Rarotonga Tri and last two weeks

RARO TRI RACE REPORT

I finally got to Rarotonga safe and sound despite being victim of a narky weight-Nazi Air NZ check-in man and then being abandoned at the airport in the early hours of the morning and hitching a ride with a local.
It was super windy and certainly wasn't the tranquil island setting I thought it would be.

Loaded up with carry-on luggage

 The lagoon was really choppy with lots of white caps.  It was a big 1500m loop, I had thought they might make it a 3x500m loop since it was so rough but no such luck.

I came out of the water about 10th female with a pretty shocking swim. I was just glad to be back on dry land.
The bike was a lap of the island with an extra bit up a hill with the rest flat.  The road conditions were very rough with a nice tailwind for the first part and a very nasty headwind at the end.  I passed a few girls at the start of the bike and came off in 7th place.

Started the run and passed 4 girls in the first couple of kms to be in 3rd place which is where I stayed.  The run was out and back in both directions and dead flat.  It was a bit warm but was cloudy so heat wasn't really a problem.

Takeaway coffee anyone?

Crossed the line and got crowned with a Kona-style flower crown/wreath thingy which made me feel like Chrissie Wellington and was probably the highlight of the day.  Post-race spread was a delicious array of tropical fruits and chocolate muffins and coconut water/milk served in a coconut.  Nom nom nom.

Doing my best impersonation of Chrissie

 The weather was pretty disappointing and it was only the 2nd time in 17 years that the weather hasn't come to the party so I guess I will have to come back to give it a go on a better day.
There was a lot of extra activities for the visiting triathletes over the next few days like a Hash House Harriers pack run followed by a traditional Umu and the Round Raro Cycle Race.  The cycle wasn't much fun on the TT bike plus some not so nice weather, I missed the cut for the first group so I sat at the back of the 2nd group and kept out of trouble.

Front page of the Cook Island Times. Spot the person not paying attention. I guess that Cultural Awareness course I was on a few weeks ago was wasted on me

The rest of the trip was centered around the wedding so I got to stay in a flash resort and did enough socializing to last me for the next 6 months at least.  Everyone in Rarotonga was really friendly and accommodating, especially the race organizers and other athletes.  The logistics of getting from place to place was sometimes a bit difficult but I was always able to get a lift with other athletes or friendly locals.

Nice place for a wedding

I went for a few extra swims, bikes and runs while I was there but nothing too strenuous.  I really admire Kelly Pick and Vanessa Palmer who came 1st and 2nd in the tri for being as fast as they are with such limited training resources ie. no pool and pretty much only one road to ride on which is full of potholes.

After a few attempts at a photo I decided the back of my head was better than the front

So now back to work and back to reality.  I will be getting a muscle balance done in the next week to sort out whats working and whats not working with my shoulder so I can hopefully start a bit more swimming.
I managed to take about 45 seconds off at my second attempt at the O'Hagan's 5km the week before Raro and will do the 10km at the Huntly Half next weekend for a bit of pain and suffering.

I came home to a major caterpillar/butterfly disaster with the caterpillars completely decimating their swan plant and choosing all sorts of inconvenience places to turn into a chrysalis so I have had to do an emergency dash to find them more food.  Exciting stuff eh.