Tri Adventure Noosa - News Archive

MARCH UPDATE

Well, it's hard to believe that ¼ of the year has gone by already. Lot's of stuff happening around Tri Adventure and there's plenty more in the pipeline for the next few months…

TRE-X…
The Aunties spent the weekend at Slickers (just north of Brisbane) for the Weekend of Dirt Fest in early March. Kim was invited to compete in the inaugural Dirt Crit and we were both entered in the TRE-x off-road triathlon the next morning. In short, it was win-win for Aunty Kim; she nailed the Crit against some talented competition, and went on to win the TRE-x the next morning against many younger gals. This was a fantastic result and has boosted up her confidence after the disappointing result at the 12hr Mtb race!

Kim on the run in the TRE-x off-road triathlon

Aunty Jan struggled through the TRE-x and managed 2nd in the veteran female… but those 40 something girls are getting a bit too fast - so she will be happier next year in the 'really old ladies' category!!

MTB ORIENTEERING…
Thanks to those who turned up for the re-run of our MTB orienteering course in the Ringtail forest recently. We were delighted to see such happy muddy people enjoying our course! And we welcome the lovely Carrie Prior to the Tri Adventure family - we have never seen someone so excited about an activity as she was when she emerged from the forest at the end of the event!

JUNIOR SERIES…
The last of our Junior Tri Series was held at the Eumundi Aquatic Centre on March 15th. We had a great time organising this series in conjunction with the Noosa Tri Club. The low-key atmosphere was perfect for young kids wanting to have a go at triathlon in a safe and familiar environment. Thanks to all the volunteers who came along to help out at the events - it's not possible without you… and thanks to the kids who turned up and supported this series - it was so great to see all your smiling faces!

NATIONAL SCHOOLS TRIATHLON CHAMPS…
Well, if you're a regular reader of this website, you're probably familiar with the name Brigitte Fischer by now. Brigitte has been in our junior tri squad since inception and came into the sport of triathlon as a runner. She has since trained very hard in the other 2 aspects of the sport (swim & bike) and has gone on to win at the Schools State Tri Champs this year. She was lucky enough to have her coach (Kim) as manager of the state team when she travelled to Tasmania to compete at Nationals recently and guess what??.. she won there too! Winning her individual event and her relay and then Qld winning the Championships as well, has capped off an incredible year for young Brigitte (she's still only 13!). We congratulate her, again, for her amazing dedication, ability, sportsmanship, and just pure 'niceness'… and look forward to having her back next season in our growing junior squad.

All our juniors have been delightful, actually... and we had a great time coaching them this season. They are taking a well-earned break over the winter months so, come September, they will be fresh and ready to go again.

KATHMANDU…
We had a fantastic time at the Kathmandu Adventure Race on 28th March with the Aunties splitting up and racing with AR novices in this event. Kim took Aaron for a 'joy' ride though the tracks and creeks around Wild Horse Mountain and they managed to come in 3rd Mixed team in around 3 hours….Meanwhile Aunty Jan introduced Alinda to the highs and lows (and laughter) of Adventure Racing when they got hot, wet and muddy for over 4 hours… but came home smiling!

Aunty Jan introduces Alinda to the fun of adventure racing.

Aunty Jan introduces Alinda to the fun of adventure racing.

Aunty Jan introduces Alinda to the joys of adventure racing

The Kathmandu series is a great entry level Adventure Race with the course and maps all geared for newbies to the sport….put it on your calendar for next year!

