On the Move – 24 October 2014December 17th 2014

24 October 2014
While triathletes in the northern hemisphere are starting to wind down and think about indoor
training, we are fishing out our summer wardrobe, dusting off our jandals and starting to complain
about unsightly triathlete tan lines! I’m enjoying seeing a lot of you out on the waterfront during
my lunchtime runs; in recent weeks I’ve spotted a tri club running singlet storming through the
crowds, as well as the amusing sight of a certain club president running topless on a rather chilly
cloudy day – I hope working on your tan pays off James!! (apparently he’d “forgotten” his running
top… sure, sure). For a lot of us the summer starts with the clubs first sea swim of the season (more
about this below), and then of course we get back into our summer routine of Scorchers, Splash and
Dash, and all our favourite iconic events. Can’t wait!
First ocean swim of the season
So when does the tri season officially start you ask? We reckon it's after the Tri Club's 2nd
annual 'first swim of the season' on Labour Day (Monday 27th Oct). Come and join us as we
all scream and squeal running into the water from the beach near Freyburg pool. The
majority of us will be doing the splash and dash route of platform/fountain/platform/beach
(approx 730m). No need to worry if your wetsuit doesn't fit after a winter of overindulging there'll be a few braver (crazier?) club members doing the loop in our skimpies (bikini or
speedos)! So come down and join the fun - meet on the beach at 12:45pm, ready to start at
1pm, followed by coffee at the Boat Cafe. We'll be heading out rain or shine - at the moment
the forecast is for a light southerly so although it may not be warm the harbour will be flat as
a pancake. All welcome - the more the merrier.
Results - Club Duathlon Championship, October 5, Upper Hutt
Conditions were perfect as the long course competitors headed out for the first of 2 ‘scenic’
laps of the Trentham hinterland. There were calls for crampons and climbing rope as we
made the slog up to the water tanks (thanks Daryl). Somehow Tony and Laurence were still
able to hold 4 min km pace despite the hill. Onto the bike and the Angry Bull simply said
goodbye to the chasers as he burnt out his usual fastest bike split and comfortably built a 5
minute advantage after the final run. In second place in the club champs was Mike Cuzbro
Cousins and then after outblasting Dermot on the bike 3rd place and first vet was Dean
Whiteman. On the women’s side the glory went to Helen Bradford who made the strategic
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decision to sign up for club membership the week before the race. She didn’t have it all her
own way though as Anthea Morrison held the lead off the bike and kept it for half the final
run. Third place was our recent Edmonton medallist Cath Alderton and 4 th place was the
super vet world duathlon champ Bondy.
In the medium course we gave out medals to our club juniors (under 19) to Christian Davey
who was a clear first overall. Sophie Bright was our first girl finisher after some very
encouraging run splits, followed by her fellow world champs competitor Becky Hawthorne.
In the short course we had 3 club novice competitors (under 13). The boys winner was
Boston Bright and in second place was Josh Turnbull and the girls winner was Sophia
Hitchens. Well done all of you, it is so great to see the youngsters competing, we really want
to build this junior side of the club this season.
Club Member registration update
As mentioned in the previous newsletter, the new committee has been hard at work creating
a strategic plan for the tri club, and we thank those of you who have been involved in
interview to help form this. We have booked in some time as a group over the next few
weeks to nut this out and we hope to bring you some exciting changes for the coming season
(and future). Usually we would open our membership for the 2014/15 season on the 1st
November but this will be delayed by few days while we finalise the details, and will be open
mid-November. Those of you keen beans who have already signed up in the past few weeks,
don’t worry, your money isn’t wasted – we will be in touch in November.
Volunteers needed
The Coastal Challenge Series is coming to Wellington on Saturday 15th November. Starting
at Red Rocks, the race has a range of run and walk distances on offer, right up to 35km! The
event organiser is a fellow triathlete that those of you who went to the London world champs
will know - team manager Brenna Roband. She has asked us for some help with finding
volunteers to look after the aid stations, marshal at a couple of turnaround points and maybe even
act as tail end charlie if you are feeling energetic. The club will get a donation for each volunteer we
help provide but in return we will make sure you get the same gift pack as the competitors (including
snacks) and a meal voucher from Gasworks Restaurant in Miramar (the club's wonderful new
sponsor).
It would be great if you could help out - please email Ross for more details.
Calling all those tri-wannabees!
Have any friends, work colleagues, family who want to try a triathlon, but don't know where to
start?
To kickstart the new season we are offering introductory skills clinics for first time triathletes.
Join club coaches Gerrard Smith and Jenny Rose for a full morning session that includes:
- Skill and technique training in all 3 disciplines: swim, bike, and run;
- Discussions around triathlon rules, preparing for events, and how to get started in the sport;
- Training tips and advice;
- The opportunity to meet and connect with others starting out in the sport.
Spaces are limited to so get in quick! Full details available here.
