The inaugural Salmon Run multisport race was held on the 10th of October. Due to a change in work requirements, I was able to put in a last minute entry. I was super excited to be able to do a multisport race again as my last one was the Motatapu multisport race in March 2013! The event comprised of a 36k cycle, 1.5k run, 14k kayak and a 9.5k run to the finish.
Despite the last minute entry, my gear was quite possibly the most prepared I have ever been for an event, with the boys at Torpedo 7 Christchurch helping to get my bike race ready. Another bonus with the last minute entry was it allowed me to just relax and have fun racing as I hadn't specifically targeted it as a must do build up event. A few treats with some Pic's Peanut Butter and some Chocolate Milk is always a good start to the day as well ;)
The ride was overall slow but reasonably aggressive in nature, with the bunch seeming to never settle into a consistent pace as no one wanted to do too much work. Alex Nisbet managed to have a storming ride, escaping off the front right at the beginning and pulling 1:30 on the first bunch. I completed the ride in the first bunch but had managed to get a decent amount of fluid and food in, which for me is unusual during a race.
A slow transition into my running shoes and I was off down the hill towards my kayak. I had made the decision to use my running shoes in the boat as well so that meant I could save time in the next transitions not having to do a footwear change. Throwing the rest of my kayak gear on, I was off down the river.
The river section didn't go anywhere near as well for me as I expected, with my arms feeling heavy and my boat feeling tippy (too much time playing around in whitewater boats recently). The river was nice though with a few different line options at the beginning and a strong flow assisting against the head wind. I had the 5th fastest paddle of the day with strong paddlers Sam Goodall (Classic river race winner), Steve Gurney (does he need introduction?!), Ian Huntsman (what hasn't he won in the boat?) and Tim Pearson finishing just in front of me.
As the paddle finished I leaped out of the boat before my support crew even had the chance to help me. Stumbling over my gear as I tried to take it off as quickly as possible, I was off charging across the river bed on the final run leg. Unfortunately my idea of charging, and charging to a good runner is quite considerably different and Tane Cambridge came flying past on a mission. He would go on to run everyone down and win the event. In the mean time I managed to slowly pick off Gurney and Huntsman and continued trudging my way to the finish line.
In the end I finished 4th Open Men and 7th Overall, however the race reflected the fact that my recent training hasn't quite been specific enough and although I've been working on my running, it still isn't quite up to the standard I want to be. I could come up with lots of excuses but at the end of the day I just wasn't good enough and now need to go away and put in the hard work to get to where I want to be.
Apart from a rogaine series over the next few weeks, November 21st is currently my next main event, just a marathon with 3600m vertical... should be fun.
Despite the last minute entry, my gear was quite possibly the most prepared I have ever been for an event, with the boys at Torpedo 7 Christchurch helping to get my bike race ready. Another bonus with the last minute entry was it allowed me to just relax and have fun racing as I hadn't specifically targeted it as a must do build up event. A few treats with some Pic's Peanut Butter and some Chocolate Milk is always a good start to the day as well ;)
The ride was overall slow but reasonably aggressive in nature, with the bunch seeming to never settle into a consistent pace as no one wanted to do too much work. Alex Nisbet managed to have a storming ride, escaping off the front right at the beginning and pulling 1:30 on the first bunch. I completed the ride in the first bunch but had managed to get a decent amount of fluid and food in, which for me is unusual during a race.
A slow transition into my running shoes and I was off down the hill towards my kayak. I had made the decision to use my running shoes in the boat as well so that meant I could save time in the next transitions not having to do a footwear change. Throwing the rest of my kayak gear on, I was off down the river.
The river section didn't go anywhere near as well for me as I expected, with my arms feeling heavy and my boat feeling tippy (too much time playing around in whitewater boats recently). The river was nice though with a few different line options at the beginning and a strong flow assisting against the head wind. I had the 5th fastest paddle of the day with strong paddlers Sam Goodall (Classic river race winner), Steve Gurney (does he need introduction?!), Ian Huntsman (what hasn't he won in the boat?) and Tim Pearson finishing just in front of me.
As the paddle finished I leaped out of the boat before my support crew even had the chance to help me. Stumbling over my gear as I tried to take it off as quickly as possible, I was off charging across the river bed on the final run leg. Unfortunately my idea of charging, and charging to a good runner is quite considerably different and Tane Cambridge came flying past on a mission. He would go on to run everyone down and win the event. In the mean time I managed to slowly pick off Gurney and Huntsman and continued trudging my way to the finish line.
In the end I finished 4th Open Men and 7th Overall, however the race reflected the fact that my recent training hasn't quite been specific enough and although I've been working on my running, it still isn't quite up to the standard I want to be. I could come up with lots of excuses but at the end of the day I just wasn't good enough and now need to go away and put in the hard work to get to where I want to be.
Apart from a rogaine series over the next few weeks, November 21st is currently my next main event, just a marathon with 3600m vertical... should be fun.
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