Granny's Apple Pie

It's not really granny's, it's Uncle Tom's. Okay, this portion was mine but it was made at Uncle Tom's famous pie store. I'd been informed if I fancied a little slice of the action this was place to come to get my hit with its deep soft warm gooey filling. Apparently nothing less than a lesson in food ecstasy.

Unfortunately it was more economical to buy a large one than two individuals, so I had no choice. And if the experience lived up to the hype I'd certainly be needing more than one go.

All I can say is thank god for Uncle Tom!

Sorry recent posts have focused on food but it is the fourth discipline. I seem to spend my life in shops buying grub and hauling bags home - the glamour. Training is going well by the way and this pie was indulged at the end of a tough week. Sounds like an excuse satchel opening to me...

For the Love of Peanut Butter

I haven't been this excited about a something in a health food shop for a long time. It's an organic peanut butter machine. It grinds the fresh nuts in the top and squeezes out delicious tasting spread at the bottom. You can grind it smooth, medium or crunchy. Being a Whole Earth or nothing kinda bloke I have finally found a replacement. Good thing too 'cos I gave away my stash - smuggled through customs - a couple of weeks ago. I have several jars washed and cleaned ready to fill post ride tomorrow. It's the small things...

Wildlife Hell

The last few days have seen the local wildlife getting the better of me. It all started with a blood sucking leech. G and I went for walk in the bush to see Minyon Falls. After checking out the top we got our hiking kit on, shorts, tee and trainers in my case. Maybe not ideal. We headed into the bush only to be insulted by a classic group of ramblers, "white shoes you must be from the city," I was told. I didn't need to be insulted and didn't mention you didn't need heavy boots, gaiters and heavy packs to walk for a few kms in the bush.

We were also told to look out for leeches from another couple. In a sick sort of way I wanted a leech to get me to make the trip complete. We eventually reached the falls, which was worth the mud and grime. The return was harder going being uphill but not that strenuous. I was gutted not to be leeched as we reached the car park.

I thought it best to check out the view point before we left and as I did so I noticed I was having my blood robbed by a yucky little sucker. After a little panic I managed to get the shot then rip the little blighter off. As I told G he laughed at me, only to notice he had one on his sock sucking his blood too. Like Anna B said it could have been worse, it could have been on my winky.

Following post expedition crumble (delicious apple and strawberry) and tea we arrived home to find a big scary looking spider. We managed captured hairy legged beast without getting nipped and returned it to the outside.

Then we have mosquitos. For some reason they love my blood and I have little lumps all over my legs. Just when I thought the wildlife was fed up of monkeying me around along comes Sid snake. I was tired at the end of a ride climbing a hill at slow speed. I passed what I thought was a stick when I looked down and saw the snake move with it's head lifted just cms away from my ankle.

Naturally I filled my shorts and managed to scream a fave expletive as I doubled my speed. The skinny slippery black and white one legged it off back into the undergrowth as my heart rate hit max. Hopefully this is the end of me being attacked. I am now scared to go into the water for fear of the sharks and crocs that could potentially come my way.

Hippies, Hills and Coffee

Right now I'm easy like Sunday morning. G and I are about to head out for brekkie and climb a mountain. Then I am sure we will check out the surf. Yesterday we had a cool day truckin' around the local market and buying organic produce. Being a bit of a hippy town they had some dead funky stuff. My fave thing though was the pedal power juice van. You order a juice and they freshly squeeze the fruit using a bike set up in the caravan. Too cool.

The kids also hit up a few beaches and were chilling like villains. Before we headed home the kids jumped in the surf at Brunswick for a quick splash about. I got battered trying to get shots with the waterproof Olympus but had fun all the same. A very good day indeed, all topped off with one of the best pizzas I've had outta Italy.

Friday was a different story altogether with 160km ride out to Nimbin. G told me it was quite a way and took over an hour in the Scooby van. I was sure it couldn't be that bad a ride. How wrong was I. The hills around here don't feck about and I was battered just an hour and half in, especially with the heat and humidity. I did have a scary moment descending at about 40mph when I cornered a tight bend and a river crossed the road.

Okay, it wasn't quite a river but a ford all the same. My initial reaction was to hit it but a sudden thought of floating down the side of the mountain clipped in upside down didn't appeal. So I hit the panic button and managed to stop with my front wheel in the drink. So it was off with the shoes and a case of wading across. Luckily it wasn't too deep and with my shoes back on pedaled off up the hill.

There was one stretch on a busy road otherwise I was on my own and loving life. That short busy stretch was all that it took to see my run off the road by a big tractor trailer. Luckily it was gravel to the side and not a ditch or drop. After shouting some wasted expletives I pulled myself back on the road and got on with it. As I moved on from Lismore to Nimbin I could see a storm brewing. It was good to get a few kms here where I could get on the aero bars and put the hammer down. The closer I got to my destination the darker and scarier the sky became.

