"The Triathlon Rollercoaster"

2 Days Before Race Day - (Friday)
So, here I am sitting in my hotel – The Seebichl Hotel - which is in a perfect location, at the top of the hill which is on the bike course, thank you sis for finding such a great hotel and location! Today, I have been around the swim and the bike course. Swimming in the Schwarzsee lake, the water temp was around 20.2, I was in my wetsuit but it felt very warm however, that wasn’t to last, as later on in the day at around 3pm the rain came down, and as timing would have it, if it rains at this time on Sunday it’ll be as we’re on the bike!! Great!!
Going around the bike course today, we had a police escort for the whole two laps, and I have to say that it is the best bike course I have done this year. It’s not just your bog standard flat loop, there is a hill just out of transition and technical section through the town on both the roads and cobble stones, which I’m sure will make the
race interesting on the bike.
This afternoon I’ve just been chilling, watched American Gangster, good film, with Carrie and then watched some of the younger Austrian triathlons doing their mini triathlon whilst sipping a Coffee! Watching the younger ones cycling up and down the hill from my hotel did make me smile. They looked so cute, on what looked to be huge bikes, with their helmets falling off their heads, covering their eyes reminded me of my first triathlon . . . but we won’t go there!!

Day Before Race Day (Saturday)
Went for a little run this morning down by the course and my legs didn’t feel as good as yesterday, but felt ok on the stride, so was happy and then had a lovely breakfast at our hotel with mum, dad and Carrie. The eggs are lovely here, some say I’m easily, pleased but the yokes of the egg are bright orange, so that’s how I now they are nice and fresh! So I tucked in to my breakfast, and then went for a swim at the race hotels pool with Clarke Ellis from NZ, Stuart and Will which was pretty picture perfect to be honest. They have got a 48m swimming pool on the 7th floor (top floor), with all glass windows surrounding it so you can swim and look at the amazing views of the mountains, pretty amazing.
Now I am just relaxing before I take a spin down to the start, to take a look at the in’s and out’s of transition and then I will sit outside my hotel for a bit and watch the men’s bike as they come up the hill.
The sun seems to be trying to break through slightly between the clouds, so I am hoping it will stay the same for our race to be honest, as it will make the bike a lot safer, I’ve had too many crashes in the rain from inexperienced rider’s thanks!!! I’m not too bothered if it’s a wetsuit swim or not to be honest, but I would just like it to be dry, either way, I’m sure this will be a great race.
So, I’m just finishing watching the men’s run on my laptop and OH MY GOD MR STUART HAYES YOUR ARE A TRUE LEGEND! The guy who has just won the Kitzbuhel World Championship Series Race is my training partner and I am
so proud of him. He has just proven, that even if some people don’t want to help you achieve your dreams, there are always people around that will, and with Team Dillon we have a supporting group around us that are the best and I am so pleased for Stu, he totally deserves his win today! BIG CONGRATULATIONS!
Now, let’s see how I go tomorrow.

Race day in Kitzbuhel
Well what can I say the ups and downs of racing triathlon and I have defiantly been experiencing the rollercoaster ride of racing recently, with the bad race of London Hyde Park to the second in the London Triathlon to the thing I hate the most, the DNF in Kitzbuhel!
So, here’s the (short) story . . .
I was number 32, which didn’t give me a great start on the pontoon, but I know I was swimming ok, so I wasn’t too concerned. I dived in and got battered a bit to the first buoy (again), and found myself just of the first pack at the 750m turn around point just behind Nicola Spirig and Barbara Riveros, but I could see the front pack as I dived in so dug in hard, and managed to bridge the small gap onto the back of the front pack which is a much nicer place to be! Then I sprinted up and down the ramp into T1 had a smooth transition, out in the lead pack with quite a big pack of about 22 girls. The bike wasn’t the hardest of paces, but the undulating bike course made it challenging. I felt good up the hills and found myself naturally going to the front but then on the decent through the tunnel Helen Jenkins would lay the pace down, so it was a matter of hanging onto her wheel, which I can tell you was not easy.
On lap 5 of 6, the worst luck started, and my back wheel punctured, but there was still hope, with me not being too far from the wheel stop I a changed my back wheel and started again, but I was 1 minute plus down from the front group who were moving. The Nicola Spirig train was coming up behind me, so I jumped on but could tell I was losing time, and the adrenaline from stopping, changing my wheel and starting again, my legs were hurting, but with one lap to go, with the gap to the leaders being around 1 minute 30 I was in the mind set of “OK I can still run some girls down, lets GO”. THEN I soon realised that lady luck was not on my side, with yet again, the wheel I had just changed puncturing again!!! It obviously wasn’t meant for me today. I was too far away from the transition area were the wheel stop was. DAY DONE!!
I rimed it back to T2 and watched group by group go by, pi**ed off does not put it into words enough. I saw Dad, Carrie, Michelle and Stuart, handed them my stuff, grabbed my running trainers and went for a run.
The highs and lows of triathlon, oh well, onwards and upwards, next up for me is the Lausanne World Sprint Championship Race next weekend (Saturday).
Thanks for tuning in xxx

"That is much better" The London Triathlon

So, I was on a bit of a downer after London Hyde Park, as I really wanted to have a good race on the modified Olympic course, and starting off with a bad swim was only the beginning of a hard day at the office! Lessons were learnt during the race and I went into the following week ready for some tough, hard core, balls in the wheelie bin sessions with Michelle and Stuart.

