I wanted to write this a little differently, as a day worth of reflection still has me a little dazed as to the challenge that was out there on the day. Yes, sitting at the awards banquet last night I was happy, and I still am, but there was a moment of thought that went to what could have been. I am very happy with my result, how my body went and what I went through on the day.

As the experience is so personal, I thought to write this as a point of view, almost through my eyes and hopefully I’ll be able to take you with me on an amazing journey for the next 10 minutes or so that lead to the moment you see there in the photo.

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Beep beep beep! 4am alarms are never subtle and this was so different. Ok. Get up. Get food in and get the body going. Breakfast at 4am is never quite what it is at 9am. Force it down, you’ll need it later.

Coffee, brush teeth and into the car. Nice tune. Going to be a great day, can just feel it. Legs feel amazing; have felt so good all week. Time to cash in some cheques.

I have to pump tires, get nutrition onto the bike and get my special needs bags in, get body marked, swim bag in, toilet and quiet time in the next 60 minutes. Plenty time. It’s all going smoothly until the mechanic drops my valve extender into the wheel. Shouldn’t make a noise once going 40km/h, I think.

Bang! Pro’s are off, 6:30. Time to get into the water for a quick warm-up and then wait for the start. 1800 people in a squashed area with 15 minutes to go, feet and arms everywhere. People starting to panic with claustrophobia. The noises are not great. 10 minutes to go. Breathe. BOOOOOOM! I get a great start and find some nice hips to sit on. Into the front pack I go, the arms are feeling great. All the extra swimming was worth it. High elbows, breathe. Focus. I move to the back of the pack and find some feet. It feels great and the pace is easy. This is going so well.

Around the halfway and all is well. Group is sticking together. Nice. Pack slows a little and I look up to see a split as someone just ahead of me has swum skew. Oh well. Let them go, no point chasing. 500m to go and I work my way to the front of the pack so get a clear run up transition. Woop! 20th out the water I hear. Perfect.

Helmet, nutrition, glasses and go go go! Onto the bike, press start on the Garmin. Click. Legs feel golden. Up Kuakini highway to the first turn around and I feel great. Making up 2 or 3 places by the time we hit Palani and I just spin up, will catch the big bladders on the Queen K. Body is feeling amazing, just hold back. We are about 20 riding together and I am sitting near the front, about 3rd or 4th wheel, just cruising. 20, 30, 40km go by smoothly. Waikoloa comes quickly this time, despite the headwind. 38km/h is about right; the pack is riding so nice. All the contenders are here. The Katana is sweet and running like a dream.

Turn left, then right to Hawi and here is the wind. Cruising up, feeling good. Gusts are heavy, hold the wheel. I get blown across the road, almost two lanes and have to hit the brakes hard to avoid going off the road. Red card. Blocking, apparently. I say something. Not smart. 4 minutes becomes 6 and I am off. Pack gone. Don’t chase, you’ll catch them later, your run has been golden of late. Just be patient.

Special needs, must get my calories. They can’t find my bag. I press stop on the Garmin. 3 minutes later, I am off, without calories. No bag. It happens. Find your tempo and watch the wind, which is now gusting at 90km/h side on. Garmin says I am cruising at 60km/h down here. Woo hoo! The wind is howling, making riding in the aerobars virtually impossible. It’s not ideal and I can feel the body tense up. At 115km I for the first time in ages hit a real low. I decide its time to push through. It’ll go away, in 10km or so. I know my body; this is just how it goes. 125 become 135 and I am still in a dark hole somewhere avoiding thought of the past or the future. Just hold this moment right here. Yes, it hurts. No, its not particularly fun. Yes, it will pass. It’s stupid hot now. So hot it almost takes my breath away. 145km. Come on body, come back…. Please. Doubt, fear, looking at myself and realizing there is only one way out of this and that is to keep going. Headwind is not helping and I am continuously being dropped by single riders coming by. Motivation, please come back.

155km and all are good again. Something clicks. Checking splits, I know I can make it under 5 hours, ex penalties and lost bags. Awesome, considering how bad that patch was. All those hours spent, 100% worth it in that moment. Bag me and tag me and ship me off. Wait; still have a marathon to run with a pair of legs that want to run. Let’s do this…

Struggling with the socks in T2, on wet feet and an endurance athletic haze. That plugged into the wall feeling. Awesome. This is it, where it all happens. Let’s do this. I know I can run way under 3:10 if I just hold back on Alii drive. The Eutopia’s are awesome. I hear someone in T2 say its 126 degrees outside. Makes total sense, considering what I felt out there.

