Race Report: Wollongong - NSW Standard Distance Championships

Last race of the year, done. After battling through Husky with a bit of a bug in my system, I was looking forward to another crack at expressing some of the hard work I'd been doing. Combine it with the fact it was the one and only Olympic race I'd do this season, I was excited to have a bit of fun over the distance.

Swim (1.5km): 24:07

Felt great on the swim - even after sitting on the beach for over an hour after we got the boot from transition quite early. Started on the beach at the far left with fellow AP10'rs Jordan and Scott where we had a clean run out to the first can. We hit the water at pace and got stuck into it at a good effort out of the harbour and around the first can. We settled into a good rythym and had a good-sized little group.

Emo decided under 30 men merited a bit of pink. 

After the second turn, to head south, I had a bit of a lapse in focus and fell off the pace a fraction. I picked it up towards the end and excited the drink in 11th place alongside guys who were minutes ahead of me in Husky. Happy with the swim and I think it shows I have a bit more potential in the water than prior form suggested.

Bike (40km): 1:01:43

Out of the blocks, I pushed hard. Chasing a bunch of guys who gapped me in transition, I didn't want to let them get away. At the turn around on the first lap (about 8km in) I noticed there was a bit of a group riding well a minute or so ahead. I used this as motivation and tried to manage the gap as much as possible each lap.
By the third lap, the sea breeze was beginning to pick up which I was pleased about as I felt pretty slippery on the bike.
Great to have the AP10 support crew blasting the encouragement as we rolled into T2.
Happy with the numbers: 248AP, 261NP.

Run (10km): 38:22

The run felt a lot like dying. I took off at an alright clip but soon felt like crap. It was as though I couldn't get my cadence up and my legs and hips felt quite tight. I really had to focus to hold form together and had to stop to walk a couple of times to massage out a little stomach cramp.
Nevertheless, I ran well. To put it in perspective, I ran 38:22 off 248w of AP for an hour (I.e. >90%). At the Nepean Triathlon in October, I ran 37:53 (about 30 seconds faster, on an almost perfect run course) after about 51 minutes at 207w AP.
Shows I rode a lot better, and likewise improved run strength despite it being a fraction slower and feeling like death.

I ended up in 6th behind a lot of fast guys. Our AG winner was 2nd overall, not far behind AP10 Pro, and Coach, James Davy. So, I find it was a good way to the end the season and gave Alex and I lots of things to feel positive about, and to work on, going forward.

For now, looking forward to getting stuck into some training and getting a good winter under my belt. Ironman 70.3 World Championships now less than six months away, and the Australian Age-Group Ironman 70.3 Championship in Port Macquarie not long after that.

AP10 support crew thinking of their next encouraging line..

Special Thanks To...

Thanks once again to Gareth and the rest of the amazing USN Australia team who have shown me so much support - its an honour to work with such an innovative and hard-working company.
Also to Saucony Australia who have been fantastic and allowing me the chance to get my hands on the best running gear around.
Finally, to Alex Price and the rest of the AP10 team - great to finally be offically part of the squad and looking forward to getting out of 3rd gear with your guidance.