SafeGuard Active 5150 Bohol, Philippines – 1st

Earlier this year I took my first 5150 win at the ‘Regent 5150 Triathlon’ held at Subic Bay in the Philippines.  This race was a big catalyst in my decision to sign up for the ‘SafeGuard 5150 Triathlon’ as I really wanted to win both 5150 triathlon events in the Philippines. Normally at this time of year I would race Noosa 5150 (a race which I have done for over 10 years). With Noosa being held just one week before ‘SafeGuard 5150’ I chose to give Noosa a miss so that I could be in the best possible physical shape.

Race Day

The race location for ‘SafeGuard 5150’ in the Philippines was quite magic with the transition area literally on the beach. The swim was a deep water start over a 1 lap swim course in choppy water. As soon as the gun fired I was off and swimming hard headed to the first turn buoy towards the far end of the swim course. Unfortunately I couldn’t establish a solo break like I wanted and after I rounded the swim turn I saw that Michael Murphy and Mitch Robins were just behind me. I emerged from the 1.5km swim leg in the lead and quickly went about running up the beach and towards transition.

Hitting the 40km bike course Mitch took to the front early before I came through to the front to lift the tempo. After the first 10 minutes I put in a large surge to try and break away solo with no success. Just before the 20km turn around point I put in another big surge which this time, saw Murphy unable to keep up. I hit the gas once more after rounding the bike turnaround point to extend the gap and try and put Mitch under some pressure. I looked back after a few more minutes and saw that Mitch Robins was just behind me. According to the chief draft official Mitch was riding closer than the 12 meter draft rule allows and he was issued with the drafting infringement. I decided it was time to make another surge which helped me to finally get away up the road with a solo lead. For the final 15km I worked hard to build up this solo breakaway and managed to hold onto speeds of 48kph during the return trip. The slightly downhill section of the course back to transition was fast and I used this to my advantage.  

Having raced in the Philippines a lot this year I know too well just how much the heat and humidity play a part during the run leg. With this said I set out on the 10km run with the goal of holding onto a solid tempo which I felt like I could sustain. 

 I got a good view of the gap that I had built up on the bike leg during my run out of the transition. To me the gap looked around the 1min45 second mark which was a nice buffer to have when I started on the home stretch of the run leg. The run was as predicted crazy hot and crazy humid.

At every aid station I made sure to pour water over my head and pick up ice to shove down the front of my race suit. At 4kms into the run I got another time check to second place which I was told was a gap of around 2min30seconds. At this point I knew that if I just kept turning the legs over at a good tempo that I could hold on for the win. In the back of my mind was also a little voice reminding me of the Challenge Half race I had next weekend back home in Australia. I tried hard not to run too fast on the way back towards the finish line in my attempt to conserve some energy for next weekends race. During the final 3km of the run I really felt the heat and was over the moon to finally reach the finish line. Running down the finishing chute knowing that I had done enough for the victory was an awesome feeling and I really let some emotions run wild running over the finish line.

Having won both 5150 triathlon events in the Philippines in one year is a pretty amazing feeling. A huge thank you to all those who support me including family, friends and of course, sponsors. As I mentioned after the race on my social media accounts these performances are a result of so many people who support me. Another thank you must go to the amazing event organizers for another awesome race in the Philippines. The professionalism of the races in this part of the world is really second to none and if you are a triathlete races like ‘SafeGuard 5150’ should be on your triathlon bucket list! 

I will now be flying back to Brisbane, Australia where I will spend a few days at home before jumping on another plane for this coming Sunday where I will be racing Challenge Shepparton.

QLD Triathlon Series Race 2 Raby Bay - 3rd

Round two of the QTS was set to be a very fast race over the super sprint distance of a 400 meter swim, 15km ride & 4km run. The short race distance is far from what I train for however these races provide a great opportunity for me to race hard and try and challenge myself against those who make these kinds of race distances more of their forte. I have raced the QTS events for a touch over 10 years now and so I really enjoy coming back year after year and racing these local events.

Race Day:

With just 400 meters of swimming I thought that I could relax a little while still staying up with the lead athletes. This plan backfired somewhat when I emerged from the swim and saw that a few athletes had got a small time advantage. This proved to be the deciding move of the race. Heading out onto the bike I had a few other athletes on my wheel close behind however after the first 5km loop I found myself alone just a few seconds off the lead 3 riders. 

 Photo: Leanne Handreck Photography

Rounding the turn to head out onto the second of three laps I noticed Ben Shaw on the side of the road having crashed on the roundabout reducing the lead group down to just two. With Matt Roberts & Luke Willian still maintaining a small advantage over myself I stayed committed attempting to
chase them down.

Photo: Paul McCarty

Coming into transition I slipped into my running shoes and set about putting together what I hoped would be a fast 4km run. Unfortunately for me Luke & Matt held onto their time advantage leaving me to come across the finish line with the final podium position.

 Photo: Leanne Handreck Photography

All in all the race was fast and lots of fun. I was happy enough with another 3^rd place which should move me into 1^st place overall in the QLD triathlon series for the open/elite men.

