This weekend the whole triathlon world watched as seemingly, the two Saffas raced one Lance Armstrong in Utah. As was expected, there was much Caveman / Armstrong banter doing the rounds. I had no doubt that it would not come down to those 2 athletes. Xterra is a highly contested space and I just didn’t feel that either had the run. A year ago, I believe Conrad had a bike ride that left him untouchable. This year it has been much closer and in Switzerland, I watched Nico Lebrun smash the run in a way I have rarely seen. I knew Dan was ready to show that his days are but starting and if you look at the average age of the top 10 Pro’s at Xterra, you will know that Dan has 10 years of racing left.

It’s never a two horse race. There is always a hungry badger in the corner who wants his 15 minutes and has gone very silently about preparing for the fight.

Never ever walk around with the blinkers on when the world is watching.

To ALL the pro’s at Xterra on the weekend, who put up the best show we have ever seen in Xterra – thank you for that. I was glued to my screen, following no less than 6 Twitter accounts for best to the minute information. To the Texan who brought the media to the party – gracias senor. You have highlighted a sport which deserves some limelight.

Maui is going to be incredible. Never discount a wounded Caveman or an even-hungrier Hugo. The next few weeks should be interesting to watch from the sidelines.

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A beautiful setting, an incredible day and another world class event in South Africa. A special thank you first off to the sponsors who make the day possible for me on an equipment level:

The Morewood for performing flawlessly, the Garmin for providing reliable information in order for me to push the limits, Rehidrat Sport for fueling my day, Puma for providing the best racing flats. They carried me on the journey for the day, which went as follows…

To say that the field was stacked is true. Stoltz, Hugo, White, Boonstra to name but 4 guys out of a top 10 which looked fierce on paper and even more scary on the trails. Then there was the added pressure of having Kevin Evans in the mix, who conquered the race last year. As per usual, I wanted to be in the mix, but was realistic that my training has been limited due to work commitments over the last 12 weeks.

The start line was great and it was fantastic so say hi and a few short words with Conrad, who I have known since 1998 as well as having the luck of bumping into Dan on my warm-up and having an easy pedal with him, sharing his experience in the US over the last 9 weeks. So really, I was set at the start line for a tough day. To be anywhere, I would need to bring my A game.

We set off just after 12:30 and as was expected, after 1km I was around 12th or 15th. The guys hammer out the blocks and it was beyond my abilities (I was running 3min per km and losing time) but I knew that I would be better once it settled and we were going uphill where my training for African-X would benefit me.

I got to the top of the single track hill in 10th or so and moved my way up to 6th or 7th by the end of the run, taking confidence from the fact that I was running with Dan for the first time in my life. I knew he was not his best and that I should relish the moment as I would need to be a lot faster when he is on song.

Conrad was about 30seconds up attempting to put some breathing space between himself and Kevin and I had gained some time on White which I knew would count at the end of the day. Lieuwe, however, was gone… he was having a big day and I would never see him all day.

Onto the bike and into the single track and I brushed a tree as Dan came flying by and came off and hugged a tree as Kevin came flying by too, losing my water bottle in the process. I got straight into it on the hills and worked my way back up to Dan and Antonie and just as I got air between myself and them, my chain came off. Breathe RAOUL!

The next time we hit a steep section I gave it 50 hard pedal strokes and I was gone. The body was responding beautifully and I was holding the gap to Tyrone until around 15km, growing the gap on Dan & Antonie. I had to stop at the water stop as I had no Rehidrat Sport and was starting to get goosebumps from dehydration. It was 20-30seconds and Tyrone was gone and I would not see him on the bike again. The mud-covered bike and rider aboard it came into transition 5th male overall, something I was quite stoked about.

I knew I would not catch Lieuwe but in my mind I said I would give it horns until I was out the spooky forest, around 4km and see where Tyrone was. It hurt, I will not lie. I was breathing hard and it took everything I had to run the hills. I fell twice coming around slippery corners, ending up in the bushes with my wind knocked out on one occasion but as I popped out the spooky forest, I could see Tyrone and I knew 4th was mine.

I ran past hard and didn’t even acknowledge him. You don’t let a talent like his get a hint of hope so close to the finish line.

