasn’t letting go…

When we got to the bottom of the steep part of the hill, I began to try and pick up the power through the legs again; only to find they were now hurting. Not eating earlier had come back to bite me in the butt – quite literally. My hamstring and gluts had well and truly cramped up. I told heather that my legs were in a bad state and that I didn’t think I would be able to lead. She admitted that she wasn’t feeling 100% either, so our trudge back to transition together began. There was plenty of chat on the long windy road to transition. Heather was fantastic company, and thanks to her I made it back to transition without losing too much time. We got off our bikes and gave each other a big hug. She really pulled me through the last part of the ride, as I was really quite sore by the end. I admire her for her awesome personality and gutsy attitude. I was also pretty stoked to be able to finally meet Heather as I had previously heard a lot about her. She is the ex-World Single Speed MTB Champion and her mountain biking skills are unbelievable. If only some could rub off onto me! :)

After completing the 52km road ride section in 1hour 44 minutes, it was Crazy’s turn to try and smash the paddle. As usual, he did just that. Despite Crazy’s hydration system on the kayak not working the entire kayak, he was able to bring us home strong. He crossed the line at 8 hours and 14 minutes; making us the first Mixed Team home. Awesome! To top things off, I was able to have a good chat with Richard Ussher after the race; he gave me some great tips for Xterra (AHHH star struck!!). Not only did Richard and Elina both race amazingly, but I was also blown away by how nice and down-to-earth they both were. There really are some awesome people in this sport! :)

‘Crazy’ and I were a little disappointed to not break the 8 hour mark as that was our aim (as well as placing first in the mixed teams); but given that the race wasn’t perfect and that ‘Crazy’ had been ill the entire week leading up to the race, I think we did pretty well! I was also stoked that I was able to achieve the fastest female time for the 17km Run (beating second fastest, Elina Ussher, by 8 minutes).

All in all, it was a very successful and enjoyable day for Team Lysaght Consultants Racing. We had a lot of fun and I was stoked with all the support we had at the race. Congratulations to the other Lysaght Consultants teams (Team Alcohooligans, and Team Fire Breathing Ducklings). It was great to see everyone out there enjoying the day! And a big congrats to Dad and his team mate Jim, who rode as a team in the Motu 160 for Seeka Kiwifruit Industries. Woohoo! Go Dad! For me personally, I think I can learn a lot from this race; particularly when it comes to eating and drinking! I really felt the effects of not eating or drinking well in this race. It has made me realise how important it is going to be for me to monitor nutrition and hydration more carefully when racing Xterra. Not only will I be out racing for over three hours, it is going to be in some pretty intense heat! 

Well people, that’s it for the races here in NZ in the lead up to Xterra; wow time has flown by! Again I want to give a massive thanks to those who have made this Xterra campaign possible, including friends, family, and of course my sponsors: Lysaght Consultants Ltd, Ocean Blue Papamoa, Smith’s Sport Shoes Tauranga, and Cycle Obsession Mt Maunganui. I am very excited (and nervous) to give it all I have got. The next few weeks are going to be a massive learning experience for me (being so new to the sport and having never raced overseas before). But I plan on taking in as much as I can and doing my best. I cannot wait to get the chance to race against the World’s best! Yeeeoooow!!!

THE BIG 'O'

The UltrAspire Big 'O' is a trail run, organised by Lactic Turkey Events, which takes in the scenic tracks around Lake Okataina, near Rotorua. There are 35km, 21km, or 10km options, and I chose to participate in the 21km event; or at least that's what I thought...

The race had a leisurely start time of 10am; so after registering at 9am it was back to the car to tune in to RadioSport and keep up to date with what was happening in the America's Cup. The weather couldn't have been more different to what was happening in San Francisco. While Team NZ's America's Cup race being called off after exceeding the race time limit due to light winds; we were sat in the car sheltering from what were some wet, windy, and generally wild, weather conditions. Still, my race had to go on.

The race began on farmland. We headed out on what was a nice undulating course... for the first 5-10mins. Then we started hitting the hills. The first hill we reached was so steep it was a lot quicker to power walk up it, rather than run. While scrambling up the hills in the farm land, lungs going full-bore, one of the guys in our leading bunch looked across to me and said “Holy sh*t I didn’t expect to be walking this early!” I found this quite funny at the time (even though I was feeling a decent amount of 'hurt'). Little did we know that there were many more 'scrambling' hills to some!

After the farmland, there was a section of gravel road and we made our way up to the top of a range of hills. Unfortunately, due to the inclement weather conditions, the probable view was blocked by mist and clouds. It was still a nice run along the top. We then entered a section of recently felled forest and had to do a bit of climbing over trees and branches, before heading into some native bush. There was no obvious track through most of the bush sections, and instead we followed tape markers which were tied to the trees. There was quite a bit of supplejack which meant we were often climbing through vines and canes. The bush was so awesome; so beautiful and lush. You really can't beat running freely through bush like that. The wet weather, and extremely muddy track just added to the adventure!
After about 1hour 20min of running through what was largely bush, we popped out to a camp where the drinks station was placed. I was getting a bit concerned about the time at this stage as I remember hearing that the drinks station was about half way around the course... 1hour 20min...halfway!? This is when I first realised I may be in for a bigger day than I had expected!

