It seems that every time I have a decent ride of late, it rains, not just drizzle, torrential rain.

I rode out to Kinglake this morning with Princess and PK (Peter K) and once again the rain gods unleashed their fury on us. Speaking with PK during the ride, we detected a recurring pattern. We have now ridden together on 4 separate occasions and came to the conclusion that on each ride, we have been hammered by rain. Hence our new name, "The Drought Busters".

So, next time the state needs rain, we figure we'll schedule a ride and bang, it will pi55 down like no tomorrow!

Problem with riding in the rain, the % chance of a puncture(s) increases significantly. PK had 2 on the mountain and Princess 1 which included a partially shredded rear tyre, WTF! After some thought, I remember reading an article in a newsletter at www.roadbikerider.com that suggested using the blown tube as insulation b/w the tyre and the new tube.

So, we laced the tyre with the old tube minus the valve, then jammed the 2nd good tube inside the tyre and then jammed it back on the rim. How many cyclists does it take to change a tyre? 3, it took all 3 of us to get the phuker on as it was jammed with 2 tubes. Best of all, Princess got back to Melbourne on it.

Add that to the arsenal of tricks, it is solid gold and will definitely get you home, we just made sure Princess stayed at the back as we where expecting it to blow at some point. ;)

I'm off now to give the bike a nice rub down after the smashing it took this morning ;)

Komo

WAR is imminent and the zone is Shepparton! D-Day happens to be this Sunday, at 7:00am when the Shepparton Half Ironman gets underway.

It has been a solid build up over the past 6-8 weeks and I am happy with my progress. The body took its time warming to the rigors of intense training, but Coach Maty www.etpa.com.au has put me into a big hole of HURT, especially over the past 4 weeks and I am happy to say that I've managed to claw my way out of the hole and I can see light at the end of the tunnel. It's been intense but a journey to remember.

The swimming and running have progressed well and I've had some good improvement on both fronts. The bike has come along in leaps and bounds in the past 3-4 weeks and I plan on riding in the RED and in the words of Princess, "Going to war on the bike!" I am going to put myself in the biggest world of hurt and have a big crack on old skool! It's the engine that counts ;)

The run, it will be a case of hang of for dear life and see what transpires. This race is just a stepping stone for me on my way to IMOZ 2008 and then Kona 2008 ;) as it is that golden slot that I am driven towards. It is all about Kona for me so I plan to experiment at Shepp.

What comes out in the wash, only time will tell! But, I'm laying the "jats crackers" on the line and plan on hurting like I've never hurt before!

I'll keep a few mantras up my sleeve, but here are one or two:

IF IT'S HURTING ME, IT'S KILLING THEM!
I KNOW HOW TO HURT

Off to war I go!

Komo

P.S. Good luck to all the ETPA crew heading up to Shepp for the race too. We are going to look like an awesome unit in the new ETPA race kit! SMASH SMASH SMASH ggggrrrrr

They were needed this morning! The race day brick in prep for Shepp was a very very tough affair. A howling North wind made the going out to Frankston fast and the pace was on. I rode with Caff, Princess and James Monaghan, and, yep, they have the minerals alright! ;)

Just to touch on something Caff said in his blog a few weeks back, you have to surround yourself with guys who KNOW HOW TO HURT and can HARDEN THE PHUK UP when it gets nasty out there, this is the sort of training that makes you fast as you push each other to the edge, the rewards come race day. Leave the self doubters at home!

The ride was close to race day intensity, just a tad under so there wasn't much friendly banter, some, but on the way back into that wind, it was head down and grind. I just love getting all TT and smashing it into a massive head wind, it is the sort of stuff that makes you so strong come race day.

Bottom line, I am feeling strong on the rig and am looking forward to riding in the RED ZONE at Shepp and hanging tough on the run.

Race Day Nutrition Update:
I took on board 140gm per hour of High5 Super Carbs today on the bike which came to 420gm of CHO together with 750ml of water per hour and still felt rather dehydrated. With the increased intensity on the bike, I felt that it was pushing the envelope somewhat and felt it could have come back up with a vengeance on a few occasions, BUT, overall, it stayed down and the 1:40 run off the bike proved no problems at all. I only took 120gm of CHO during the run but downed it all by the 1:10 mark so I have another race day hit out next week and will again go for the 140gm per hour to confirm it once and for all.