I hit the concrete road with 1km to go, hamstrings crying for mercy and so dehydrated I couldn’t even spit any more. It was a moment when I laughed at myself for what I am able to put myself through. I jogged through the line in 4th, best Xterra performance for me on a day when I least expected it, being in the middle of training for O till O.

Thank you to all who made it possible on the day and the other guys for going as hard as they could. We war it out on the playing field but we are all friends once we hit the finish line. I love being a part of this sport.

A thank you to all the sponsors who make it possible for me to race here. BoE Private Clients, Fairbairn Private Bank, Gamin, Axis House, Velocity Sports Labs, Rehidrat Sport. Altogether, Pure Planet Racing had an excellent day out.

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It’s 4am and the alarm goes off. 4am. I am wondering how I am going to drag my tired self out of bed and across to Grabouw to race the best guys in the world. A cup of Brazil’s finest coffee gets my system purring and a big bowl of cement cereal settles the hunger for a while. Car is packed and gear is loaded and off we go for the 50min drive to Grabouw, where it’s time to let it all hang out and see who has the mostest on the day. We carpooled 5 of us into the car to keep out footprint down, something you can read more about on Pure Planet Racing’s Website.

I count the names in my head that should be ahead of me. Stoltz, Hugo, Murray, White, Boonstra, Horner, Pfitzenmaier, Porteous. That leaves me in 9th on a great day. 8 top level pro’s at a South African Xterra. It’s a growing sport, thanks to Stillwater Sports and the team. Cracking a top 10 will be a great day for an age grouper like myself. I like that people still think I am pro, that at some stage I must have been pro. It’s proof that doing the work means you can feature with the pro guys, even if you are working 9 to 5 within a high pressure environment. While I have never been pro and never will, I like that you think I am.

Back to the race. It really was a glorious day in Grabouw. Essentially a little moody, with that hint of excitement and notion of adventure in the air. I got set up next to Stoltz, greeting familiar faces and a few new ones who read Urban Ninja. Thanks to all who come to say hello. I can be very much in my own space on race days. I appreciate your efforts.

Warm-up went well and the legs feel a little less than spectacular after another wonderfully busy week, but I am ready to rip. A year ago I had been on the MTB for 2 months. I lost 23minutes to Dan Hugo on the bike a year ago. This year I wanted to improve that. Into the wetsuits and down to the swim start, where emotions are worn on sleeves and a pat on the back can make your day.

2 minutes before the start I opt to move from far right to far left, the best decision I`ll make all day. The gun goes and the pace is not mad, I can hang on and manage to hang feet until the first buoy in the top 6 guys but have to let the first 4 go on the return journey. I swim with a small crew including Stoltz on the return journey, trying to minimize damage and maintain form, saving the legs for the rest of the day. I hear 60 seconds down as I exit the water in 19:30, which is not a great swim for me. In the last year, I have let it slide and it’s something I have to work on, I tell myself.

Stoltz powers past me in the run up to the bikes and before I have my wetsuit off, he is out of T1. As I exit T1 I hear it’s now 2 minutes down. Clearly, transition is not my forte and I curse myself for not doing some practice. Onto the bike and the legs feel great. I catch Wood at 2km and go by, riding sections of tight trail and sand that a year ago would have cost me major discomfort and walking. The course is beautiful, lots of 90 degree turns in sand, fun single track and amazing views. Ty White comes by like a freight train around one of the corners and I know he is never to be seen again. The kid has class and he is going to have an amazing year. At the top of the hike-a-bike I hear I am 7 minutes down, not at all suprised to hear Dan is tearing up the course. I see Boonstra and Pfitzenmaier has come past on the hike-a-bike actually riding his bike. Porteous is just behind me and I attempt to follow his wheel when the road is open but as soon as we hit the single track, he is gone.

The rock garden is epic and slow going for a guy like me just trying not to fall. I manage to not put a foot down and get through the rest of the ride without issue. Into T2 I lose a shoe and have to go back to get it. More wasted time. It’s 2:30 down to Porteous, 3:30 to Boonstra and 11minutes down to Dan after the ride. I pat myself on the back for being relatively 14minutes faster than last year on the ride. Time to hit the run with gusto as its a tough one and I have seen some guys implode horribly on this run. I am in 7th and I know that with a perfect run and some luck, I could run myself into 5th. The run is brutal and your legs need to be perfect.

