Wellington Baby!

On Thursday evening we make the 30 min flight to Wellington for the final NZ triathlon race of the summer series.

The races have been dotted around the country - not in Nelson which makes travel exensive so this is our first big triathlon in NZ. It is also an Olympic distance race which is double the distances we're used to; 1.5km swim, 40km bike and 10km run. We've been trianing every day for the past 2 months with only a couple of rest days. It's like having 3 women n the go - you do one discipline and feel guilty for not spending time on the other two! We have swum mostly in the outdoor 50m pool next to school which is the best way to finish a day's teaching. Bernie regularly goes to specialised coaching sessions and I have begun cycling in a big bike race series on a Tuesday night which is punishing but great for strength. We regularly run around the airport next to where we live - situated right next to the sea so plenty to watch as you run. You even have to stop and check for planes in two parts of the course as it is so close to the runway!

The Wellington Tri is on Saturday morning - an early start should meannice and cool without too much wind - heavier conditions might be to my advantage though... Bernie just wants to get it out of the way! The course is pretty much within the picture below... I hope the ship doesn't come in too far!

Any one for a 3km Swim?!

Following on from our Thursday night swims in the harbour which finishad last week, we completed a 3km endurance swim on Sunday morning. Getting up for the 8am start was worth it. We slipped into the water with a little trepidation, but soon got into cruise control as we headed out from the boat club (foreground of picture below), o the right hand side of Hulashore island - the island in the middle of the picture below: We encountered a bit of a swell as we rounded the back of the island which made the going quite tough. From the shore it can look perfectly flat, but any slight swell makes for tricky sightings of the next bouy or rock and also makes it all that much harder to time breathing.

We finished rounding the island as the sun was in full glory over Nelson, meaning it was near on impossible to sight the finish point! Over that kind of distance I go into a trance and by the end I could have carried on for a while longer, it was really nice to finish though - a few of us had a bit of a sprint at the end and I finally beat the guy who runs Nelson Triathlon club... he's in his 60's - but competes for NZ so I'm still proud!

Bernie Phelps?!

This is the beautiful Bernadette gliding through the water in her mermaid-like majesty

Chris Phelps?!

This is my attempt at swimming a la Michael Phelps...?
Still a long way to go but we both enjoy swimming more and we have been getting faster in the summer sea swim series!

Sea Swimming = Sweet!

Tonight we have one of the last Summer Sea Swim Series race. We missed several in the middle of the series due to our travels, but have made most of those either side of the Xmas holidays. B and I have both won points within our age catergories, not enough to set the world alight however!

We start off at the boat club (below) and after a quick briefing detailing the course, a hooter sounds and we all thrash towards the first bouy.

We then turn and head to 'The Dolphin' which is the platform pictured below, before turning back, around another bouy and then home. Most swims are about 1.3-1.5km and takes us between 24-30 mins dependent on currents, the amount of swerving off course and fitness!

Below depicts the start of the 3.8km endurance swim we did a month or so ago. Beginning before sunrise, we were over a kilometer into the swim as the sun came up over Nelson. As mentioned before, ocean liners, tugs and recreational boats cruise through the port all day, yet the water is so clear and clean that sting rays, dolphins and seals are not unusual sightings.

Summer night's sky! It looked like the clouds were on fire - photo taken from the balcony of our house and was just breath-taking!

At an Abba party down the road with our neighbours Martin, Jane-Marie, Leslie, David and us... Leslie is the Science Technician at Nayland College and organises the bits and bobs for all Chris's Science experiments.

Marlborough Sounds

Where on earth do you get water this colour...? Marlborough Sounds, just 1.5hrs drive from Nelson! Seriously living the dream!!