The full story!

I went down to Florida on a three day drop taper for the race and was hoping for a little more than I got out of my body. :-)

I arrived just a day and a half before the race and went and did all my pre race duties and checked out the course. the swim and the run looked great but the bike however left LOT to be desired. It was a 6 lap course on a three lane HWY in which we had the inside lane coned off.

Race morning dawned and it looked like a cracker it was going to be hot and sunny, with calm waters and wind. The race got underway at 7am as predicted and I felt pretty good, I thought I was swimming with the first women (Hillary Biscay a solid sub 50 IM swimmer) but after the three loop triangle swim I exited the water to the sounds of your 4 min down from the lead and it is a girl! I thought that's sweet Chris you the third Chick. :-) Even with this I was pretty happy with my swim.

On to the bike and the normal Chris just was not there today, the course suited me and I really thought I would be able to race for the win. It was going to be flat fast and just a 1-2 gear grind fest. I felt "OK" for the first couple of laps but then just was dying a slow and lonely death, I had the worst things rolling through my head (your a numpty Chris ,yes you are !). Although I still managed to avg 40kph I had lost time to all my rivals and was really racing now for 5th at best.

Once I hit the run, which normally I would struggle with I felt pretty good! Better than I ever have I think. I set my mind on 2hrs which would be around the 4 min k mark. I hit 10k in around 39min then the next 10k in 39 again, and by this stage had moved into 7th place. I could see 6th was really dying in the heat of the Florida sun so I pushed the next few k's to bridge up to him, one I got there I blew by him and could see 5th in my sight, so I thought to myself you have 4k to go just go for it.

I ran those next 2kms like a man who needed a paycheque. :-) After 2k of hammering I could see that 5th was not going to be today and if I kept this pace up 6th would not be either, so I just really backed off and consolidated 6th place.

So not a bad weekend in all. I came home with the rent money for the next few months and a very solid session in my legs to get me ready for my next A race at the quelle challenge in Roth Germany. Next for me is a half IM in mountain Arizona. I will touch base before and let you know how things are traveling.

Thanks to ALL my supporters. It just is not possible without a great crew behind you.

Chat soon Chris

Meningie Half Ironman :::: 23-Oct-2006

Marilyn and I traveled to Meningie, South Australia this past weekend to take part in round 4 of the Snap Printing Half IM series.

Heading into the race we had both kept our training loads pretty high with Ironman WA being the number one goal. We were just hoping for a good solid hit out before the Port Macquarie 70.3 in two weeks time. We woke race morning to a nice frost and the thought of heading into a lake swim with a water temp of 14 deg C. Brrrrrrrrrrrr.

After the morning duties we were underway at 7:15 am and I promptly got dropped by the lead two swimmers at 7:15 and 5 seconds. :-) I got into my rhythm quite quickly for me and managed to limit the damage to two minutes on Boyd Conrick and Matt Tippet. Once on the bike I just felt really good right away and decided to waste no time in trying to get to the front. Much to my surprise, I rolled up the two guys by about the 18km mark. :-) With this I just kept my head down and didn't look back. By the time we reached the turn around at the 22km mark I had managed another 40 seconds on them. After around another 90 minutes of pedal, drink, eat, pedal... the ride was done and I hit T2. I had built the lead from the two boys to a hair under 6 minutes.

Onto the run and I had a plan to run the first 10k hard and then just shut it down and try to hold the gap. I am happy to let you know it all worked out. :-) I broke the tape in 4:02 and set a new course record by 3 minutes and also took 4 minutes off the old bike course record. :-)

From here it is back to some good old hard work for the next 10 days before another crack in Port Macquarie. Thank you to everyone again for your amazing support.

Chat soon & Cheers,
Chris

Ironman Wisconsin :::: 20-Sep-2006

I just wanted to drop you all a line with a short race report from this past weekend at Ironman Wisconsin.