At the 5km mark, I count my split to Porteous at 1:30 (love the big boulders as time reference points on the route) and my legs are done. My hope is fading of catching him. I go into survival mode, happy with my 7th until I hear someone behind me at the top of the hill, not 15 seconds down. Sneaky russian! I have a quick overview and decide that I am going to hit the downhill with everything I have, letting age and experience (and some weight advantage) plus a little gravity give it one last go. I am operating on 100% instinct and 0% control as I blaze down the hill. He is nowhere to be seen as we hit the beach and I judge Porteous at 1min ahead of me. I am not going to close it in the last km as he is chasing Boonstra so I ease up and run home with a little grace, a little finesse and with a smile on my dial.

7th, just shy of 13min down on Dan, the winner. Stoltz out on account of a bronchial infection. Horner 2nd, Pfitzenmaier 3rd, White 4th and the do or die battle between Boonstra and Porteous for 5th and 6th. I am very happy with my performance. Last year, I was just shy of 40min down on Dan who won then as well. The sun is blazing and the rest of the Xterra Warriors are coming in thick and fast after me. We sit in the spectacular Rehidrat Recovery Zone, drinking jugs of the electrolyte mix, eating bananas and talking war stories in the shade. This is what it’s all about. The stories, the tales, the excitement, the adventure. From the slowest people doing the Lite version in a team to the fastest guys at the top of the sport, world wide, we are here to be a part of something bigger than ourselves, to prove to ourselves that we are able to conquer convention and overcome ordeal to walk victorious into the afternoon with a sense of self worth, of achievement.

A big thank you to all who made the event possible, to everyone who came out to be their best and to my incredible crew of sponsors who make it all worth while. Pictures a little later in the week…

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So a week or so after Xterra Buffelspoort it has been a week about recovery and last weekend it was time to get some larger volume work in and get back into trail running as we slowly approach racing African-X in May. Firstly, here is my file from Xterra, for those who care about these things:

It’s been a big few weeks for my good mate Gringo who has recently taken the reigns at Puma Running South Africa, including a move from Jozi. So a trip around the peninsula on our bikes was a prerequisite to him being welcomed properly. Of course, that needed to be followed by a few Real Beers as a truly Capetonian welcome. If you are new to Cape Town, let me know. I will show you the same hospitality. The ride around the coast here is great. 120km with around 1600m vertical gain on quiet roads with scenery from travel shows as the norm. A great morning and a great reason to live down here.

Another would be the running here and on Sunday I was due for a 20-25km trail run which was supposed to be just a first long run for the year. I found some absolutely incredible horse riding single track next to the Green Belt in Constantia and was in absolute heaven running in the dense forests on dusty singletrack up the hill all the way to Cecilia Forest. All was going well and managed to get all the way across to Constantia Neck and down the hill into an area called De Hel. Ominous I thought. I had no idea.

Two things happened once I was lost in that forest, climbing on my hands and knees under the overgrown vegetation laughing at myself:

1. I came across the big house in the middle. No fence there. 2 big dogs, however. Protective dogs. A bit of a bad scramble up the hill to avoid getting too close to them resulted in the following injury.
2. On my way out, I came across a white woman living in a shack with her dogs in Constantia. By the look of her, she had been there a while. She had table and chairs out with tea area, etc. She is on an empty plot out in a beautiful area. She was NOT happy to see me.

All in all, a great run, however.

In the last 6 weeks I have learned how to hurt again on the bike and run but this has also left me a bit sore in some new places and needing more pre-hab as such. Maintenance of the suppleness which keeps us injury free. After talking with Dan and a few other people. I have invested in the following kit to help me on the way to non-injury. I am told that there will be excruciating pain and I will be sure to let you know how it goes:

Really the idea is to learn about my niggles and how to balance the body out. In the last week I have fallen off my mtb, run away from dogs, had to dig out a toenail (after losing the same toenail in hawaii last year it was starting to grow into the toe bed) and sliced my finger trying to assemble one of my bikes. I am fully aware that the signs are there. Check yourself before you wreck yourself.

I`ll be back tomorrow with something more specific. Today is just a quick post on some arb things going down here in my space. Ciao ciao.

