Port Macquarie Ironman- Preparation
There has been no happier, very last finisher in any event than me in Port Macquarie on that Ironman night. After 16hrs 48minutes I was probably happier than the fastest person on the course.
Scenic Routes Do Sell
Why Port Macquarie? Well as usual , I was sold on the idea about how breathtaking and stunning the race route was. I have yet to learn how to associate “scenic” with hills.
Crash programme
Admittedly there were a few minor glitches on the way to Port Macquarie – like insufficient time on the bike and in the water. My new trek bike – bought one month before the Aviva 70.3 in September 08 was and still is, languishing somewhere on the docks in Sydney. My swimming was also a tad rusty. However, this was a brand New Year and this was my brand new resolution – completeing an ironman race along the most scenic routes .I had 12 weeks.
Luckily I found a kind soul in Coffs who was willing to help me plan the adventure .
Swim Training
In January 09 I started swimming in earnest. Apart from that one month before last year’s Aviva 70.3, I had not swum laps since 1972. I had cramps every 100m so I repaired to the supermarket for the latest anticramp remedy – magnesium tablets and kept myself going by rewarding each swim session with dark fruitcake or banana bread. By week 10, I could complete 2.5k in about 2 hours. Then there was this little detail about wet suits.
I found that the wetsuit made me so bouyant I got sea sick floating around in the sea. I think I know how the otters and seals feel bobbing around on the surface. Anyway it was during this period that there were reports of sharks hunting surfers in Sydney, so practicing in the open water rapidly became less attractive. Just in case the local shark community were influenced by their city cousins.
Bike 
Well I went to buy a nice aluminium, lime green Giant. I have to say that the first 30-50k succeeded beyond my dreams – in tenderising my poor rump steaks. However, the subsequent shopping – online shopping made up for most things. I also found some advice from the internet on how to wear those funny padded shorts. In 12 weeks, the rides progressed from a painful 1.5 hour 20k ride to 160k in 8.5-9 sore hours. Somewhere along the way the bike morphed into a carbon bik
e – this time in black and lime green.
The long rides were interesting because I had very nice coffee and lunch breaks! The routes were planned with a nice scenic coffee or picnic places as the focus destination. So from Coffs Harbour, I would ride for a nice lunch at Mylestrom, coffee at Urunga , Chocolate Florentines or gelato at Bellingen. Or a quiet snack in the Bongil Bongil forest reserve. An additional 2kg appeared quietly on the weighing scales too. Minor details.
Two weeks before the event I meandered down to Port Macquarie to have a look at the bike route. I found the infamous Matthew Flinders hill rather steep. Initially I thought I could do it. I pedalled madly, rapidly lost momentum and slowly but surely ground to a halt. Then there was this agonising tilt over to the grassy verge because I couldn’t decide which foot to take off the pedals since both were still desperately pushing downwards.
The score that day was 5 to the hill and 1 to me. That one time when I actually got up the hill still seated on the bike left me gasping so badly that I had to get off anyway. So while I was doing my asthmatic attck and whooping cough – recovering from my near death experience – this handsome young man clad in tight yellow attire breezed by on his bike with greatest of ease. “G’day!” he shouted. ” Bitch of a hill ain’t it”. My only consolation was that even he had to stand up to pedal
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/4146233 A trace of the bike route. This trace is only 140k. (I think I switched the garmin off somewhere). The actual route is 180k (3x a 60k course)
That night I had a big giant choc mint Haagen Daz milkshake from the shop in Port Macquarie. I think by this time the total weight gain it must have been +3Kg
Matasaya 
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