We woke up on race morning to some of the worst conditions I have had to race and Ironman in, it was around 12 deg C (54F) raining and a wind blowing at around 15 mile per hour, after getting down to transition and dealing with the transition routine we made our way down to the water to see that that beautiful calm lake we had been swimming in for the last two weeks had turned into somewhere you could have held a surfing competition.

without trying to worry about it too much I jumped in got my warm up done and lined up right beside my number one lead out pick for the swim. after the canon fired everything went to plan .......for about 1km. :-) I was swimming comfortably in 2nd place until we got to the first turn buoy when my lead out decided it was time to DRILL IT around the buoy and I just didn't have that pace pick up and promptly got dropped, I was still happy as I had gotten through the first 1000m of an IM without getting touched at all, I ended up swimming solo until around the 2.5-3k mark when a group of 4 or 5 caught me and I just jumped on the back and enjoyed the ride to shore.

Once we hit dry land I knew I was doing ok as I was the 3rd male out of the water and 1st and 2nd were about 2 seconds in front of me, after rushing through the transition i jumped on the bike and for the first time in my life I was leading an IM, I was quickly joined by the race favorite Markus Forster after around 5km, we rode together for the best part of the 1st of the two laps on the bike course, at this stage I could tell that Markus looked like he was struggling a little so I just decided to test the waters and I just lifted the pace for the next few km's, I turned to look back and was pleasantly surprised to see I was on my own.

After this I continued to push the pace and build a gap as I knew Markus was a great runner. The rest of the ride was very uneventful and when I rolled into transition I was amazed to hear that I had a 10 min lead over Markus on 2nd and over and Around 18 minutes back to 3rd, I ended the ride with the fastest split of the day by more than 10 minutes.

Once onto the run I struggled to find my legs for the few kms and was loosing time in Chunks to fast moving Forster. At the second turn around on the course at roughly mile 9, I knew it was a matter of time until Markus caught me, my 10 min lead had come down to just over 4 minutes. I continued to push but my lead just kept shrinking, at around mile 15 Markus came by, I tried to stay with him but he was on the attack, we ran side by side fro a short while but then i went into one of the lowest patches i had seen, Markus not only ran away from me but people on the first lap were starting to drop me as well..... with that I knew I had to regroup, I stopped at the next aid station and fueled up, on EVERYTHING, coke, Gatorade, oranges, jelly beans, pretzels the works... but hey it worked, just a few Min's later I was back.

from here I just tried to hold tempo and not loose to much time, I knew third place was some 17 min back and after a little simple math on the run, I just needed to keep moving forward to hold on to 2nd place and my best Ironman finish place.

After placing second here and leading for the best part of the day I am super excited to start work on the next adventure.

Swim 57, Bike 4:55 (fastest split by 10 min), Run 3:13

Thank you again to everyone for your continued support, it just wouldn't be possible without you.

Cheers and chat soon,
Chris

Ironman Lake Placid :::: 23-Jul-2006

Hey there guys (and girls),

I have to apologize for the delay on an update from Ironman Lake Placid.

It certainly wasn't a great day but it wasn't a bad day either. I woke up race morning to the sound of pouring rain on the roof and the first thing that came to mind was the 14km descent on the course: rain and 80km/h.... I wonder how that will go? It turns out the descent was the last thing I should have been worried about.

As the gun fired for the race start at 7am I went for it hoping to get myself a nice pair of feet to follow and a very uneventful swim. I found those feet for the first lap and then lost them in the scurry around the beach. I finished the second loop and hit dry ground again in 52 minutes and change and about 3min30sec down on the main pack.

Once on the bike it was all very uneventfully and quite boring to read so I will spare you that part. Coming back into town I was up in 5th place and had just dropped the train I was towing around. This is where I should have been thinking about the rain. I picked up my special needs bags, unloaded the goods and then looked up... I was about five meters from a sharp right-hand turn doing about 40km/h. I tried to wash off as much speed as I could in about a meter and then just laid into the turn and hoped for the best. I didn't run into the barricades but I did hit the ground. I had my tire and I just bit the dust. Once I got the tire back on and pumped up I just tried to stay controlled and work my way back into the top ten again.

