Wiki Factory Racing

As most people reading this will know, when it comes to “luck”, I haven’t had much of it the past few years. However as this year draws to a close I have come to realise that “luck” doesn’t exist, it truly does come down to our decisions and the actions we take. On reflection all of my past injuries that I have put down as bad luck have actually all been due to poor decision making. Torn ligaments in ankle – shouldn’t have pushed the descent so fast in the rain so close to my main race. Broken ribs – shouldn’t have gone on a safety course above my skill level the weekend before my main race. Heart issues – while most likely genetic, I’m sure super long hours working followed by high intensity training was a contributing factor to my burn out as well. While I’ve always thought I wanted that elusive good performance at Coast to Coast, I have never truly committed myself to achieving it. On my way to a cheeky club race win The biggest thing I have learnt over the past few

As many of you know, I have been dealing with heart issues for the last three and a half years. While generally it hasn't been too much of an issue, having it occur at this years Coast to Coast broke me. Since then it has also been causing episodes of fainting which doesn't exactly lead to quality of life when you're constantly worried about what 'might' happen. After many trips in and out of hospital I was finally able to capture an episode (while pulling out a 2nd place at a duathlon of course). On July 27, I went in to surgery to have an electrophysiology study and ablation. It was a crazy procedure, lying on the table, not even realizing they were doing anything until they were almost finished! During recovery I had one bad bleed from the wound and all I could do was stick my finger in the hole and wait for help to come! Its been a great story to tell, particularly since the operation went through my groin, watching people's faces in horror as they try to

This year has already presented itself with plenty of high's and low's. I went in to the event feeling as prepared as I had ever been and thankful to actually make it to the start line (for once). I had a good win in the legs from Around Brunner, however I also had my first swim in the Waimak in 5 years... fun times. Overall I was looking forward to getting out there and enjoying the day. My plan for the day was to start steady to ensure I got to the run feeling fresh and ready to run hard. I had no intention of coming off the bike in the front bunch. So when I found myself dragged up the road to the first bunch after a very steady run (9:00 vs the leaders 7:30), I was surprised and happy to be in a good position. It was now just a matter of sitting on the back, doing very little work, and letting the race be decided later. It was the best ride I've had in years, super relaxed atmosphere and a nice consistent pace to keep the legs feeling good. I actually mus

Two thoughts from my experiences at Around Brunner: 1) Kayaking and Running definitely helps make you a stronger cyclist 2) I feel safer in a bunch of Multisporters than New Zealand's 'elite' cyclists As many of you may know, my troubles with Paroxysmal SVT have come back. Having this occur the weekend before a race is slightly concerning and lead to lots of decision making and doctors visits for second opinions. While I've been told its not "life threatening", its still concerning due to the number of cases of people suddenly dying. Unfortunately (fortunately perhaps?) the only way to figure out exactly whats going on and form some sort of management plan is to catch an episode, and the best way for that to happen is for me to race. So the decision was made and Rosey and I were on the way to the Coast with my new bike to give Around Brunner a crack. The original reason to enter this event was to test out my cycling fitness 2 weeks out from Coast to Coa

After last years win in the Junior category I was looking forward to competing in the Open Men's division and hopefully getting the win. However it became apparent that I wouldn't be given leave again to race and would have to set up the safety and look after the competitors. With the weather forecast looking marginal and a lot of rain in the mountains, we made the decision to move the race from the Waimak Gorge (Coast to Coast course), down to the lower Waimak. The new course had a good combination of downstream river paddling, flatwater and a nasty upstream stretch to the finish line. However much I was jealous of the racers, it was nice just standing on the river bank in the sun watching everyone I have either competed against, or trained up myself, paddling by. Its always a good feeling knowing I contributed to their success. Hopefully next year I will be on the water myself though racing!

Sky Rock n Run on the 21st November was one of my main goals for the year after missing Coast to Coast and GODZone due to injury. It promised to be a cheap but brutal event with 3600m of climbing over 42km of trail running. It also provided me with a much needed focus over the winter on starting the long road of working on my running so it was no longer a weakness for future events. Although I knew I had substantially worked on my running and was a lot stronger than I had been before, I still had no expectation going into this event since it was also going to be my first marathon. My plan was just to run steady and try to stay running until the end. The event started well with me making a steady climb up Mt Oxford and following descent down to the first aid station (14km) in the top 15. By now the day was starting to warm up and I was beginning to notice the heat and the subsequent increase in fluid consumption. As I began the steep climb to the top of the Black Hill hut clim