Water, ice, coke. Repeat. Focus. Form. Hold back. Whatever you do, just hold back till 21km. Bladder bursting, stop for the official world record pee at 3 miles. Now that feels better than I expected. Let’s get back into this and crush it. Heart rate is 150, running 4:10 per km. Legs feel amazing. Aid stations going perfectly. Wow, already at the old church. Turn around and head back. Good job! So thirsty.

The way back is easy and feels great. Easy now, control. Hold back. Slow it down to 4:20 per km so you can smash the Queen K, I tell myself.

Walk/jog up Palani, quick, little feet. Up onto the highway and let’s do this downhill thing. At 18km my stomach drops and I am searching for good news, but it’s nowhere to be found. It’s not a cramp, this is serious. You are in white shorts Raoul, there is no hiding anything. Toilet stop. Stomach explodes. Its ok, won’t happen again. Get back out and onto pace. Cramps. Shit. Nausea. This is not good.

Toilet stop, holding back nausea. Run. Repeat.

Energy Lab. It’s hot hot hot. Cramps are excruciating. Feeling dizzy. Come on! Just one foot in front of the other. It’s becoming an aid station to aid station run with slow walking through the aid stations. Out the lab and back to town. You can do this. Come on.

Toilet stop.

Run. Feeling better. Back to 4:30 per km between aid stations, but the aid stations are slow and I let the cramps go. The acoustics coming out my rear are awful and all I can offer is apologies to other athletes. 2 more hills Raoul, you are running well, despite the odds. Let’s finish this.

One more hill. Come on. Hold it together. The pain will stop when you hit the line.

Really now? What the hell is this? How are my toes so freaking sore all of a sudden? Walking down the fun downhill? Really? It makes me smile. I high five some people. They think I am crazy to be walking, but I cannot explain how sore my big toes are. Damn wet socks. 1 mile to go. The pain is unreal until I hit 200m to go. This time, I am not going to care about the extra minutes. I high five people, cheer with the crowd. Hug a fellow competitor. I walk when I get to the carpet.

There is no finish line. Just an ellipsis for a release before life continues. I close my eyes, raise my hands and breathe. It’s quiet, there is no noise and I cannot hear people or music. The moment feels like forever, but it’s maybe a second. Release. No pain, no feeling, no tears this time. It’s a beautiful, simple moment. Just a pause, but it’s earned.

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Kona is amazing, the place that inspires beyond what can be explained. I am epically grateful for the opportunity to compete here. Thank you to all the kind people who support me, send me messages and wishes of going well. I believe I had the form. That will come in another post. For now, times don’t matter and this is all about the moment.

This is the place where mistakes are magnified, but where pushing through collectively rewards greater on an emotional scale than any other race. I could analyze about penalties, better stomachs and what could have been, but really, I have no regrets.

I hope you enjoyed that. I could never give it the full meaning. That is why I write, because I hope to inspire you to try this out. To live it through your eyes. Thank you for listening.

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This is why I came. To be a part of this…

I have nobody I am chasing tomorrow. I just want time to stop for 9 hours so that I can be 100% there, in the moment, doing what I love with the best in the world.

That is what I came for.

What are you aiming for…

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I thought the image was appropriate, as I the Hurt Locker is where so many of us will be placing ourselves in a few days…

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Morning, afternoon or evening, wherever this may find you. I should be fully back up and running tomorrow, but here is a quick rundown of whats gone on in the last few days…

Sea swimming over tropical reef on the swim course, including the famous “espresso bar in the sea” where we had espresso today, bobbing in the ocean.

Biking on the route after ACSA attempted to destroy my bike. Nobody defeats Kratos and he is running smoothly. The Urban Ninja wheels are handling like a dream in the wind here too, so far. Nothing to cry about as a winter spent riding in the Cape winds have seemingly got me happy.

Running far away from people. Staying 10km out of town means quiet roads and peaceful lunches without 500 screaming, nervous athletes around. Quite a few of the pro’s are staying here too, for obvious reasons. Pro’s are everywhere and just another part of the action.

Chilling out to the max, sleeping 10 hours a night to catch up on traveling around the world to get here.

That is about that. Pictures, video and a full update tomorrow.

Raoul

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having some pc issues…

will be back, in a day or two, with updates. In the meantime, enjoy the auto posts…

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There are times when you may have to chase back to where you may just have been, when a “life” mechanical forced you out of where you were, comfortably sitting, just a moment ago.

Like Spartacus, who shows immense descending ability in the video above to bridge after getting a flat, you may need to take some risks to avoid getting left behind. I personally rode with Fabian once, from the top of Llundudno into Camps Bay, when he had a flat but decided it was only 10km home, so he rode that downhill into Camps Bay with a flat back wheel. No hassles, he has the skills and understands where his strength lies. He is a pretty amazing rider. Here is a pic from that ride..