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On Friday this last week past TheHousemate and myself made the trek up to Buffelspoort to race the first Xterra race of the season. Having raced 70.3 the week before and having picked up a great weight loss inducing (read: energy sucking monster) gastro during the week, I have to admit I was less than excited to be putting a tired body through 3 hours of extreme exercise at altitude. I was, however, quite excited for the route, which was supposedly proper muddy and proper tough.

My goals were a top 10 with a star studded field lining up for the race and possibly a first in my age group division.

The area of Buffelspoort is exceptionally beautiful and made me miss home nearby in Pretoria just that little bit. Given 4 weeks of near non-stop rain, the area was lush, green, thick and filled with mud. Oh, and quite hilly. This excited me as I was in all white gear and hadn’t ridden in mud since Sani2c last year. Again the Caveman rule of low air, big gear, no fear was supposedly the correct method with which one approaches these “challenges” which included 2 climbs up a ladder up the dam wall (heavily overflowing) and a few mud pits which were virtually hip deep. Proper boys fun, and as such, 1200 people in the field.

The gun went off and there was, as always with these shorter races, a plethora of bravado, ego, aggression and passionness among the front crew. At times it’s tough to tell if its water bubbles or froth from the mouths of pro athletes that makes up whats affectionately known as “the washing machine”. I could say I felt great, but it would be a big fat lie. The altitude combined with the wetsuit and hot water had me doing catch-up by the first buoy begging for mercy and for the air to return to my body. I was doing backstroke shortly thereafter, feeling weak and blown from the gastro. I wanted to quit, so badly.

I walked out of the water and into transition. Walked. I lay down on my back and put my feet in the air, watching my rivals collect their bikes and head out of T1. I was done. I had nothing to give and felt flat, which was quite pertinent as I was lying on my back watching my sky high heart rate on the Garmin drop to relatively normal levels. Suddenly I heard a voice scream at me from outside transition that I should stop being such a girl and get on my bike.

In my head I heard my coach telling me to go out there and have some fun and take it as a training day. So I made the decision to do just that. I took off my wetsuit, slowly put on my shows and went off rather gingerly on the bike. I still felt flat and would not lose the feeling all day. The mud was fun, the rocks were fun and the route was really distracting and before I knew it I was 17km into the 28km ride and feeling at least consistently a little better, but had no idea where I was in the race and was not catching anyone or having anyone catch me. Just before the end I passed someone who said I was in 11th and I was fairly surprised. I went with the Zula this weekend instead of the 29er and was happy with the choice after going through the severely technical rocky descents near the end. Man, I love that bike.

Off the bike in 11th and my running legs felt, well, like they were still stuck in East London somewhere. Thankfully, the route was fun and I passed a few guys in the first few kilometers, even walking up a hill together with one of my competitors, laughing about how steep it was. Crossing the weirs below the dam wall has to be a highlight on the South African multi sport circuit. Hundreds of thousands of liters of water thundering just outside from where you are walking in almost knee deep water is a fantastic feeling.

I was merely surviving the run and at the end of lap 1 I had managed to run myself into 6th overall but was hanging on for dear life at this point, having another extreme low but happy to be out there suffering in what was my best Xterra position overall, as well as leading my age group by now. I made a deal with myself to hold off the two guys charging behind me and maintain form for the last 6km out there.

Going up the last hill was agony, I kept looking back to see where they were and motored the last downhill to make sure I stayed out front, my bright orange Puma’s holding surprisingly well for a road racer on the offroad tracks.

I crossed the line relieved it was over and suitably happy, pulling another good performance out the bag, despite circumstances leading into the race not being ideal. C’est la vie and there is no such thing as a perfect race. We have to deal with what we are given and in the end, I was glad to have made the deal to keep going, rather than quitting. Sometimes, when we are at our worst, the best things are just around the corner.

Thank you to Stillwater for another world class event. I wish all the races we did were so well organised and had such a great vibe after the actual race was over. The Rehidrat Chill Zone was milked of fruit, sweets and about 16 cups of Rehidrat by myself alone.

Another special thanks to all the sponsors who make the event possible, DueSouth, Rehidrat et al and as always, a very special thank you to my sponsors for making it possible. Fairbairn Private Bank, BoE, Garmin, Axis House, Velocity Sports Lab, Morewood, Puma… you guys rock!

