Going Down Under

With a bunch of free time here before the race, I thought I’d write about the trip….as the trip was happening (or at least not too long after each day’s events had happened). Not much time for editing here, so my recollections may be a bit rambling.

I’m here in Australia getting ready for Sunday’s Ironman Western Australia triathlon. This has been almost a year in the making. As I recall, it was around Christmastime 2009 that I decided to enter this race. If I’d had my druthers, I’d probably have entered Ironman Florida instead, but a conflict in my work schedule made that impossible. Left to choose between end-of-the-year Ironman races in Arizona, Cozumel, or Western Australia, you see what I chose. Australia is great, the course is flat, and most years there is reasonable weather. But it's 11,000 miles from home....

My sister and parents are along for the trip. Company and a cheering section. They’re the best.

Wednesday

The trip started on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, with me travelling to Dallas and on to Los Angeles on American Airlines and meeting up with the family there. Things got off to a great start when the American agent at the Jackson airport couldn’t figure out how to charge me for excess luggage (I had the bike and a large duffel that, together, weighed 110 pounds)….and so he didn’t! I don’t think I’ve ever paid extra for a bike when I’ve left from Jackson.

Everybody made it to Los Angeles okay. I hooked up with the family in the gate for the Qantas flight to Sydney. We were originally going to travel on the Airbus A380, but the engine explosion a couple weeks earlier grounded the Qantas A380 fleet. I was actually looking forward to riding on the big plane. Maybe they’ll be back in service for the return trip. As it turned out, there were a bunch of empty seats in our area on the 747 and we had a little room to spread out. Not like business class, mind you, but still better than usual.

Leaving on Wednesday afternoon (and arriving on Friday morning) meant that we missed Thanksgiving in the traditional sense. I suppose that being with family is what’s important, even if the airplane meal wasn’t the traditional turkey fare.

There’s nothing quite like a 15-hour flight. I don’t like to sit for longer than about 30 minutes, so a trip like this is pretty stressful. I was up and about as much as possible while I was awake. I managed a little bit of sleep, which was good. Despite JD’s warning otherwise, I watched a couple movies as well. Thankfully, GPS was working properly and the plane found the southeast coast of Australia right on time.

Friday

We had arranged for a private transfer from the airport to the hotel, so that worked out pretty well. We returned to the Four Seasons Hotel downtown where we had stayed the last time we were in Sydney. Familiar surroundings are always good. The rooms were available for check-in at 10 am and we had to draw straws for who got the first shower. I opted for a 4-hour nap while the family headed out to do some shopping.

The nap was rejuvenating and the rest of the afternoon was devoted to some EZ workouts. Lori and I headed out for a walk across the Sydney Harbor Bridge (~1 mile or so) to the North Sydney Olympic Pool just on the other side. I can’t imagine a more beautiful setting for an outdoor pool than under the Harbor Bridge, with a view of the Opera House and all of downtown Sydney. I hopped in for a 20-minute swim in the 50-meter pool. We retraced our steps back to the hotel and I had a short spin on an exercise bike and a short run from the hotel. Everything was a little stiff after the lengthy travel.

The run brought back memories. It was here in January, 2005 that I did my first-ever 1-mile run, beginning the 2-year journey (proposed by George) that would end in Taupo for Ironman New Zealand in March, 2007. I was pleased that I could run better now! It really has been an amazing 5 years. Back in 2005 I could never imagine….



We had dinner at a restaurant across the street from the hotel and retired early for the evening.

Saturday

We were all up early on Saturday, thanks to the time change. I headed out for another run around the Circular Quay area, first with an out-and-back over to the Park Hyatt Hotel at the edge of the bridge, then another out-and-back past the Opera House. I can’t help but conclude that Sydney Harbor might be the most beautiful big-city harbor in the world. I suppose I haven’t been everywhere, and I know that the harbors in Vancouver, San Francisco, and Auckland are also beautiful, but for now Sydney is my favorite. We had breakfast on the 32nd floor of the hotel, overlooking the harbor. Two cruise ships were in port this morning.
After the run, I walked over to the North Sydney Olympic Pool for a 30-minute swim. The pool was a little more crowded today. Lots of lap swimmers.

In the afternoon, Lori and I went for a sailing excursion in the Harbor on an America’s Cup boat. The boat was actually a New Zealand syndicate boat from the 1995 San Diego challenge, about 75 feet in length with a 115 foot mast. About 20 tourists joined a “real” crew of 5 for a 3-hour sail up the length of Sydney Harbor, to Manley, and back. There were about 20 knots of wind, so we were only able to use the jib. Nonetheless, our boat was the fastest boat around, it seemed. And there must have been hundreds of sailboats out that afternoon. We took turns helping the crew and I got a turn as helmsman which was fun.