Stuart had a fantastic race at Hyde Park, which to be honest has been long over due, he is the most hard working triathlete I know, and to have him alongside me to train with is a privilege. Stuart is like a big brother, rolled into a training partner, rolled into a teacher, who I am always learning off, and for him to have a good race at Hyde Park on home turf really did make up for my shocker of a weekend!! So from one end of London to another for the Challenger London Triathlon at the ExCel centre. I had done some decent times in training, which I think I needed to get my confidence back, so I was ready to race. Kirsty (a good mate) came around and braided my hair for me on Friday evening which got me into race mode, and then I travelled up to London on Saturday ready for the race on Sunday.

The weather hadn’t been what I was hoping for in the lead up to London, and it looked like it was going to be a wetsuit swim, which I wasn’t looking forward to if I’m honest, as I hadn’t used it at all this year!!

Anyway, race morning came and the sun was shining. I was stood around with the other elite women, waiting for the juniors to start there race and I couldn’t wait to get in the water to cool down – it gets pretty hot in that wetsuit when the sun is beaming down - bit of a change in climate from the day before when it was raining, but that’s good old British weather for you!!

I was next to the best in the water, Helen Jenkins, Liz Blatchford, Vicky Holland and Kerry Lang, as you can see, not a bad GB women’s field! The horn sounded, the rope lifted and we were off, the women stayed in a line for a few 100m, but then Helen found clear water and went off to the front on her own, and I swam the first 700m next to Liz, just behind Abbie Thorrington and a few other women.

Around the top buoy and on our way back, I tried to move around Abbie but ended up swimming next to her for the rest of the swim. I exited the water with her, about 15 seconds behind Helen and Liz.

 I got into T1 and had a smooth transition and jumped straight on the bike where I was in time trial mode to try and catch Liz and Helen. This would have been easier if my legs were there with me on the bike but I think I left them back in transition!!! I could see Liz on her own out in front but not Helen, I managed to catch Liz but then the chasing pack which contained Kerry, Vicky and about 4 other women caught me, and then the chase was on to get Helen.

The group didn’t work great but we managed to catch Helen at the first turn around point but no sooner as we had completed that task, everyone seemed to sit up and were concentrating on taking in the sights of London – very frustrating!! It then became pretty obvious it was going to be a running race, and I was hoping my legs would be waiting in transition where I left them.

 Leading up to the London Triathlon, one of my aims was to get out of T2 with Helen, she is the top GB women at the moment, and I wanted to see where I was running wise against her, as she is not only GB number, but one of the best and most consistent in the world.

I don’t think this race it was meant to be, I didn’t feel my normal self going out of T2, but I gave it a blast and lead for the first lap of 4. I was hoping to get into my running stride, but if you’re not on top form, and trying to run with Helen, you’re in for a tough day at the office, and going out onto the second lap, Helen showed why she is one of the best in the world and started to get away from me. I finished second behind Helen, with Liz Blatchford finished 3rd. I’m pleased with how I raced, and am looking forward to the next few weeks where I am racing Kitzbuhel WCR then Lausanne World Sprint Champs.

 It’s been a good weekend, with a smile back on my face; I’ve got to say Happy Birthday to my big sis Carrie who was 23 on Saturday, and my best friend Claire Hipkiss who was 21 on Monday.

Love ya all xxx

"Pilates, FGP & Countdown to London" (10/7/2010)

