End of the Season, IMWA

It's that time of year!!

• Do an Ironman (Check)
• Have a break ( In the process )
• Enjoy Christmas and the New year (You know I will)
• Start training and racing locally here in Western Australia. (already excited)

This year has had it's up and down's. But as I reflect on it, it's still been our best year yet!

We had a few up and down races. But Kate won 70.3 Busselton in May (Now she's done the double, Ironman Western Australia and 70.3 Busselton) I went faster than I've ever been Over 70.3 and Olympic distance and started Xterra racing with success.  So I'm still going faster over every distance!! "Can't frown at that"!!!

We went from coaching a few people to starting our business "GK Endurance" and it's really taken off. We have a GREAT crew of athletes training with us and they each bring there own piece of awesomeness to the table!! I'm super excited about the future for them and us.

We have a fabulous group of sponsors!! These sponsors have supported us through thick and thin and we really are lucky to have such a great group of people behind the products! Thanks also to our supporters and family joining us on this Triathlon, Coaching, and training camp Journey into 2015.

70.3 Taiwan

Going back 5 weeks now!! So I'll make it short!!

We arrived back from the USA via NZ and spent 3 days in Perth before heading off to Taiwan.
I love racing in Taiwan, We stay in this cool resort called YOHO (I think part of the movie "Life of Pi" was filmed at the Resort, or so I have been told)
We did some pre race exploring out to the night markets. One word "mental" describes it.
All types of food, LOADS of people and tents for miles, each with there own twist on the food they were selling.
The race itself went well, I tried my hardest to break things up in the swim but to no avail. We stayed in a group of 5, with one Frenchman breaking away towards the end of the swim. He stayed off the front on the bike but suffered for his efforts on the run!!, The rest of us stuck together and it became a running race. Heading out onto the run with this calibre of runner I knew I had to start easy and hope some-one crumbled!! I was very happy with the way I ran on this course, It's hot and slow. I think Cameron Brown is one of the first guys to break 1:20 (very impressive). I finished off the day in 4th and was happy with the performance!! If only Freddie slowed up a bit more!!

Name	Country	Div Rank	Gender Rank	Overall Rank	Swim	Bike	Run	Finish	Points
Brown, Cameron	NZL	1	1	1	00:28:31	02:13:39	01:19:58	04:05:44	3500
Marais, Stuart	ZAF	2	2	2	00:28:33	02:13:46	01:20:46	04:06:38	3483
Croneborg, Fredrik	SWE	3	3	3	00:28:29	02:13:50	01:26:29	04:12:21	3380
Crawford, Guy	NZL	4	4	4	00:28:26	02:13:45	01:27:52	04:13:48	3354
Debiltriathletecaux, Victor	FRA	5	5	5	00:32:05	02:14:41	01:26:42	04:17:03	3296

After this we came back to Perth and supported our GKEdurance athletes at Mandurah 70.3. Followed by preparing for a camp we were running in Busselton in the lead up to IMWA.
The camp was great, not only for the athletes that attended but for us as coaches. We broke some boundaries and I'd like to think each athlete came out of the camp knowing a little more about themselves. I don't think Kate or I will be known for putting on easy camps!!(If you come, be prepared) Work hard, rest easy!!

IMWA

For me, This was going to be a tall task for us. We have been training but we've not had the base training we would have liked coming into IMWA for a variety of reasons. I was fit, but was I Ironman fit??. I wasn't sure but I happily rolled the dice. I still think it could have gone either way (really well or lots of suffering) I finished 9th pro and that wasn't bad, but I thought I had a top 5 in me. Thats not to take away from the guys who finished in the top 5, they were simply better on the day and hats off to them!!
What I am excited about is with limited training time leading into Busso, I managed to knock myself into decent shape and I'm already excited to get back racing. (which can only be a good sign) I'm hungry for more!!

Our team of athletes were amazing. They kept on trucking and each of them got to that finish line.
We were very proud coaches and it bought tears to our eyes on more than one occasion. Seeing people achieve there goals is very emotional. Well done team!!

That brings me to today, I'm sitting in Margaret River (wine country) and once I stop typing this, I think that's what I'll do. Have a red, sit back and relax for a few days. Kate and I also have some planning to do for next year!! Needless to say we will be racing Ironman,s 70.3's a few Olympic's and I'm going to dive into some more XTERRA races!!! But for now it's time to have a week off!!

Thank-you for another awesome year!!
See you soon

Guy

A Random Ramble, USA

So I realise my blog posts have been a bit off and on. 

So instead of giving you a long drawn out blog with poor punctuation. I will do this blog with pictures and small witty statements. (Ok I'm not that witty, but i'll write "stuff" and try and keep you somewhat entertained)

A lot has been happening.

In July:  I raced XTERRA Boise, Came 2nd and will look to throw a few more XTERRA races into my 2015  schedule. They make training even more fun!

               

you can't tell from this shot, but I was feasting out of a healthy serving of pain

From there it was off to New York with Ruth, Mazzy and Mel. In the mix of Ironman training it was a welcome break. 

