Mick's an Ironman!

Interview with an athlete - Michael Elliott Ironman
Total time: 12.27.15
Category place: 50
Overall place: 568

Take us through your race:

Swim (3.8km 1.06.37): Went well. It was busy and on the way out and I was hemmed in to the pier. There was a lot of argy bargy around the cans but it was a nice swim.

Ride
180km 6.00.12 (including transition)
Was good, had trouble getting my heart rate down but I managed to get it down (under 130) on the third lap. Very flat course, held up well on he bike, I thought I would have more trouble with a stiff back but I was ok. Noticed it getting hotter so I drank a lot of fluids. The wind pick up towards the end of the last lap but it wasn't a problem, no worse that what we trained in.

Run
42.2 km 5.20.25 (including transition)
In one word "painful". The second lap hurt and the third lap was excruciating. The run was difficult because I couldn't take in any food, so I stuck to flat cola water. The first lap was hot but it did cool down a bit towards the finish. Across the whole course the spectator support was great, much appreciated.

Most challenging part of Ironman WA 2008?

The run. Because I couldn't eat I didn't have any energy. It was hot and I felt like vomiting.

What did you enjoy the most?
The swim.

What would you change for next time?
Not too much, I think my body had to experience the pain. I got through it in about the time I thought I would.

What are your next race goals?
Hussikson long course in February 2008 and Canberra marathon in April 2008. December is my month off!

Are you going to do another Ironman?!
Probably, one day...

View video on YouTube.


View photos on Picasa.

Ironman WA 2008

Lead up to Busselton WA Ironman 2008

It's the eve of Ironman WA and Mick describes himself as "calm and collected, confident in the work he's done"!

So far we've:
Arrived in WA safely with equipment in tact
Visited Cape Naturalist and Swings and Rounabouts wineries
Had a steak and chips at Albies - our old favourite!
Had a lovely lunch at The Goose to celebrate T's birthday and catch up with the other STG ironmen and supporters.
Enjoyed a Beachlands BBQ pre race dinner with Gill and Paul

Good luck to all competitors ;-)

Ironman WA 2008 lead up

Coogee Island swim 2008

View Coach Colin's photos of STG Stingers and friends from Can Too competing in the 1km and 2.4km Coogee Express Glass Island challenge.

Colin's photos on Picasa.


Note from Coach Colin.

What a great day we had today at Coogee. The weather was sensational, the ocean was calm with just enough wind chop out the back to make it a challenge and we were represented by over 20 STG Stingers and came away withy 2 podium finishes! Zoe Little in the 1km had a blistering start and must have continued that spped all the way coming home 2nd in the 40-44 ladies. And Lee Liston, also in the 1km and who seemed to escape the wet suit police, took out a 3rd in the men's 35-39. Awesome effort by both.

We were also joined by about 20 of our Can Too team as well and had a great representation at warm up time, 'Best on Beach' in my opinion.


To all of you that completed your first ocean swim, a big congratulations, I hope you have been well and truly bitten by the Ocean swim bug.

Ocean swimming at Newport SLSC

Fellow ocean swimmer and Manly Grouper, Dee, has posted a video of the Newport SLSC swim held on Saturday 29 Nov 2008.

Ocean swimming at Newport SLSC @ Yahoo!7 Video

Change of location for STG Stingers training Sat 29 Nov 2008

Note from Coach Colin regarding the Coogee Swim on Sunday 30 Nov 2008 and surf training on Sat 24 Nov 2008:



STG surf training Saturday 29 Nov 2008
As we will be racing in Coogee on Sunday I think it would be prudent for us to train there on Saturday.

Session Details:

When : Saturday 29th November
Time : 11 am
Where : Coogee Beach in the centre of the beach at the Circular stairs.

Coogee swim - Sunday 30 Nov 2008

Please also note the following time for meeting on Sunday pre Island classic race, the first of the points races towards this years Ocean swim champions.

Race Details:

When : Sunday 29th November
Time : 8.30 am
Where : Coogee Beach in the centre at the Circular stairs ( same place as Saturday )

We will wait until 8. 45 am and then I will take the team for a check of conditions, race brief, motivational speech :-) and a warm up. Please be registered and ready to warm up @ 8.45.


Happy Swimming and Go all Stingers on Sunday!

Coach Col

Ocean Swims 2008-09 - Dawny's Cockatoo Challenge, Sun 23 Nov 2008

View photos of STG Stingers and friends in action at Dawny's swim.

Ocean Swims 2008-09 - Dawny's Cockatoo Challenge, Sun 23 Nov 2008

View the Dawny's results from oceanswims.com.