That was a fun day, with Stu O’Grady, Bob Julich, Fabian Cancellara, Luke Roberts & myself, Collin & Hugh Basel along for the tow. As unfit as they would be all year, there was just an amazing effortlessness about the way they pedaled their bikes. The day before, I had spent 2 hours riding behind Andy Shleck, who came in 2nd this year at Le Tour. Even then, a new signing to the team, Bjarne Riis told us he would be good enough to win Le Tour in just a few years. I spent a few downhills bridging the gap that day when they disappeared up the climbs of Stellenbosch.

My riding is totally different now to what it was then, but still there is no way I would even get close if they put the hammer down. I could probably outrun them at the marathon though. Well, I keep telling myself that. I also made them ride in the back of my bakkie, along with the owner of Cervelo, Phil White. True story, check it out…

Anyway, this is now turning into a ramble, without much point. There is no point to this other than to share a memory.

I know how fortunate I was to ride with the CSC guys that week. In the small Camps Bay ride, we had multiple Olympic Champions, Tour de France podium finishers and Spartacus, who had won Paris Roubaix, Prologues in the Tour and was only just beginning to show his power. I live a lucky life, I know this. It doesn’t escape me.

But I yearn for more…

Be great out there.

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The emotion involved when it goes wrong is something you cannot account for. When we put it all on the line and something goes wrong, our emotions may, at times, get the better of us.

But there is really no need to resort to violence, like these two, especially when in cleats.

I realise I owe you all a bit of a breakdown of the week as well as something I want to offer up for a bit more help with the Hawaii Project. So let’s go back a week and look at totals and how it all panned out.

I needed to do a big week. I had to do it WHILE doing a full work week. Contrary to many an opinion, I worked 9am to 4pm every day last week. Some days were less attentive than others, but there was no sleeping all day from home. I apologise in particular for the Wednesday at work, when I was struggling to remember my own name. Day 3 is always the worst. Thankfully, you wake up day 4, fully into the groove.

31 Hours of riding, all below AeT. At times I simply had to drop off the group to maintain the lower intensity if I was riding with others, but for the most part I rode on my own anyway. I rode twice a day on Tuesday through Thursday and rode the mountain bike 4 times during the week as well. I would imagine I could average it out at 30km/h so call it 930km I rode in the week, total, if it had all been on road. Very happy with that. Add to that 5 hours of running, all around 4min-4:20 per kilometer, all around 150HR. I ran every day, in small chunks at lunchtime. On the weekend I upped it a little to run 60min and managed to maintain form, pace and heart rate throughout the week with my running. Total run time was 5 hours, around 70km in total. Swam 3 hours in 4 swims, which equates to about 12km for me.

That was my 39 hours. I had 2 massages and cannot tell you how much I ate, all I can tell you is that it was alot. I dropped 1.5kg it seems, but none of this happened during the actual camp. It has all happened this week. I was 76.5kg going into it and this morning I weighed in at 75kg, which means 1kg left to go before the race, more or less (I don’t get too technical on these things anymore as my body shape is in constant change in the last 18 months and I am just letting it do what it has to do), in order to be where I was in PE in April at 74kg. Any lighter and I may have issues with travel and health and it leaves me with a bit of weight to lose on the day as well, which is allowed.

I wanted to offer a package to someone around my size, shoe size as well (what with extra product lying around) who enjoyed wine and may want to be coached by me for a year. Sounds like a garage sale and it is, of sorts. In total, the entire “lot” is worth R15 000.00 and it includes:

Urban Ninja Bike Kit x 1 (medium bibs + top)
Urban Ninja Tri Kit x 1 (hope you like white – medium)
Kleinhoekkloof Sauvignon Blanc 2009 x 6 – think gooseberries & fresh cut grass over khakibos with a hint of passionfruit
Kleinhoekkloof Merlot Rose 2009 x 6 – turkish delight, cherries and a honey-ish linger on the pallet
Puma Complete Road Racer III size uk 10 (orange baby!)
Puma casual run gear (medium top + shorts)
Rockets Compression Vest size medium
Urban Ninja Cap
Urban Ninja t-shirt
2 tubs of Whasp AminoPro Naartjie
1 bottle of Whasp Gel Blueberry
1 Case of the World’s finest craft beer, Jack Black Beer

Then Jason from Olympic Cycles has come forward to help with an amazing prize, in the form of a full Body Geometry Ergofit worth R800 as well.

Here is an overview:

The full fit manual is available here as well. Thank you Jason.

It’s not all though. I wanted to offer someone my coaching services for an entire year for 2011. This would ideally be for something endurance related, but perhaps the challenge comes for something else. It includes training programs, mental coaching as well as coffee, muffins and the occasional tequila after races. Essentially though, its a slot in the limited slots I have, which are pretty much FULL at the moment, in addition to all that’s offered above.