The next race for me will be SafeGuard Active 5150 (Olympic Distance) Triathlon in the Philippines.

QLD Triathlon Series Race 1 Robina , Gold Coast – 3rd

Post Ironman 70.3 Sunshine Coast just two weeks ago I managed to contract a nasty flu which had really limited my training and might also explain why I had a less than desired performance at IM70.3 Sunshine Coast. With that said I had managed to get in a few good training sessions once I felt a little better but was still struggling a lot with recovery and was far from being 100% physically. It is very hard as a professional triathlete to toe that start line knowing that you are not in the best shape due to sickness. Nevertheless I have always enjoyed racing at Robina on the Gold Coast and decided to give what ever the body and mind would allow me to give on race day and not be too disappointed with the end result.

With a wetsuit legal swim I was excited to wear my new Orca Predator wetsuit which I have been using a lot in training and am feeling very confident in. I started fast and was one of the leaders heading towards the first of 3 swim turn buoys. Rounding the first turn I slipped in behind the first two lead swimmers and felt strong all throughout the 800 meter swim leg. I emerged from the swim and had a great transition out my wetsuit to hit the 32km bike leg in second place. As soon as I slipped my feet into my bike shoes I set about trying to build a solo gap to the rest of my competitors. After the first 8km loop I had around a 30 second lead which I really wanted to extend as much as possible over the remaining 3 X 8km laps. 

Photo: Paul McCarty 

 Photo: Leanne Handreck Photography

With eventual winner Ben Cook having caught up to the chase group he pushed hard to reduce my lead with a small group of chasers latched onto his fast paced cycling effort. Coming into transition I knew that I had my work cut out for me as my solo lead had been reduced down to just 20 seconds. 

 Photo: Leanne Handreck Photography

After two weeks of battling sickness I knew that my run might not be where I needed it in order to win due to the high heart rate zone I would need to hold to keep my lead intact. The run consisted of 3 times 2km laps and I really pushed hard over the first lap to hold onto my lead. Unfortunately as I headed out onto lap two the pass from the lead was made leaving me holding down the final podium position. I crossed the finish line just 34 seconds behind the winner for a hard fought 3^rd place.

 Photo: Leanne Handreck Photography

I always go into races with the mentally that I am racing to win but after a shocking two weeks of being sick I was really just happy to be on the podium. I gave the race all I had both mentally and physically on the day and put in a big effort to race off the front and have a big crack at the victory. As an athlete that is all you can do and sometimes it goes your way and other days it doesn’t quite work out. 

Ironman 70.3 Sunshine Coast - 8th

Ironman 70.3 Sunshine Coast was a race that I really wanted to perform well at and my training over the last 4 weeks had all been based around getting me as ready as possible for this event. I had put in some big weeks in training and going into IM70.3 Sunshine Coast I was confident in my ability to perform well on the day. Unfortunately this wasn’t to be the case with a less than desired race day performance netting me 8^th place in the end.

I was looking forward to the 1.9km ocean swim and with the gun start I immediately looked at getting off the line quickly and establishing myself within the front swim group. The pace was quite fast for the majority of the swim and so I felt like I worked hard to keep in touch with the front swim group.

After the aforementioned big training weeks on the bike I felt good about being in the front group and being able to ride strong. The pace wasn’t super quick for the first 25km out to the bike turn around however with Tim Berkel and Luke McKenzie catching the group just after the turn the pace lifted with a few big surges during the ride back towards Mooloolaba. This caught me out big time and heading back towards transition to complete the first 50km lap I started to drop off the back of the group along with Luke Bell. Luke and I spent the next 40kms together and were joined by Todd Skipworth with 20kms left to ride. I was honestly guttered to have dropped off the front pack and was struggling to find my rhythm during the bike leg.  

Going onto the run I thought back to ITU Long Distance World Championships earlier this year where once again, I had a less than desired bike leg however managed to run really well and have one of the quickest run splits of the race. Unfortunately these thoughts were short lived after tapping out the first few kilometers at 3min30sec/per km pace and watching my pace start to slow after that. I crossed the line in 8^th place with a 3hr57min02sec time.

I was really hoping for a much better result at IM 703 Sunshine Coast but was outclassed on the day. There are some positives that I have taken away from the race as well as some changes that I need to make in my training in order to improve for the rest of the season.

Airlie Beach Sprint Triathlon – 1st

This event is one that I really look forward to year after year. The amazingly scenic course as well as the fact that this year marked my 6^th win at the event means that the Airlie Beach Triathlon is one of the most enjoyable weekends away on my triathlon race calendar.

Race Day:

This year the 750-meter swim course was a non-wetsuit affair which didn’t bother me too much as I actually prefer non wetsuit swims, especially over the 750 meter swim distance. The water temperature was perfect and the clear ocean waters made for a fast swim. With a beach start I quickly hit the gas and settled into a good tempo once I hit the water. I emerged from the swim leg with a healthy lead and after a slower than usual transition I headed out onto the bike leg. 