If you know me well, a lot of you will know that one of my favourite races from last season was London Hyde park. The noise the UK crowd makes, screaming “GO STIMPSON” around the run course gives me goose pimples just thinking about it. The lift I got from the supporting crowd I can not explain, it was awesome. Which is probably why I am so excited about racing there again on the 24th July (only 14 days away). Can you tell I am just a bit excited about the race?!
Training has been going great after I got back from Des Monies, it has been the hardest block of training I think I have ever done, the easy days were I am trying to recover for the next “Balls in the Wheelie Bin” sessions have seemed like my legs just don’t want to work at all and by the time you get to the “Ball Bashing” session you are thinking ‘Oh my god this is going to be tough” but its amazing how powerful your mental strength can be if you really think “it’s all mind over matter”. You can have some of your best sessions and when you start these sessions thinking you are going to really struggle but push through it’s such a fantastic feeling.
Usually it’s me Michelle, and Stuart that I train with up at Loughborough in the week but recently Nick Beer and Chris (also part of Team Dillon) have also been training with me the past two weeks which is great, and has really pushed the pace of the sessions. It’s two other strong guys that I am trying to hold on to on the bike, so that makes it 4 bloody strong cyclists (including the mean machine Dillon) I am trying to hold on to. When it comes to the run, I am trying to give as good as I get with the lads, which is easier said than done, but I’m not complaining when I have these 3 guys to chase and its been the same in the pool, pushing all the way racing in the hard sessions. It’s been great swimming in a pool where I don’t have to weave in and out of the public (no offence guys, but I got a job to do) and being able to just concentrate on the sessions. I have to say this is mainly down to Stuart knowing when pool is at it quietest time, and we are able give 100% in the sessions with no worries.
Apart from training going well I have also had great news of a new support and it comes in the form of Martin Connelen from Bromsgrove Coblers! Martin is my best friends step dad and has kindly joined my support team and bought me a Pilates Reformer! WOW! This is a vital piece of equipment to keep me on the path to 2012 and will help keep me training and racing. (Photo to follow tomorrow)
This will make a huge difference to my Streghth and Conditioning (S&C) sessions and I am extremely grateful and appreciative to have Martin on my team and following my journey to London 2012 and beyond.
This weekend (Sunday 18th July) I am racing with my new FGP team Poissy which will be my first time racing in France this year, so I am looking forward to that, but am of course fully focused on the 24th, I hope to see the course packed with support as it was last year, Good luck to everyone who is racing that weekend!!! Lets show the world what GB has to offer!!!

(JUST A LITTLE NOTE TO SAY GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE WHO IS TAKING PART IN THE RACE FOR LIFE 5K RUN, ESPECIALLY CARLI HAYES AND JAY HANDLEY, GO GIRLS!)
xxx

“Diary Countdown to the BIG Hy-Vee" (13/6/2010)
 

Monday
Today I woke up at Stuart’s parents house, as I am flying from Heathrow on Tuesday it made more sense for me stop here and travel with Stuart early Tuesday morning. So, this morning we got up and did a spin on the bike around Richmond Park, it was first time for me around Richmond and it reminded me so much of a park back in Sydney, isn’t it wired how one minute you’re cycling amongst the hussle and bussle of main roads and traffic and then the next you’re into a park surrounded by loads of cyclists and runners . . . brilliant!!
Tuesday
Travel day, well, anyone who has travelled to anywhere in America knows that it is not the easiest journey in the world to make. We started off at 5am leaving for our flight to Chicago and then onto Des Monies, where TJ met us at the airport. TJ is a long distance elite triathlete who Stuart met out in Australia a few years back. Once we found TJ we all went for some lunch and then travelled to his parents house where me and Stuart were staying. OH MY GOD what a place!!!!! The house/mansion we were staying was gorge, and was made up of the following; games room, cinema room, the best living and kitchen rooms, swimming pool, jacuzzi, and who knows how many bedrooms!!! Basically, you name it, they had it, I felt like I was living in something from MTV cribs!! A huge thank you to Nan and Rick for having me there!! xx
Wednesday
So, up early and in for a swim with TJ and Stuart and then mainly just ticking over really, keeping the feel for things and not wasting any energy. Me and Stuart spent most the day watching movies in the cinema room! Life is good and I am one spoilt lucky lady indeed!!
Thursday
Up early for a swim with TJ and Stuart again with some pick ups and yet again, just ticking over again. I met tiny Ashley - TJ’s fiancee - I don’t think I have ever seen anyone so tiny!!! A runner great runner and sooooooo lovely! After swimming it was back to TJ’s house and he showed me something that could save a lot a people a lot of money, especially when in the USA but also all around the world really!! It’s a bike bag that is within the diamensions so you don’t have to pay (or something) anyway it’s absolutely fantastic, so take a look www.rustersports.com/. On the evening me and Stuart went out with all of TJ’s family for dinner which was really nice, they are such a nice family, really close and very supportive, it truly was great meeting and chatting with everyone.
Friday
This morning the rain came BIG time!!! And I tell you, when it rains here it really does rain!!!! Luckily it stopped just in time for us to go and swim in the lake where we are going to be swimming on Sunday, it was really warm which was ace, about 23ºC, so I am thinking non wetsuit swim, which suits me fine. Then later on that evening it was race briefing, nothing really new to be honest, well apart from the big prize purse for winning and being first out the water, it will be an interesting battle for the latter, between Hayley Perisol and Sara McClarty, I wouldn’t like to pick between them to be honest. It’s great to be surrounded by the Worlds best of the best – European/World/Olympic Champions, the excitement is building!!!
Saturday
The big day before the race, well to be honest it’s been really relaxing, I did what training I needed to do this morning, and then chilled for the rest of the day. We had the England V USA match to watch, which was good considering what country I am in!!! But oh dear . . .what the hell are we doing?? The only good thing about the match was it took my mind off the race, and the it was off out for dinner with Staurt, TJ and Ashley!
Sunday
Race Day!!!!
So, this is the day I’ve been waiting for, the build up has been huge, mainly because I wanted to test myself against the best of the best but also because of the big prize fund. I’m not going to lie, I really needed to do well in this race for that reason also. When you’re not being supported by the federation I then have to rely heavily on family and friends which I hate, but for this year, has to be done.
Anyway, this morning Ashley picked me up and took me down to the race venue. At this time I wasn’t sure if the race was going to go ahead as the thunder and lightening was the worst I had seen, but luckily the rain stopped, the sky cleared and the huminity was up to 95%! BRING ON THE RACE.
Right, introduced onto the pontoon, the gun went, and off I went. I had a good start and got straight onto some quick feet (not too sure who it was?), I was swimming great and felt really good sat in the lead pack. I came out at the halfway point and saw I was in great company, with Helen Jenkins, Sarah Haskins, and Laura Bennett, so, apart from the two USA girls off out in front, I was in a good position. Out the water, in and out of T1, and in the lead pack on the bike. Doing some turns but not too much and it all really kept the same on the bike, few girls just sat there as always but there we go!! Now onto the run, I haven’t felt like I have been able to run how I want to run so far this year yet, so hopefully today was going to be the day!! I went in and out of T2 in about 10th position, and the lead girls already had a bit of a gap in front, with Emma Moffatt leading the way, but the way I love to run was what I had planned. I went out hard and went straight to the front running how I wanted to run and it stayed like that up untill just before 3k to go, when Emma Snowsill showed why she is Olympic Champion and came flying past at such speed, I tried to go with her but my legs wouldn’t let me. This is where the pack split up and Emma Moffatt , Helen Jenkins, Andrea Hewitt and Paula Findley showed their strength and left myself and Laura Bennett to battle it out for 6th and 7th place. Before this race I had beaten Laura and she had beaten me, so we were both on for the battle, but she was too strong for me today and I ended up 7th. I am so pleased with how I raced today and I know it’s all coming together, I have to remember that I am only 21 and learning more and more every race.
I want to end this blog by first saying thank you to Staurt and Michelle for letting me basically live at their house for the past month and to my family and friends for all the support they show me day in and day out.
I have met some great new friends on this adventure, the Tollakson family have put me up in their home, came to support me on race day, and I was a total stranger to them, so thank you. Special mention to Ashley who was my Michelle for the day and did an awesome job with taking care of me race day.
Wow, now after such a big update, I am having a day of dirty food in the United States of America to celebrate!!! Thanks for tuning in guys. See you all very soon
xxx
 