Never mind though! Soldier on :)

 

I grabbed a bit of R-line sports drink from the station, and headed off towards yet another big uphill. Within 10mins I found myself walk/running/scrambling on all fours. The steep and muddy terrain meant that the climb was slow and hard work. At the top, it was a bit more bush, before climbing a fence or two, and heading out onto more farmland. This farmland section was quite long and exposed, and by now the weather had worsened; so it was just a case of head down and keep going!

The course did not follow any track, instead you had to run to each marker. The course was actually marked very well by the organisers; with markers every 5-20 metres. However despite this, at times it was a struggle to see the next marker in the dense misty weather. Up a few more hills (including one covered in gorse - ouch!) and we eventually started feeling as though we were getting closer to civilisation.

I was watching the time on my watch; 2 hr 15min… 2hr 30mins… 2 hour 40min… surely we are getting close?!

At 2 hour 50mins I arrived back at camp, third person home and first female home. After crossing the finish line I went over and joined the two guys who finished before me. They looked how I felt; pretty spent; they then told me I had just run 27.5km not 21km?! I was actually kind of relieved to hear this as that explained the massive race time!! (I was getting worried I was just very very slow!) Many of the people coming across the finish line looked exhausted and saturated, but happy (and relieved) to see the finish. This was the longest distance I have run before so I was pretty happy to hold up the whole race. I think many people had the same feeling!

My hat goes off to those who completed the 35km run, which turned out to be 51km…WOW. What a distance! Awesome achievement.
Again, a big thanks to the organisers and sponsors. A great event, and I might just have to come back next year so perhaps I can finally see that view from the top of the range :)

It is now almost exactly one month until Xterra! Eeek! The nervous excitement is building...but first, it's time to shift my focus to the Motu Challenge, where I will reunite with my Lysaght Consultants team-mate 'Crazy' Craig Jones.

Looking forward to it!

MONTY'S REVENGE

The Robinson Law Monty’s Revenge is a 55km multisport event, based out of Ohope in the Bay of Plenty. The guy who sparked it all off in the 1990s was Monty McGougan; a local legend and high performer in the local surf club. He had the idea of creating a multisport race as training for the surf club members and it's just morphed from there; past winners are a who's who of multisport from Sophie Hart and Rachel Cashin to Gordon Walker and Ben Fouhy. It involves trail running, mountain biking, and kayaking as an individual, pair, or as a team doing one stage each. I was to be racing in a 2-man mixed team, Team Lysaght Consultants, along with ‘Crazy’ Craig Jones. ‘Crazy’ Craig is another local multi-sporter who I have been lucky enough to train with when I am back at home. He’s a laugh a minute off the course, and an absolute machine on it.

It was a stunning morning in Ohope and a leisurely race start (10am), along with the awesome beach location, meant a series of random photos were in order.
See exhibit A below…

This year’s event began at the Maretotara Reserve, with a ‘Le Mans’ style start to the mountain bike leg. Although being a notoriously gnarly multisport event, this was not your typical dash for the bike; instead we sprinted up a stream which was knee deep in places!  But before long, I was off on my bike and about 10mins in we began an epic climb up and over the hill towards Whakatane. It was around 50mins of grunty climbing before I reached the top, with some sections “kissing the handle bars in granny gear” steep! The 360° views at the top definitely helped dull the pain a little though – Awesome. 

Photo Courtesy of Bruce Belcher

Photo Courtesy of Bruce Belcher

Then the descent; slow and easy for a start, with some pretty dodgy sections of loose gravel; but soon out onto farm land where we had to jump a fence, and scramble up a 15m bank – with bikes in tow. It wasn’t too far from there before I popped out by the Whakatane river and I handed over to ‘Crazy’ for the paddle leg; first female off the mountain bike.

‘Crazy’ Craig smashed it – like totally smashed it; he passed around 10 people, and came away with the fastest overall time for the paddle leg. He handed over the transponder looking like he had certainly left everything on the course. I was soon off up the stairs and into the final leg – the 12km trail run.

Photo Courtesy of Bruce Belcher

 Stairs, stairs, and a hill climb - about 20mins of it! But all worthwhile as it led to a really nice part of the run – undulating bush track – my favourite! I did have a few confusing moments through here though; there was no one around me and tracks were tricky to follow in places. It was a relief when I dropped down onto the beach and saw a marshal. I then continued around the coastline on rocks for a few kilometres. However, unbeknownst to be, I had missed part of the track – along with another guy I was following.  We ended up having to dive into the sea and swim for a few metres (rather refreshing at this time of year!!). Then all that remained was a 3km dash along the hard sand to the finish to also take out the title of fastest female in the run.

All in all, it was a fantastic little local event, with a pretty gnarly course which really kept you on your toes throughout the race. Craig and I managed to take out first mixed team, and first placed 2-man team, along with our individual titles on each of the legs. Gotta be happy with that! 