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Race pictures to follow, but wanted to get a report out quickly before I head off for the 3 day trip it takes to get home from here. Yesterday was Xterra in Maui, the World Championships. I was hunting for a good day, a bit of a miracle, as my legs were pretty shattered from Kona, just 14 days prior. I had never trained straight after an Ironman and it proved to be hard and I felt the fatigue all week.

I had a bit of a nightmare the day before, as I replaced my chain as a precaution and once I did that, it turned out that other problems existed. I had to replace the cassette as well as the chainrings. Not a major issue on its own, but it turned out there were no chainrings on the entire Island. Crap!

In the end, I had to buy a new chainset at last minute, being the last guy to get his bike out of the shop. 6pm. Bit of a stress and quite a bit of walking around, which was not great.

Race morning arrived and I was excited to give it everything I had. I had heard great things about the race and was keen to give it a big go. I was still in the hunt for the overall Double title, if the two guys I was racing had a bad day or a mechanical, after the mishaps of Kona.

We had Hawaiian Warriors send us off with a traditional dance and before I knew it the gun went off and we were in the water, a mad thrashing of arms, legs and really, all bodyparts. Far rougher than the Ironman swim, I got punched in the head and kicked in the nose before the first buoy and decided to chill off the back of the pack as I saw I was quite near the front and knew the day was a long one. I survived the swim as best as I could and was out the water in a respectable time.

Loved the fact that my Forerunner was able to include swim, bike, run & transitions into the equation smoothly. Out onto the bike and man, the course was brutal. I was going well for the first 5km or so, the intensity was great and I felt great. The slow puncture (in my hip flexors) was next to arrive and was debilitating and I had really expected to feel flat at times, but this was totally not what I expected. My heart rate dropped by 8 beats and my hip flexors were super tight, without the power I have become accustomed to on the bike. The thing I had spent all year working on was now my biggest enemy. I was super on the flat parts, but everytime the road went up I went backwards. I was unstable out the saddle, something which made me laugh. My Fretten will tell you I love powering over the little hills, but yesterday I was hopeless, looking for a smaller gear and unable to get out the saddle at times, my hips were so tired.

The ride was super technical and the Morewood Zula was amazing on the technical stuff. I was loving the downhill stuff, slippery as all hell. The new tires were superb and the bike handled so well. Made up some places on the downhill but the Double title was gone, Thomas came by with a smile and I salute him for the effort he made yesterday.

Onto the run with the new Puma Haraka cross country flats, nursing toenails on the verge of falling out and wondering how I was going to lift my feet with them tired hips. True to form, the first km was flat and I was motoring. Then it went uphill for about 4km and I died, having to walk the steep stuff a few times with a soft chuckle to myself. When it was flat I could motor, but the hills were abysmal and the effort to lift my feet was excruciating, the hip flexors crying for relief. I caught 3 guys in my age group but it was in the end, not enough.

The beach was fun and the spooky forest was amazing. I cheered and jumped across the finish line with a big smile, happy that it was over. 4th and 80 odd seconds short of the podium on a day when I was really not myself is a big achievement for me and I was super happy with that awful tinge of “what could have been” but really, super happy to also have finished 2nd amateur in the world for the Double to Tommy, who has won it before and had raced 22 Ironmans and 6 Xterra Maui races.

Congrats to Conrad for winning his 4th title and to Mikey Keith for domination of the 15-19 category. He passed me on the bike like I was having a picnic at the lowest of my times, but his form picked me up and gave me a bit of vooma for the rest of the ride. The kid has a bright future indeed.

To all who dominated to the afterparty with myself and the joyous South Africans, thank you. Those who came along for the mass skinny dip, fantastic. I am awaiting the photo from Dan on the Koi I caught with my bare hands to share with you and hope nobody is sharing photos from the large gathering in the hot tubs on any social network. It was such a laugh, ALL night long, until the sun came out this morning.

Will get the pictures and the Garmin info up ASAP when I am back on my pc and have the pictures from official race photographers.

Until then, I wish you an amazing week ahead. Go out there and find something that gives you the joy a child experiences when he falls head over heels madly in love with his newest toy. Divulge in its amazepeguinballerness and squeeze every millimeter of joy out of it.

