Well it's 20 weeks away from today.

I will be racing again and hopefully finishing this time.

Any other takers?

kb

Hopefully see you there next year!

You WILL finish kb!! Maybe Rob should offer to marshal on the bike leg? I know how much he loves sabotaging the competition!!

Would love to do the Half-Ironman, I wouldn't care about my time I just would like to complete it and enjoy the experrence of the race. But I think you have to be 17 or 18... I should try do the Sprint-man this year then...

I've forgotten how far the sprintman is and I just typed it on the internet and nothing came up. Can anyone give me the answer ?

Edit. I just found it on this link: http://www.coolrunning.com.au/forums/index...&pid=366893

I'm undecided.
IF I can run, I might have a crack at the HIM.
If my running is still crap, I'll do Sprintman again.
Staring from almost nothing again though.

As I type I have in front of me my week2 of my 20 week training :-) reviewing my last weeks attainment against week 1 where I didn't do any of the swim sessions.

Im going to try and finish this - my first half and my first ows longer than 400m.

Just finishing before the cut-off will be my goal.

Was this last year / is this a wetsuit race typically?

It was last year, but not too cool that you need one if you haven't got one..

thanks - Im more thinking about the extra buoyancy and life saving properties tbh

I assume they do the water temperature - so its not allowed above XXdegrees but optional below?

I'm planning to be in . The coach gave me my first 4 week plan last week and it's is just as well I work part-time

yes i think it's 24oC so pretty generous. has been a wetty the last 4 years i know of. also, i wouldn't call it an ows btw - canals with no tidal pull or waves. i was more concerned about bull sharks when i did it last time as it was my first non-pool swim and first tri. a guy told me at the start line "don't worry, think caribou... only the slow and the weak will get eaten" .... shit that's me on both fronts i thought!

was originally a goal race for me this year but since i got in to new york marathon on 1 Nov, i might focus on training totally for that. will decide in Aug.

Woohoo! Nice one TA

It was great to keep you company out there this morning TA.

Hopefully today will be the first of many joint sessions in the lead up to Gold Coast.

I'm in for the race

It'll be my second GC HIM. My last was at Coomera in 2007 which seemed to be plagued with problems, which I hear they mostly fixed last year. Here's hoping it runs smoothly again this year!

--Toby

Definitely in for this. It is my goal race.

Looking forward to seeing the difference in time from doing predominantly OD training in the lead up with all my mates going to Worlds in September, as opposed to normally doing too much longer aerobic training.

Good luck all in your workloads

Maybe for me. I should be at Busso in December, this could be a good lead up race!

More than likely in, but depends on whether Winky takes her Long Course spot.

Nope, not for me. I will be in a far away place travelling with my son

As for the rest of the Balance Tri Club, there will be a large group attending this event. I look forward to hearing all the stories on my return, and seeing the photo evidence on Facebook

Will - Busso is going to be huge this year also!

kb - all the way this time.

Cheers,
AK

Rest week for me this week and boy do I need it.

Training has been going well and I have my eyes firmly set on that finish line this year.

The goal is not only to finish but to do it wearing a hot little one piece tri suit that I picked up at Husky in February

I would love to do this but money and time is a limiter Guess I will just concentrate on Canberra in Dec.

Woot!! You will be the hottest chick out there kb If I am not in it (and I doubt I will be), I would love to be there to cheer you on

Please come on up Mousie and bring hubby and the kids so we can go to Sea World

Hi there,

I have just entered my first HIM race and have no idea what to expect. Could anyone tell me if there are hills involved in the bike and run course. Where I live is pretty much flat and I am hopeless with hills. So, if the course is tough I may have to think about how to survive on the race day (I am just a beginner afterall).

Many Thanks.

The swim is flat.

The bike is flat with undulating bits.

The run is flat.

Last year it was 35 degress and very windy.

I wouldn't call it a tough course but the conditions can be tough.

I would find some hills and learn to love them

kb

I'm in. Just started a 17 week program on Monday. Haven't entered yet though

Thanks kb (luckily the swim course is also flat , otherwise I would have to consider doing my swim training in a water fall here . I'll try to follow your words of wisdom (though I hate hills!). Thanks for the info kb.

Some of the roads are raised in the middle of cane fields so you are pretty exposed to the wind. If you get a good windy day while training, use it to put some miles in on the bike. Don't worry overly about the hills, I did maybe 4 or 5 hill sessions before last year and found the 'hills' quite easy. The wind will take it out of you more than the hills. Of course for your longer term training get the hills in.

Get a bit of time in on rougher sealed roads as well, some of the roads last year rattled the bike around a bit, most of it was good but the number of lost bidons, spare tubes, CO2 canisters etc on one section of road was amazing.

How things change!!!

I was distraught after missing out on Noosa entry this year. It was my goal race!! Then did the tour de tri on the weekend in a team and after doing 8 loops one of the team said I should give the HIM a go!! So I'm in and entered. Can't wait for this. Goal time of 7:29:59 - anything less is a bonus I can't wait to catch up with some of you.

That is such good advice!! I was completely unprepared last year for the rough surface, it took so much out of my legs! I did most of my training on the M7 cycle path which I would not recommend as the surface there is just too smooth. That was one of the hundred or so learnings I came away with last year (the biggest one being just HTFU!)

