My Experience at the Mandurah 70.3 Half Ironman

My Busselton experience was well received so I thought a follow up of my Mandurah was needed. It was after all the race in which I took out my age group (25-29), placed for a spot to the World Champs (2015 in Austria) and overcame running partially naked.

Around a month before the race I’d made my coach, Mike Gee, promise me that the run wouldn’t hurt as much as last time, I would soon find out that is not how this sport works.

The day before the race things were going pretty much as per usual, I had brand new Zipps that I didn’t know how to fit, I hadn’t bought my gels yet, the grip tape on my handle bars was coming off and the list continues. Mandurah 1 – Kerry 0.

So after a pit-stop at the bike shop I headed down to Mandurah with my fiancé Luke and with 90 minutes until the transition closed, which for non-tri peeps reading, the transition is where I needed to rack my bike for race day, and with Mandurah being 60 minutes from Perth I was a little emotional. Mandurah 2 – Kerry still 0.

Once I checked in, got my bike in transition and my heart rate back below 100BPM we went for dinner with my parents (who’d also made the trip to see me compete) and began to mentally prepare for what tomorrow was going to bring.

The morning of the race, to keep the theme going, when I went to put on my wetsuit I realised that there was a huge hole in the back, by this point I was mentally ready to race and nothing was going to make me lose concentration and focus. Mandurah 3 – Kerry stopped counting.

I really enjoyed the in-water swim start, it gave me time to get in position and enabled me to avoid the mass kicking and underwater attacks of a beach start. The swim was fast, fun and after following some feet for the first 1.2km, I then took the lead for the last 700m. I knew from previous races that the run leg would be my weakness so my tactic was to get as large a lead as possible on the swim and bike.

Now onto the bike and as always I thoroughly enjoyed the course, there were a few things that occurred during the 90km’s that set off alarm bells though. On the first hill of Paganoni Road I started to cramp and cramped a few more times during the bike which hasn’t happened to me before. My stomach also started to hurt and the gels were giving me a gag reflex, again for non-tri peeps, I would compare this to tequila shots at 1am – my body was saying no.

For a very short time running off the bike I felt strong. Unfortunately this only lasted the first lap through town, a max of 1.5km. The next 19.5km I was running with a stabbing pain in my stomach which forced me to pull down the top of my tri-suit and expose my sports bra, my white, sweat soaked and clearly never meant to be worn alone sports bra. I was not going to let vanity cost me this race.

It was when I was forced to make a toilet stop at the 5km mark that I realised the run today was going to be significantly more painful than the run at Busselton. I was still determined not to give up, at Busselton the woman in second caught me in the last couple of km’s so I just kept telling myself anything can happen in a half ironman, HOLD ON!

It wasn’t until those last 5km’s that I truly believed I could hold off second place and win this thing, this for me was the turning point and at this point I turned it on.

A quote from Mirinda Carfare pushed me further

‘If I was to give into pain I wouldn’t be able to look at myself in the mirror’

I just kept repeating this over and over and it got me to the finish line.

Mandurah taught me three major things

The power of having your coach there to give you advice and support during the race, thank you Mike Gee.
The strength and confidence you get from having your team and loved ones there to support and cheer you on, thank you my fiancé Luke, my parents and Blackfins (my Team) – is undeniably the greatest support you will receive. And,
Last but not least, NEVER LET GO!!

This race was exhilarating – I finished in 4.37.35, a personal best time. I won my age group, 25-29yrs. I placed for the World Championships in Austria 2015. Mandurah 3 – Kerry miles in front!