I first experienced UltraMan in 2018, when my partner, Jason Shields took on the epic event. At the time, I knew nothing of UltraMan, just that there were 50 somewhat crazy people taking on a 3-day event that Jason had done a shit load of training for, hours of bike sessions and double run days, and swimming many km’s in the Vic Lake. I was recovering from a bike accident at the time so felt very useless having had surgery on my shoulder, so I was unable to support him on any of his rides. With all the preparation done, we arrived at Noosa the week of the race and made our way to the athlete registration. I recall being greeted by an energetic person, welcoming us to the Ultraman family, and quickly telling Jason, “this event is better than any Ironman”. I had no idea who this eager and overly enthusiastic person was at the time, but I remember thinking ‘no way’, we had just arrived after watching friends compete at Ironman Australia, I really doubted that this experience could ever top that. The registration process included making sure athletes had any questions answered with plenty of information given out, with maps of bike and run courses on display and volunteers spending many hours answering any questions. This all seemed like a lot of information and we still had the athlete welcome and breakfast information session to attend the next day!!! I was thinking at the time that this was a bit of overkill really, I mean, this isn’t even an Ironman event. We made our way to the breakfast the next morning, dragging our feet, thinking we had better things to do the day before the race, I mean what else did they really have to tell us!!!! At the breakfast information session, we were introduced to the “DREAM TEAM” the team that make this event happen. Again, I didn’t appreciate any of this, but I busily made any notes on the folder of information that they had handed out to each athlete, as I was part of the crew for Jason, even with only one arm, I had to be part of his journey. That is the thing about UltraMan, everyone is part of the journey, sure the athlete does all the REAL work, but they are supported by their crew. This crew is responsible for making sure their athlete has everything they need, keeps them calm between race days, and delivers their nutrition on course. Oh, and tries not to get lost navigating…..
Week 2
This was going to be another busy week, with New Years at the start of the training week, we headed up to Noosa on New Year’s Day, part holiday part training camp, with a big week of training planned we had no time to rest once we arrived, so we unpacked the bikes and headed out on a ride to Garmin Hill, a few hill repeats and then back home, finishing off with a 3km swim at the Noosa Aquatic Centre, I am still not comfortable swimming by myself in the open water, something that I am not sure I will overcome quickly. With the temperature in Noosa hitting 30 degrees by around 10am and humidity at 100%, again it was a matter of getting any training sessions done early in the morning and later in the afternoon. Another ride the next morning, with hill repeats on the plan, apparently, I need to get my legs stronger, these are the words of wisdom from the voice of reason, my coach and partner – Jason. Friday, we headed out for a 2-hour ride along the David Low Way, a ride that I have done a dozen times before, we turned for home after an hour, and OH MY LORD, my legs were sore. I started thinking about Ultraman, and how this was home straight of Day 2, the last 26km of 281kms, If I was finding this hard now, imagine how hard this is going to really be after riding 260km! WHAT HAVE I GOT MYSELF IN FOR! Holy Crap, I have a lot of work to do. With a long ride and run still on my plan, and really doubting myself, I made sure I was hydrated, rested and well fed for the rest of the week. Saturday, I ran, it was a slow pace, I tried to stay in Zone 1, but with a few hills, and nearly 30 degrees heat, it’s pretty hard to achieve. I drank plenty of Coconut Water and ate well for the rest of the day in preparation for my 5 hour ride the next day. The plan was to ride most of the Day 1 Bike course, try and get to the second climb past Kin Kin and come home. Sarah volunteered to come along on the ride, although she had not completed a ride longer than 2 hours for many months. Sarah is the wife of fellow Ultraman wannabee in 2020 Chris Pye. I promised it was just going to be an easy ride, as my legs felt trashed, I wasn’t even sure I would make the climb. I am happy to report, that I completed the first climb, my legs had somehow recovered, and I felt none of the soreness from a few days earlier. We headed for home, I was feeling somewhat relieved, knowing that yes, I still have a lot of work to do, but I think I can do this!
Week 2
Swim – 9.8 km
Bike – 301 km
Run – 37 km
Gym Sessions – 0
Training Hours 19:27
Lesson Learned: It won’t always feel easy!
My Journey To UltraMan 