“Gold at Blenheim, now for Des Monies" (6/6/2010)

The week leading up to Blenheim was great, it started with me up in Loughborough for the Monday and Tuesday to get some key training sessions done with Michelle and Stuart, one of the sessions was a track session on Tuesday which we had to do in the good old british weather, THE RAIN but it wasn’t too bad and we were joined on the track by some sprinters which was good and then back down in Birmingham on the Tuesday evening for the rest of the week.
I know I mentioned it in my last blog but I owe Michelle and Stuart a huge thank you for having me up at their place in the week, there aren't many coach’s and training partners out there that let you stop at there house all week, thank you guys!
On Tuesday it was me Mum’s birthday (Happy Birthday again mum love you) so me and mum went to the pictures on the evening with my sister Carrie, Linda and Steph, we went to see Sex in the City 2, which was a fantastic film, loved it. It was good to go out and chill on the evening as I was feeling really tired from training so was good to just go and have a mental break, switch off and watch a film.
Things were pretty boring for the rest of the week as training was coming down, this is the time that I struggle with, I feel like I should be doing more than I am but Michelle is always keeping a close eye on me to make sure I don’t do anything extra leading into races.
Ok so race day at Blenheim Palace, it was great to have so much support at the race as loads of people I know came down to watch me race, I had the family; my mum, dad, sister, auntie, and cousin (plus her bloke), my best friend Clare and 2nd family Linda and Martin, my friend Zoe, and an old work colleague and good friend Billy and his gorgeous family, I have totally fallen in love with Billys two little girls the are absolutely gorgeous and I have got to mention Sarah, the Team Dillons very own "Mary Poppins"! It means so much to have such great support behind me! Thank you guys!
So the swim it started off as fast as what I thought it would with Abbie Thorrington taking it out hard and leading from the go, I found myself slightly back from the 3 leaders, so had to really work hard to get out the water near them, I managed to make up a bit of time in the long run up to T1, then out on the bike and was first out along with Abbie, Vicky Holland and Heather Jackson, I really wanted to push the pace and tried to get the group working which we did and managed to work well but on the 2nd lap there was a crash with Heather and Vicky at the back of the pack so it just left me and Abbie, we pushed on and carried on working hard.
I feel totally for both Vicky and Heather, it's not fun to come off your bike in the middle of the race, talking from experience!!!!
Got into T2 and off I went, pushed out hard and ran hard throughout the whole run, pushing on, this was the way I wanted to race my race as next weekend is a massive race for me in DesMonies and today would be my last hard day.
I ended up winning by 2 minutes 45 seconds (ish) which I was chuffed with as I wasn’t totally fresh going into the race but felt great.
Looking forward, I am flying out on Tuesday to the USA with Stuart who had a fantastic 2nd place as well today!!!
Now onto Des Monies . . . let the balls be slammed!!!!!!
Xxx
 

