Nicole Ward - Race report from Port of Tauranga Half Ironman

Race wrap from Port of Tauranga Half Ironman- Saturday 8^th January, 2011.

7^th place

Last Thursday I headed across the ditch to race in one of NZ’s largest, most prestigious and competitive triathlon races. Set in the beautiful Mt Maunganui it made for a great kick start to my 2011 race schedule.After a heavy week training in the Snowy Mountains (which I later realised probably wasn’t the greatest prep for this race), I was excited about getting out there again and seeing how things were tracking against a competitive female line up. 
I had been warned but didn’t realise until I was out there racing just how tactical this course was!! The swim in Pilot Bay was interesting as there were boats moored everywhere and just before the gun went off the field split and some athletes swam out wide as others chose the inward line to the first buoy. I had no idea what was going on so decided to go wide and follow the feet of Bek Keat and Jo Lawn. It was quite choppy and there were loads of tiny jellyfish which made it a challenging swim.
I was out of the water in 5^th and after a pretty shocking transition headed off onto the 2 lap bike course. The pace was on and I let a few girls get away which I later realised was a big tactical mistake as I spent most of the 90km riding solo. I have to say that I was quite surprised at what seemed like more of a cycling race- not sure where all of the draft busters were!! Anyway, I got off the bike in 8^th position and felt quite sluggish which is not like me. I was really looking forward to the run but today my legs just didn’t want to do their job unfortunately. It was one of those days that I just couldn’t wait to see that finish line.
As always lots of lessons learnt , but definitely a good training block under my belt now which should take me nicely into the next couple of months of training and racing. On the way home from Auckland, I was reading an interview with Australian Pro Cyclist Alan Davis which was definitely a good post race reflection. He said that a “good athlete is one with a never give up attitude and determination and willingness to achieve their goals. The most important thing is having FUN!!” He also said that “the real champions are the ones who don’t spit the dummy- who stick around for the highs as well as the lows”. Just some good food for thought J

Stay safe and thanks for your support,
Nic J

Thanks to my key sponsors- Shimano, Nashys Pix, Zoot, High 5 Nutrition, Turramurra Cyclery, Newton and Foot Levellers for your continued support.