WHAT'S COMING UP…?
EASTER ADVENTURES…
If you are looking for some extra adventures over Easter, we have 2 days planned around the Noosa area. This will be great training for Bribie Multisport, KEEN Adventure Race and Geoquest. Contact us for details…
RACE HQ FRIDAY NIGHT NAV…We are pleased to announce Race HQ as our sponsor for the Friday night Nav series commencing in April. This will be a great way to get involved in the navigation side of AR if you were thinking of giving it a go. KEEN…The Keen Adventure Race has been relocated to the Ottway Ranges in Victoria following the recent bushfires at Wilson's Promontory. So, that's where we'll be between 26th April and 3rd May… Stay tuned for reports…
LUNATIC FRINGE…This is a MTB event held in NSW. We liked the name (thought it suited our style…) so we have decided to take a few friends and go down and see what it's like. If you are interested in joining us check out www.summerofcycling.com
GEOQUEST…The famous Cowgirls will be back riding Geoquest again this year. In a different line-up every year, the one player who has always remained the same, Bonanza Jellybean (aka Aunty Jan) will be holding the reigns as the gals take on another epic course over the 48hrs on the Queens Birthday weekend…. If only that Queen knew how much fun we have on her birthday every year!!!

So there's plenty to keep us busy, as you can see. Look forward to catching you all at an adventure soon…

See you out there!
Jan & Kim

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February update...

Well, our awesome Juniors have just competed in the Schools State Triathlon Championships and each and every one of them should be commended on their superb efforts, fantastic results and exemplary behaviour over the weekend. We were very proud of them as we watched them swim, bike and run over the varying courses… and they have even done their homework - read the following account of the weekend events by squad member, Brigitte Fischer…

Schools Junior Triathlon and Aquathlon State Championships
Thursday 19th - Saturday 21st February 2009
FRIDAY - Secondary Tri Champs
The State Triathlon Championships were once again held at Suttons Beach, Redcliffe and all 6 of the Triadventure squad members gave their all in hot and humid conditions. Alex, Maddie B, Tobie, Georgie, Danielle and Seb all competed in the Secondary Triathlon and showed that all their hard training really paid off. Alex had a great swim and caught up miles on the bike and had an awesome race, while Seb was out with the top swimmers and stayed with them on the bike. Unfortunately, Seb clipped his pedal and came off on a testing corner, but he kept riding and had a really strong finish. Maddie and Tobie were out with the front pack in the swim and both rode very strongly - they both ran a great race. Tobie ended up with a great 10th place finish with an exciting sprint for the line with training mate, Alex...Tobie just managed to get him on line but both athletes had an extremely strong finish. Maddie was well inside the top twenty which was an awesome effort. Great work to everyone who competed in the Tri. All these great results were testament to Kim's great coaching and hard work throughout the season.

SATURDAY - Secondary Relays and Junior Aquathlon
All the tri gang backed up today to compete in the relay event, an exciting team event which proves to bring out every competitor's strengths. Alex, Seb and Maddie were riding while Tobie and Georgie were swimming and Danielle running within their respective relay teams. Georgie and Tobie were in the leading pack in the swim and Maddie, Seb and Alex gained miles on their competitors in the ride. Danielle had a great run, passing many of the girls in the final lap. After all the excitement of the relays the Aquathlon was sure to bring just as many great results. The boys were off first and Emil was ready to race! He had a strong first run and after having a slight collision in transition had a great swim, Emil finished the race extremely strongly with his final run proving all his hard training had been worth it...Great Job Emil! Maddie B-C was next to race and was right up there in the first run and looking extremely strong. She had an awesome swim although had a bit of a confusing transition to the final leg...she and another competitor both had the same runners and with all the kids had somehow gotten mixed up. Of course, they were different sizes but that didn't stop little Maddie. Showing admirable determination and persistence she finished the race with a gun run and made us all proud! Well done to everyone who competed in the relays and Aquathlon.
Once again, the excitement got too much for Soren and he was flat on his back in the Triadventure tent - the cheering must have gotten too much! Thanks so much to everyone who was there cheering the competitors on!
Everyone's hard work was recognised at the end of the championship with the Sunshine Coast taking out the overall trophy...this is a great effort to be victorious over South Coast and the Brisbane regions...none of these great results could be possible without Kim and Jan's Junior sessions! Thanks so much for all your hard work; I know that all the Juniors and their parents really appreciate it!
By Brigitte Fischer