Big thanks to the EBOP Multisport Club and all those who helped make the event happen; including the major sponsor, Robinson Law. Also, of course, a big shout-out to our teams naming sponsor, and my major sponsor, Lysaght Consultants! Along with all those other businesses and supporters who continue to make my training and competing possible.

Team Lysaght Consultants will be out in the hills again in around a month’s time, this time at the infamous Motu Challenge; can’t wait!

SEVEN WEEKS...

I thought I would do a quick update on the sponsorship I have received recently. The awesome support from my sponsors helps to provide me with all the equipment I need, to train as hard as I can, leading up to the World Champs (only 7 weeks away ?! eeek!)

Just recently, I have been given a new pair of Asics runners and two running tops from Smiths Sport Shoes Tauranga, a new team race suit and t-shirt from Lysaght Consultants Ltd, and a six month gym membership from Ocean Blue Fitness, which I am able to sell in order to raise funds to get me to World Champs.

My major sponsor, Lysaght Consultants Ltd, have also recently given me $1500 towards triathlon gear and getting to Hawaii. This will be a massive help, and I am so thankful for their generosity.

As a bit of a 'thank-you' to Lysaght Consultants, I baked up a storm (with help from Mum!) and delivered morning tea to the team.

Afghans, Lemon tarts and good old sausage rolls….mmmmmmm. True athlete’s food ;) They were stoked!

I will also be providing some swim coaching to some of the staff at Lysaght Consultants. The company enters a number of teams (made up of their employees) into local events during the season. Therefore a couple of the guys are looking to improve their swimming techniques to increase the companies chances of taking out some of the corporate events. Hopefully I will be able to pass on some tips and get a good session in with these guys! 

First swim session with the Lysaght's crew will be this Monday (9^th of September), bring it on!

NDURO WINTER SERIES - RACE 2

Last weekend I came home to indulge in 45km of single-track awesomeness. 

The Galaxy Travel Winter Series, run by NDuro Events, consists of 3 races, ranging from 15 to 50km, in Rotorua's Redwood Forest. Last weekend was race two, and provided some great conditions - the tracks were riding perfectly, and we had nice mild temperatures out on the course.

There was a good turnout, with 3 course lengths being offered in this particular event; 15km, 30km, or 45km. There were 6 other girls entered in the open category for the 45km race, with almost an hour separating the first and last finisher.

The race started with a climb and was straight into a section of 'Genesis' that both Dad and I agreed was 'pretty munty' - almost everyone had to get off bikes and push here (too many people meant it got too messy to try and ride).

After Genesis was 'Rockhop' (which I had never done before), and then into 'The Dipper' (an old time favourite). The field had spread out by now, allowing  a pretty quick through here and onto 'Rose Bank' and 'Tahi' (both of which were also new to me). The track was undulating in places, and this took a bit out of my legs. There was also a big puddle/creek that you had to get off your bike for through - apparently some people attempted to ride it, only to end up in the drink!

Back onto the familiar (very familiar) terrain of the 'Creek Track', before heading up Nursery Road to 'Mad If You Don't', 'Ball and Chain', 'Yellow Brick Road' and 'Sandy Skid Road' - some more self-explanatory than others. 'Pondy New' led onto the 'Chinese Menu' tracks (i.e. 'Chop Suey', 'Sweet and Sour', etc) before hitting the dreaded Direct Road.

Legs were getting tired now - there had been such a huge amount of single track already - so Direct Rd was harder than usual. Unfortunately, my back was starting to hurt quite badly, and I had to stand up on pedals every so often to try and stretch it out. I have had 'niggly' back pain a few times when cycling, but today was especially bad.

'Hot X Buns' was the light at the end of the Direct Rd tunnel of pain. It is a grade 4 track which started out with a couple of nasty climbs, but soon turned downhill and was SO MUCH FUN! It was the most technical track of the race by far, and with my body being pretty tired after the big climb up, I found I really needed to concentrate. A fair few people bailed on this track.  

Still buzzing from the epic downhill, it was time to climb once again; back up through 'Lion Trail' and to the top of 'Tikorangi'. My back was now giving me real grief and I couldn't push hard up the hill as I usually would. Luckily, the end was in sight, and only a steady descent of 'Tikorangi' and 'Exit Trail' remained. I finished up in 4th place, behind some tough competition. Not a bad result considering the issues with my back, and the fact that a single track event of this length was all new to me. Oh, and I can't not mention that Dad took out the top spot in the 30km Mens Classic race. Nice work old fulla!

Overall, this was one of the most fun-filled races I have done; so much world class single track! But at the same time, having that much single track in a race also made it a super tough event.

NOTE: Sweet new shorts from cycle obsession!!

If you aren't familiar with the Redwoods, and want to know what on earth all those track names refer to, check out the link below:
http://www.rotoruanz.com/experiences/mountain-bike-trails#mtb_map

Or, if you also want to have a go at the Winter Series events, head to:
http://www.n-duro.co.nz/winter/evdesc.php