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Adult session:
02 November 2014
9am to 12pm
Swim at Freyberg pool, then cycling and running from Oriental Bay
Youth session (ages 11-14):
30 November 2014
9am to 12pm
Swim at Freyberg pool, then cycling and running at Hataitai velodrome.
All welcome - you don't need to be a tri club member to come along.
Coach's Corner
Each newsletter we'll ask one of our club's coaches to write a few words. First up we have
Jen Rose.
I spent a thoroughly enjoyable weekend working with the best of our tri talent within the
Lower North Island area. I had a fantastic group of young people who were a complete credit
to themselves, their clubs and triathlon. As the athletes have their own coaches, and we had
limited time with them, I made the decision to focus the camp on numbers of tactical and
technical skills required within triathlon. And of course, having a good time together was of
high priority. Very fortunately I had the ability to call upon expert athlete/coach, Shane Reed,
who lives in Fielding, and Jon Brown, who is a TriNZ HP Coach and 3 time marathon
Olympian (finished 4th place twice!) to manage the run session. Local cycling demon and
Associate Professor of Nutrition at Massey Uni, Dave Rowlands to lead a discussion on the
tactical and technical aspects and skills required for bike racing and draft legal tri events.
Kate McIlroy to discuss her sporting career and traps for young tri enthusiasts. Gary Gibson,
and helpers, to run a Velodrome based skills session. Shane and I ran an open water skills
session at Kilbirnie Pool and finally I added in an orienteering teams challenge to the mix. So
we all had a blast together and the kids learnt a lot. I’ve had glowing feedback from the
athletes and they’re asking for dates of the next camp. I’m sure every one of the coaches
would come back to work with this group of fine young triathletes. For all aspiring youngsters
reading this article and wanting to know how to develop skills to gain access to this
programme I’d like to stress that swimming with the local swim club is a huge part of
developing the skills required for triathlon. Swim skills are embedded in your teens and
having them nicely tucked away in your bag of tricks makes top tri performance all the easier.
If any parents or athletes want to know more about the programme you can contact me at
any time on 027 2423527.
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Club champs dates finalised
The dates for this seasons club champs races have been agreed and will be raced as part of
our favourite local races in the Scorching triathlon series:
December 7th Club Sprint champs (for ages 16+)
January 24th Club novice and youth races (for ages 10-15)
March 1st Club Standard distance champs (for ages 20+).
This season we will not be offering a discount for entering this season but we are working on
a much improved gift pack for our members who enter the club champs races and if you do
want a discount now then enter 2 or more Scorching races, ie the Medium course on Dec 7
and the Long course on March 1 and you get a 10% discount on your entry
http://tri.scorching.co.nz/entry-details/entry-form/. Don’t worry about entering so far in
advance if you find you are injured or ill when the races come around it is possible to transfer
your entry to a later race. Put those dates onto your race calendar now!
What happened in Kona?
Club member and long-time Kona supporter Natalie Gaskin finally got her chance to race in
Kona at the World Champs a couple of weeks back. Having an excellent race in tough
conditions, it sounds like she had an amazing time. She's promised a race report shortly once she finishes her "active recovery" (i.e. swanning around the US). A quick few words
from her below:
This was my first year not watching but I did see the lead men heading out on the Queen K to
the Energy Lab as I was finishing my ride. Although the pros did have a bit if an advantage
starting 30min earlier as the wind picked up a bit later, that bike time of Kinele's was superb.
As for my race it was definitely tough conditions but I'm pleased overall. Third in my age
group in the swim was amazing, especially since I started a few years back in the slow lane
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of Ali's squad. Sitting on Sue M's feet the last few years three times a week has done
wonders for me. The ride. One word 'windy' but I loved it. I handled myself well and although
my slowest IM bike but I held my own and didn't get blown off! Witnessed other girls being
blown off down from Hawi and some crashes so was definitely a bit cautious! The run. Hot. I
started well. Had a meltdown in the energy lab but came right for the last 10k. So all in all in
satisfied but motivated to improve! And I can say I've had the full Kona experience with the
winds! I'll take the 33rd place in my age group.
Nice work Nat!
New club sponsor
The tri club would like to welcome Josh and the team at Mint Health on board as a sponsor,
where they will soothe our aching bones with amazing massages. As an introductory special,
the team at Mint Health are offering one hour massages to tri club members for the special
rate of $50 until the end of the year. You must be a signed up member to get this amazing
deal. Find out more about the team at Mint Health and book in your massage here. Mint
Health are also working on an event package especially for us – this will a combined deal of
three massages enabling you to get to the start line with your body in perfect condition and
receiving the recovery you need following the race. Stay tuned for more details.
Mike's Tri Treasures
Time to train…time to suffer....
