Ironman New Zealand
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Photo by Hannah Johnston/Getty Images AsiaPac
In a sport where simply finishing is considered an achievement, victory is seen as a super-human effort. When you win more than one Ironman you are considered great, so what superlative do you use when someone wins the same race 9 times in 10 years?
Were it not for the cancelling of the swim in 2006, the year Ain-Alar Juhansson won, Cameron Brown would now have accomplished the unimaginable with full 10 out of 10.
This year it was the old battle of youth versus experience as we saw a repeat of last years race where Brown faced off against the rising start and future Ironman champion, Terenzo Bozzone. At the end of the day the result was the same but not before Bozzone raced off to what appeared to be an effortless 7 minute lead halfway into the bike. Reading Terenzo’s blog reveals that it was anything but effortless and, by his own admission, he let his excitement get the better of him. He was made to pay for it on the run as the wily old fox, Brown, responded with a blistering 2:47 marathon to cap a fantastic day and amazing record that might not be complete yet as he plans to return next year to make it 10 wins.
It wasn’t all plain sailing for Brown though and he admits to racing scared on the bike and exacting his revenge when he finally took the lead on the run. “I tried to move past him as quickly as possible, he’d hurt me for six hours and I wanted to hurt him back” said Brown after the finish which gives you an idea of his character, something that has been instrumental in his success.
In the ladies race it was win number 7 for Jo Lawn after her having her run ended at 6 by Gina Crawford last year. 2010 started with Crawford winning Challenge Wanaka and Lawn triumphing in Tauranga and the stage was set for a showdown around the shores of Taupo.
They didn’t disappoint and even a below par effort by Crawford didn’t stop her pushing Lawn to a new course record in less than perfect conditions, thereby laying to rest the demons of nutrition and injury that have plagued her for the past 18 months.
Photo by Hannah Johnston/Getty Images AsiaPac
- Joanna Lawn (NZL) 9:14:35
- Gina Crawford (NZL) 9:28:26
- Kim Loeffler (USA) 9:30:57
Men
- Cameron Brown (NZL) 8:21:52
- Terenzo Bozzone (NZL) 8:30:00
- Kieran Doe (NZL) 8:34:16
Dromarti cycling shoes
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When I saw these Dromarti shoes, the first thing that came to mind was ‘The Lion King’, Mario Cippolini, who would regularly appear on the podium in Armani suits and is largely responsible for the advent of what is known as bike bling today. Let’s face it, cycling shoes are largely ugly and have been ever since Look introduced the first clipless pedal. Overnight black or tan leather disappeared, replaced by a variety of colours and fabrics which simply would not have worked with conventional toe-clips.
My first cycling shoes were a pair of black leather Sidi’s, a brand that I am still particularly fond of. They had leather soles that became useless in the wet and provided only minimal support when dry. They also had brass cleats nailed to the bottom to ‘lock’ onto my Campag quill pedals. The job was completed with a pair of Binda toe-clips with leather straps. Getting into them was a chore and falling almost always resulted in the bike coming with you. Despite all of this there is still something romantic about the whole process and it’s one that track sprinters still use today.
The other throw back to a bygone era is crocheted leather gloves. I must have had 20 pairs of these in my early years and loved the feel and ventilation they provided. Dromarti now also make these and I wonder how long it will be before they start producing wool shorts with genuine leather chamois to complete the look. You can already buy a replica Molteni wool jersey and if it wasn’t for helmet laws I could imagine myself cruising down the road with my cap peak flipped up on an all steel Colnago with Campag Super Record groupset.
Yes those were the ‘good old days’ and I sometimes wonder if the youngsters of today aren’t missing out?
Ironman Malaysia
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Vanhoenacker and Granger triumph
It was another day for the uber-bikers as Belinda Granger and Marino Vanhoenacker built unassailable leads on the bike and toughed it out in the heat over the run course for comfortable victories.
Trailing Hillary Biscay out of the water, Granger set about crushing the opposition with a 4:53 bike split on what must be one of the toughest courses in Ironman racing. This left Edith Niederfriniger with a massive 17 minute deficit to make up on the run which, despite her running credentials, never seemed likely leaving Granger to cruise home by over 10 minutes.
As with the women, the men’s race was blown apart on the bike as Luke McKenzie and Vanhoenacker destroyed the field before McKenzie was forced to pull out with stomach problems, probably brought on my the extreme heat and humidity.
In the end Marino’s bike split was faster than Chris Lieto’s 2006 mark, leaving him with an 8 minute lead over Romain Guillame, who would fade on the run, and a half an hour to the rest of the field. From there it was a matter of consolidating and not over extending himself while the rest of the field imploded with only Hiroyuki Nishiuchi putting up anything like a decent run.
Women
- Belinda Granger (AUS) 9:23:33
- Edith Niederfriniger (ITA) 9:35:02
- Hillary Biscay (USA) 10:10:59
Men
- Marino Vanhoenacker (BEL) 8:22:31
- Hiroyuki Nishiuchi (JPN) 8:50:52
- Romain Guillaume (FRA) 8:54:38