UP’S AND DOWN’S OF TRIATHLON

Its been a while since I have written a blog, sorry about that, but I will fill you in on what’s been going on. After I got back from St Anthony's I got ill 9 which for all you athletes out there you know how frustrating that is were you cant train, its such a pain in the arse but it didn’t last to long, thankfully and I was back into training within a week. I have been living up at Michelle and Stuarts house this week doing some real hard core, balls in the wheelie bin sessions. I love holding on to Stuart and Michelles wheels on the bike session and then trying to keep Stuart from getting too far in front of me on the run but this week, Mick Williams ,an Irish elite triathlete joined  us so it was great to have some one else pushing me on the bike, he is a ex-Olympic swimmer so is also great company in the pool and I no Stuart loved having someone to push him in the hard swim sets.
I finished off my hard training week doing a bike race at Hillingdon, which was a 50k bike race. Michelle has been pushing the pace as usual on the bike and I new she was getting stronger and stronger when she was going through and off with Stuart and I was holding on for dear life! Which of course I love, I no I have got the best job in the world and I am so lucky to be able to do it.
So the bike race . . .
Lucky me had Dad and Carrie  with me today and when I got there it wasn’t long before I saw Michelle and Sarah Murphy. It had been a while since I had seen Sarah and was great to see her, she is a true legend and I have got to mention her bag! You can tell she has been going to triathlon events for a while with Michelle as Stuart asked for a Tool out popped one from her bag, Michelle asked for safety pins out popped some from her bag. A TRUE LEGEND. So Michelle and myself warmed up on the turbos and then got on with the 50k race, it was about a mile loop, which meant about 31 laps. Of we went, the pace was up and down and was very interesting to say the least. It defiantly tested my bike handling skills; I was using this as a good burn up so tried going of the front a few times and was having fun but also trying to stay out of trouble. There were a few crashes during the race where the race had to get put on hold and re- started, as we were getting to the end of the race
with 8 laps go the pace moved up witch to be honest I wish it had happened earlier, with 2 laps to go Stuart told me to just have a go and see if I could get a gap and hopefully Michelle wouldn’t be to far away from me but as I went Michelle was blocked in, I had a bash and got the gap but got caught coming to 1 lap to go. It ended with near enough 30 odd women having a bash for the sprint; I was staying well out of that. So I had fun at my first crit race today.

“St Anthonys Triathlon - Racing in the USA" (26/4/2010)

Firstly I have got to say a massive “thank you” - to all the guys at St Anthonys Triathlon, for putting on a great event at the weekend.
Race morning was very different to the one at the World Championship race as we started at 6.55am. The men were off at 6.52am. It was fun waiting for it to get light before we could start - so we could see where we were going!!
The water temp was lovely and warm which made it a non wetsuit swim. The swim was going to be fast one with Laura Bennett and Jodie Swallow on the start line. I was looking forward to this swim to see how I would get on, as I have been pleased with how my swimming has come on over the winter training with Michelle.
So the race started from a short beach run and then was a U shaped 1 lap 1500m swim. Laura and Sarah went off as I thought they would and because of how choppy the swim was, they disappeared in the waves and I didn’t see either of them again. I found myself on my own for half of the swim and then Jodie swallow came up beside me and swam the second half of the swim side by side.
A good T2 and I was out onto the bike. I had a good bike, feeling the strongest I have ever felt on the bike. So chasing Michelle and Stuart’s skinny asses all winter is paying off!!!! I came in T2 with Jodie and a few others around and about in 9th and went out onto the run.
By the time I had reached Michelle on side of the course I had moved into 8th and could see 2 other girls up the road. I found myself running through, feeling stonger and stonger as the race went on. I then saw Laura Bennett who was in 4th and passed her just before the 5k turn around point. I then had in my head - next one, not knowing who I was chasing but just kept pushing and pushing. Michelle was on the side line shouting push all the way which I did. I couldn’t catch the first 3 which were Sarah Haskins , Jill Peterson and Mirinder Carfrae.I was chuffed with how I raced today and have just got another 5 days of training out here - before I return home to continue my next block of training.I am really looking forward to seeing my family and friends after the winter training block I’ve missed them loads and can’t wait to catch up.
 

Count down to Mooloolaba World cup


I am going to do a 7 day small diary for this blog just telling you the main events leading up to the race, though it would be a bit of a change and hopefully good reading for you guys so thanks for keeping up with me and I hope you enjoy.