Coming into transition I was holding down 7th place and with how I felt just hoped to hold down a top ten placing. The marathon was also very uneventfully -- I passed a couple of guys and a few more passed me. I came down the finish chute in 9th place and it was a nice consolation to pick up Luke McKenzie with a mile to go and be the first Australian home.

I want to thank all my sponsors and supporters again - Jaggad Clothing, Aegis bikes, Zipp, Rotor Cranks, Fuel Belt, Pro4 Sports Nutrition, Fizik Saddles, Blue Seventy Wetsuits, Thurgoona Bakery - and a special thanks to the team at Jaggad Clothing for getting a custom made T1 trisuit sent over to me at the last minute.

From here my next race is going to be Ironman Wisconsin. I will touch base again with you all as things get a little closer.

Cheers,
Chris

The Great White North Triathlon :::: 02-Jul-2006

Hey there,

I just wanted to drop you all a line to let you know that I raced this past weekend at the Great White North Half Ironman in Stony Plain, Alberta, Canada, and managed to stay up on the podium with a second place finish.

The race went pretty well from the start. I was leading the swim for all but the last few hundred meters, when I was out-sprinted for the swim prime. Once on to the bike I decided to push hard and try and get a decent gap on the quicker runners. I rode quickly with a 2:08 bike split for the 90 km but it was not quite quick enough. I was passed at around the 11km mark of the half marathon and just couldn't hold the pace.

After spending a couple of weeks on the road it was great to get the race done and get back to Boulder and put the finishing touches on the preps for Ironman USA, Lake Placid.

So with a first and a second in my two build up races for Lake Placid things seem to be on track. I will touch base with you all again after Ironman USA and hopefully I will have another story about a podium finish.

Thank you all so very much for the support, it just wouldn't be possible to do what I do without it.

Cheers,
Chris McDonald

DeuceMan Half :::: 04-Jun-2006

Hi all,

After the big break post-Ironman Australia I started the North American season off on a good note. I raced at the DeuceMan Half in Arizona on the weekend and came away with the win.

The race started out well with a problem free swim and I came out of the water in 3rd place and sixty seconds down on Matt Clark. After working hard in Boulder for the last month I decided I was really going to push from the start. I took the lead from Matt at around 20km on the bike and just kept my head down.

I rolled into T2 with a two-minute lead over Matt and eventual second-place-getter Joe Gambles. The sun was beating down on us and the temperature was in the mid-90s. After an Ironman-like transition I had lost twenty seconds from my lead.

Out on to the run and boy, was I getting frustrated -- my lead mountain bike man had decided that he would take me on a little extra tour of Show Low... and now my ninety second lead was down to a breath in my ear.

With a little bit of anger built up inside me and knowing that Joe hadn't been training at altitude I just decided to hammer the next few kilometers and see what happened.... the rest is history. I finished the day with the fastest bike split and also the fastest run split to break the tape in 4hr09min and change. Not a very fast time but a great hit out up in the high desert of Arizona.

Ironman Australia :::: 02-Apr-2006

Chris finished eighth against a star-studded field at Ironman Australia today. More from Chris on how his day went coming soon.

Ironman Malaysia :::: 26-Feb-2006

The sixth of February 2006 is a day I would love to forget.

As you know, I decided to forego Ironman New Zealand this year in favor of a shot at Ironman Malaysia. I arrived in Langkawi a week prior to the race just to be sure I was well acclimated. Everything up to the race flowed well and I felt like I was up for a good day.

We had a thirty minute delayed start due to the darkness but when the gun fired at 7:30am we were off. The swim started well and I was hanging with the front group off the line. Eventually I settled into a rhythm that had me at the lead of the second bunch. I hit dry land in around 55 minutes and quickly found out were I was at in the race, about 5 minutes down.