After riding a few hills into town the sky opened up and shock the place as thunder and lightening struck, but it passed in the time it took me to drink two coffees - lunch. No I am not being a triathlete with an eating disorder ( I had bananas, gels and carb drinks on my menu), I just wanted some caffeine in me to take the edge of the return journey, which I planned to do quicker than the ride out.

Nimbin is like a cartoon town famed for enjoying the high side of life. All the shops are very colourful as are the locals. It was funny sitting down next to a classic hippy guy with died orange straggly longhair, baggy trousers, a striped top and no shoes. I certainly stood out as the imposter in town dressed in lycra and sweating like a loon riding an alien looking bike. I said 'G'day' in true Assuie fashion and we started chatting. It was funny as he wasn't all 'right on man' but sounded more like Mick Dundee, which made chuckle because another Aussie I had spoken to couldn't get his around an 'Irish Chinaman' as he put it. I told him the guy had probably lived in Ireland all his life and that's why he had an Irish accent. No biggie but he couldn't get his around it and had been blown away by it. So my situation was the same but I wasn't exactly bothered.

After my two quick coffees I got back aboard the 'Velo feeling strong. The light rain and cooler tempatures gave me a new lease of live pedaling hard to power. An hour back in and out of the tail of the storm the temperatures rose and the hills started to kick my arse again. Oddly the ride home felt easier although the hills still reminded my legs who was boss. A great ride that finished five days of tough pedaling bringing my total up to 17 hours. Not bad considering the craziness of the week.

While I really miss Noosa as a great training base I don't miss the madness that was filling my life. I have learnt more about myself in five days than I have in a long time. While this weekend is easier in terms of training load I am excited about getting out on the bike again and putting in some bigger miles this week. The PF is feeling better and I'll head out for a run later if the mountain climb hasn't killed me. Enjoy life peeps it's short.

That's Just Horse Sh*t

I saw this sign and had to pull the 'Velo over to get a shot. Not only was it a great sign but I loved the line about karma which I saw as I got closer. It made think it was all a bunch of horse sh*t. There are so many hippies round these parts it's hilarious.

Talking of the bike I was out on a magical mystery tour and it was the ride that kept giving. Loads of hills, followed by more hills with an extra serving of hills. I have never sweated so much in my life. I also managed to lose my full bottle of energy drink, which was worrying at first. Then I went through a small place from by gone time that had just one shop. Luckily it was open and had Gatorade alongside all the home baking. I just hope the lady serving didn't cook the food as it would have taken about two weeks she was so old and slow.

About an hour later after riding a big climb I was greeted by a junction that went on to the main highway. Gutted. Did I turn back or run the risk. Naturally I took the latter option, which proved to be the wrong one. Soon I was hitting 50mph down the hill with huge trucks inches away. Add a big side wind and the deep section front wheel was all over the place. I'm not often properly scared on the bike but this was one of those times. Luckily there was a junction 2km down the hill. While it didn't take long to get there my life went into slow mo with sound blurred. I was properly horse pooing myself.

Luckily I survived the highway but then Murphy with his famous law saw a car traveling at a slow speed and indicating left turn right as I went around. Bang! Fortunately it was one of those bounce off and continue riding crashes at a slowish speed. Aussie drivers just love bikes so much. It's worse than the UK. Looking forward to more horse play on the roads tomorrow.

Back Again

Thought it about time to resurrect the blog having not touched it for over six months and to keep peeps up to date with happenings down under Aussie way. What a difference six months can make to your life!

So I kicked off with cancellations and delays leaving Blighty but finally arrived in Sydders a day and half late. Barely there for a few hours I was on another plane heading for Melbourne. Follow this up with a 1:30 ride in a bus where someone had been sick and I was finally out of my planes, trains and automobiles hell in Geelong.

The day before the half iron race the temperatures soared and my lapper informed me we were roasting on high heat at 46.3 degrees. Something I'd never experienced before. Add to that crazy winds and choppy waters and the race wasn't looking good in terms of taking place. I guess I shouldn't moan too much as people were suffering the harsh reality of the heat and winds just an hour down the road in Melbourne where the bush fires roared.

As I have been reliably told on many occasion in Oz this area can experience four seasons in one day. They weren't wrong. The temperatures dropped 20 degrees, which pleased most people, especially the weaker swimmers as the water temperatures dropped too making wetsuits optional. I enjoyed the swim with plenty of good Aussie swimmers to draft round. I was pleased with the time but can't help but feel the course was short, before I hear a certain young lady pipe up.

The bike was a draft fest. This really pees me off and puts my mind in a bad place. I really couldn't be arsed with it after so many packs caught and dropped me as I rode legally. On the second of three laps the rain came down and I got really cold and didn't know if I'd even be able to run I was that cold. I wasn't looking forward to a DNF from cold.