Can Too East Swim training Sat 15 Nov 2008

Bondi dished out chilly conditions for Can Too East Swim's second Saturday surf training session. View photos of Can Too East team training hard on Picasa.


Team Captain Susan (Kingy) says of the team's effort...
"...it is just wonderful as some of these guys have never been in the surf and already after two weeks they are porpoising, they are running into the surf and out of the surf AND they have huge smiles in their faces !!!"

Well put Kingy, and great effort Can Too East!

Updated STG website - STG Stingers

Check the STG website for information on STG Stingers:

Information and membership
Ocean swim championships 2008/9
5 step swim clinic

Can Too East swimming

Can Too East's 12 week swimming program started on 5 November.

Once again it promises to be a wonderful program with lots of great times and friendships to be made as the Can Too team achieve goals together.

Training times:

Wednesday (Cook and Phillip Pool)

Session 1 - 7: 00 pm
Session 2 - 7:30 pm

Saturday (Bondi)

9:00 am – 10:15 am

For more information on training sessions: Can Too training sessions.

2008 Fiji Swim Festival - race reports and videos

Check out Susan and Wendy's race report from the 2008 Fiji Swim Festival.

Manly Grouper Dee has also posted a race report, photos and You Tube videos.

Part 1



Part 2



For race results and more information: www.pacificswims.com

STG Stingers ocean and pool swim training Bondi and Sydney city.

Training with a fabulous bunch of people has improved my swimming and kept me motivated. Check the STG Fitness timetable for information on STG Stingers ocean and pool swim squads.
Check STG Fitness or contact Coach Colin or Coach Shaun for further information.

Pool swim training Cook + Phillip pool

* Meet shallow end of the 50m pool, pull buoy recommended for all sessions

Monday – 7pm - 8pm (endurance)
Thursday – 7pm - 8pm (endurance/technique - bring hand paddles, flippers and pull buoy)

Ocean Swim training Bondi beach

* Meet Bondi Bathers Surf Club (next to Bondi Pavilion)

Tuesday – 6.30pm - 7.30pm (ins and outs/surf knowledge and awareness)
Saturday – 10.30am - 11.30am (ins and outs/surf knowledge and awareness)



Notes from coach Colin:

Cook + Phillip squad training
Opportunity to build a great base for the ocean swim / Triathlon season. It's a great time to make an appointment with me, before or after squad, to discuss next seasons goals. It's also a great time to put in some km's to build swim fitness and strength. It's a great time to put in some technique work and develop a better more efficient stroke for the coming season.

Bondi ocean swimming
Conditions change every week and no matter how many times you swim in the surf there is always something to learn. My focus is to teach as many ocean swimming skills as I can, and continue to help you read all types of surf conditions.



For triathlon training timetable, prices and more information: STG Fitness.

STG Stingers Ocean Swim Champion trophy 2008/09

Coach Colin has announced the 2008/09 season points races.

The competition is open to all paid STG members.

STG Stingers who compete in the races listed below are awarded points according to their place in their relative age category. I.e. if you were first in the Women's 40 - 44 age category you would score max points of 1000. Best 4 results count toward the overall championship. It's a great chance for everyone to have a go at winning this prestigious title.

November 2008
Nov 23: Balmain - Dawny's Cockatoo Challenge
1 km, 2.4 km - Balmain

Nov 30: Island Challenge, Coogee
2.4 km - Coogee


December 2008
Dec 7: Bondi-Bronte
2 km


January 2009
Jan 11: North Bondi - The Roughwater
2km

Jan 25: The Big Swim, Palm Beach - Whale Beach
2.7km


February 2009
Feb 1: The Cole Classic, Manly
2km

Feb 8: North Bondi Classic
2km - Bondi


March 2009
Mar 1: Sydney Harbour Swim Classic
2km- registration, start-finish Man o' War Steps, by Sydney Opera House


April 2009
Apr 5: 11th North Steyne Ocean Swim
2.8km

Apr 19: DY2K Ocean Swim and Duathlon, Dee Why
ocean swim 2km

Entries: www.oceanswims.com
Contact STG Fitness

Launch of STG Stingers ocean swimming group

The STG Stingers ocean swimming group was launched at the STG 2007/08 trophy night.

According to Coach Colin the goal of this ocean swimming group is to grow over the 2008/09 summer months and have STG Stinger representation at all the major NSW ocean swims. STG Stingers will also be running Stinger club championships with points being awarded based on the same model as STG Triathlon club championships. List of eligible races.