Editors Note: Brigitte doesn't mention that she was the 7th member of the Tri Adventure squad who was competing in the Championships. Her outstanding efforts and results surprised some (but not us!)… She won the gold medal in the Junior division - only 14 seconds behind the winning boy!… Then she backed up on the Saturday and ran her relay team into 1st place as well. The icing on the cake was when the Sunshine Coast Region won the event outright and we came home with the Cup! Thanks again to everyone (especially parents) who supported the young athletes in their endeavour to race at this event. We had a great time too - especially with the end result (and I promise we didn't drink any champagne out of that huge Cup!)

Brigitte proudly shows the Gold Medal to her parents Nick & Alice

12HR DUSK TO DAWN MTB RACE…
The Aunties, being ever adventurous, decided to celebrate Aunty Jan's 49th birthday in true Aunty style, by entering the 12hr Dusk to Dawn Mtb Race.... Isn't that what every old Aunty wants to do on her birthday ie: spend the entire night riding around a track with other equally mad people, getting muddy/dusty, having little or no rest, and no sleep at all....????? Of course it is, and we were excited as well!!

So we headed off to Canungra via the Gold Coast, where we'd celebrated the said birthday (in the normal way with plenty of champagne) on the Friday night with family and friends... This proved to be Kim's demise, however we were not to know that at the time! (and some may say Aunty Jan planned it that way, but no-one would do that to her best friend... would they?)

The new track on a private property at Canungra was fast and not too technical - just right for Aunties.... We set off at 7.00pm with lights blazing and enjoyed the first few laps (of about 6km each) and Kim managed to take the lead in the female category, even though she was being very conservative. Aunty Jan decided to stop every 3 laps for some nutrition and by about lap 7 was lapped by Kim. Then on the 9th lap when I arrived in to eat, Kim was standing there looking very pale. Apparently she had started the lap and had been feeling a little ordinary, and ended up having to stop and expel the contents of her little stomach (ie: had a big spew!) and was not game to continue for fear of making it worse! The pre-race meal of spicy garlic chicken probably didn't help with the mix of birthday champagne from the previous night, and chocolate Endura (seemed to settle ok in the cast-iron stomach of Aunty Jan, though....) Anyway, we decided that Kim should rest and recover...and there you have it - Aunty Jan continued through the night, having a great time with the riders (all mad too!) and getting many birthday wishes (and pushes) from friends on the course....

We ended up coming in 1-2 in the veteran female category (see who's atop the podium!) and Aunty Jan also managed to place 2nd overall female as well..... Just shows that being slow and steady almost wins the race! Endurance Mtb riding is definitely a sport for older, female athletes... if you don't mind getting a bit dirty in the process.... I know I was 49, but I only felt 12, ok!

Aunty Jan atop the podium - not likely to happen again!

Kim has since recovered and had a re-think on her pre-race nutrition - we really didn't worry about it beforehand having done many events where we fill up on 'real food'.... Aunty Jan is delighted on her result and satisfied on the choice of 'fun things to do on your 49th birthday'... wonder what we'll do next year for the big one????

WHATS COMING UP…?

It's not looking good for our KEEN Adventure Race at Wilson's Promontory after the recent bushfires down there, however the organisers assure us that a race will go ahead on the advertised dates, but the location is yet to be advised. We are hoping to race at The Prom as it is one of our most favourite spots in the world - so all will be revealed - after the fires stop burning, I guess…
In the meantime we have the Kathmandu 6 hr Adventure Race, the 6hr Enduro Mtb race and a few other things to keep us busy. Hope you can join us for some of this great adventure…
Aunties Jan & Kim

