Aus Champs

The season proper has arrived, like an Ebay delivery that you knew would be here eventually, but had kind of forgotten about, so much so to be somewhat surprised when it finally arrives. The first bike-bag-pack and subsequent plane flight of the year signifies mentally (and hopefully physically) that racing season has started, and it's time to toe a start line with significant purpose. This weekend was my inceptive race of the ITU season, the Australian Champs in Elwood. Despite every local we bumped into grabbing us by the arm and pontificating with some desperation that there had been nary a day of precipitation in the last 15 days/months/years (depending on the local), race day presented conditions that seemed out of a chapter of Genesis. Wild wind and rain meant the swim had more chop than a Bruce Lee film, and guaranteed the bike would be tough.

I tend to relish the way these conditions turn the race in to a dogfight, and managed the swim chop decently to lead out of the swim, with youngster Matt Baker and Ryan Fisher in tow, with around 20 seconds to the main bunch. Fish is a merchant of this sort of trench warfare, and if I could pick anyone to be racing with in terrible conditions, it'd be Fish, and along with Baker, we squinted into the winds and set about chewing some stem, grafting out a 1:20 advantage by the end of the bike. Onto the run, and myself and Fish ran together for all bar 200m of the run, including a rather 'tactical' last 2.5 km into a block headwind, which neither of us were particularly enthusiastic about leading into. With 200m to go, Fish politely excused himself by dropping a bomb of a sprint, and I was left with his dust in my eyes crossing for second. Satisfied, yet a little disconsolate at finishing 2nd and an Australian Champs for the 3rd time, in a sprint finish every time. However, it was a good blow out of the cobwebs, and confirms my training is going well for my more important race, New Plymouth World Cup, and Auckland World Series, where I hope to earn a guernsey for the Commonwealth Games team. 

Take care friends,

Willy

Pre-seasons lament

Evening friends, 

Admittedly, 2014 thus far has been largely bereft of blog-based narrative, however that provides distinct juxtaposition to your author’s physical endeavours, which has largely featured the satisfying yet unblogworthy cycle of train/coffee/train/ziltched repeat. To keep myself occupied, I have been partaking in the salubrious pastime of turning up on start lines, with a bevy of training races under my belt in an effort to find a modicum of form for the start of the season proper, a small selection I present to you now in pictorial format. 

Things step up a notch this weekend, with the first ‘real’ race of the season, the Australian Champs down in Elwood, Victoria, check back for reflective narrative post race, or grab a copy of Australian Triathlete for nostalgic anecdotes penned by yours truly. 

Take care friends,

Willy. 

Grabbing a win with a beard at Caloundra

Grabbing a win also with a beard at Robina, plus using a faulty number belt as practice for my future career as a beauty queen

Without a beard, about to lose the Golden Watermelon 5km Track Classic (Otherwise known as the QLD 5km Champs) to Jack Curran. Might need to add some swim/bike to these contests, or I'm going to owe Jack a lot of fruit… Wilson 8th, Curran 2nd.