My plan was to push a solid tempo over the two lap bike course paying special attention to the climbs on each lap and working hard up the hills.

Coming back into transition after the bike leg I set out for the 5km, two lap run course. The run course was truly stunning winding its way around the costal boardwalks and down toward the harbor. I enjoyed every step of the 5km run leg and reached the finish line in just under 1 hour overall.

It was a great feeling to take out my 6^th title at this event and a good test of the legs before what is to come. Next weekend I will be racing Ironman 70.3 Sunshine Coast, which is a race I have been targeting all season.

Ironman 70.3 Cebu - 8th

After finishing 2nd one year ago at Ironman 70.3 Cebu I returned again this year hoping for some similar success. Things this year were a little different as I was coming off the back of my goal race of the year, ITU Long Distance World Championships whereas last year I was heading towards Worlds. Nevertheless this race was something that I was really looking forward to. After experiencing the race for the first time last year I knew that those racing were in for a treat. This race really is the gold standard when it comes to the insane crowd support which lines every inch of the race course. Add a world-class men’s field into the mix and the race was set to be one to look forward to.

Race day approached and with a deep-water start the race was underway just before 6:30AM. I knew that I had to swim hard to put pressure on the rest of the guys and I led the swim for the first 400 meters. Clayton Fettell moved around me at this point and we both swam hard to get as much of a gap as we could to the rest of the main players. Clayton and I emerged from the swim with just over a 1 minute lead to the chase pack.

I had a fast transition and hit the bike leg in first and immediately set about setting a solid tempo. I was surprised not to see Clayton with me and spent the first 15kms or so out front solo. Soon enough the catch came and I settled into the pack. I tried to stay in the front few riders however there was a lot of shifting of positions going on with everyone trying to stay as close as they could to the front of the pack while still maintaining the 12 meter non drafting zone.

Just after the far bike turnaround point a gap opened up 2 riders in front of me and I tried to get across the gap however just couldn’t bridge up to the leaders. I was forced into the chase group and set about trying to limit the gap to the leaders for the remainder of cycle leg. In the last few kilometres I caught Craig Alexander and after transition I hit the run leg holding down 5th place.

Unfortunately it was at this point where my day really came apart and I suffered some bad stomach cramps. Craig Alexander and Mitch Robbins came past me and I spent the first run lap of two chasing Luke McKenzie and trying to hold off Pete Jacobs. Half way through lap two my stomach was in knots and Pete Jacobs made the pass on me to take over 7th place and put me in 8th which is where I stayed until the finish line.

Ironman 70.3 Cebu was a real disappointment for me performance wise as I know that I am better than the performance I delivered on race day. The race is something very special with the amazing crowd support and top notch organization making this a very fitting place for next years 2016 Ironman 70.3 Asia Pacific Championships where I look forward to once again tackling this course.

My next Ironman 70.3 race will be Sunshine Coast which I am very much looking forward to.

ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships – 9th

This was the race that I had targeted all year and was the one race of the season where I wanted to base my year around. After finishing 8^th at the World Championship last year I was really on the hunt this year to put myself in the mix to win. Training leading into this race had been almost perfect and during race week I felt ready to go.

Race Day:

Unfortunately the 4km swim was shortened to just 1.5km due to the cold water temperatures. The deep water swim start suited me and I pushed the pace early on to ensure that I stayed with the front runners. 

The shortened swim made for quick swim leg with no one willing to hold back over the short 1.5km out and back swim loop. I exited the swim leg in 6^th position right up with the front group. A quick transition and of course being careful to make sure that my wetsuit and goggles went into my transition box I hit the cycle leg.

As soon as I started the ride the pace was really on and I had to ride harder than I had hoped for to keep up with the pace being set up front. I only stayed up in the front group for 25kms before the pace being set got to me and I dropped off. After riding well in training I thought that I would be fine on race day but for some reason I just couldn’t keep up with the pace on the bike. The wind started to pick up on the 2^nd and 3^rd bike laps and slowly more athletes caught and passed me. For the entire bike course my legs just wouldn’t respond which meant that the race went up the road and I was left to play damage control. I came into transition 14 minutes down on the leader, which was well down on where I had originally hoped to have been. 

Going over this race in detail weeks before race day I set myself the goal to run 3min30seconds per kilometer which I knew based on past results would be what I would need to run to have a shot at winning. This was of course based on if I came into the bike to run transition with the leaders. Heading onto the run I just focused on running 3.30min/1km and after a while managed to get myself into a good rhythm. For the duration of the 30km run I continued to catch athletes and finally crossed the line in 9^th place.

 9^th place at a World Championship isn’t a bad result however it was far from where I had hoped to finish. However, there were a lot of positives to take away from the race which included a 1hr49min20sec run time which was the 4^th fastest of the professional men. Unfortunately it was my bike leg where I lost a big chunk of time and the chance of winning the race.

In other news from the race, I was part of the Australian team which received the silver medal for the elite teams category with myself in 9th and fellow Australian team members Joe Gambles in 7th and Josh Amburger in 18th.