Last Sat afternoon I took the drive up to A lovely place called Hervey Bay . I’d never been there before but I know it’s renound for its whale watching  and for taking the barge to the gorgeous Fraser Island .

The water was dead flat and a little cool at 7am in the morning but still no wetsuit .

lead out onto the bike and maybe a little cold It took me a while to get going and into a rhythm . 2nd Lap felt much better .

An out and back run for a change I tried to hang on to a good pace and finish well .  Fairly easy win and probably more a great training session  I enjoyed it and all done by 9am !

It was longish trip home back on the Gold Coast . But a quick race getaway is a good one J

Now after a kind of late decision by the Doc I’m off to Byron Bay thisarvo to race midday tomorrow .  Can’t exactly say I’ll have fresh legs but its all good training .

Plus Byron Bay is beautiful (and got a great pub  ) so no way I was going to argue & I’ll try get some pretty snaps to post in my next Blog .

Also a quick good luck to the others racing this weekend ! I know its Jodie’s first Ironman and I’m sure she’ll rock it !

Flicka X

I thought for this blog I would actually explain  how I  came about joining Team TBB and Brett .

Its coming up to three weeks in camp on the gold coast  & it has been absolutely great fun.  Although I’ve only ever lived here a few years of my life  ( gold coast ) – it feels more like home than the busy Brisbane where I grew up.  I have a large group of friends down here too- including 1 awesome chick and team TBB member Bek Keat .

So about 2 and half years ago ,probably the end of 08 or early 09  when I was training with Snowsill, I met up with Miss Keat for a long ride ..  we got chatting as usual and of course the subject about training   came up…

Bek: So how’s things going with Snowy babe , enjoying it all ?!

Me : yeah yeah its good  . ( or something like that . I didn’t really elaborate haha)

And what about you ? Who you training under at the moment ?

Bek :  I’m with Brett .

Me : Sutto?!

Bek : Yeah babe !

Me: F**K isn’t that like super hard shit?!

Bek : Yeah but chick he’s soo good I shoulda joined the team sooner . I’ve never been soo fit .

Me: ( huffing ) yeahh I reckon haha

So that was the end of that subject… But its funny how a little conversation like that can stick in your head……. .

Then only 6 months ago I had my hip operated on and was one frustrated girl . I wasn’t happy with my coaching situation and I didn’t know what to do .

I called up Bek and we met for a pilates session ,where I think we did more talking than pilates ( sorry Creeni ! ) .  I told her the situation I was in and how I thought going to Brett could be an option .

Now back 10 years ago as a 14 yr old my tri coach would link me up with Loretta now and again for a session . She was someone I really looked up to as a youngster and I learnt a lot just training side by side her.  Loretta was coached by Brett at the time and I always wondered wether one day I would ever join team Sutton ..

Bek : Babe you gotta email the Doc . Just do it !  Join the Team and then you can train with me . Yeooww!

So I did .  But I can’t  help but say it was her bright , bubbly , optimistic and friendly self  that just gave me that extra little push to contact ‘the Doc’ .

Anyways It’s funny how things turn out .. I always say everything happens for a reason .

I’m loving it

So to end that little story – thanks ‘big Sis’  Bek

and thankyou Brett and Team TBB.

Flicka x

Sorry I’m a little late on the race report !

Last weekend was the opening race on the ITU WCS  circuit . Arriving at race briefing  the Friday before and catching up with everyone  was great  and also a good reminder why I’m so lucky to be able to do what I do .

First race of the season and 6 months since my last one was always going to be a little rusty  but it was great to be on the starting line again .  I love to race !

Luckily the water was a warm 22 degrees and a non wetsuit swim . It was quite choppy however and sighting the buoys were a little hard which is why I think the swim was quite messy . Girls all over the place and a shit fight as usual !

I exited the swim a little bit behind the lead girls but  after riding hard for a lap I quickly caught up and was in the lead pack with 2 other packs following a min or few mins behind.

There was no need to do much work in the bike . I simply sat in the pack . The course was quite hilly , with a lot of u turns so still a bit of a sting to the legs no matter where I was .

I hopped off the bike and my bike fell over which meant a slow transition as I didn’t want to take a penalty for not having it racked perfectly ( ITU have suddenly smacked down on penalties  That would be 15sec or 30 sec If I didn’t place my helmet IN the  box  ! )  So it meant I slowly played catch up throughout the run . I didn’t  feel  great but I didn’t feel too bad .

So I’m fairly satisfied with 15th for my first race of the season and for what I’ve done in the lead up . Now I’m really looking forward to putting in some good training before the next  race .

