Update for 01/02/2012
1 February 2012Post - Challenge Wanaka Update (check out the photos!) We would like to say a massive thank you to everyone who supported us - to all those who donated to Canteen and of course our fantastic support crew (Jenny Miller, Wendy & Graeme Moginie, James Norman) and the Shearer and Studholme families for the use of their awesome houses in Wanaka. A shout out to R&R sport Christchurch too for their help with race wheels. Lastly thanks go to Canteen for giving us the inspiration to give this challenge a shot and for providing motivation when the race and training got tough. We have a short outline of the weekend below for your amusement and/or inspirationc After surviving a drive through gale force winds en route to Wanaka (Harriet), wetsuit hiring (Millie) and a painful superman-esque dive down Mt Cargill (Kath), challenge weekend kicked off with the carb party and some speeches by the pro athletes on Thursday evening in the main marquee. Rude comments regarding certain team member's tan lines aside, the team had soon formulated some 'winning' strategies for race-day. Friday morning began bright and early with a recon of the treble cone return section of the bike course for Harriet and a good breakfast for Millie and Kath. Race registration was next with a hilarious number of brightly coloured transition bags and a pre-race weigh-in to navigate. The official race-briefing followed, the key points of which included: please avoid drowning; the lake is shallower than last year so an extended Baywatch style run will be required at the end of the swim; the weather man Jim Hickey is forecasting 'minimal wind;' don't crash into the railings on the Albert Town bridge; the swim will be reduced to a 6km RUN in the case of severe weather and the runners get exclusive access to jet planes at their aid stations. Feeling well informed and prepared we all went our separate ways - Harriet to the racers' edge bike checks/to peruse energy gels and Kath & Amelia to continue the pre-race fueling. After a mid-afternoon nana nap and more lunch, we returned to Ardmore St to rack the bike, hand in the transition bags and watch the sprint distance triathlons/contact tri series athletes. Millie was quite taken with a certain young runner (who unfortunately proved to be er underage). After feeling suitably inspired we headed back to (you guessed it) new world for the final stages of the pre-race preparation...well actually so Kath could find the biggest supermarket chocolate muffin we'd ever seen. The day finished with more race strategy talk with Nick Shearer (also cycling the 180km) and some ridiculous ITB exercises on the foam roller. Race day again began early down at the lakefront where, contrary to the forecast, the wind was already up. Millie was ready to go for the 0755 team start, which was inexplicably after the half-ironman athletes. One unfortunate swimmer lost their ankle transponder mid swim, was forced back to the beach for a replacement, and then was given a jetski ride back out ? devastating! We soon lost Millie among the sea of yellow swimming caps and retreated to T1/the bike racks to nervously wait. Amongst the chat regarding tyre pressures, CO2 canisters and who had had the most punctures in previous years, all plans of pre-race nutrition were abandoned to nerves. The tense atmosphere was relieved somewhat by a cleaning lady walking in on someone who had forgotten to lock their portaloo...The first swimmers were soon sprinting up the beach and through T1; amazingly, a few completed the 3.8km in under 60 minutes. Millie smashed the swim in 1h 20 min and was 3rd female out of the water despite the choppy conditions and stray feet/elbows to contend with. Millie coped admirably with the barefoot run up the beach at the end, which was particularly impressive given her pre-existing allergy (as she describes it) to running. Harriet was soon off on the bike to Treble Cone out and back section. Cruising through Wanaka for the second time the NW was pretty strong but by this stage Harriet had settled into a nice rhythm and began passing people. The next 90/100km to Cromwell via Lake Hawea and Luggate were uneventful thanks to a reasonable tail/cross wind (apart from a campervan who held everyone up on the Luggate bridge). The aid stations were also an interesting experience as one had to master the knack of acquiring (& discarding) drink bottles, bananas, gels and energy bars fairly quickly whilst controlling the bike at moderate speed in the wind. Unfortunately the first problem of the day became apparent ? the drink bottles were oversize and too big for (midget) Harrietfs XS frame. This meant that drinking was only possible every 20 km at the aid stations. Dehydration aside, at Cromwell the route turned back towards Wanaka and back into the head wind. While apparently not quite the gale of 2011, the wind made conditions tough for everyone the entire way home, particularly the gusts near Tarras. The hardest point was probably the hill out of Luggate, which some riders chose to scale on foot. This was not an option for our cyclist, as the combination of cleat shoes and walking had invariably ended painfully in the past. At the top of the Luggate hill, the Moginie support crew was out in force to track down Harriet so Kath would be ready for her 42km marathon. 15km and a few hills later Harriet cruised into Wanaka in a time of 6h 5min for the 180km, and in 1st place having passed the leading eteam wyndhamf cyclist 5km before the turn up the Cardrona Valley. Although half-blinded by the significant amount of sunblock in the eyes, Kath, our runner, was quickly located. She managed to retain her composure and focus despite being presented with the hilarious sight of Harriet trying to run half-blind in cleat shoes with bike in tow. Kath was then off towards to the Clutha outlet track looking rather pro in her visor and running kit. She then proceeded to negotiate 2 laps of the 21km course, which included sections on gravel, sand and up the notorious gunn road. Spurred on by regular cups of coke and bf Jamesf encouragement, Kath continued to make good progress in her first marathon, finishing in 4h 47 mins. In the meantime Millie and Harriet were preparing for the (not so) glorious run down the finishing chute, only slightly delayed by Harriet accidentally dropping her phone in her cup of water in an inadvertent (albeit successful) attempt to escape the medical tent post-bike, and Millie getting chased by a flock of seagulls intent on aiming for her hair. The entire team plus support crew were soon assembled on Ardmore St ready for Kath. Kath lookalikes were spotted from afar on at least 10 occasions by various crewmembers, the best of which was the fully mustached man in his forties. Finally Kath was sighted in the distance and Harriet and Millie were ready for the leisurely jog to the finish with Kathc. but nek minnit, Kath began to sprint towards the line. Milliefs jandals were quickly discarded and Harriet cramped up instantly in the quest to cross the line together. Kath began to let rip with some rather pained groans in the last 100m which would have made Maria Sharapova proud. The challenge was taken to even greater heights as Harriet and Millie struggled valiantly to maintain their composure, the finish line photos indicate that they were not entirely successful! After the finish subway cookies and hot chocolate were consumed before the team post-race gathering near Luggate. By this point Kath had perfected the duck waddle/shuffle, necessitating a prolonged calf massage. The weekend was wrapped up with the post-race awards brunch run by Rotary. A fantastic combination of sausages, scrambled eggs, bacon and croissants were certainly appreciated by all. Gina Crawford took out the professional womenfs title (only 6 months after having a baby!) and Aaron Farlow won the menfs. One amazing athlete, a 75-year-old man, finished the solo ironman well after midnight in an incredible 18 hours ? wow! As the youngest team, and in our first time racing these distances, we were quite happy with our performance. We were then stoked to find out we had come 2nd in the womenfs team section and were presented with glass trophies, (which Harriet promptly dropped!). Overall it was an awesome experience; the race was well run, the atmosphere fantastic and the team aspect pretty special. We are also stoked to have raised $800 for Canteen Canterbury/West Coast and wish them all the best with their own personal challenges ahead. So Challenge Wanaka 2013!