Once onto the bike I felt great. I had received some great advice on this race from Marilyn and I knew it would be key to really pace myself in the heat. I had ridden into 5th place by the time I was at the 40km mark but at this point my day started to take a turn for the worse. I heard some strange noises coming from my bike at the turn around and then when I went to push the pace it got even worse!! I had suffered some major mechanical problems and was limited to a top speed of around 35km/hr. I was playing some really tough mental games with myself. I managed to hold onto 5th place through the 100km mark when the guys I had passed earlier started to come back at me.

I rolled into transition in 9th place and still had the mind games going in my head. At this stage I had lost around 25 minutes from were I was at the 40 km mark of the bike and as I sat in transition putting my shoes on thought to myself, "Chris, this isn't your day, just pull out".

I have to say that my mind plays some weird tricks on me.... my head was saying call it a day but I just kept going. At the first turn around I thought, "well, you're out here now, suck it up, pay your dues and keep running, it could be a lot worse".

With that I stopped my stopwatch and decide just run on feel and see what happened. I did end up moving up into 7th place and although it was slow I also had one of the quicker marathons of the day. I now know that in order for me to stop a race someone is going to have to drag me of the course :-)

Now its time to put the legs up for a few days; time to start thinking about the next race and the next mental battle. Thank you VERY much to my friends, family and sponsors. I look forward to enjoying that first Ironman victory together.

Cheers,
Macca

Australian Long Course Championship :::: 12-Feb-2006

Well, it has been quite some time since I have posted any news here. Things have been traveling well; I've been based in Albury and Marilyn and I are really enjoying having a solid base for the first time in two years.

I am actually writing this from Langkawi, Malaysia and hence a few things have changed with my race schedule as well. I raced in Huskison at the Jaggad Australian Long Course Championships last weekend and had a great hit out before Ironman Malaysia.

I came out of a very tough swim two minutes down on the lead bunch and was content with that. Once on the bike I really wanted to have a solid ride for my preps. I felt good from the first pedal stoke, was making my way through the field and had a bunch of boys coming along for the ride. I was quite surprised at about 65km when we rolled up on the lead group, as I wasn't aware that there was one break away -- I thought we were the front of the race. Once we caught them I knew I was going to take the run very easy so I decided to try and out the hurt on :-) I came into T2 at the head of the bunch with a few guys about 20 seconds off the back. Once onto the run it was cruise mode for me, I really didn't want to beat myself up for my next race in two weeks time. I ended up coming down the shoot in 7th place and a great hit out.

Now, as I said, I am in Malaysia doing the final preps for the Ironman. Let me tell you, I have been some different places but in Langkawi you know you are in a different country :-)

I will touch base after the race and let you know how it all went :-)
Cheers,
Macca

Sixth at Ironman Western Australia :::: 27-Nov-2005

Hi All,

My trip over to Western Australia was very uneventful, with a drive to Melbourne on the Sunday night, then a flight to Perth on the Monday morning. We were put up in a beautiful resort here in Busselton which made it very easy to relax and get the pre-race things done. The course here is just beautiful with nice road surfaces and gorgeous vistas.

After beautiful weather all week race day dawned with thunder, lightning and pouring rain. The race organizers delayed the start thirty minutes due to the lightning.

So at a delayed 6:30am start time the canon fired. I have had two good swims in half Ironmans in the last month so I backed myself and went for it. The water was so rough it was just unreal, you were being picked up and moved 2-3 meters across in one swell, so drafting was near impossible. I reached the half way mark of the swim and made the turn for home. At this point I had a good look up ahead and could see the lead pack in the distance. The thought of a ten minute deficit rolled through my mind until two people came by and I recognized them straight away … Paul Amey and Lothar Leder. With that I took my place behind them as best as possible and thought, "well… you're in good company here, just ride it out". We exited in a shade under 55 minutes but only 4 minutes down on the lead pack. This was definitely as close as I had been to the front of the race out of the water in an Ironman.

