Update

Well what a busy few months it has been.

I finally handed in my masters thesis which was the culmination of 2 years work investigating repeated high intensity training compared to endurance training and the changes in blood volume that they stimulate. Now that this is away getting marked I am working on getting it published in a research journal as well as seeking funding to go to Liverpool to present my findings at the European Collage of Sport Science conference in July http://www.ecss-congress.eu/2011/.

On the racing front I have just finished the Coast to Coast as part of a team with Grant Sime. We had a great weekend away and finished 7^th in the men’s teams. I managed to paddle the 6^th fastest time down the river which I was pleased with given I put a large hole in the side of my Sission Evolution Omega and had to stop a couple of time to empty the water out.

There is now 9 weeks until the national marathon kayak champs in Wellington. All going well I plan to be on the start line there to give the 28km loop course + portages a good nudge. The transition from multisport to K1 paddling has been an exciting one so far and the nationals will be a good indicator of where I am at. At the end of May there will also be a chance to try my hand in a few sprint competitions which I am really looking forward to.

So now as I wait to receive the results of my thesis I am busy coaching a number of athletes through Exponential Performance Coaching, working at university teaching undergrad labs as well as doing work for Bikenz with the national track squad.

First training session of summer

Some days down in Dunedin it is starting to feel like summer. This is a short video I made of a training session I did in the Dunedin sun a few weekends ago.
30km bike out to Taieri mouth and then a bit of a run along the Millennium track. All in all a good day out.

Braemar Gut Buster 12 Hr Adventure Race

While the rest of NZ was hunkered down to protect themselves from the storm the size of Australia that was on its way we were on our way towards Mt Cook for the Braemar Gut Buster.
I was teaming up with my supervisor Dr Jim Cotter and as well as racing we were there to over see a group of students taking on the challenge as part of the Multisport practical paper offered at the PE School.
With the 1st kayak being canceled and only three teams getting out on the trekking course before it closed it turned into a big mountain bike through A LOT of snow. With all of the changes out on the course through out the day no body knew where they were placed in the field. We finished the day up in second place.
For the official race report check out the link below
http://www.sportzhub.com/site/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=10741

Bendigo Rogaine

With Dunedin under water from all the recent rain it seemed like a crazy plan to head into the hills for a Rogaine. However as we travelled in land the weather cleared.

Now for those who do not know what rogaining is, it is a bit like orienteering but do it in a team (the team has to stay together), your team plans the route it will take and it’s done over a longer time period. There are a whole bunch of controls set up out in the middle of nowhere, each worth a different amount of points depending on the controls difficulty (e.g. a control on top of a mountain will be worth more than an easy to find control on the side of a road). There is a set time period, and during that time the goal is to get as many points as possible.

Out in the snow

This weekend we had entered a team from the PE school in the 6 hour race. The team consisted of my supervisor Jim Cotter, another lecturer Geoff Ockwell, student Hayden McCoy and myself. As Geoff and Hayden had never done on of these races before the goal for the race was to get out and have a look around at some of the high country around that area and if possible get up into some snow.

The team me, Jim, Hayden and Geoff

After a solid 6 hours out getting controls we were still not back at the finish which meant we would be penalised 10 points for every minute we were late. A big effort by the team running as hard as tired legs would let us. We made it back 20minutes late, which we thought would put us out of any placing. But to our surprise at the prize giving we had managed to take 1st place. All in all a great day out, we got to look around some great country, we found some snow and we managed to take first place.

The trusted gear

There was not much time to reflex on the day’s activities as it was straight back into the car to get home for the 3rd round of the Dunedin Winter Multisport Series the next morning.

Silver Stream weekend adventures

With a beautiful Dunedin day on the cards I just had to get out in the hills to stretch the legs. With the Bendigo rogaine coming up next weekend a bit of an off road adventure was needed. A bit of a stomp around in the Silver Stream area with our two dogs was just the ticket to get things broken in for the race next weekend.

Dunedin Winter Multisport Series Round 2: Whare Flat duathlon

This duathlon course is without a doubt one of the coolest courses I have ever done. The first 3km off road run has some steep climbs, flat water race tracks to stride it out on and some technical down hills to keep your mind on the job. Once off the run it’s on to the MTB for some solid climbing on forestry roads before descending on to the water race track. A few creek crossings and sections of technical riding makes this ride unlike any other multisport bike stage. Course map

Course profile

The final run is a repeat of the first run which does not seem to get any easier.
A strong field turned out for some fast racing. Coming into T1 a lead group of four kept the pace hot. Once on the bikes ex-Olympian Kashi Leuchs showed this class pulling away to take the lead.
Jim Cotter chased Kashi hard with Gavin Mason and me not far behind. Losing contact with the lead group on the first major climbs I worked hard through the single track and eventually caught and passed Gav. We raced back and forth for the remainder of the race with Gav just pulling away on the final run to take the 3rd position with Jim 2nd and Kashi 1st.
Same course but 1 year earlier - just as great this year

Whare Flat/ Sliver Stream training session

Another fantastic Dunedin day allowed for a solid afternoon on the MTB checking out the course for the second round of the Dunedin Winter Multisport series with some of the athletes that I coach through Exponential Performance Coaching.
A solid 3hour 30min session saw 1700m of climbing on the bike and a short up tempo off road run in the Whare Flat/ Sliver Stream area. The course for next week’s race includes a fantastic single track MTB which I am really looking forward to doing again.

Heading home at dusk the view over the Taieri planesand Silver Peaks was just amazing, I tried to capture it with a photo but it does not do it justice.