It’s Sunday the 21st, one week out from the race and I have been to watch Michelle in her first bike race today, it was 30 minutes around a closed roads track and then 3 laps and it brought back all sorts of memories from when I was a youth and use to race and then watch Michelle race in the elites. Michelle wont like me saying this but she was a tad nervous going into this race, well if it would have been a running race she would of fitted straight back in but she was going into the unknown but you wouldnt of known it. The true racer came out as soon as they said GO!

The elite women set off and she was straight into what Stuart called the text book position ,3rd bike from the front and as one break away went she let it go and it came back together and at 15 minutes another one went and she was straight on it. So it was Michelle and two other women up the road and that is how it stayed until the last lap where it was a sprint to the line with the top three women, they all basically crossed the line together Michelle got a fantastic 3rd a minute plus from the rest of the field! Fantastic result min well done! Erin O’Hara also raced in her first race under Team Dillon today at the 70.3 Singapore and got a fantastic 4th so well done Erin and well done Jodie Swallow for her 2nd place, I hear it was tough conditions out there!

Monday 22nd , 6 days out from my race and today I had a run session first thing this morning. It was the last real hard balls in the wheelie bin run and things went well . Included in this was a max out 1k which I was pretty happy with holding onto Stuart for as long as possible that is always fun.
Got a good email today from Orca saying they were sending out my tri suit so I am looking forward to having my new suit to race in.
Got to say there was some drama today whilst I was on the bike, the drivers out in Australia remind me of cycling around Birmingham. Some of them don’t really care for cyclists on the road and this is what happened today. As we approached a roundabout the car just couldn’t wait and overtook us and cut us straight up, so thanks for that mate.

Tuesday 23rd, 5 days to go and today we started out on the road nice and early to stay out of the cars way with an easy spin were we were joined by Belgium triathlete Peter Croes.  We did some pick ups in the swimming pool today and did a PB for 50m which is a good sign for the weekend, getting excited now for the race.

Wednesday 24th 4 days out & and started again today with an easy bike and today was just ticking over really, I met Michelle for lunch which was nice at Mano’s café were they do the best Omlettes for breakfast and a great chicken Ceasar. Both Michelle and I have made this into my favorite food :.

Thursday 23rd 3 days out. So today we have traveled down to Mooloolaba which only took 2hours, I followed Michelle and Stuart in the car as we had to take all the bikes. When we got down to the race briefing Stuart and I had to have our uniform checks to make sure they were within regulations with the ITU rules and this was followed by the briefing with all the other athletes.
All went ok so all pretty much set to race now. It’s lots of rest but a little bit of a waiting game until Sunday now. After the briefing we went for some dinner and then headed to the Hyatt Regency were we are staying with Patrick and Dee, its 25 minutes away from the race.  My jaw dropped as soon as I pulled up, it’s a bloody mansion here, it’s a 3bedroom palace with every room having a bathroom and a bloody Jacuzzi on the roof. I can not explain how nice this place is & I am so lucky to be able to have the support of my sponsors and friends to be able to stay here.

Friday 24th 2 days out. Today I stayed well away from Mooloolaba to make sure I wasn’t going to be in the hussle and bussle of the race. Its just all about ticking over now and trying to relax before the race. Watching dvd’s and relaxing.

Saturday 25th 1 day to go! Stuarts race day is today, I am really nervous for him as I know how hard he has trained and I know he deserves to have a great race. At this moment I am sitting at the hotel out of the sun calling Michelle every 20 mins to see how he is getting on. Go Stu Go!

Sunday 26th Race Day. Ok here we go its race day my 2nd World cup and ready to rumble but before I go into what happened on my race day I just wanted to tell you Stuart had a fantastic race which has inspired me to go HARD. It couldn’t of happened to a more deserving person. Well done Stuart.

My race day arrived and I felt so relaxed going into it. I suppose having faith in what you have done makes you a bit more relaxed before the race. I think Michelle took all my nervous for me as she was so nervous. It was great for me as it meant I didn’t have to worry.
 I went down in the morning and had a really good swim warm up and made sure I had had a little practice in getting out with the waves. I had a good start, run into the water and the plan was to get close to who I think is one of the best swimmers in the ITU and she was exactly that today and she took the lead from the start. I was swimming into the first bouy and found myself in a good position about 5th with Laura leading and I knew that the pace would be on around the first bouy and it did. I moved around the bouy and onto Liz’s feet and didn’t move from that position until we needed to take a left to head for the shore where Laura and Liz showed there knowledge of the sea and caught a wave coming in which I unfortunately missed.

I had a quick transition and was smoothly out on the bike but with Liz Blatchford and Laura Bennett up the road I had to put the hammer down to catch them and caught them half way round the first lap of 7 on the bike. That is where the pace was very slow as none wanted to work and I wasn’t going to work if no one else was willing to so everyone sat in and waited for the run.  I just made sure I drank enough as Michelle shouted at me every time I passed her as she knows I can forget sometimes.

