Driving on the other side of the road; New friends; Ironman Australia

Driving On The Left Side

Well we can both officially say that we've done it on both sides of the road....driving that is. About a week ago Ginny and I picked up our No Birds rental car and ventured into the streets of Sydney to make our way North to Port Macquarie. Needless to say we were both a little nervous as we tried to become comfortable with driving on the opposite side of the road. Driving in Sydney is quite an experience....the drivers are very aggressive, the lanes are narrow, and the streets have multiple curves and hills. And last but not least the round-about.

Ginny was very patient, and frequently but gently, reminded me not to veer too far to the left and cross over into another lane.

On our first right hand turn we were caught in the middle of the intersection thus blocking traffic....the locals were not happy with the Canucks. We then made our way over the Sydney Harbour Bridge into North Sydney, then onto Pacific Highway 1 northbound to Port Macquarie.

Now a quick word about the round-abouts. I was a bit nervous about getting into these somewhat foreign traffic flow mechanisms but as I went through them during our trip I really began to appreciate how simple and effective they are at keeping traffic flowing. North American cities would benefit greatly from round-abouts to keep traffic flowing.


Port Macquaire

The town of Port Macquarie is 400km north of Sydney on what is referred to as the Holiday Coast. It has a population of 30,000 people, is right on the ocean, and offers Aussies a great vacation with beaches, shops, restaurants, boating, surfing, golf etc.

It is also the home of Ironman Australia.

Our hotel (The Koala Tree) was very close to the centre of town, the Town Beach, and within walking distance to the park hosting the race site and events. If you visit be sure to ask about the dropping bears.

The hotel also had two dogs - Aston, and Lex. Aston (pictured) was hit by a car when only a puppy. This made her a bit shy, but once she was comfortable she loved her belly rubs. Her friend Lex is a real suck but both of them made us feel very welcome, and less sad about not having Foxie nearby.

Through our friend Kim we were put in touch with an Aussie friend of hers. Donna (pictured) , her partner Peter, and many of their friends who were also in Port Mac for the Ironman event. For me it was great to have people to ride with before the race, and for the two of us to sit with at the Pre, and Post race events. Donna was also an on course info source for Ginny during the race.

We are both fortunate to have met all these great people, and look forward to seeing them again, to shout them. (That's Aussie for "treating".)

Ironman Australia.

The days leading up to the race were taken up with final training sessions, setting up the bike, registration, pre race briefing, and a carbo loading dinner. We also met Desiree Ficker and have a nice photo with her.

Ginny spent time at the beach (pictured), sunning, exploring Port Mac, and ran in a 5km fun run (pre race shot pictured). She did really well, and exceeded her expectations.

On race morning we woke up early (3:30 am) to eat, dress, and make our way to the race site. Time moves quickly and before I knew it, Ginny and I had one last hug before I entered the water of the Hastings River.

Then the cannon fired, and into the washing machine I went. The swim required two laps of the river. I swallowed a bit of salt water, ate some seaweed, but managed to keep from being punched, kicked or scratched. I was moving well, and in control, and I was out of the water before I knew it.

Into transition, lather up with sun block, and onto the bike.

The bike leg is three 60 km loops which consists of 40 km of hills and 20 km of flatter roads. There is no shade, and the wind became stronger as the day progressed. And as the day progressed the mercury rose to 29C. Each loop also had a major climb on Matthew Flinders Drive - the first, and longer portion has a very steep grade, 17 degrees, then after a right hand turn, the final kicker is shorter but just as sleep.

(For the history buffs, Matthew Flinders is credited with surveying and mapping a large portion of the Australian coast line.)

It was great to have a cheering section of Ginny, and my wonderful sister-in-law Roxanne (who flew in from Sydney) each time I passed them.

By the 100 km mark the rough roads, and heat were getting to me and I blew up like a cheap Mexican firecracker. I was not the only - as was witnessed in the medical tent at the end of the race. I slogged through the rest of the ride and slowly rolled into T2.

After putting on my run shoes I headed out, saw Ginny, and began my first loop. I started reasonably well, running 10 km before the heat got to me again. I felt light headed and woozy and I had to begin walking. I grabbed some ice at the next aid station and decided that I would march on. I also knew that the sun would soon be gone and cooler temps would arrive.

The run also consisted of three loops, (14km each). Each loop had a flat section, followed by a hillier section - some of the same hills we rode on hours earlier.

I caught up with Gary, from Mudgee, who was suffering a major cramp,and together we walked for about 15km. After he headed for the finish chute, I headed out for my third lap. I ran for another 3.5km before I had to shut it down again. However my marching kept me moving at a better pace than some of the athletes running.

The fans on course were great, giving lots of support and shouts of "good on ya, matey".

Finally the finish chute was in sight and I began to run in. The chute is long so I high-fived a number of the fans before crossing the line.

Quickly I was taken to the finishers tent, given a massage, a warm meal, and then I met up with Ginny, collected my gear and headed back to the hotel to sleep.

Post Race

Boy am I sore. And the blisters on my feet will take some time to heal.

Ginny and I went to the Awards Dinner with our Aussie friends and had a great time. We also have a photo with Craig "Crowie" Alexander (pictured), the 2x Ironman World Champion. Ginny and I met him once before at the Newfoundland 70.3 race a few years back. All our Newfoundland friends will be glad the hear the Craig said he loved the race and was disappointed that it is no longer being held.

We were also very lucky to have lunch with our sister-in-laws parents who came in especially for us.

Then today we drove back to Syndey.

What's next?

Tomorrow we fly to Christchurch, NZ for two weeks on the South Island.

Super excited, and we'll be in touch soon.