Deanne, Paul & I (along with my cousin Matt) ventured off to the Big Island of Hawaii to complete the Hawaiin Ironman 70.3 Saturday June 5, 2010. After settling into the beautiful Royal Kona Resort, it was time to find our bearings & get some last minute training in, before the big race. The beautiful, mild turquoise waters of Kona did not make it difficult to get up early and swim. But the highlight came for Paul, when out on a bike ride, he was lucky enough to meet local tri hero 'Dougie' - who quickly proceeded to show Paul (and tell) all about the trials & tribulations of the 70.3 course. Little did Doug know that our man Paul is pretty good and while was out doing some 'effort' training, Doug thought Paul was being competitive, so a bit of a race started. Unfortunately for Paul, he didn't heed the advice of Doug of "keeping your electrolytes up" and subsequently had a small feinting issue ... only to wake up to 2 lovely Hawaiian women holding each of his hands & checking his pulse. Only later did we find out that one of the women was Doug's wife - who was clearly someone who wouldn't drown (I think Paul feinted on purpose !!) (See below on how Doug fared in the race ...)

From the Beautiful Royal Kona resort, on the Thursday pre race, we travelled the 40 miles up the Kohala coast where ther race course is situated - to the even more spectacular Fairmont Orchid Resort. WOW - talk about opulance - approx US$250 per night however unfortunately we were not staying there. Luckily we managed to hire a "Dodge Caravan' in Kona - as fitting 4 people; 4 suitcases; 3 bike boxes; 3 ready made bikes; 4 backpacks & all the food for 3 nights made for one 'cramped for room' vehicle. Matt & I were lucky enough to stay in a condominium right next to the Fairmont with 6 friends from Honolulu, also racing. Paul & Dee staying at the beautiful Hapuna Beach Resort, which was from where the swim course started (Split trnasitions). Over the next couple of days, we trained, registered, had a bike briefing, did some course briefings and found out one thing for sure ... it was going to be windy !!

So after 6 months of racing & training, organising travel & accommodation - it had finally come to race day ...

Race day dawned with clear skies, mild early morning temperatures & a moderate breeze, After all checking in - it was time for the last minute toilet dash. Well - I thought there was a lack of toilets at a GAtorade race ... at least half were on offer here ... and for 1600 competitors !! Luckily I had a stash of toilet paper & there was plenty of bush. But sure enough, just as I was settling in, I can hear footsteps. Oh no I thought ... however luckily it was just Paul with the same idea ... closely followed by about another 5 people. Pre race toilet stop - the first transition I reckon !!

Anyway the race started via a mass start. Swim course was a rectangle shape with the north bound leg being quite rough into the wind, followed by a long run through the sand & up a hill to T1. The bike leg started with a hill climb ex T1, followed by 90km of rolling hills, long wind swept roads and a slight climb all the way up to the half way point at Hawi. It made for a thrilling return trip as majority of the return was down hill with a tail breeze although the breeze did play havoc at times. Finally T2 arrived and the run leg. This saw us traverse through the picturesque Fairmont Orchid Golf course. We ran along fairways, cart tracks, bitumen roads and dirt tracks. We didn't realise how taxing those short little rises on a golf cart track can be !! So after about what seemed like 100 gels; 1000 cups of Gatorade & coke plus cups of ice & water between us - the finish line arrived and our life dream of racing on the famed Queen K highway & Ironman World Championship course had ended.

Our results were good - Paul completing it in 4hr 10 min & fifth position overall; Brett in 5hr 14 min & Deanne in 5hr 22 min. Great race and would love to do it again one year. Now it was time to return to the condo for some well deserved beers, pina coladas, a bbq and many stories from the race. By about 11pm that night, and after being up for about 19 hrs, we had come to the conclusion that we were the best 3 triathletes Eltham had produced ... hehehehe.

Oh - and the last word on Doug - I believe he was still coming along the Queen K somewhere ...

That's it. Hope all is well & catch up soon.

Brett Smythe