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Today I am leaving our wonderful accommodation in Kona for this place:

I am racing this weekend, just two weeks after Ironman Hawaii. A whole new experience, this training immediately after an Ironman. Will I do it again – hell yes. I feel way better than I ever have, two weeks after any previous Ironman. A combination of better preparation and better conditioning, sure, but also nice to have stayed active and kept moving. Exercise has been very light with only a few runs and lots of short bikes and swims. Feels pretty good.

Will upload some more Garmin stuff after the race, so you can see how that went. I am going to go all in with the Forerunner on Sunday, covering all 3 disciplines. It’s going to be very important to watch my top end heart rate as I would imagine I am going to have very little speed but a very solid sub maximal effort in me, so its going to be all about those last 5km on the run where I am either going to lose or gain 5minutes, which is podium in age group.

THBK Jnr did quite a cool interview for Xterra TV and you can catch that by clicking here…

Also, have a read at this, It’s what i`m going to be reading on the airplane to Maui. I need a break from my current book which I am slightly obsessed with. Thankfully its 1200 pages so lots to be obsessed about and much going on there, but a break is needed today.

Here is a great preview on the weekends race too…

I have new tires, new chainrings, new (well, have run in them to wear them in) shoes, new clothing, gear and all the energy inducing nutrition a dude could dream of. I am ready, set and hopefully, will save enough for the Spooky Forest and the last few hills home.

Have a great weekend out there…

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What a week that has gone by. Thought to drop an array of thoughts, facts and figures before its out. Below is first up, the run of Ironman. 3:24 for a slightly long run, but if you click through you will see the moving time is 3:13 and you should be able to see the short and long potty stops. 11 minutes of lost time, but that was what it was. I am still proud to have run a 3:13 ex potty stops with a seriously bloated stomach and hyponatremia. I am excited to see what I could run on a great day now. I am thinking under 3:05 on a good day.

…then I spent the week hobbling around with bad, oozing toes, which have subsided and I have now been for 2 short runs and all seems to be ok. Have ridden and swum every day until today, which has been interesting in its own, training the week after Ironman. Tough, but the legs did come back.

The afterparty was great. Yes, the skinny dipping tradition continued. Thanks to the Specialized crew who were part of the madness and respect to driving the crazies around the island looking for stuff to do at 3am.

Today we went exploring and man, this island is amazing. In 7 hours we did sunshine, clouds, rain, lava rock, lunar landscape, tropical rainforest, pine forest, Scotland landscape, true KZN style areas, flowing Karoo outbacks, dry desert, and the beach. Crazy, but here on Big Island you get 13 of the worlds 14 climates, all on 1 island. It varied from 10 degrees celcius to 35 as well. Crazy.

It, by the way, is not possible to jump over a waterfall, as witnessed in this awesome picture. Them Puma’s are bright and have had so many compliments about them. Another impossible thing is to summons whales from the highway, desperate as I tried…

What there is here though, is ALOT of climbing on the bike. Check this for a ride, which we did on the Zula’s this week…

1300m climbing in 30 odd kilometers. It was so beautiful up above the clouds. We are going back there tomorrow. Excited. Got some new tires which are the bizniz and thanks to Dan for that. It’s been a joy to hang out with him as well after the interview we did a week or so ago, which was actually done way before I left.

Having TheHousemate here has been easy too. He has left the world of financial business at home and has trained up a storm. He is going to suprise himself next weekend in Maui, when we are racing this. Have met Tommy, who has won the Double (Ironman + Xterra combined time) and he is about 7 minutes up on me. Really too bad I had a bad day out at Ironman, because its doubtful I will put 7 minutes into him at Xterra, but I am going out there leaving nothing on the course, going ALL IN, just a hairs breath short of full retard to make it happen. I am looking forward to being on the fabled course and all it has to offer.

That’s really it for this week. Been a great, eventful, busy one. Going to watch Jackass 3D tonight for some light entertainment. Should be amazing. Chat on Monday…

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I have wanted to interview Dan for a while, having bought him a drink when he was underage in a dodgy bar in Madeira, many moons ago. It’s been a privilege to watch his rise through the ranks to being in my opinion, one of the finest multi sport athletes in the world. He is a thinker, a tinkerer and like me, mildly obsessive at times. These answers should convince you to watch his progress and learn from the details he presents to the world.

I may be one of the guys who understands your drive to get every nanomillimeter out of your body better than most. How much of a difference do you think body composition makes, even among the pro ranks, where differences are small and vary race to race?