December Update
Well the end of our first year at Tri Adventure has come around so fast. We have enjoyed our regular weekly squad sessions, weekend adventures and our two adventure camps and have seen many participants go outside their comfort zone and achieve results way beyond conceived possibilities. A few major highlights would be our night trail runs in Noosa, some amazing paddles in the upper reaches of the Noosa River and of course the mountain bike/mountain trek days in and around our beautiful hinterland. With all of these exciting adventures under our belts we are going full steam ahead into 2009! But before we do, here’s an update on our recent activities…

SPLASH & DASH
We have just wrapped up the Series with Event #4 and, as with Events #2 & #3, we had a female winner! Yes, our young Brigitte Fischer seems to be able to ward off any challenge thrown at her these days and continues to smash her own record as well!! Hope she spends time relaxing over the holidays as we can only expect bigger and better things from this young and talented junior in the coming year. The regular (chasing!) crowd also had a fun hit-out and enjoyed the social BBQ in our little hideaway by the beach as per usual. Thanks to everyone who came along and supported Splash & Dash - this series will commence again in the New Year. Stay tuned for dates….

JUNIORS
Our junior squad has grown and progressed over the last few months and we have enjoyed our sessions coaching such enthusiastic young triathletes. These kids possess many outstanding qualities and it shows up in their time training with us. We have sent them off on a 2 week break over the holidays and hopefully they’ll come back refreshed and ready to go with the State Schools Tri Champs looming in February.

ADVENTURE FITNESS
The Adventure Fitness girls have wrapped up the year with a casual breakfast at Café le Monde to reward themselves for all their dedication and hard work since we began training in July. Some new sessions are planned for next year and the girls have a goal to complete the 10k Run at Noosa in August. These sessions cater to all abilities, so if you think you want a bit more from your fitness – and aren’t necessarily a runner – come along and see what we do – you will hopefully come away with a sense of achievement in many things – not just fitness….

ANACONDA LORNE
We travelled to this event with no expectations whatsoever….and, besides Kim’s derailleur falling victim to the airline gremlins; we ended up having a very successful and enjoyable event. Bad weather caused a last-minute course change – which was definitely to our advantage (well, for Kim, that is…) as the run course was extended from 11.2k up to 16k… and the paddle was enclosed in the protected waters of Loutit Bay around Lorne. One main transition area was the result, which was pleasing to everyone as the gear shuttles out to other areas were not required. Spectators and competitors alike were a little more relaxed and the environment was way more in-tact because all cars stayed in one place the whole day. Kim surprised herself to reel in two girls at the end of the Mtb section to take 3rd place overall female – and, of course, winning the Veteran Females (again!)

Kim running the St Georges River gorge - Anaconda Lorne 08

Kim running the St Georges River gorge - Anaconda Lorne 08

Kim running the St Georges River gorge - Anaconda Lorne 2008

Meanwhile Aunty Jan, who teamed up with Rapid Ascent photographer and IT geek, Andrew Connolly, had a wonderful day going around the course with a helmet-cam, chatting to, and filming other competitors and helping Andrew get through a 7hr 45min race when he had done virtually no training since May! We are putting together some footage for general viewing – so stay tuned for this one! After the event we stayed on and extra night in Melbourne and caught up with our friends at CBD Cycles – and managed to have a strange kind of urban adventure riding back to our accommodation in Kensington…. Besides negotiating freeways, bike paths and bush-bashing some odd traffic islands on our Mtb’s, we swear we didn’t hallucinate that large, golden statue on the banks of Maribyrnong River….right beside the porta-loo… Surely someone else has seen it???? Anyway, that was Lorne… and, as per usual, one of our favourites. We hope to be back next year for some more!

NEXT YEAR
We are putting together our calendar as we speak – so you can all look forward to some exciting challenges and fun adventures in 2009. The Keen Adventure Race will be a big one again for us – this time Kim’s racing with a faster, more experienced partner and Aunty Jan is opting to take the challenge of the one-day event with the afore-mentioned Andrew Connolly. He promises an improvement of fitness before then – however, I’m ok with a nice stroll around the Wilson’s Prom looking at the spectacular views and filming some of it too!