Time Square, if you ever want to have a panic attack, I suggest going here!! TOOOOOOO many people

Post Panic attack photo with Kate and Ruth. Time Sqaure

Are they laughing at me or with me? I wasn't laughing so I guess its the first option!

Yeah it says Guys!!!

View from Central park Museum

Kate, Guy, Mel, Mazzy, Ruth

No problems here!! WTF

From NYC it was onto Colorado to spend a few day at altitude, do a half marathon and watch Ironman Boulder!!

View down to Winter Park CO which sits at 9000feet. Breathing up here was a shock to the system!

Rented a Mountain bike in Winter park and got myself lost.... 

Kate at the Half marathon in Estes Park 7500 feet

Kate 2nd, me 5th (She's such an over achiever) 

Start of a epic day on the bike Estes Park, CO

During epic ride I took us down an unpaved road for 7 miles.... Whoops my bad!!! Lots of random houses were built into the side of the mountain. I'm guessing it would be super hard to get in and out in winter!!

Road from Estes Park to Loveland

Kate getting dropped by Courtney mid way through her marathon at Ironman Boulder. She did Awesome and we were very proud!!

After IM Boulder Kate and I drove through the night back to Boise. (thats how we celebrated Kate's birthday. She's so lucky.... Sorry babe....)

Then later that day we picked up Jono who stayed with us for 4 weeks to get ready for 70.3 Worlds

Jono and I after climbing Bogus, 3500 Feet of climbing

August: Both Kate and I raced the Idaho state Olympic distance champs and came away with the wins. Always nice to win a race. We are both happy with where the fitness was two week sour from Ironman Louisville. I went 1:51 and change and Kate went 2:04 and change!

I have no pictures of us racing.....

So instead here is a picture of Kate and I on our way to dinner. This Alley way is called "Freak Alley" Artists come from all over to repaint the Alley each year. 

One of my favourite shots. (Freak Alley)

Then the day came, Ironman Louisville. Kate was really hoping to defend her title,  I was hoping to just do well. The day turned out to be slightly hotter than the sun and both Kate and I suffered for it. BUT there is a bright side. We both had great swim and bike combo's and were both in the lead until xx amount of miles into the run. Still another race around the corner and there is not point crying over spilt milk? Unless it was for your morning coffee and then you cry until you feel better, you cry all day if you have to.

Kate and Chris were live on TV in Louisville, I watched from home!!

team Coeur plus me after racking our bikes. 

Kate and Jacque our most awesome home stay and now good friend.

Great shot, leading from the water in my blueseventy swimskin. I love how the camera adds 10LBS. I actually looks like I've got some muscle. Don't worry, I don't!!

Running mile 1

Me still leading at mile 3 or 4

Jacque did it for the team and finished her first Ironman!!  Well done you

Jacque and Kate Post race

I'm in Kentucky, it's all about Bourbon and shotguns

From here it was back to Boise, re-group and now it's time to go again. So here we are up to date in Tahoe, CA. This weekend we will be racing Ironman Tahoe. Should be a lot of fun and a new experience. Tahoe is an amazing place!!

South tahoe

Kate and I striking a pose. Lucky I have those Ape arms!!

WOW

Kate and Jamie (our home stay) out the front of her place!!1 Yes we are VERY lucky!!

Kate and I

Just because I thought this was cool.

Guy and Carrot. Carrot helped me write this!!


Ok so that brings me to the end of this Picture blog. There are plenty more shots on my Twitter and Facebook so go check them out.
Thanks Guy

SWIMMING TAHOE

Lake Tahoe is amazing!! The water is cold to start and then perfect after 5min.
Kate and I playing with our Go Pro this morning!!

Whats Up!!!

Living the dream in Boise, Enjoying the trails and sunshine.

Here's a Video of Kate and I riding close to home!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gL9ShZ_b5hw&feature=youtu.be

It's been an epic summer of training.
Next up we have Ironman Tahoe in a few weeks.
Our athlete's have been rocking it all over the worlds and we bought a MINIVAN!!!! YEAH!!!

2014 Weapon

So I recently started riding the 2014 Ceepo Viper.

I loved the Katana and it served me well last year and earlier this year! Especially at Ironman New Zealand.
Usually It takes me a few months to break in a new bike, This bike took me about 3 rides! After 4 rides I went and raced a 70.3 on it. (70.3 Busselton)
I had a great run off the bike and now I can't stop raving about it!

Here's a review Ceepo did on me and my bike. (It also includes some of my other awesome Sponsors)
Check them all out here: http://www.guycrawford.us/media.php

I'm excited to see how the body performs this weekend at 70.3 Boise!




Until next time, stay Awesome!

Captain

70.3 Busselton

The picture below sums up how I feel about 70.3 Busselton given my preparation was VERY average!

Leading into the race I had the most fun I've ever had, I was very relaxed and happy to be apart of the pre race festivities, Chat with the pro's and School visits!