I raced through transition and mounted the bike with Lothar and tried to make a quick gap on the 10 or so guys in transition. We were at about the 10 km mark and not moving that quick and I could see that Lothar was working quite hard so I decided to just go it alone. From that point on it was pretty much solo and I rode up to the main pack that lead out of the water by the 90 km mark. I knew Mitch Anderson was coming so I decide to just sit in for a few kilometers then make my break at the special need station - it worked like a charm. Mat Tippet and I got a small gap right before Mitch rolled up on us. I knew that it would be risky to go with him but I took that chance. We rode together for the next 40 km or so and in that distance managed to put 2 min on the main bunch. Heading out on to the 3rd lap Mitch picked the pace up and I just kept riding with him. I wasn't really thinking that much until I looked down and we were doing 56kph… my first thought was "holly SHIT…" Needless to say he just rode way from me. From that point on it was a solo ride again.

I hit the run five minutes down and in third place behind Mitch and Luke McKenzie. I didn't feel great starting the run but knew I was still moving along pretty well. At the 7km mark I had put thirty seconds back into the lead two and really believed I could get to the front. Things were uneventful right up to about the 28km mark were Luke stopped and I moved into second place and was now only four minutes down.

I am sad to say I held second through about 33km and from kilometers 33 to 37 I went from second to fifth. At this point the wheels just fell off and it was pure survival. I was paying for taking the risk on the bike, as well as (I believe) for a sub-4 hour half Ironman just two weeks ago. I tried to hang tough for a top 5 but was passed back to sixth place at 40km. My finishing time was 8:37 and change, a new PB.

I am a little disappointed with the race but will take some good lessons from it. I certainly would make the move on the bike again, I know this was the right decision, however the trial of a half Ironman only two weeks out will not be repeated. I didn't think it would take that much out of me but I guess when you're winning a race nothing feels as hard as it really is. I also know now that I can win one of these things, I put my self in a position to take the race and believe that I can do it. And the power of the mind is amazing. I will be putting my feet up now and enjoying a nice break.

Thank you to you all for your support.
Cheers Chris

Swim 55, T1, Bike 4:32, T2, Run 3:04 :-(

How's This For News? :::: 13-Nov-2005

Hi to all,

I must apologise, it has been quite a while since I have been in touch.

After Ironman Canada I took a nice two week break just hanging out and helping on Marilyn's parent's farm in Canada. I headed back down to Australia in early September to spend some time in my old home town of Albury and to get some solid training in as prep for Ironman Western Australia. I headed up to Port Macquarie a few weeks ago now for the first hard hit out since August and OH how fast the body forgets :-) It was a solid day out for me and I ended up finishing in 6th place.

Another three weeks has passed since this result and I have just come back from the Shepparton Half Ironman in Victoria. The good news is -- I walked away with my first big win:-)

The even weirder news is I lead the pro wave wire to wire... that's right, I lead out of the swim:-) It was a great day out for me starting out with a 25 minute swim leading out of the lake and when I got onto the bike tried to build a lead on the rest of the guys chasing -- I knew there were some good runners back there. I hit T2 with a 2hr10min flat bike split and a lead of around 3min30sec. With this my aim was to run around 1hr21min and not kill myself, what with Buselton only two weeks away. Much to my suprise my lead just kept growing and I crossed the line in 3hr56min28sec with a winning margin of 6 minutes.

This is a great result for me and makes me feel that everything is on track for Western Australia. I will touch base with you all again after that race and let you know how things came along.

Cheers,
Chris

Port Macquarie Half Ironman :::: 23-Oct-2005

Chris placed sixth at the Port Macquarie Half Ironman on October 23. More from Chris on this race coming soon.