Luckily on the run it was hot and humid. Going out to run a half marathon was scary to say the least having only run for 30 minutes straight in two months. The plan was to go out and see how far I got and if I was in too much pain from the plantar fascia I'd can it. The first of two laps were okay but not quick but I struggled on the last lap.

My lack of run endurance screamed and the minor inclines became mountains. I did have a moment where I thought I was about to faint. I had stop and walk for 20 seconds, scoff a gel and gather myself. Amazingly I felt a load better and got through this bad patch well. I was pleased to run all the way to the line and had to be caught when I crossed it.

It wasn't pretty or fast(at least 10 mins slow for me) but I was pleased to have completed this dam race that had been haunting me for so long. The fruit and ice cream at the finish was divine. Not quite the thunder from down under coming 23rd in my age group.

After the race I flew to the Sunshine Coast for some training Noosa style. It was great to hook up with old friends and catch up with the Eek. I hope she has a fabulous birthday riding 180km, sorts her foot issues and gets some great training in for the rest of her stay.

After a crazy week of fun and training it was time to leave town and move on to Gringleville. Great to catch up with the old goat and kick a few names around the circle. He's looking well and his place is amazing.

Right now he's off at work and I have been cruisin' the strip in the rain, food shopping (I spend my life doing this) and checking out the 50m outdoor pool to sort out swimming with the squad. This not working malarkey is tough. I really recommend it for those who think they might be able endure it. That said I am pretty dead from training the last few days and traveling all day yesterday.

That's about it apart from being barked at by a mad dog in the back of a pick up parked outside the shops. Do I really upset dogs this much? I thought I could only pull this stunt on humans. (The pic is of the race Geelong 70.3 race venue - not quite the weedy old lake me thinks)

Back in the Saddle

This weekend has been a bit of a break through for me. After a week of feeling ill and crappy I finally got out for a couple of sessions. I missed swimming in the weedy old lake enjoying my first night of proper sleep in a week. With the Eek away I was home alone and got on with all those great jobs that needed doing. Not immediately though as I was coxed into town for lunch with Dickie where we scoffed boxes of healthy tucker from the brilliant Alpha Bar. No it's not a bar as in pub before you all start assuming but a health food kiosk.

I finally returned home with new camo Berks and a shirt - you gotta love sales. With the lawn looking a jungle I fired up the mower and went about my domestic duties. I must thank Dickie for his great raking as I mowed. This meant a tedious job was over in seconds. With time ticking on I finally forced myself out for a run. With Ironman 70.3 Antwerp and Xterra both getting closer I decided speed and off road was the name of the game.

The run up to Shotover saw my heart rate climb quickly. I decided to go for a plod round and attack a few hills but keep it steady. At one point I was chasing a fox through the woods. I did become a little scared as it disappeared when the path narrowed and I was surround by high greenery unable to see below my waist. I was praying the fox wasn't hiding ready to bite my legs as I followed it in.

Luckily I made it through unscathed. It was time to hurt with some hills. I think I entertained those kicking around the car park as I ran up, stopped, staggered around breathless and stumbled back down the hill. By number ten I was completely out of it and trying desperately to hold my stomach contents in but pleased to complete the set. This time I happily staggered all the way down the big hill and ran along the road to spin my legs out.

After a chilled night with a little bike prep I took the P3 out for spin. The plan was to ride at threshold or do intervals if my legs weren't up to it. I had no idea as I haven't been near my bike for three weeks. The rolling route usually takes about 1:40ish and I was looking forward it. With tired heavy legs I set out feeling surprisingly good. With my power meter flat I had no idea what power or speed I was doing. This felt somewhat liberating but did keep to heart rate.

The further I got into my ride the better I felt. Drinking High Five's Extreme always gives my a lift. This stuff is dragon's juice and makes me wanna hammer harder whenever I swig it. That said, I didn't need to, riding steady all the way. I was shocked when I arrived home in 1:26. This is the first time I have done the route on a TT bike this year and can't believe the time. This certainly gave me a much needed boast after not doing much since Ironman Nice and feeling like I was wasting away.

My legs are sore now but I have a smile on my face lifted from the weekend's training. I am now looking forward to a week of good solid training before tapering next week for Antwerp. It's weird not having the Eek around as she's been off at a school reunion BBQ and visiting family. It's far too quiet for my liking although Ren is doing a good job of being the noisiest girl in the house. This will change, however, as she's on her way back now.

Forgot to add I managed to nab a place for Ironman Austria '09. It seems there's Iron fever in the air. Thoughts of Australia, Lanza and maybe something in North America are floating around my head. Watch this space. I did have some bad news though Andy KJ just signed up for Ironman Austria. While I am over the moon he has signed up I just didn't think he would ever do it. This means I have to do Tough Guy - a race I never wanted to do. Remember kids don't make silly bets because they might come back to bite you on the arse. My butts got a big chunk out of it as I type. Good work Andy!

Catch ya soon

The O boy x