Coaches Shaun and and Colin invite anyone interested to come on down and join STG Stingers, currently Saturdays from 10:30 am and Tuesday evenings 6:30 pm. Meeting at Bondi Bathers SLSC right in the middle of Bondi Beach, anyone that can swim a continuous 1000m in the pool is eligible to partake.

Sessions are instructional, challenging but above all, truly enjoyable. After training we bask in the Bondi sunlight whilst drinking coffee and chatting about the sessions exploits.

Stay tuned for our new range of, swimmers, caps, T shirts and rash vests featuring the Stinger logo.

For more information contact STG Fitness.

Sydney ocean temperature and surf conditions

These sites come in handy to survey the ocean conditions.

Sydney ocean temperature - from Manly hydraulics lab.

Real surf - surf reports.

Swellnet - daily surf reports and forecasts.

Australian Bureau of Meteorology – Sydney forecast and Sydney rain location and intensity.

Vanuatu ocean swim video - Port Vila and Santo Espiritu

Fellow ocean swimmer Dee has posted a You Tube video of pacificswims.com's Vanuatu Ocean Swims.
"Another 2 great events from Pacificswims.com - featuring Port Vila, Aore Island Resort, Blue Holes, Champagne Beach, Cascade Waterfalls"

Vanuatu ocean swims - Port Vila and Espiritu Santo 2008

Arriving late in the evening to a humid and damp Port Vila we weren’t sure what to expect from the Vanuatu ocean swims. Port Vila provided calm, pool-like conditions, while the strong current in the Segond channel tested swimmers in the Santo Espiritu Aore swim.

Port Vila swim

The 1.5km and 3.2km swims attracted a field over of 100 swimmers. Set in the calm, sheltered waters of Port Vila this swim would prove to be a pool swimmers dream. Starting and finishing at Numbawan café the course circumnavigated Iririki Island. Navigation wasn’t a problem, dodge a few moored boats and keep the Island on your right! Apart from a few sea lice near the moored boats this swim was relaxed and easy, typical of the friendly South Pacific.

Santo Espiritu Aore swim

A short flight delivered us to Espiritu Santo, our next swimming destination. Santo is a beautiful island, although you can’t help but get the feeling that nothing much has changed since the Americans picked up and left after World War II. We stayed on Aore Island Resort and numerous ferry trips provided us with opportunities to survey channel conditions. It was evident that a strong current would prevail and this was especially true on race day. The field of 50 swimmers battled the chop and a 5 knot current. The finish line was deceptive…it looked close but the strong current meant it was difficult to reach!


Highlights
• Swimming over coral, Nemo fish and starfish
• Finish lines decorated with palm fronds and hibiscus flowers
• Local produce – Santo beef, Port Vila ribs, French red wine and cocktails
• The locals who took on the Segond channel in the outrigger canoe race and swim
• Port Vila “Masterbathers club”, try saying that 10 times fast after a few Tusker beers!



Port Vila 3.2km swim Time
Josh Minogue (M 20-29) 00:36:23
Kate Brookes-Peterson (F 20-29) 00:39:03
Susan Elliott (F 30-39) 00:53:52 (3rd place female 30-39)
Michael Elliott (M 20–29) 01:00:39

Santo Espiritu Aore
Josh Minogue (M 20-29) 00:32:54
Kate Brookes-Peterson (F 20-29) 00:33:00
Susan Elliott (F 30-39) 00:50:07 (3rd female overall)
Michael Elliott (M 20–29) 00:55:37


Full results and race report available from pacificswims.com

Susan and Michael Elliott's wedding

Thank you to everyone who helped us celebrate our wedding and wished us well on the occassion of our marriage on 3 May 2008. View photos of the day on Picasa.

Susan and Michael Elliott's wedding

You can also view Mark Houlihan's photos at Houls.com.

Pre-wedding luncheon at La Locanda

View photos of my pre-wedding luncheon. It was wonderful to have family and friends together, we were totally spoilt at La Locanda - the food and hospitality is amazing. Not long now until our wedding!

Pre-wedding luncheon

BP Ultimate-BRW Corporate Triathlon - Sydney

View photos of team Mallesons competing in the corporate triaton held on Sunday 14 April 2008.

BP Ultimate-BRW Corporate Triathlon - Sydney

Mooloolaba Triathlon Festival 28 - 30 March 2008

View photos of professional (and not so professional!) triathletes competing at the Mooloolaba Triathlon Festival.

Mooloolaba Triathlon Festival 28 - 30 March 2008

Photos from 2007-2008 ocean swims

View photos from the 2007/8 ocean swim season.

STG Ocean Swims 2007-8

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