Weekly Newsletter 29th April 2013

Club Race
That’s it!  No more club racing as season 2012/2013 finished on Sunday.  What a perfect way to finish.  Great racing, great BBQ and fantastic weather.

Dan Stein showed the field a clean pair of heels as he dashed around to course in 1:00:32 to be the fastest of the day.  Kalina Bennett who has become a regular top ten outright finisher was the fastest of the females.  Others to race well were Glenn George, Ben Flanagan, Sarah Brazenor, Hadley Black, Phil Viles and Emma Sutton. 
The sponsors invitational teams race saw over ten teams take part, a fast finishing Ventoux Cycles have claimed bragging rights and the trophy from  Coffs Cardiology who finished second while Coffs Jet Ski Hire crossed in third.
Although a smaller field contested the shorter distance, it was still hotly contested with Caleb Taylor taking line honours in his last race over the shorter distance.  Caleb plans to step up to the club distance next season.
Despite club racing finishing, there are many members with upcoming races such as Ironman Australia.  Busselton 70.3.  Byron Bay Triathlon.  Cairns Ironman and World Long Course Championships in France all within the next 2 months.  The CHTC will be represented in all.
Good luck to all competing on our shores and overseas.  Thanks to Bruce and Caron for the fine BBQ breakfast.
 
Ironman Australia
For 10 of our club members, months of training and preparation will culminate with their tilt at Ironman Australia in Port Macquarie on Sunday. We will have two female and 8 male starters in a field of over 1500 when the gun goes off at 6.45am for the 3.8km swim, 180km cycle and 42.2km run that will test the fitness, strength and mental tenacity of all involved. All 10 CHTC members have overcome their own difficulties in preparing themselves both physically and mentally for one of the toughest single-day sporting events in the country.
Favoured to lead the local brigade home is Rod Jozeps, after months of high volume training and honing his body for the best possible performance on race day. With one race over the distance and course to his credit, Rod is going to be fast throughout all three legs with the aim of obtaining a qualifying spot for the World Championships in Hawaii.  Hot on his heels will be his training partner Jon Waites. Only eight years ago, Waites was 96kg and a little overweight.  This Sunday,  Jon will line up for his second tilt at Ironman Australia. He will start the 3.8km swim, 180km cycle and 42km run at a super-fit 73kg.  Not only has he shed in excess of 20kg over recent years, he has built up his muscle percentage, increased his lung capacity, and improved the efficiency of his heart. Jon is not in the Ironman to survive. He intends to race it, hoping for a high placing in his 50-54 years age category.
Glenn George who is coming off an interrupted preparation has experience over the distance and  is the fittest he has been for a long time.  Glenn’s  result may surprise many including himself.
Andrew Wellington  has been nursing a calf injury, has successfully juggled family and work commitments around his training to be in the best physical condition of his life. With self belief and sensible pacing on the run, is capable of setting a new PB over the distance.
Kath Porter from Raleigh has been unable to run for the majority of the last few months, with a lot of time spent water running to adapt the legs for race day's 42km final leg. Her solid swim and bike combination will have her in good position hitting the run course, then patience is the key to a solid finish time.  Nobody has been through the same preparation as Peter Wood. Renowned for his low volume training regime, he also had to factor in an operation to have a kidney removed, leaving him only a few weeks to throw together a few swim/ride/run sets. With in excess of 25 Ironman finishes to his credit, his experience will see him through.  Race day officials have developed a shackle system to ensure Peter only crosses the finish line once.
Woolgoolga's Jenni Williams is again facing the starter, and is another experienced distance athlete.  With her improved swim and consistent bike run combination Jenni will tough it out for another ironman medal.
Cliff Lloyd has had his sights set on this race for the past 12 months.  Has been training consistently well and providing his achilles holds up will be pushing for that PB.  Also competing are Grafton father and son Chris and Jason Limbert, both having raced this course on previous occasions and have had solid preparations.  The wild-card among the Coffs competitors is Clint Rowlings, who only found out four weeks ago that he had a start on race day for his first ironman.  A rushed preparation is not ideal, but there is no doubt his natural abilities will have him prominently placed in his category for a large portion of the race.  For Rowlings, anything is possible, with the key being his ability to keep the excitement level low enough to ease off marginally on his default speed in the cycle and run components, to ensure that first finishes medal comes his way.
Those unable to travel to Port Macquarie to watch the event can follow the progress onwww.ironmanlive.com using their "athlete tracker" facility which will provide split times for each entrant. This feature uses either surname or race number to provide athlete details, accordingly here are the numbers of each entrant of interest to Coffs.  Jason Limbert #47.  Clint Rowlings #115.  Glenn George #1118.  Chris Limbert #1152.  Cliff Lloyd #1153. 
Andrew Wellington #1237.  Rod Jozeps #1357  Jon Waites #1430. Kath Porter #1458.  Jennifer Williams #1552.  Peter Wood #11-276 (Legend Status).

Christmas Party
Now that heading gained your attention.  Coffs Harbour Triathlon Club invites all its members past and present to come and celebrate the end of the 2012/2013 season and Presentation Night.  The evening on Friday May 10th  will commence at 6:30pm at the Coffs Surf Club Bar & Restaurant and will include canapés and $500 on the bar for the early starters. Tickets are $20 per person and can be purchased at     www.stickytickets.com.au/10919

Mentors
ATTENTION JUNIORS
As you may be aware, there are several of our members heading to the USA shortly to try their luck in some events in Northern California, Washington and Canada.
While away, the group would like to stay in contact with some of our current juniors, with regular email correspondence to keep those in Coffs informed on what was happening in the USA training camp.
There will be a Facebook page where general results, training days, photos and blogs will be available, but there is also an opportunity for any of our youngest members to have personal email contact with members of the racing group.
Should you be a current club junior interested in entering into a mentor relationship with Dan Stein, Richard Pearson, Aaron Newman or Reece Edwards while they are overseas, please send your email details to [email protected] and you will receive regular personalised updates during the months of June and July direct from the USA and Canada.
The object is to make the members of our club still in the under 20 year age divisions aware of what is achievable in their future, if they stick to the sport and continue to improve gradually over the next few years.
All the travelling members of the USA group started with modest goals, but their diligence, determination and consistency have given them the opportunity to race overseas. With a similar approach there is no reason some of our youngest members cannot aspire to similar achievements.
There will be more details, including the naming sponsorship of the touring party, announced in the next few weeks.

AGM
A reminder to all members that the club’s Annual General Meeting will be held at the Coffs Harbour Yacht Club on May 29th at 7:30pm

Wise Words
Every accomplishment starts with the decision to try.