My man, that’s a lengthy response with currently heated emotions you summon. Yes, at the top it seems to become ultimately specific. Perhaps the most relate-able example is a Contador vs Cancellara – both cyclists, both icons, both unbeatable when the playing field suits them.

The Xterra racing on the USA circuit is really varied, and often highlights strengths and weaknesses amongst the few at the top end. The series final was the past weekend, which including 3000ft of elevation gain on the bike alone. Which is as much climbing as Alp d’Huez. With remote transitions we hardly had any descent, making it a very course specific race. I was grumpy regarding all this, until fellow South African, Conrad Stoltz, who is not a climber either, biked 5minutes into the rest of us.

Reality is, we all have varied ability, and limitation in how much we can adjust them. I am still figuring my own capabilities, and am really curious to spend a season more focused on Ironman 70.3 racing. I believe my body and energy systems may be better suited to most 70.3 courses. I can only race a handful of events in a season, and being able to hand pick the courses and condition that best suit my ability is weighing odds to my favour.

Tell me/us about Boulder and why you have seemingly fallen in love with the place.

Boulder is the triathlon mecca of the USA. Especially for the long course triathletes. A tough generalization, but Ironman racing is the pinnacle of the triathlon niche in America. And all its A-list reside for all or part of the year in the small town nestled against the Colorado Rockies. Between the perfect weather and perfect bodies – there is plenty excellence and inspiration to feed off and become the best athlete you can.

Boulder is at 5400ft, but a quick drive and you’re running at 8500ft, or any longer ride can be done mostly on Peak to Peak highway, which again is undulating at 8000ft. There is rolling when going North-South, and flatlands when headed East. West has a variety of climbing to suit any session.

Beyond the triathlon circles its very similar to Stellenbosch. Small, a uni town, affluent, very sports orientated. And overwhelmingly hippy. I’ve not smelt such strong weed nor seen so many dreads on any of my travels. I do like how progressive town is – definitely a thinking man’s home with a active lifestyle as habit.

Working with fat oxidative rates and improving them is becoming slightly more trendy but I still find myself with blank faces when I approach smart people about it. Can you tell us your experience with working with fat oxidative rates for the body as well as where the limits and shortfalls lie?

Sure, I was trying to maximise my aerobic oxidation capacity this past summer. Forcing more and more of my energy to come from fat energy as opposed to carbohydrate energy which has lactate as a by-product. I am still a student of the game, and will always be it seems.

My feeling is that optimal diet is not such personal to individual athletes, but to individual athletes and their current race goals. I got incredibly efficient at aerobic exercise, which would have been golden had I been training for an Ironman. However, with 2h racing much time is spent at Threshold and even VO2 max, and I’m uncertain whether focus on fat oxidation should be primary or secondary.

Either way, I tipped over the edge, not for training too much volume, or eating too little, but for eating vary specifically and in specific patterns. Forcing my body into a state of hypoglycemia regularly. The hormones that respond to restoring normal blood sugar get desensitized and eventually a domino effect had me totally “hormonal” in bad way. Sure, thats an oversimplification, and lack protein was critical to the melt down, but trying to maximise fat oxidation laid the foundation to a collapse. At the same time, there is much benefit not just as an athlete but as an individual pursuing a state of well-being.

Good fats are beyond good. They’re essential. Sugar and stress is the enemy of health.

You are coming to the Big Show this year (Kona), to watch, work the expo and watch the race. Is it on your to-do list, or like Conrad, are you going to leave it to us “crazies”?

I have never felt more inspired to race Ironman some day, and especially to race Kona. I have spent the past four months very close to the inner Ironman elite here in Boulder, and could not resist the thinking that Ironman is normal and that Kona is the holy grail.

It may be years from now, but I will race and represent South Africa in Kona.

For Maui, what are your expectations this year after a bit of a melt down mid year? I know of a few pro’s who’ve had melt downs mid year and come back to win a world champs later in the year, across various sports. Where do you see your role in the race?

I’ve had one outing at Maui before, and am really excited to be returning two years later. Getting there, and getting to the finish is not to be taken for granted. I hope for a bit of magic, but I know how much better I can be, where I can still improve as a rounded athlete, and until such a time as me believing I am the best I can be, it is hard to believe I’ll be the best in the world.