C'mon Goughy. This talking yourself down caper is getting stale!
Be brave, post a real goal.
I talked it over with my squad coach on Wednesday and I'm gunna have a crack.
Goal is 5:45 for me.
Swim/Ride/Transition - 3:45
Run 2:00

If you take my OD time x 2.2, as some people say, it's 6:20 though. Better keep training.

Did my first run off a longer ride today - 70 k ride (2:30) - 1.75 k run (10min).
Stride length felt like it was about 30cm for the first half of the run.......

I wish I could come up with a time! I really do. But I have no clue. Could be as low as 5:30 if everything went well.

But I've never ridden further than 40k in my life yet - and we took 2 hours for that. My longest tri ride so far is only about 12k and it was at an average of about 27k/hr. But not as flat as the goldie should be. My only HM time is 2:21, but I'm hoping to go 1:50 on the goldie in a few weeks. The only thing I could really put a time to is the swim. Was hoping for 25mins at Noosa, so I'll be conservative and say sub 35mins.

If you take your x 2.2 theory, then I was aiming for 2:40 at Noosa, so 5:50ish should be my goal. But honestly, considering what I was doing May last year I'd be smiling ear to ear with 7:29:59

Does it sound scary if I mention that it's only 16 weeks away... (now where's that evil grin emoticon got to?)

No. I thought it was 14 weeks away! 16 weeks makes it easy....

About bloody time

Nope

Geez. You lot are no fun. You're supposed to be panic stricken at the ordeal that you've chosen to undertake, not relaxed and confident! Sheesh. Tiger angel's the only one that's supposed to be confident, but that's because she's going to win the thing outright. (p.s. don't tell her, 'cause she doesn't know that yet. Let's keep it our little surprise... )

Hi there,

I have never done a HIM before, but have bitten my toung and registered for the GC-HIM. I have started training early this month (by myself, no coach, no plan...nothing !!!). I used to ride to work in the last few months (only 15km), but it has been very wet and cold here (Adelaide). I'm a bit concern with my bike bits. I have been spending very little time on only my indoor trainer and the longest time I spent on it was 70min. This seems to be the only option I have. Winter is not good for me both health and safety issues.

I'm wondering if this is going to be enough to get me through the race (I can swim 1.9 km and run a half marathon, both at easy pace (or as my friend said 'back of the pack' pace). Can anyone tell me if it is possible to get through the HIM with only just training on an indoor trainer (I'm not a trained cyclist, only start riding bike for a less than 2 years- on and off). My aim is just to finish the race (within the cut-off time). Any tips/help would be appreciated.

Tri' newbie'

lol. give you 20 dollars for your entry.

Yes it is possible do do a half ironman with only indoor bike training.

I am not sure it is such a good idea though.

I only use my indoor trainer when it is raining outside and then do a Spinervals dvd so I know my session is specific and focused.

LeeLa, can I ask what triathlon experience do you have? Why do you want to do a half ironman? Why Gold Coast and not Geelong or Shepparton which are much closer to you?

I am a back of the packer and also hope to finish Gold Coast HIM within the cut off time this year.

Just to give you some idea of my training here is what I get up to each week:

2-3 x swim sessions (usually 2 with squad) at up to 2.4km each session
2-3 bike sessions - one long recovery ride, one short fast ride and one long hill session.
2-3 runs - pretty much the same format as my rides.
2 weights sessions
1 trek training session with my girls group. These are usually stairs and intervals or a longer hike with a heavy pack and last for 3 hours (I have some specific trekking goals too).

I have a coach who writes my program. Each program lasts for 4 weeks and is 3 weeks of hard training followed by a recovery week where I still do as many sessions but the intensity is gentler.

I am also a full time shift worker so my sessions do vary a bit from week to week.

Phew.

I hope this helps

Cheers

kb

Jeeze, that's some training schedule! I'd be half that. But looking forward to this more and more and more!!

Goughy

After the disappointment of being pulled off the course last year I am on a mission this year to finish with style. Revenge will be sweet!

Being quite overweight didn't help me much last year either.

So far I have lost 6kg and aim to lose another 6-8kg before race day

kb

In the words of Daffy 'YOU CAN DO IT!' (deep voice required)

AK

Thank for the inputs kb. That is quite a lot of training hrs you have put in for this event. I may look into some free internet plans and will try to see what the minimal training I can apply for my situation (with work and family commitment).

anyway- just to quickly answer your question, I start tri' ing this time last year, just for fun and fitness. Going to Gold coast is a good excuse to get away and I have heard that it is a good place to be (is it true that they have choices of all kinds of beer at drink stations to chose from?). ... should be a good experience.

I may stay indoor with my bike for awhile then if that is the case (as you said I can...and I believe you!).

LeeLa, I think you may have entered the wrong event.

kb

It was just a joke kb I think I pick the right event. Have done a few sprints and 2 OD last year with a few half marathon races. So I think it is about time to move up! Will see how I go with my indoor trainer during this cold winter

Woot!! I am looking forward to seeing the TA/kb showdown

There will be no showdown Mouse.

As long as TA avoids broken bones and illness she will be way ahead of me!

kb

I looking forward to the Mouse /Tiger Angel / kb showdown.

That might have to wait until Nepean Thomo.

Mouse is not brave enough for a 2nd shot at Gold Coast

Roll on Nepean!

Trash talking so early in the year for Nepean.

Should be able to set up some good match races like mango v's sfGnome for example.

Keep up the training kb.