Summer in Stunning Boulder!

Boulder is a place that you just want to get up each day and train in!! It dosent matter what time of the day there seems to be this inherant pull that lures you oustide. It has always amazed me the energy during the summer months that runs through a city or twon that has spent the best part of the year covered under think snow and ice. Everyone seems to just be out there embracing and soaking up the summer weather. The gardens are flourishing with wild flowers, the squirrels are huslting around and apparently the racoons are scrounging around at night! There is also streams of cyclists everywhere no matter what time of day or where you are you can always know that you are not alone in your adventures that the roads will always be full of cyclists! So it has been one week since I arrived and things seem to be going really well. We are one flat mate short at the moment but are assured that we have one arriving in a few days..... just not sure who will be staying right through to August with us!! Training has been going well, I have had to back things off a bit to allow my body to adjust to altitude which has been hard as its such a stunning place to be that there is always the temptation to just keep going that extra bit and explore a bit more on the rides and runs! But am sticking to the plan. The condo we have rented has turned out to be the perfect location. It is only a short walk away from the main pool and athletic club, is across the road from the running track and has a super market just dwon the road. We also have pretty easy access out of twon to all the good cycling loops so been feeling pretty blessed with the set up. I have done a couple awesome rides up into the hills through amazing canyons, alongside rivers, and through some beautiful farmlands. It truely is stunning here. The highlight or should i say quote of the week has to have been when i was riding with Callum and Matt on Saturday (first longish ride and day 3 at Altitude) and Callum turns around and says "I dont know how to break this too you but we are at the start of a 2 and 1/2 hour climb!!" Needless to say i didnt do the whole climb, but what an amazing climb it was! I didnt realize how far up i had gone until i was making my way back dwon again! On Sunday Matt had the use of a car so we headed up to the Table Messa Trail Head and had an amzing run on the trails up here. My memories of Boulder from when I used to live in Colorado are mostly of the trails as i only ever really came to Boulder to run/train, so getting out and running again on them made me feel a lot more at home and familiar with the twon. We ran up on the Elderado trail which was one of my absolute favourites so I was staoked to be up there running 7 years later. I have had a few direction issues in the pool with the locals!!! but am getting the hang of it, who would think it would feel so wierd swimming up and dwon the lane in the reverse direction!! It is also an outdoor 25m pool and i have for what ever reason not learnt how to tumble turn, so this week has been about geting the truns sorted so can join squads next week. THe swim coaches appear to all be quite well known such as Dave Scott and Simon Lessing.... My first race is next weekend so I am starting to get the final organisation done for that. Will be a new experience staying with a home stay etc but I am really looking forward to getting out and racing. Its been a while since i last race in Janurary so I am keen to see how the training and hard work has prgressed since then. So now I am settled in to my new summer home, its time to race!!

You Have To Jump Before You Can See How High You can Fly

AS a kid i was always the last one to jump off the cliff into the water. I remember spending so many amazing summers with my family up in the Coromandal Kauronga valley hiking and playing in the rivers. There was always a cliff to climb and a vanatge point to jump off from into the deep clear water below. I used to love the adventure of climbing and exploring and getting up to the high points but my stomach used to sink when the inevitable suggestions of "lets jump" were brought up by my companions. I used to politely let them all jump off one by one as i watched in envy of there courage and enjoyment of the thrill of the jump. I on the other hand would spend ages up there plucking up the courage to actually make the all important first step off and commit to the jump... the free fall the lack of control over my situation..... I was always curious and wanted to jump as i had seen the excitmenmt and thrill of the others as they confidently leaped off..... but the fear of that first step was always so hard to over come. I used to get lots of encouragment and support from below.. numerous count dwons, but yet if i actully did jump it was usually after everyone else had given up and moved on to other fun things. SO when I finally plucked up the courage to jump it was quite often unnoticed and in the back round. It was to prove nothing to anyone but myself. By the time i had jumped I had done alot of work in my head plucking up the courage to leap into the unknowen. the exhilleration of hitting the water was always amazing but not so much the actual thrill of the jump but the smile within myself that i had had the courage to do it. I would love to say that i am now full of courage and ready to jump into anything and i know as i have gone through many things in life I feel alot more confident and thrive on pushing my bodies limits and venturing into new and exciting opportunities, however still to this day the most challenging part of any adventure is the first step. The fact of actually getting on the plane... of leaving..... or in terms of my sport Triathlon, getting through and embracing the start of the swim, the part of the race where one has i think the least control.... can feel the most vulnerable. So it is in these circumstances that I remind myself that you have to jump before you can see how high you can fly. I have to get through the swim start of any race if i want to see how fast i can bike and run, i have to actully get on the plane and leave before i can give myself the oppotunity to live my dreams and race professionally in the international half ironman circiut. It takes courage, faith and trust to take that first step and to then follow through, but it also takes consistent support and encouragment from a close network of people around you. So before i continue the rest of these blog entries about my training, racing and aventures as a professional traiathlete i want to take the time to sincerely thank that very special network of people that I am so blessed to have around me and whom are an integral part of the team that is and has at many times, given me the support to jump.....live and pursue my dreams and see how far and how high I can Fly...... huge thank you to my Mum and my Dad and my Partner Marc. (as a side note in a conversation with 2 other kiwi triathletes about sponsorship, one of them admitted his main sponsors were his Mum and Dad and then both of us smiled and agreed, .... the coment made was no one wants to admit it but none of us would be here without mum and dad)