I am swimming well, and riding is close. With some good legs on the day I’ll be close off the bike, in theory, and would gladly be surprised on the run. We’ll see.

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There you have it. Dan is someone who takes his profession extremely seriously, someone who I enjoy talking to and who I learn from every time we go for a bike ride (where I am merely hanging onto the back). We wish him luck for Xterra Worlds, but more importantly, we will be buying him a coffee in Kona to laugh at life. Follow him on Twitter for more regular updates. His tweets are always raw, which is kieeeef bru.

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I believe I am going to be talking to my legs many a moment in the next few weeks as I absolutely do my best to obliterate them into being the strongest, leanest most economically endurance sports orientated pins in the world. Well, my world at least. The aim is to build a bit more strength for the purposes of going up the volcano in Maui on the mountain bike, but for me the greatest gain I wish to make is more economy at slightly faster speeds.

In true style, I am even going to tell you how I plan on doing it. Then you will sit back and watch and if it works, follow the rules, but if I crash and burn, laugh and point… right? You with me sunshine?

Swim:

I am going back to squad as of 1 August 2010. 8 weeks with squad should sort me out 1 shot in terms of open water swimming (by open water I mean in the sea with the turtles in Kona) for the Ironman swim. No wetsuits allowed, even if I will have an Orca RS1 Swimskin to help me along.

Last Kona I neglected my swim a little and I missed a key pack early on. 8 weeks of hopefully chasing the White Rabbit in the pool will make me a better man.

Bike:

So apart from having what will be the most tricked out Ceepo Katana in Kona, as well as the most tricked out Morewood Zula for Maui, I actually need to work on the bike, as I will have to do for the next 5-60 years of my life. Work on the bike never stops, contrary to popular belief.

Some of the key components to building a faster bike (Maui):

a. Threshold training (AT)
b. Weight Loss
c. Mental coaching (the pain means its good, right?)
d. Bike skills (learn to bomb down a volcano in the big ring like a Caveman or a Gollywog (when he doesn’t shave for 2 days))
e. More ME work (endurance power)

They key components for the Kona bike are different to the one in PE, by virtue that the course has about triple the climbing in. So here are my focus points:

a. ME work (sustained power) for the rollers, of which there are MANY in Kona.
b. Aero climbing, so staying aero over the rollers by teaching the body to remain aero and get the extra power to be as economical as possible.
c. Pack riding. I will more than likely be in a group of 40 guys in Kona, not on my own like PE, so I have to practise a bit of pace variance as the advantage of the pack is huge.
d. Economy. The run in Kona is freaking brutal. I need to bike as easy as possible, but want to ride under 5 hours again. This means I have to be stronger than in PE, but also that it has to be sustainable for 3 hours after the ride.

Run:

I have enrolled in a testing program at the Sport Science Institute here to learn a little more about my running. I outran best hopes in PE by 5 minutes, and almost outran it by 15minutes if I had just known a little more about my running. I am hoping the lactate testing, VO2max etc will give me a better insight into how I need to be training to achieve what I want to on the run in Kona. I will continue to use all the things which have taken me from 3:52 to 3:15 on the marathon at PE but I wanted to try something new, so according to the smartest people around, we are going to work on my ability to run more economically, not necessarily faster. The speed will come as a byproduct. More than anything, I want to be able to run stronger over the last 10km than I did in PE. Not by much, all I am looking for is a 10% extra at the end of the race. I faltered in PE due to a bloated stomach (too much sugar) and ill preparation (Sani2c and Cape Epic limited running in the last 8 weeks before Ironman) and this time around there are no excuses to NOT have that 10%.

Maui – realistically, I am going to be hanging on for dear life at that point, running a super tough 11km beach/rock/road/mud run 2 weeks after Kona, but I am going to try and remain calm and rip the legs off it.

In the middle, during this big block of training, however, my legs will come and go. Today, for instance, it hurts when I sit still (mean new gym set on Monday being the major culprit). I have hurt them this week already, but now need to manage the recovery process to the weekend where 10 hours of training await the poor pins. There is planned massage and floatation planned, so I should be ok. If I do blow up, you will be first to know, saying “I told you so”.

If I don’t push the limits out, I will never know how good I could possibly be. I am willing to risk the occasional blow out to know how far the rabbit hole goes, if you know what I mean?

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