For the many of us the time has come to start training for the season ahead and the best
triathlon training is out in the open with fellow Wellington Tri Club members - eh! But as we all
lead busy lives it can be difficult to fit the training in that we so desire. So for the times that
you can’t leave the house, only have time for a quick gym session, or just love to train 24/7
(?), why not suffer while doing it? Suffer? Yes, suffer, at http://sufferfest.com/. For beginner to
professional triathletes, sufferfest has structured workouts with clear, on-screen instructions:
you don’t have to think – just get on and suffer. Download to your computer, unzip, import to
all iPhone, iPad and Android devices. Best used with a treadmill and turbo trainer. This isn’t
an endorsement, it just has some great high intensity workout videos that can be filtered by
speed, time trial, endurance, climbing, racing and style. Check out the run and bike specific
vids too.
http://www.thesufferfest.com/training-videos/triathlon-training-videos/
Open Water swim time….
Yes, it was quite comfy over Winter - swimming indoors…heated pools, followed by the odd
spa session. But the time has come to get outside and into the big, cold salt water pool - the
Wellington Harbour. As mentioned above, the first ‘unofficial’ open water swim is happening
this Labour Day. To get you in the zone, here are some older, but great refresher videos on
open water swimming techniques….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLT7YEwUCwI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xmm02u_Ie94
And finally....
Anyone keen to break this world record this season?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QoqenZytO8
Club Uniform
If you've seen all the cool kids around wearing the Wellington tri club uniform and have been
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wondering where you can get hold of some for yourself, then wonder no more and order it
on-line here.
Monthly Quiz
Every newsletter there will be a new 'Who am I?' puzzle for you to work on. There are no
prizes just the honour of being named in the next newsletter.
A.The mystery playboy was skiing superstar Alberto Tomba (La Bomba) and it was a couple
of local playboys who got first and second, Dashing Dermot Coffey followed by Fabio Milner.
Q. I am an Olympic gold medallist and former world record holder, I was a superb all-rounder
capable of international standard performances in a number of disciplines and won national
titles in no less than 5 different events in one year but my Olympic title and world record were
in my favourite high flying discipline. I was named my provinces sportsperson of the
millennium and I have had a type of village named after me.
…Who am I? Answers to Matt here.
In the flurry of World Championship races in the last few months you may have missed the amazing
result of one of our club members at the Long Distance World Champs in Weihei, China. Just
missing out on a medal, Sam Labone kicked some serious ass, coming 5th in a very tough age group
(35-39) and 20th overall. Loving the team atmosphere of the world champs away trips I'm sure this
wont be the last we see of him - especially after nicely buttering up his wife later in this interview!
What do you do when not training or racing?
Family stuff and eating.... Oh, and I work for Kiwibank as Senior Manager Financial Crime.
(What ever that means)
Your most significant triathlon achievement?
Making the NZ Long Course Tri team this year – Such a fantastic experience and one that I
am super proud of!
What else would you like to achieve in your triathlon career?
Sub 10 IM is the next long term goal - although the key words are ‘long term’. ;-)
What is your favourite race and why?
I was lucky enough to do IM St George in 2012 – what a course, talk about testing. 3 foot
swell, 2 x 45km incline on the bike and mid thirty temperatures resulted in a real test. (Given I
am an old truck with no speed it’s all about testing yourself!) I was the first Kiwi home that
day (Don’t ask me how many there were)
What would your words of advice be for a beginner triathlete?
Simple - Enjoy it!
Quick Questions:
Best discipline: Bike (I think)
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Your most epic bike ride: IM St George
Ironman or Olympic distance: IM
Your role models: My Grandma (love ya!) and my wife Toni - I have no idea how you keep the
house working as smoothly as you do!!!
What tri means to you in 10 words: A lifestyle full of reward and satisfaction.
Sam with his daughter Mia
Getting back into tri season it's time to start thinking about the types of fuel to take on your
training rides or to have on hand for a quick snack post-training. Try these home made tasty
muesli bars:
Lightly grease a 30cm square pie dish. Combine in a bowl:
1/2c chopped dried apricots
1/4c coconut
1/4c chopped almonds, walnuts or pecans
1 1/4c oats
1/4c raisins or sultanas
1/4c chopped dates
2 Tbsp seeds (sunflower, sesame or pumpkin)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Heat together until dissolved:
1/4c brown sugar
2 Tbsp honey
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75g butter
Once this is cool stir in 2 beaten eggs.
Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and mix well. Press firmly into the pie dish and
bake for 30 minutes at 180 degrees celcius. Leave to stand for 10 minutes and cut into 15
bars. Store in an airtight container.
Taken from: The Eat to Compete Cookbook by Jeni Pearce
16th November - Scorching Triathlon (first one of the season, range of distances
available)
23rd November - Hutt City Triathlon and Duathlon (a good triathlon for first timers as
the swim is in a pool)
27th November - Splash and Dash (mid-week racing at it's best)
7th December - Club Sprint Distance Champs at the Scorching Triathlon
Apply for membership of the tri club here:
https://regonline.activeglobal.com/Register/Checkin.aspx?EventID=1310887
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