Captain in Kona
Here are some links to some awesome photos of Captain at Kona, the first is from Traeges' facebook: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=18206&l=ac5d8&id=563238464


and this link is from the official photographer on race day: http://www.asiorders.com/view_event.asp?EVENTID=16944
with this link, enter in 1224 for Captains photos and there are some that have been incorrectly assigned to 224.

Over and out

Komo

Yo Folks! If there's a more crazy man, please show me ;;))

Just got this from Captain (on the right) with those very cool looking "undies" and Dan "Piranha" Pironti on the left with the "diaper" on. I believe the caption says it all, that is one fine piece of "Team Nice Ass".

Apparently, the boys just finished participating in the annual Kona Hawaii Undie Run and what a great way for Captain to relax before the big race.

The man is ripped and looks like a WEAPON, why not flaunt it, lookout island he is coming to get ya.

Just needed to share that with you. The buzz, the buzz, ggrr. Over and out - Kona Countdown : 2 days

Komo

All is ready and primed to go! Caff has the pad set for the MT festivus that will be in the wee hours of Sunday morning, around 4am Melb time when the age groupers exit the drink and Captain starts his way down the Queen K, we will start our ride down the Caff K.

We are all pretty pumped about the race, way way way too exciting. Had a great chat with Waino the other night, he is primed, lean and ready to rock. I'll be texting Nic and Traeges continuously as they will be over there cheering him on.

This is a shot of the boy in his race day attire titled "Caught in the act" This was taken during his 30th Sept Brick -- it's on the corner of the Queen K and the entry to the Energy Lab, just had my 4 hour bike and is gearing up for the run ;).

So, competitor #1224, do you have what it takes. If I know Captain and I do, he will have every possible mantra penned with henna on that body of his as he hits that start line for the biggest race of his life.

Go and get em'! Show them how tough the Aussies are, and when you are hurting, remember, to quote someone else's expression, "HTFU" - Harden The Phuk Up! ;)

This pretty much sums up the feeling from myself and a few of the lads at the minute as the countdown is on : Kona Countdown : 4 days

"Immerse yourself in something deeply and with heartfelt intensity - continually improve, never give up - this is fulfillment, this is success."
- Dean Karnazes (www.ultramarathonman.com )

SMASH SMASH SMASH Captain!

Byeski,

Komo

We both started our prep for Ironman together in mid 2004 after collapsing over the line in an Olympic distance race at Elwood. I can remember at the time, how the *#&$ am I going to run 10kms of the bike, 2 x 5km laps, seemed like it was going to be a world of hurt. Oh how things are so different today. Fourth year in and a 2:00+ run is par for the course and you don't even blink an eye! A few days after that race over a few beers, Captain (Julian Wain), Motiv8r (Stuart Hinks) and myself decided that the longer stuff would be fun, lets do Shepp and start the 18 weeks of training in July.

So there it began, the quest for Kona and now, some years later, Captain is there!

People often ask what is so special about Kona, it's hard to describe, but for me, it's the pinnacle of Ironman, I get chills on the skin when watching past races and for anyone who has completed an Ironman, that feeling of running down the finish chute keeps you coming back for more. GGGrrrr

Well, "D" day is nearing and the Captain is 10 sleeps away from living the dream and entering that elusive club of Kona finishers and I can not wait, way way way too exciting! I wish I could be there to race with him but it's not to be ;( So next best thing, a few of us will be on the MTs in front of the Plasma at Caff's pad watching the action on ironmanlive, cranking it out in our own Queen K, we might even turn up the heating, fire up the urn and set up a fan or two to get some cross winds happening.

Back to reality, at the moment, the boy is "acclimating" to the conditions that Kona has to offer, he's riding on the Queen K and gearing out on the downhill into Kona, vroom, running through the Energy LAB, in his words "SOMEONE PINCH ME, I'M HERE BABY." He keeps on having to tell himself to back off as the adrenalin kicks in and he wants to smash it up and is doing "lots of Natasha Badman style smiling" ::))

He has encountered some of the nasty winds that the big island has to offer already whilst out riding on Sunday, into a 15-20mph wind on the 39/25 to keep the intensity at bay and getting blown 1m left or right by cross winds, BRUTAL! He also drove the course and says that there are some nasty NASTY hills, and FIERCE WIND.

I'll be keeping my fingers crossed and praying to the weather gods for Julian.

SMASH SMASH Captain!

Komo (I'm with you all the way)

Kona Countdown : 10 days and counting.....