In total all these items are worth R15 230.00 in total. If I could get R8000.00 – R10 000.00 for all of it, then that would be amazing, which would mean you pay for the coaching and basically the rest is free. I realise this is specific to size 10 shoes and medium kit, but hey, that’s what I have and really its about the Ergofit Fitting, the Coaching and the Booze, right? I am hoping someone will find the value in there and the continued effort that goes into maintaining this platform and come to the party and help me be the fastest age grouper across the double (Ironman Hawaii + Maui Xterra) in 2010.

If you may know someone who would want this sort of package, or who want the cool stuff and you may be a size 10 and medium and they want to give you the gear, then pass along the link on the page.

I really do NOT want this to come across as charity, I believe there is fair value in there and I am not asking for R500.00 for a pasta party or overpriced t-shirts. If you need a breakdown on the value, fill in the contact form on the site and I will mail it to you. If you are interested in buying this package from me, please do the same. I will be most grateful for the contribution to the cause.

Have a superb weekend. I am running the first leg of the Table Mountain Challenge tomorrow for a bit of a lung busting workout the the real 3 week taper starts tomorrow. I am suitably excited and finally starting to feel a bit rested from the 39 hour week. Remember, Assume Nothing, Pursue Everything, Experience Now…

Lastly, Click the SA Blog Awards button, one more time…

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Back tomorrow, with wisdom and insight….

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If you find ANY worth in my blog, please click the link and confirm your vote for Urban Ninja as best sports as well as personal blog of the year.

Thank you. SA Blog Awards have done quite a bit of extra work this year and your vote counts monumentally to getting this blog inside the top 10 so please send the link to your friends, colleagues and spam your entire Facebook, Twitter, etc pages for me. Dankie.

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I often get asked why I have a partnership with Puma, beyond the amazingly cool products they make. It’s not always understood what goes on behind the scenes at Puma and how much development is going on with their footwear line. It’s not new news that Bolt has renewed with Puma and there will be plenty of Press Releases you can read about that on Puma Running. This came along with the PR stuff and I wanted to share it because it shows the essential ethos of an incredible company to work with. For me the highlights of working with Puma are that I have had a long standing relationship with them, that their products improve year on year, that they have been there for me when I really needed help to get to races and that they value the input I give back in terms of footwear design, clothing cuts, etc.

They are a company who listen. They get involved for years, not seasons. They have a long term approach. They are truly fighting to be as “green” as possible. They are unbelievably freaking cool.

Read the questions and answers below, from the media. You sense there is a deep seated relationship between Bolt and Puma. Like a family. It’s exactly how I feel about them. Thank you.

Usain Bolt Media Q&A

Q. So you’ve re-signed with PUMA, how much are you making off this

deal?

A. PUMA and I have reached financial terms that are mutually agreeable, but we aren’t giving out actual numbers. (more…)

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Rushing down the singletrack at Contermanskloof a few weekends ago I felt it for the first time since Ironman South Africa.

The flow was there.

It takes months to cultivate, hours of technique perfection and a whole heap of aerobic economy but it was there. I felt it, unmistakably. It’s effortless, gliding through the trails, up the hills and over the rocky sections. The flow is an essential part of endurance sport, of any sport. Call it the purple patch, call it “form” or call it whatever you want, you will know it when its there and be searching for it everywhere when its gone.

Today I went for a lunch run to get some heat adaptation going. The first 25min were uphill on tired legs from gym last night. Transbaviaans still fresh in my legs. But once again I felt it on the way back. The flow was there on the drag through Vredehoek on the way home, 35min into the run. I felt, to be honest, like a beautiful runner. Like my back was upright, my stride slightly forward and my legs moving powerfully in a poetic motion. It felt amazing. I was smiling ear to ear. I didn’t want it to stop.

The flow conquers all things in my life. Work stress – out the window. Financial stress (add a 4 week trip to Hawaii on top of paying for Sani2c which is in May 2011 and 2 half IM races in August 2011 now and yes, there is plenty financial strain going on) – crushed under my fleet footed stride back towards the gym. The flow had me going perfectly poised in the moment where nothing else mattered. I could not have cared about anything else in that moment. There was perfect control, perfect form and the soup was really good. The soup being the perfect mix of training, obviously.

It takes weeks, months of consistent training for the flow to appear, so don’t stop just short of where it will come. It means going out there and training when everyone may be asleep, when it’s too cold, when others are too tired.

Of course, its completely worth it. There is no recipe for achieving the flow. Learn to listen to your body and always push a little beyond where it says “whoooooooaaaaaa!!”

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