Until then – have a safe, happy and exciting Christmas and New Year…

See you out there!
Aunties Jan & Kim

What’s been happening at Tri Adventure???? Well, we have been busy competing in some exciting events, going out on some beautiful adventures and getting down to business with the Junior Tri Squad…. Here’s the goss…

The juniors, having had a well-earned break over the winter months, are back in training with 4 sessions per week.

These kids are putting in such fantastic efforts in their training and racing – and we always try to make it interesting and fun – and a little out of the square!

We welcome new members Maddie Bartholomew, Lilli Hay, Maddie & Tom Borne-Crockett and Anna McKenna to the squad – joining Tobie, Brigitte, Seb & Emil. It’s great to see some of the Mums & Dads coming along for sessions too! – good work Lisbeth, Soren & Geoff...

Our little group of girls is growing slowly and we are training up for the Breakfast Fun Run on October 31st. This event supports Breast Cancer research – so it’s a very worthy cause for us to be part of. Anyone interested in joining the Tri Adventure team please contact me on triadventure@optusnet.com.au and I’ll bring a hat down for you on the day. Adventure Fitness still have 3 sessions a week – click here for details.

This fun event was open to all levels of riders and the Aunties Tri Adventure took out the 3 person female team with the help of Alinda Bryant – one of our regular Thursday morning riders.

Some of our Junior Tri Squad had a go at the event and Emil Vejby was victorious in the kids 2km event and big brother Seb teamed up with downhill champ Sam Fraser to win the 2-person first timers category. Dad, Soren also toughed it out in a 2 person team and Tewantin Mum Kerrie Clarke who has recently taken up MTB riding challenged herself in team of three and was excited by her efforts going way out of her comfort zone.

Solo rider Jason Cheshire rode the entire 8 hours and finished a credible 7th in the male category. The Aunties did their best to support him with massage, and encouragement to get him through the arduous event.

We all had a great day – once the dust was washed away and hope to get more people to these fun events in the future.

Last weekend The Aunties teamed up with our friend Matt from Melbourne for the Teva Champs Adventure Race. This was a 7 hour event held on the banks of Ewen Maddock Dam near Landsborough.

It was a fun day with lots of mud (!)…. We got through the event really well – just a few Nav errors kept us on our toes. The Teva series is a great entry in Adventure Racing as it teams the physical with the mental - just when you think you’re in front you have to solve a Cluedo mystery or test yourself at some other crazy cerebral task!

We had our first Twilight Run-Swim-Run at Noosa Main beach on September 26th with some great competitors and a nice BBQ and chat.

Congrats to lifeguard Jono Free who managed to pip Novak Thompson in the last sprint up the soft sand to take out the event. Good work to everyone who came along – that soft sand is a real challenge! Next event is on Friday 24th October… Let’s hope for low tide and small swell ….

Insomnia 24hr Mtb Festival Wrap up

Tri Adventure fielded 2 teams of 6 in Geocentric’s recent Insomnia 24hr Mtb Festival. “Real Men Tri Adventure” being the male team and the “Aunties Tri Adventure” the female team….The event was held at a fantastic venue near Brisbane and the weather was very kind to us, although temps through the night were a little cool! The 17.5km track was quite spectator friendly, and we were lucky enough to get our camp trackside to cheer on the riders…

Our teams (of mostly novices to this sort of event) coped extremely well with the new challenges of single track riding, lots of mud, riding in the dark, camping out and the temperature drop at night…. and hopefully they will come back for more next year.

The “Real Men” led by team captain Duncan McEwan, managed to place top 10 in their category and were up against some tough competition. For a bunch of guys who (mostly) had never met, they showed great team spirit and held themselves together extremely well to the very end.

Meanwhile the “Aunties”, with no competition, took out 1st place and managed to sneak in one extra lap to beat the boys. Great work girls!

