Ben Fouhy World Champion K1 1000m Kayaking New Zealand

Well I am pleased to say that I survived the Ironman for 2009 while also managing to pick up a spot for Kona as the NZ Ironman is an official qualifying race.

Overall it was a really good day for me. I was pleased with my splits too which were somewhere around 52.52 for the swim, 5.13.21 bike and a 3.27.12 run making a total of 9.41.10s.

The conditions were kind with lower temperatures and some light rain which kept things cool.

The bike set up thanks to Pinarello and Kiwivelo was fantastic. I was grateful to have the fast wheels and aero helmet too which made the long day which is the Ironman that little bit shorter!

The first photo is lap one and the second is lap two. As you can see not quite the same spring in my step second time round! I was really happy to maintain just under 5 minute kilometers but the motivation changed through out the run from wanting to do a good run split to just finishing the run as quick as I could so I could get my feet up!

Below race winner Cameron Brown looks like he still has plenty of Gas! Running sub 2.45! for those that havnt worked it out 4 min ks is a 2.48 marathon so well under that!

When I was offered the use of some carbon race wheels I wasnt going to say no, you can buy an Olympic class kayak for the price of a top of the line set of race wheels. Being a rookie I was hoping the wheels might be something a little on the conservative side and not too deep. When they arrived the rear wheel was a disc with a message passed on to harden up! It is commonly accepted that you need to be riding a lot closer to Cameron Browns speed than what I am capable of to make it worth your while.I have received mixed advice about how efficient Disc wheels are at various speeds..

I went for an easy hour ride today to get the feel of it all. Luckily there was some wind around to get some kind of idea what the disc will feel like in the wind, particularly side wind. So far all good. The other thing I am told is that I will need to be careful not to get too carried away as the set up I am on is inspiring to say the least. Fast wheels make you want to ride faster than you really should.. sounds like it is a good idea to train on them for a bit to calibrate your effort to the feel of the bike as it does truly feel different with the fast wheels on.

The aero helmet thanks to Kiwivelo was a nice surprise too! I am really looking forward to Saturday.

www.kiwivelo.co.nz

With less than a week to go it sure feels nice to be feeling a bit fresher.. although if I dont feel a little more frisky before race start on Saturday I will be a little concerned… there has been a fine line between resting up and actually getting some training in.. time will tell I guess.

Big thanks to Asics shoes who have been supporting me over the years with running shoes and cross trainers. Its been great having their support. While I was paddling and doing very light milage on the road my Nimbus neutral shoes were doing just fine, however with the big jump in running milage and added cycling I needed some extra support in my shoes and have moved back to the Gel 3000. These have been great and thanks to Dene my guru Ironman physio I have been able to stay on top of my I.T Band problem which started on day two, and actually get some running in.

Tomorrow will be a light ride to make sure all the kit is in order and to keep the legs moving. I will put a up a photo of Pinarello FT-1 that the guys at Kiwivelo have done a great job of setting me up with.

With a ride that would be more than adequate for any pro to win on I wont have any excuses on the equipment side of it.