I even had the great honor of being on the Busselton Billboard this year! EPIC (That thing is BIG)

Onto the race, again I was very relaxed heading into the water for a quick warm up!
With all the ITU boys coming across to 70.3 racing the swims are getting faster and faster. If you can take the knocks and get in the middle of it, you'll swim fast, but if you get dropped it's a lonely swim. I stayed right in the thick of it and exited near the front.
Onto the bike and a group of 9 of us came together. The pace was honest with James Hodge driving the speed up front for a good portion of the ride.
We jostled around a bit, but remained together for the 90k ride.
Then onto the run, there was the usual T2 nightmare of 9 guys trying to get off the bike first, once we were laced up and running I left transition in about 6th place. I really had nothing to lose, the race pays 6 deep and I thought "just run the first lap really hard"... Then after one lap I could "go lie in the sand" if things got really bad!!
But despite the lack of running I felt good. The legs keep ticking over and I just pretended nothing hurt.
The legs threatened cramp, but held together and I crossed the line in 6th Place. A very happy 6th place!

Sometimes, all you need to do is dig deep and turn your brain off!

I had a lot of fun and really enjoyed racing the guys and being part of the Busselton festivities.
I'm already super excited about 70.3 Boise and getting a few more runs under my belt.
My legs are rebelling against me at the moment


Van Berkel, Tim AUS 1 03:43:07
Reithmeir, Alex AUS 2 03:43:29
Appleton, Sam AUS 3 03:43:39
Betten, Sam AUS 4 03:48:24
Munro, Casey AUS 5 03:49:51
Crawford, Guy NZL 6 03:50:32
Rodgers, Tom AUS 7 03:53:21
Johnsen, Jimmy AUS 8 03:57:43
Anderson, Mitch AUS 9 03:58:35
Burton, Matt AUS 10 03:59:42


USA here we come

Guy

Pic's curtesy of Janine Kaye Photography (Thanks Janine)

IMNZ Race Report

My homeland Ironman.

Ironman NZ is one of those races I've been to almost every year since it moved to Taupo.
The event itself has such strong support and an electric vibe, It's a must do on the IM circuit.

This year drummed up perfect conditions. In fact the entire week leading into the race saw perfect weather conditions.

Race day rolled up and with the usual morning routine done and dusted we were into he water ready to roll.
The canon went and there was the usual chaos that follows as everyone burns there nervous energy in the first few hundred meters and then settles in.
The first 1km went by well I was in the lead group. Probably a little far back for comfort, but I thought it would be ok. Unfortunately someone dropped feet and despite my best effort I couldn't bridge the gap back to the leaders. (Won't be making that mistake again)



Out onto the bike and the gap to the front was 2min. I was in great company with Tim Berkel, Cam Brown and Rhodesy! Tim rode like a champ and we caught the leaders by 80km, which was awesome!

The dynamic then changed and it looked likely to be a runners race. Marko Albert then got a gap through an aid station and no one seemed willing to close it. This was going to be the winning move for a well deserved champion!



I had good legs on the bike and made a little move before the Reparoa turn around, I got out to about 45sec and then changed my mind. With 45km to ride I didn't want to burn all my matches on the bike. I made the hard decision and went back to the group! The old me would have "burned it all" however I think this saved me in the end.
We came into transition in a group of roughly 10 with Marko 6mins up the road.
The guys went out like scorched cats, being I've never run to my potential for an Ironman I settled into my own pace (although that was to quick)and started my run.



I felt good on the first lap and by the time I had finished the second lap I was still ok, I got news out on the course that I was sitting in 7th place... Then The hurt really started. "I thought, don't pass out, don't walk, don't cramp, just keep moving forward".
I made it to the finish shoot in one piece and gave my family a quick hug on my way down!! (Living and training in Australia and the USA means I don't get to see them much, So this race was extra special)
I was Excited to be finished, excited to execute and good race and excited that it's only March and my early season fitness is there.


Now it's time to rest up, do some light training and plan the next one.

Big thanks to Darryl Carey http://www.darrylcarey.com/ for the Pictures you see above!

Thanks to you all for the support, It's going to be a big season.
As always it couldn't be done without you!!

Guy

Infinit Nutrition, Hydration and sweat rate

hey team,

Infinit explain it perfectly in the video link below.
This is something I've struggled with in long course races and in some cases it's resulted in a death march during the marathon. Infinit helped me better understand my nutrition and hydration.
Something you might want to consider!!

From Infinit!!

Video #2 in our MUST KNOW series..how to do a sweat rate test to determine how much you should drink on an hourly basis. If you don't know your sweat rate, how can you possibly know how much to drink? Watch this video and start planning your race nutrition for 2014.

The Sweat Rate Test
Full description how to do a sweat rate test to determine how much athletes should be drinking on an hourly basis.


Remember 1KG = 2.2pounds

https://www.facebook.com/InfinitNutrition
Or
http://vimeo.com/86062217

Guy