Back at the hotel, I squeezed in a quick spin at the fitness center and then had a quick bite to eat for supper. That evening, we enjoyed a performance by the Sydney Symphony at the Opera House. Back in 2005 when we were here, we went on a tour of the Opera House and I said then that, if I ever got back, I’d like to see a performance there. It’s an amazing building, stunning both inside and out. And when you think about it, it’s probably one of the most recognizable manmade structures in history….in modern times, perhaps only the Eifel Tower is in the same category. A great day!

Sunday

After breakfast at the hotel, the parents headed off for an all-day wine tour in the Hunter Valley. This was a birthday gift to both of them. They would end up having a fun day of wine tasting (and buying), lunch, and a little shopping as well.

In the meantime, Lori and I headed out for Sydney Olympic Park, taking the Paramatta River ferry from Circular Quay. Our ferry ride would take about an hour, with short stops at a bunch of riverside locales as we worked our way up the river to Homebush. I’ll guess that in 2000, the Olympic Park was built in a relatively undeveloped location….but now there’s development all around it. At the ferry terminal there, you transfer to a bus that winds its way around the Park. We hopped off at the Aquatic Center and I enjoyed a 1-hour workout there. It was fun to see the competition pool (I can remember it vividly from the TV broadcasts), but there was a swim meet going on, so I had to do my workout in the adjacent training pool. There was a huge crowd at the pool and water park. Sunday is FamilyFun day in Sydney, it turns out. We took the train back downtown. The ferry was certainly more scenic.

I did a bike workout at the hotel and then a run outside.

The parents had eaten a big lunch, so they passed on dinner. Lori and I had a quick bite at a harborside cafe, watching the sun set on the Harbor. Beautiful view and great people watching.

Monday

I was up early for an hour-long walk around downtown Sydney. It was time to say good-bye because today was travel day again. Off to Busselton! We packed up, headed back to the airport, and flew to Perth, a ~5-hour flight (Australia is BIG!). We rented a van and made the 3-hour drive down the southwest coast of Australia to the town of Busselton, home of the Ironman Western Australia race. The countryside was mostly farmland until we got to the town of Bunbury and then things changed to a more beach tourist-oriented look.

I was paying attention to the race at Ironman Cozumel as the day went by. JD got off to a terrific start at the race but had stomach troubles and dropped out early in the run. Brooke’s mom, Gail, was doing her first Ironman race and I was excited to see that she had a solid day. Ironman Gail!

We got to the Abbey Beach Resort, our home for the week, in the late afternoon. This is a combination hotel and rental condo property located about 6 km from the race start/finish. We’re in a 3-bedroom condo that overlooks the pools. The property’s right on the beach (the Indian Ocean!), but there are also 2 outdoor pools and a 25-meter (3-lane) indoor pool. We settled in, went for a grocery shopping trip to Woolworth’s, grabbed dinner from KFC, and were in bed early again (it was a 3-hour time change from Sydney).

Tuesday

After a light breakfast at the condo, I went for a run on the multi-use trail that runs along the beach. Pretty scenery as I headed out-and-back in the direction of the town center. I was out running at about 6 am and I was surprised at how many other runners, walkers, and cyclists were already out. When I finished the run, I went for a short swim workout at the hotel’s indoor pool. There were no lane lines, so when a few other hotel guests hopped in and started playing ball, it was like swimming in the open ocean. I swallowed more than a couple mouthfuls of pool water.

Next, the whole family piled in the van and we went for a lap around the bike course. On race day we’ll do 3 laps of the course to make 180 km. The course is totally flat. After leaving the transition area, the course heads out through a neighborhood, with a couple turns, and then gets onto a highway of sorts for almost the entire ride. The route meanders around the water’s edge and, with a couple hairpin out-and-backs, through a nature preserve and a national forest. The whole route is pretty scenic. For the most part, the road is newly paved asphalt, but there is one stretch of chip seal. Hopefully I won’t vibrate the bike apart on race day.
The afternoon was time for bike assembly (and thankfully no extra parts!). I was happy that everything seemed to be in working order with the bike. I took it for a test spin around the hotel parking lot. Then it was nap time!

We had dinner at the condo and then Lori and I headed back to the transition area. Lori has volunteered to help with registration on Friday. Apparently the race is VERY short of volunteers….hundreds short. Amazing. WTC bought the race….and now no volunteers. Hmmm. Maybe the aid stations will be self serve on Sunday. At any rate, there was a collection of registration volunteers at the meeting and we had a chance to meet the race director. They seem totally committed to putting a good face on the event. Seems like there was little love for WTC and a bunch of new procedures for the race.

Tomorrow, it's a ride around the course. Looking forward to that.

The race is getting close!