Sunshine Coast Ironman 70.3

This race has been a long time coming for me and one I have had my sights set on for a long time. I haven't spent the winter months chasing altitude or chasing summer, instead I have been in Brisbane and keeping close tabs on all of the race results I could get my hands on. My last big race was Cairns Ironman 70.3 which was 12 weeks ago and since then I have made a few changes to my training to try and give myself an edge. I always planned to have a big break between races because I really want to hit the back end of this year hard and target a number of races between October and December so it was important to get a good quality block of training under my belt.

With Kona just around the corner and this being the venue that will be used for next year's Ironman 70.3 World Championships it was no surprise to hear that this race attracted the biggest professional field ever assembled for an Ironman 70.3 event in the Asia Pacific region. There were naturally doubts in my mind as race day approached - I've watched a lot of my competitors results and it's always hard when you know exactly what they're doing in races and you can only predict how you'll perform based off training but regardless I was excited to get on that start line.

Mooloolaba provided every possible weather condition leading up to the race but by Sunday we were thankfully greeted with clear skies. As the gun went off at 5:55AM we were running into the ocean to commence the 1.9km swim. I settled in to what I found to be a good pace and I exited the swim with a small group of athletes. I knew there was a group up the road but I knew we wouldn't get a time check until the far bike turn around 25km into the ride. I set off quickly on the bike and set about trying to close whatever gap we had let go out of the water. We picked up a few athletes along the way but at the far turn around I got first glimpse of Josh Amberger doing what he does best and riding solo off the front and then a group containing a lot of the big names including Luke McKenzie, Terenzo Bozzone, Tim Berkel, Casey Munro and Clayton Fettell. It was at this stage that the reality set in that my swim had in fact been a sub-par performance and there was a lot of work left ahead of me to rectify that to achieve a good result.

I found the second lap of the bike a lot tougher than the first and was doing everything I could just to stay towards the front of the group and not get in trouble or dropped. Ricky Swindale would have done at least 90% of the time leading our group on this lap showing how strong he was on the day! I had to resort to focusing on staying safe as the course become congested with some big age group packs and getting my nutrition in ahead of the half-marathon.

I set off quickly at the beginning of the run, not wanting to have to battle it out with any of the guys that came off the bike with me and instead get into my own space. Heading up and over the hill the first time I felt really good and was even looking at my watch knowing this was the quickest pace I'd set off at coming off the bike and argueing with myself whether or not I should slow down slightly or back myself and see what happens. I went with the back myself option and found myself picking off a few athletes along the way and climbing myself into the top ten.

I crossed the line in 9th place in a time of 03:57:22 and a run split of 01:16:39. This is definitely the quickest I've run off the bike but unfortunately I left myself with a bit too much work to do after the swim and the bike for it to have any major impact at the top of the results. Next up for me is Noosa Triathlon on November 1 followed by Challenge Forster on November 8. I really like the back to back racing and did it at Coral Coast 5150 and Cairns Ironman 70.3 where I finished 4th and 6th respectively and also Moreton Bay Triathlon and this race with a 1st and 9th. With seven weeks between the races there is ample time to put my head down and see if a few changes can net another set of good results.

As per usual a massive thankyou to everyone that helps me out wherever possible!

The Giant Trinity and Reynolds Race Wheels performed exceptionally thanks to Ben and Hola Cycles. Hammer Nutrition always goes down a treat. Everything that the team from Titan Performance Group and Xterra Wetsuits do to support me is amazing and I can't wait to work with them more from a squad point of view. Peter and his team at Shoes Feet Gear have the best Nike shoes that I've been wearing religiously for years now with next to no injuries. And of course Back 2 Balance Physiotherapy and Rocktape for helping me stay on top of my body maintenance.

#703 #race #triathlon #Ironman #SunshineCoast #Mooloolaba