I had a great time in Christchurch again this year and was really sad to leave after only 12days.  Time seems to fly and we have made so many good friends over the last three years there is always plenty to do.  I can't fault the training, with the combination of flat and hilly terrain plus plenty of wind, it must be some of the best cycle training in the world.  There are always plenty of short and long course athletes to train with and Roly's (swim coach) morning swim sessions are legendary. 

I arrived late on 02 January and Roly turned out at midnight to collect me....he is an absolute star, (albeit a tough one) and will do anything for you.  I was staying with him and another triathlete, Lou who is over from Scotland.  After another shortened nights sleep, I was unpacking my bike and repacking an overnight bag, as we prepared to drive up to Lake Rotoiti for a race.  I was keen to get a race in to make sure I hadn't lost my touch over Xmas & New Year, before the first ITU points race of the season in Argentina on 18 January.

The drive was stunning and reminded me of parts of Queenstown, with the snow capped mountains reflecting in the lakes.  We arrived after 5hrs, by which time my body truly had had enough of traveling, so I headed out the door to test drive my bike.  A couple of hours cruising through the countryside can do wonders and I got so carried away I almost missed dinner!  We were all staying at a B&B and our host cooked the best fruit cake you have ever seen...Thies (another Christchurch triathlete) demolished a whole plateful without any trouble!  Lou and Macca (one of the top NZ AG athletes) were racing as a relay due to Lou's injured ankle and Thies was racing with me in the main event.

We woke to slightly overcast weather, which was perfect as the sun had been so hot the day before all the tar had been melting on the roads. I headed out the door for a 20minute jog to wake my legs up before breakfast and felt awesome.  It's funny how good you can sometimes feel after the worst preparation.  We arrived at transition with just the right amount of time to finish our warm-up and register only to find that the race would start 30minutes early, as everyone was there!  Thankfully, I had run early and we had biked to the start, so I quickly squeezed into my wetsuit and jumped in the cold water for a 5minute swim.  Just as I arrived at the start line, the gun went off and I focused on swimming straight to the buoy so not to repeat my Queenstown error. 

My arms felt a bit tired in the swim but this could have been the effects of all the travel and also the altitude as we were at 800m.  I hung with a small group of three athletes and found I was on the feet of the lead woman out of the water.....bonus - this was a new experience for me.  By the time we exited transition, I was in the lead and worked hard up the steep climb out of transition to hopefully put off anyone's plans of pursuit.  As I cruised along the bike course, it was so nice to do a race without any pressure and simply enjoy being fit and racing.  I ended up with a group of guys and we all sat 10m apart and maintained a good rhythm for the ride.  As I jumped off the bike at T2 my legs felt like lead, I guess the hills and tough road service on the bike had taken the sting out of them.  I heard Roly shouting encouragement from his wheelchair, as I headed up the hill and focused on light feet.  I had seen a women about 2-3minutes back on the bike who looked like she could be a mean runner, so I was keen to get through the out and back section of the run before she arrived....as they say, "Out of sight, out of mind."  I slowly found my rhythm as the run progressed and before long I was heading down the last hill to the finish.  It was a tough race but I really enjoyed being out there and the scenery was so breath-taking.  There was just time to ice the legs in the lake and then cycle 30minutes to try and clear them before jumping in the car for the trip home.

It was good to get into training again on Monday and I always love returning to Christchurch to train.  It is nice to see how much you have progressed from one year to the next and I was definitely swimming much better this year and finding Roly's sessions were not destroying me!  I managed to catch up with my friend, Scott Millar, owner of BikeRight which is a company specializing in correct bike set-up.  He was a professional cyclist in Europe and mechanic for some top teams before setting up the company after so much demand from pro's on the circuit.  He has a great system to methodically go through every position from feet to head to maximize comfort and avoid injury plus he has a real eye for seeing ways to increase power.  He is often booked out for weeks and even had Nigel Maunsell (World Champion F1 Driver) in to see him the other week as he is keen to take up cycling. If you are ever in Christchurch, I would strongly recommend seeing him and he gives the best bike service in the world: scott.millar@bikeright.co.nz
I was so excited as Scott was putting together my new bike, as I had ordered a custom frame when I was in Australia in November.  After trying to make off the shelf frames fit over the last few years, I had finally found someone where we could design a bike specifically around my body and what I wanted out of a frame.  I spent about 4hrs with Sean at Dr Spokes in Gold Coast (www.anatomic.com.au) while he watched me ride my bike and we discussed frame materials and design.  I had decided to go with the new Durace 10-speed components (how sexy.....), new Easton C90 fork & stem (how light.......) and Corima Winium wheels, which I could hardly tell I was holding in my hand!  I was like a kid at Christmas and what made it more exciting was I had designed and picked out everything based on the way I like to ride and what I wanted out of my bike, (with the help of some expert advice of course!)  Well, let me tell you it's like riding a Ferrari and I still can't believe how well it climbs especially when I am out of the saddle.  Cookie was completely un-impressed as I had my first test drive in Akaroa, the day after he arrived in New Zealand to see me and we had a friends wedding to attend.  He was going to ride my old bike and we decided a nice little 3.5hr ride was in order.  For those of you who don't know Akaroa, it's an old volcano crater and there is not an inch of flat land for miles.  The first 30minutes of the ride when straight up and of course I am flying on my new steed while Cookie is just starting to get back in shape after some time off with injury and dealing with my old bike (+ it's squeaky wheel!).  It was stinking hot with the sun melting the tar on the roads and we climbed over 1500m with Cookie wishing he was somewhere else and me suffering serious new bike-itus!

We went to the wedding in the afternoon at a local vineyard and had a ball then stumbled back to our beautiful farm home-stay.  The following day, we were lucky enough to be allowed to swim in a private beach off the peninsula owned by a local farmer.  They often have penguins nesting nearby and the cold water was so refreshing.  We then drove back to Christchurch and had dinner at another friend's whose place overlooks the sea at Sumner.....it was the perfect way to end the weekend, sipping wine and eating local cheese we bought in Akaroa on the balcony, as you listen to the waves breaking on the beach....pure heaven.  I can't believe I have to up sticks again, leave Cookie behind and head off to America where the racing & serious training begin.  I know I will be OK when I get going but it is always hard to leave.......

Next update from Argentina.

Happy Training,  Claire

Wedding Picture of Tim & Fi - check out the amazing view:

Sipping wine on the veranda at the wedding.....this is the life

Monster coming out from the deep!