For more info and exact splits on the race check out  www.triathlon.org

After a fun weekend in Sydney I flew back to Brisbane for a few days to my parents place then packed up for the Gold Coast .  It’s great to be back  :)

Flick X

My 5 weeks in Krabi has finally come to and end as I’m on my way back home to Aus . I must say I am looking forward to a few things :

-My own bed with a sheets and blankets ( not an oversize towel haha)

-Flushing toilet paper actually down the toilet  ( its not allowed here, the drainage system is not good enough apparently )

-A clothes dryer / clothes line  ( with the rain it’s a little hard to get all my washing dry !)

- Drinking water out of the tap ( definitely a no go here! )

-Not being chased by dogs

-lane ropes in the pool ( although now I’m quite used to the chop now & we do race in open water )

- A good steak !( cows are sacred here so its hard to get a good steak anywhere )

But in all reality these are minor things in life and although it’s a challenge for a small amount of time it always makes me realize how lucky I am to live in Australia and to be able to do what I do .

Every time I ran or rode my bike down the road , hard or easy the local kiddies yelling out ‘Hellllooooo hellllooooo ‘  it made me smile and I can’t help but think it made them smile and laugh too . Its was just a nice feeling  :)



I can’t believe how quick the camp went . Probably because I’ve been surrounded by such a good group of inspiring , hard working people all with similar goals  .  I’m very  grateful I’m in the team . I really can’t thank Brett enough , the man who guides us all so well .  Also I  can’t not mention the Swiss athletes as I say goodbye – Its been great training with them and they help get the most out of my sessions while I was in Krabi . If only understood swiss haha . Maybe it’s better that I don’t  . Anyway , I can’t wait to catch up with everyone again in Leysin

So back home to Brisbane for a week before I fly to Sydney for my first race of the season . Then it’s back to my second home , the Gold Coast until the next race .

Flicka X

p.s  I hope the rain and floods clear up quickly !

Yesterday afternoon after training and a feed  Reto , Bek & I took a little trip to the hot springs .

It was a new experience for me andI’m thankfull it was a cooler, wet day as these baths  are not just luke warm haha .

And my toasty experience didn’t stop there . On our way home we stopped for dinner and I ordered a soup that was not meant to be spicy .  I chewed on what I thought was a green bean but was quickly surprised to find it was actually a full green chilly ! 2 Icy Frappe’s later my lips and mouth were still on fire haha .

This is Marley  AKA – ‘ the stick collector ‘

He’s my blue staffy and the most loving dog ever . He doesn’t just settle for 1 stick  when out on a walk,  but has to fit as many as he can in to his jaws . He loves it !

Anyway while I’m here in Krabi I’m now the one carrying the sticks – for protection ! It may be going a little far but I’m really not a fan of the random dog chases here and it scares the crap out of me . I’ve shouted louder than I ever have before to fend a few off but have found if I carry a stick It helps !

Don’t get me wrong  some are cute and I really feel sorry for them …

But I’ll still carry a stick

Flicka x

Hey,

So here we go … My first post as a Team TBB member . Yep , a newbie . So new I haven’t even met the Doc in person yet  ( he arrives this arvo ) However I do already know a fair few of my teammates so I don’t feel to out of sorts and I’m looking forward to meeting some of the others when they arrive in Krabi .

I’m not normally the ‘blogging type ‘. Well ,actually maybe I should say  I’m not really  the ” blogging about training ” type  . I guess I’m a little like Jodie in the sense that if I don’t have to think or talk Tri I won’t . Anyway I’ll try hard to make my blogs as non boring as possible !

So a little about the last few months and what has lead me to where I am right now , here in Krabi , Thailand . About 6 weeks ago I was confirmed my spot in Team TBB and ready to start a new phase in my career . I’ve been coming back slowly from a hip op I had late October  . I followed the Doc’s orders , stayed in my home town of Brisbane  and have slowly been building back up to some kind of fitness .  I traveled from Aus a few days ago with a stop in Singapore to Team TBB headquarters to meet up with Alex and the team management  & pick up my new bike beautiful Cervelo S3 !  ( I’m yet to name it ,weird I know but I like to name my bikes ) A big thanks to Azmil our bike mechanic for building it all through the night for it to be ready for me .

It was then on Krabi the next day . I have to say  I was pleasantly surprised with Tiger airlines ! No charges , nice plane , just no fuss ! Unlike Qantas !  Anyway  , Xena , Dave & I arrived  yesterday arvo . I’ve never been to Thailand before . I’ve had many friends and family  who have holidayed here . But I’m not here for a holiday . Far from that . I don’t  even think that we are close to the beach really . Perfect training environment I suppose . A bit dirty but all liveable  . If I look outside my window I can see elephants , cats , dogs , cows  , crazy people on scooters . A very different experience and one I’m very grateful for .

I’m here for 5 or so weeks and I’m looking forward to training under the Doc and with some great athletes . I’m sure I am going to learn a lot !

Until my next blog …

Flicka x

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