The camp-fire at the main stage was quite popular to warm cold bodies late at night and early morning – and the live bands were an interesting addition to a MTB event!

Thanks to everyone who joined us – especially those who came along at the last minute! We had a great weekend meeting you all and introducing you to something a little different!

Weekend Tri Adventurers

Tri Adventure is running "weekend squad sessions" for those who can't make squad sessions during the week or for those of you who want that little bit more time out there! So to find out more and to join our "Weekend Tri Adventurers" email list contact us at triadventure@optusnet.com.au and you will find out what adventures we have lined up. The cost is $10 per session and you will need to have completed and returned our forms before your first session.
NB:- We are off racing some weekends there may not be a session every week.

Geoquest

Team Torque Tri Adventure finishes 2nd at Geoquest - Australia's Premier Adventure Race - Kim teamed up with Guy Andrews, Glen Kirby (Bribie Multisport Winner 2008) and Nic Arney (NZ Coast to Coast competitor 2008) to claim her second successive podium finish in the Premier Mixed Category!

Anaconda MTB Enduro

Recently Aunty Jan was sent in exile to Central Australia (Alice Springs to be exact) to sample the new MTB stage event, The Anaconda MTB Enduro.

This amazing event, organised by Rapid Ascent was a great contrast to our races here on the East Coast. Dry, dusty, spiky, sandy, hot, cold are a few adjectives to describe the conditions out there. It was a fantastic social race with everyone staying in the same hotel.....so weekend warriors happily mixed with elite riders and many tales were shared around the pool every afternoon.

This race is a 'must do' if you want to experience something new, exciting and different!
Aunty Jan was successful in her veteran female category and brought home a 3rd place 'rock' for her efforts....

For full race details go to http://www.rapidascent.com.au/AnacondaMTBEnduro

The Other Noosa Long weekend Wrap up!

Wow - what a weekend! 38 multisport enthusiasts participated in the Tri Adventure "Other Noosa Long Weekend" from 3rd - 5th May. This is their story.......Click here

Triadventure on Seven News 24 April 2008!

Jan and Kim starred on Seven News Click here to watch.
(Warning - 2MB WAV file)

KEEN Adventure race - The Aunties

Aunties consulting the map

Well the Aunties have just completed their most incredible epic adventure ever - the KEEN Alps to Ocean Adventure Race.....

Click here for the full story

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Easter Training Camp (Noosa) Wrap up

Some newcomers to the sport of Adventure Racing and Multisport mixed it up with AR/Multisport legend Novak Thompson at the inaugural Tri Adventure training camp at Elanda Point, near Noosa.

Three adventure-filled days were enjoyed by all of us and we can't wait for the next one!

Click here for the full story

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Miss the Easter camp? Try the Other Noosa Long weekend

We are now planning a Multisport Training Weekend with a difference it's called - "The Other Noosa Long Weekend" - 3 days of swimming paddling running and MTB riding with lots of time to relax recover and enjoy Noosa!

For more information Click here

Noosa Squad Sessions change for the winter months

Now that it's getting darker earlier and colder we have made some adjustments to our training times to suit the cooler conditions.

Tri Adventure conducts three squad sessions per week and now also offers squad members a chance to attend some extra weekend sessions .

New times are as follows:-
Paddle Monday 4.30pm
Trail Run Tuesday 5.00pm
MTB Thursday 5.45am

For more information Click here

Junior Tri Squad

Kim's 'tri kids' now take a break till September.

Congratulations to Brigitte Fisher on her win in the 13 yrs State Schools Triathlon Championships.

Congratulations also to other Noosa Tri Club locals Maddie Bartholomew and Toby Evans-Lee for gaining selection in the State Team to compete at the National Schools Triathlon Championships.

Kim has been coaching the junior tri squad, since January has been very impressed with the progress of the juniors in such a short time.

For more information on junior triathlon Coaching Click here