Kumusta - Ni Hao - G'day

Where do I start, it has been a whirl wind couple of months. I’m now sitting in Qujing, China which is probably the furthest I have been from the western world and that desk I used to sit at day in and day out. There is no Facebook, Instagram, youtube or Google and literally no one speaks English. The saving grace is that Chinese people, in my experience so far, are very kind and helpful people.

It is a very humbling experience when you realise that almost no one here has left China and to see a foreigner is huge deal. If you ever needed a reality check or help putting things in perspective look no further.

A few times since I have been here I have thought, what I am doing with my life and how this sport can very often feel like a selfish endeavour. Putting so much effort into becoming the best YOU can be and thinking about yourself most of the time, where and when I will train, how am I going to recover? But running along the streets here and having little girls and boys running beside me with a huge smile on their face reminded me of why I got into this sport in the first place. On Barrow Island, where it all started, there were a lot of people that were miserable due to the tough living conditions up there, 12hr days and away from their loved ones. I found that through Triathlon I could help people get out and train and inspire people to become more active. Encouraging people to find happiness and fulfilment in sport is a big motivator for me.

Reflecting on the last 6 months I have made some of the toughest and scariest, but BEST decisions of my life:

- Number 1: Taking a break from Engineering to focus 100% on triathlons. I am an all or nothing person and being half an engineer and half a triathlete was not cutting it and I am so much happier now!

- Number 2: Taking my pro licence. This was a huge game changer for me. I love racing the best and being alongside them at the start line brings out the fierce competitor in me. We are all on a level playing field and are out there battling side by side.

- Number 3: Getting out there and racing! Traveling around Asia and getting as much race experience as I could has been amazing and suits my sink or swim attitude. I would have never expected to be on the podium twice so early in my professional career and I am fully aware that there will once again be bad races and dark times but I am trying to fully enjoy these recent results. This can sometimes be hard as I am the type of athlete to goes for the win but when you are racing great athletes you have to be happy with a podium finish. These results have made me super hungry and excited for the future.

Ok back to the reason I sat down, to write a race blog…

Ironman 70.3 Philippines was just amazing, from the spectacular swim, in what seemed to be an aquarium with millions of fish, to the run course which was lined with local supporters chanting ‘go runner go’! Although the race was extremely challenging, with accurate estimated temps of ‘feels like’ 40 degrees, the on course support in terms of aid stations and crowd enthusiasm made the race not only doable, but in a sick suffering way enjoyable! The main goal of the race was to not end up in medical, as I most often do, and to (as usual) completely empty the tank. I am aware that these are somewhat conflicting goals but I have come to the realisation that this is the only way I know how to or want to race! I am happy to report this was achieved, if you need evidence of the tank being emptied please look at finishing shoot picture below….

I had to sprint the last 400m, while cramping to hold onto 3rd! As I am gradually building confidence in my run and in myself holding onto 3rd, although being chased hard from behind, is a big boost for me! I would highly recommend this race to anyone looking for a challenging but thoroughly enjoyable race.

This weekend I am racing Qujing 70.3 in China and then back to Aus for Sunny Coast 70.3 two weeks later. I have always believed that I enjoy training more than racing but since turning Pro that has changed. I now have the attitude that this is my job and yes everybody has bad days in the office and that doesn’t make them a bad employee, which has massively taken the pressure off. As an age grouper and working full time, I measured my self-worth on my race results which was a recipe for failure! I feel I am living my dream and have an amazing husband, family and team that support me 100% at this point ‘you win or you learn’! When surfing or snowboarding I would always have the mentality that if I wasn’t stacking it I wasn’t pushing the boundaries of what I was capable of and learning how to get better. This is something I always want to reflect in my racing, not by falling off the bike or getting injured, but by going for the win and risking coming last at the chance of coming first.