Then out though transition 2 and I had a smooth T2 and was out on the run 2nd just behind Laura Bennett and once again I sat behind as I hadn’t done this course before and had been told how much the hill takes out of you. The first 2 laps of 4 were easy for me and I felt like I could of pushed on but as I got to the top of the 3rd hill still running in the lead pack along with Blatchford and Tanner I hit a brick wall and just had to try and hold on. The heat and this tough course was starting to take its toll and I ended up finishing 6th.  I am stoked really and its only my 2nd world cup so really looking forward to the next one already.
Everyone was great around the course and the amount of people support I got was amazing. A huge thank you to Michelle who was amazing for looking after me and stuart for his help too.
xxx
 

Snake Hurdling in the Lakelands

As you guys know I love running in the Lake lands and Stuart always is so cautious about Snakes and spider webs, kangaroos etc but it never really bothered me.  Although I must say on the last few runs in the lake lands I have been joined or rather I have joined some green snakes that have given me a bit of a shock.
The first time I was just finishing of fmy long run with Stuart and I had to hurdle over a Snake with its head up looking at me. I don’t even know how I managed to miss it as my foot was aiming right for it, then yesterday when I was doing my afternoon run I heard something drop into a pile of leaves at the bottom of a tree. I looked behind me and there it was looking at me as if to say bugger off so I did and ran away slightly faster so I wouldn’t upset the snake.
Anyway Its just under 3 weeks away from Mooloolaba World Cup and I am really looking forward to racing. I have never competed on this course before but everyone tells me it’s a hard course. Stuart says it’s a proper triathlon because the swim bike and run are all as important as each other so I am really looking forward to racing it.
I am not the only one racing that weekend, of course Stuart is racing in the Mens and Bex is racing in the race before mine. Patrick is also racing the at the same time as Bex so I just wanted to say Good Luck to the team as I wont be able to scream at them. I will be at the hotel resting as my race is later on in the day.
Michelle is getting in on the racing action as well and is racing the Sunday beforehand in a crit style bike race which we are all going to go along and watch. She is a mean machine on the bike which is great for us as we try and hold on during training sessions. It’s either the Dillon or the Hayes train I am trying to hold on to in bike session. I love the way Michelle trains as its like a race, so full of excitement and testosterone which to me equals so much fun.
What else could you want but to chuck your balls in the wheelie bin and have fun at the same time . I Hope every one is training well back home and the weather is getting warmer for you guys.
xxx  
 

Everything is going well.

Ive been out on the gold coast for 5 weeks training hard and I am loving every minute of it!
I had my best track session since I have been out here this week so I am getting fitter which is always a good feeling and to hear Michelle shouting out slightly quicker times than the week before.
Something has clicked into place on my run so I am walking around with a slightly bigger smile on my face than before even though the smile hasn’t really gone from my face since iv been out here, how can you not smile when you are living the dream and training it such a beautiful place as the gold coast.
 
One of my favorite session at the minuet is the long runs in the lake lands were Michelle always push’s the pace which I love, it makes a long run go so much faster when you run with michelle ,I still can not belive I am running with the athlete I looked up to growing up and watching her at Salford win as I stood on the bridge with a good friend Krystal Hoath as she came over having been such a long way back from the swim and just never gave up and ending up winning.!
This IS WHAT MAKES HER A GREAT COACH and so inspirational and well makes her the 220 coach of the year and I am so proud to call her my coach J
Just want to say congratulations to her for winning the 220 coach of the year award, she deserves it!  
 
I have got to tell you about Sunny, SUNNY is a really great bloke who I first met out here last year at the swimming pool, I call him sunny because he is so tanned he looks like he sleeps next to the sun ,he is such a nice bloke and when we do our swim session he is there and after every session offering his fruit to me, yet again another nice person I have met on the gold coast.
 
 Between training session I am watching the Winter Olympics and there was a story of an Australian athete who had been training to get to the Olympics all her life and she has got there but told her family they couldn’t go as it would make hoer to nervous but she won! But then as she stood up to take her gold medal and watch the Australian flag be raised she looked into the crowd and saw her family ,they had took no notice of her request and made the jouney over there and thank god they did to watch there girl win gold! WHAT A STORY ,you don’t need to know much more to get you driven for the next session!
Hope the snow goes away quickly for you guys back in the UK and you are able to get out and train.
 
All the best
 

My 21st in OZ

So I have the great pleasure of spending my Birthday out in Australia doing what I love and training hard. With an added bonus of spending it with some great people who I just want to say thank you for making my birthday a great 21st.  Michelle (the best coach) and some great training partners Stuart and Bex and we were also joined by Spike and Erin both from NZ.

On my birthday day the rain was definately pooring down as we set out on the bike only to turn around after 10 minutes. So we ended up swimming first and then the sun must of remembered it was my birthday and came out and made it gorgeously hot for the long ride.  My legs were not happy to be out but I certainly was.

