Day 6- Bricks, Beer & Sunsets

The day started out like it usually does, alarm goes off at 6, snooze till 6:15, stretch, breakfast and look out to a great NZ sunrise. (sorry, no pic today)

A short swim down at the race start. I decided to wear a fastskin this morning to see how I felt in a suit I know is fast. Nothing much new to report about the swimming, but am definitely getting the hang of marking and keeping on course better than when I first got here. Swam about 1800m with a few pick ups in it. Got dried off, and went up to visit with the staff at the Taupo Times.
Ironman NZ has a program where local businesses sponsor international athletes; I was paired with the local newspaper- Taupo Times. It is turning out to be a great fit. The staff is very generous (took me out for lunch, and offered to buy me my first round of drinks after I finish on Saturday- Haven't drank since December). As well I did an interview with them and am should see the article later on this week.



My moments in the limelight carried on when I went up to the race expo. The wesuit company that is endorsed by Ironman had expressed interest in sponsoring me earlier on in the week- yes, free swag. Unfortunatly their suits and my shoulders did not agree. As it is a wetsuit compulsory race I was on the hunt to try on new suits. I had heard great things about BlueSeventy in the past so was excited to try one on. They have 7 different sizes in mens suits, most of the competitors have 3 or 4. The manager, named Guy, turned out to be a great guy- couldn't help the word play. He set me up with a suit that was a perfect fit on the first try. I took the suit out for a little swim in another retailers demo booth- the Endless Pool. On a side note, for a personal swim coach/triathlete I would say this thing is gold. Because of the underwater mirrors and the power in these generators you can get live feedback and convert a 3m x 5m pool into a great training facility. Ok, back to the good news. BlueSeventy is sorting out an endorsement and sponsorship for me- we meet tomorrow to finalize the deal. I can see some great leads that can come out of this in expanding into not just the Canadian market, but to competitive open water and pool swimmers. Anyways, will keep the posts coming about that tomorrow as it unfolds.

Race registration isn't until tomorrow, but had my bike checked today. The rear Zipp and Aero helmet are making a noticable difference in my riding- a huge thanks to my friend Lucy down here who has generously let me use them. Lucy has raced IMNZ, qualified and raced IM Hawaii, and is set to compete as an age grouper at this years LC World Champs. Last week while training suffered an injury to her knee which has forced her to pull out of the race. I can only imagine how tough it must be for her to go through all the motions for months, to be 99% there and at the last minute have to pull out. And despite this all, she has been great support for both myself and Markus- German friend who is staying here with us. I've been able to extract some tips that may very well may save me masses of time on race day.

After the bike check I headed for a comfy nap to get ready for my last hard training session before I race. And this is how it went....

I have never in my life had a craving for beer like I had today.

It was about 25 degrees, scorching hot, and I'd just gotten off a good brick workout. 22km bike, and 4km run. As I took my last few strides up the driveway I had that dry, cottony mouth feel that you get when you run outside in the heat, and then it hit me- I don't want water, I want the coldest, Cervesa that New Zeland has with a lime so large I can't put it in my mouth. But instead I had some ice cold water with Nuun- an electrolyte supplement. In the session I rode along the run course to the turnaround point and back, and then up to the house. I had 4 pick ups to maximal effort for 30 seconds on the bike, and this taper seems to be working. On the first pick up I dropped into a good aero position, switched into a massive gear and started pushing- I knew it was good when I was keeping up with cars (it was only on a city road), but still being able to push over 50km/hr on a flat put another deposit into the confidence bank! I'd like to say there was no wind, be there was some. When I finsished the bike course I headed up to the house, threw on the runners, a hat and headed out for a 4km run with some easy pick ups mixed in. Was holding 5:00/km pace comfortably which felt good. I have no plan on startin my run on the marathon at that kind of pace though- I want to be able to have the last 13 miles faster than the first. Definetly not an easy task, bu doable if I stay patient.

Speaking of patience, I believe that is the number one thing training for this event has taught me- patience. It is not a slugfest, or the type of training where you get better after each workout. Instead, it's the weeks of ongoing punishment and stress that over weeks and months that give you improvement. And then when you taper it all pays off!

I took a trip down to the lake after the workout for some cold water therapy and to stretch out.

Sunset tonight was stunning

Less than 3 days till I race,