Hey from 35,000 feet. I’ve got 12 hrs and 30 minutes to kill on this flight and lots of emails, paperwork, and consulting to catch up on. Here comes a reflection on my training in San Diego and a little about what lies ahead in NZ.

Training update

I had very little training and too much racing (in China) in September … then a little recovery and base-training in October … then a solid month of training in November thanks to the warm So. Cal weather and some motivation provided by the upcoming 67 km kayak race in NZ on Dec 8.

In the last 4 weeks I covered a lot of Mission Bay in San Diego …

Here is what my Funbeat Premium accounts tells me.

I’ve focused on paddling, including several 2+ hr sessions (my total paddling km’s exceeded my total running km’s). Today, my last day in the US, I had a great kayak session of 8×8 minute A2 “race pace” intervals. The purpose was to complement the ‘high volume – low intensity’ training I have done the last few weeks with some “distance-focused intensity.” Over 17 km I paddled at a pace that I knew I could hold over the relatively long 8 min intervals. I’m proud of this session …

 

Usually I compare GIS speed across intervals to make sure I kept a steady tempo, but it wasn’t possible due to strong tidal currents and lots of seagrass getting stuck on my rudder — both of which caused my speed to vary arbitrarily (In my consulting life I work on a project to better value the environmental benefits that seagrass provides society (read more here) … but in my multisport life I see it ironically as a nuisance

Waimak Classic

On December 8, I will be doing a downriver kayak race on the class II Waimak river. It’s the same section I’ll be racing during the Coast to Coast multisport race on 15 February.

Here is an overview of the course and some basic facts (see this training session from January 2013 for more details — http://www.movescount.com/moves/move10505575)

The race course follows the Waimak in the southeasterly direction.

Distance: 67 km
Expected finishing time: 4 to 5 hrs, depending on water levels.
Number of portages: None, which means I’ll be sitting for a while. If all goes well, I should be drinking enough to have to pee, too, but there’s no stopping in this race …
Expected number of calories burned: ~3,000

Character of the river … It has three sections.

SECTION 1 — The first 75 minutes is a braided channel with lots of critical route choices — pick the wrong channel and it’ll dry up and force you out of the boat and on your feet to carry it across the dry stony river bed to find flowing water. A mistake to avoid!

This pictures gives a sense of the braided channels in this wide-open glacier-fed river

SECTION 2 — The second section lasts about 2 hrs and takes you through a deep-water gorge with lots of ‘pushy’ water. The key is to stay relaxed — fighting the swirls and the upward bubbling water will not only waste energy, but might cause an involuntary swim.

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SECTION 3 — The third section takes about an hour and is another braided channel with important route choices. It tends to punish tired racers with a nasty headwind to the finish …

Coming around the bend that usually marks the “1 hour to finish” point. Picture from one of my training sessions before the 2010 Coast to Coast.

Water levels will not only dictate race times, but may even force the race to be cancelled if it surges too high. This past weekend it was super high — almost 10 times normal levels (see below), but it may come down. I’ll be studying this page in the days before the race.. https://www.facebook.com/WaimakRiverInfo….

My nutrition and hydration plan … Mostly liquid carbs because it’s tricky to unwrap a candy bar without flipping over. I’ll have 2 camelpak bladders: The first with Crampfix salt tablets mixed with honey to kill the salt taste. This one will have almost 3 liters and will sit between my legs in the boat, with a long hose going up to my life jacket. The second bladder will be in my life jacket (on my back) and contain 1.5 L of water mixed with Squeezy Drink Gel (at least 350 g of carbs total). This will be a sweet mixture of “easy to digest” carbs. I’ll probably stick a few easy-to-open Squeezy bars with caffeine in case I need a “pick-me-up” near the end.

Here I am connecting my various camelpak hoses before paddling this section in the Coast to Coast in 2013.

My strategy … I’m going take it easy in the first 30 min to find a good timing and rhythm. Then I’m going to push hard but stay relaxed and comfortable. I need to engage my core, not my arms. The key is not high intensity, but long-lasting endurance … especially if that headwind kicks up at the end when the arms are tired.

My expectations… The original plan was to take it easy  (I walk off the plane 5 days before!) and to use this as a training session. But my form feels good so I’m going to give this a solid effort and see where I end up.

Where I’ll be living in NZ

For most of my stay in NZ I’ll be returning to live with Dan and Donna Tartaglia — a fantastic American couple that took good care of me last year. I’ll be with them in Jan, Feb, Mar before leaving in early April. Dan and Donna live in Purau Bay, which is just outside of Christchurch in beautiful rural surroundings with ample training opportunities. Here are a few pics.

Their nice house, apartment, and organic orchard.

The view from the hills above the house

Dan and Donna have guests in December so I’ll be staying across the street with my hosts Maurice and Chris in the first month. Here is the view I had this afternoon while putting my bike together, shortly after landing in Christchurch …

More to come from down under …

Scott

PS I had a “yoga on the beach” session yesterday before my plane left … and a nice refreshing swim on the “upper” part of the Pacific. I will miss Coronado…