Then I got to talk to the famo back home which was great, they had also sent me over a moonpig card which was lovely and just having the opportunity to talk to them over skype was perfect. Technology ay!

They had also put up all my birthday cards that I had received back home and put them on the living room table along with 21 big balloons then they took a picture of it and put it on facebook which was such a lovely thought and I loved it! 

On the evening Patrick (the saint and the kindest man I know) arranged a fabulous dinner at the Hyatt country club along with his partner Dee who is also a fabulous person. WOW I AM SPOILT, not only by spending my birthday meal at the Hyatt but with the great people too. Great food (the biggest chocolate cake ever) ,the best company equals a great 21st bday night. A quick thank you to my Australian family Patrick, Dee, Michelle, Stuart, Bex, Spike, Erin, Liz for making my 21st a such a great day in Aus.

 Ok so now I have spoken about my birthday and the celebrations I had I will tell you a little bit about training. I am training very hard out here so when I had a late night at 9.30pm on my birthday so we had to start training a little later than usual. The next day we had to get up an hour later lol the life of a triathlete.

Last week I had Crit and Well I not only have the great advantage of training with Michelle and Stuart, I also was joined by Liz Blatchford and the 2009 World Champion Emma Moffatt.  For those who don’t know Crit is a bike race were go go around a loop which takes about 2 and half minutes per lap to get around it . It also contains a dead turn so the power gets put down and a small bridge where there is a slight hill, you go around this loop for 50minutes and then the organizer put up a flag that says 3 laps to go and then it’s a race across the line, its a lot of fun and a great workout.

I have got some really exciting news coming but it will have to wait until my next blog, I don’t want to bore you to much.

xxx

"To race tough you gotta train tough"
 
So I have been out on the gold coast now for 2 weeks and instead of the usually “Balls in the wheelie bin” sessions it feels like its been a “balls in the wheelie in non stop!
Things have really been ramped up this winter which is exactly what I need to step my performance up this year.
Even though I am not running ,swimming and cycling super fast at the minute I am loving training out here. I mean how can you not when the sun is shinning and your doing what you love for a living.
I am doing my training with Stuart in the swimming pool and running which is great to have an athlete that pushes as hard as you in every session. Stu really drives me through the sessions when I am hurting its great to have someone there going through the pain with you as well but what makes the sessions even better is having the coach on the side lines that knows how each session feels and really understands and gives you the motivation to get through it.
Michelle is not only getting me through the hard swim and run session but in the bike session she is training herself which is great for me as I not only have Stuarts skinny ass to chase but hers alos. She is training for the national road race championships and is going very strong.
We did a session around a place called Nerang and it’s a two and a half minute circuit with half of it up hill. when I had to go hard I had Michelle next to me shouting at me to dig in making me push that little bit more.  It just shows how strong she is when she is still shouting at you when were both cycling up the hill! But I love it.
I had a quick look at my diary today and notice it was only 8weeks till Mooloolaba World cup so I best keep working hard.
All the best guys
xxx

Exciting times”
 
I arrived on the Gold coast on Friday and I have got to say the journey over here wasn’t too bad at all, firstly I was lucky on the first flight and managed to swindle two seats so I got a good nights sleep but it didn’t seem to help much last night when the jetlag started to creep in. I was really fighting to stay awake at 5.00pm but managed to hold it off for another hour and fell asleep at 6.00pm.  I slept reasonably well and got up about 4.30am and went for an easy bike ride with Stuart and Michelle which was lush, not only to get out of the house and do something but to have the benefit of not having to put on 20 layers for every training session.
I’m just starting to  settle in now and adapting to the time zone and then I will be getting right into it and will be ready to put my head down and do some hard work.
 
But the exciting times don’t stop with me just being in this beautiful place and living the dream. I have recently signed with WIGGLE for 2010, which is fantastic!  I am really excited to be growing with Wiggle, they are a fantastic company who deliver the best triathlon equipment all over the world and I am very privileged to be able to work with them and have them on board with me for the coming season.  
 
I will be keeping you guys up to date with how im getting on with training etc here on the Gold coast, Let the exciting times continue.
 
xxx 

On the count down to Australia
 
Happy New year to you all, I hope you have all had a great Christmas and New years party, I had a great Christmas with the family and then spent New years eve throwing my balls in the wheelie bin doing the Cambridge 10K which was done in 34.52, I wasn’t happy with the time I ran put it will do for now and has at least gave my a starting point. Will Clarke won the race in 30.03 an awesome time and Stuart Hayes got 4th in the mens. Then I was 2nd and my training partner Bex Milnes was 6th.
On New Years Eve myself, Bex, Michelle, Stuart, Will and Clare all went out for a lush meal in Loughborgh.  
I bet all you triathletes have been getting frustrated with the weather at the minute,the snow looks great on a picture but its not great to train in so I am defiantly on the count down to leaving for training