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March 25, 2007
Hello from Port Macquarie, Australia home of Ironman Australia
It has been an action packed few months filled with lots of training and travel. After returning from Chile
in January, we literally unpacked our South American gear and packed the Outback and headed south. We arrived
home on Wednesday and then drove to Florida on Friday. The weather in Canada was so cold and we were so
desperate to get out of the cold, that we started driving in a snow storm in -10 degrees Celsius. We arrived
in Clermont, Florida, my winter training base, on the Saturday evening and my official ‘get in shape for
Ironman Australia’ training camp began on Sunday.
This was my favorite training block that I have ever done in Florida. I cannot really put my finger on why
other than the fact that we really felt as if we were part of the Clermont training community. The National
Training Center was a fantastic hub of activity; Tom Ziebart at the NTC always had a helpful and welcoming
smile; Kimberly and Kevin Grogan at Gear for Multisport were great resources and Kimberly was my favorite and
very fast swim partner; Leah and Chris at the NTC physiotherapy clinic were so professional and caring in
treating me; and seeing all of the other visiting athletes made me feel like I was part of great sport
community not an athlete trying to fit into another world that doesn’t care about sport. And this year, we
were able to spend more time developing some great friendships with our Florida friends and our family visited
from Canada, so it meant that we were leaving less at home than usual.
We left Florida on March 14th after my last long run. Usually I am so excited to go home but I was really
quite sad to leave. It had been a very successful training camp - I was also able to nail all of my training
and focus more on quality and recovery.
We arrived home on March 15th and tended to some business items that could only be done at home and then
left for Australia on March 21st. Whew are you tired yet reading this??? And so here we are in Australia.
I absolutely love it here! They just love sport here. When we landed in Australia, the customs’ officer
asked me the purpose of my visit. I told him that I was competing in Ironman Australia. Instead of asking
what an Ironman was, he asked me if I knew Emma Snowsill (the ITU World Championships). How unreal is that??
It is funny obviously coming here for my 6th Ironman and having won here 5 times, presents a lot of
pressure but that said, I cannot imagine not being here. I would rather risk everything than to not be part
of this great sporting country on one of its greatest sporting days. I know that the women I am racing want
to beat me so badly, but I am prepared to race with that bulls-eye on my back because the thought of not being
here makes me too sad. And for me, sport is all about what makes me happy and racing Ironman Australia makes
me very happy!
Other exciting news Spirit + Sport by Lisa Bentley was officially launched at the Toronto Bike Show in
early March I think the gear looks pretty darn cool. We will launch it on my website quite soon. Also,
I am confirmed to participate in the Run in the Sun Cruise 2008. Details can be found on
www.runinthesuncruise.com. I would also like to announce that TYR Sport is my new goggle and swim training
gear sponsor.
Stay well and be healthy! Lisa
March 29, 2007
Hello again from Australia it is Friday at around noon here in Port Macquarie and just around 10 p.m. for
most of you at home. I can see it now our dogs Madison and Brunswick will be sleeping right now in hot
anticipation of their morning walk and another attempt to get human treats from their adoring ‘grandparents’
my mom and dad who are dog sitting. We always say that when we go away, the dogs get to go to the ‘country
club’ because my parents have a big backyard and my dad likes to sit outside or work outside in the garden
for most of the day and that means lots of exploring and squirrel chasing for them!! On the other hand, when
they are at home with us, they are either watching Dave pack and ship boxes of 2XU gear to retailers or
waiting for me to return from training sessions which they are sure they would have been able to do after
all Labs are great swimmers and runners you know! Anyway, as I prepare for a wonderful day of racing on
Sunday, I cannot help but think of my dogs because they make up so many of the happy thoughts that will keep
me company for 9 hours on race day.
Being back here in Port has been awesome. We arrived last Friday and we were welcomed with some lovely flowers
in our apartment courtesy of the apartment managers. After 30 hours of travel, those flowers were a lovely
site. The first few days here were a bit difficult as usual. It is interesting how slow you can swim, bike
and run when you have just crossed 14 time zones! But everyday, I feel fresher and fresher and more at home.
For the first few nights, we were asleep at 8 p.m. and awake at 4 a.m. But now, we are like locals and are
able to stay up to about 9 or 9:30 p.m.!! Every night, we watch the swimming World Championships which are
being staged in Melbourne, Australia. The coverage is fantastic and I wish that the young swimmers at Dorado
Swim Club in Caledon, where I swim, could see this coverage. In Australia, swimmers are heroes and it would
be wonderful for our Canadian youth to get to see this fantastic display of sport.
In general, it has been a relaxing week since I already know the course from last year and I feel very ready
to race. Last year, coming into this race, I had crashed badly on my bike 3 weeks before and so I was very
tentative on this bike course. This year, I plan to tackle every inch of it with a bit more aggression.
Since arriving, we have had a few rides on the course and a few runs and swims. There is a beautiful 50 m
outdoor pool that I have been enjoying each day. And I have been getting some wonderful massage from Simon
Downs who was one of the people who put me back together after my crash last year and got me to the start
line healthy.
I suppose it wasn’t until yesterday that the race became very real. I had a Powerbar question and answer
session in the expo, then the official press conference and television interviews. I also picked up my race
packet. Normally, this can be a little bit stressful because you realize that you are really going to do a
race and it is going to be a big effort. But this year when I registered, I opened my packet and saw a lovely
note from Hayley Miller and Madeline Smith two young Aussie girls who packed my bag. Their note wished me
lots of wonderful wishes. They probably don’t realize how powerful that little note is. It is another of my
happy thoughts that I will carry around on race day.
The race begins on April 1st at 6:30 a.m. which at home is 4:30 p.m. on March 31st my mother’s birthday!
You can bet that I will be thinking of my mom as I race. Meanwhile at 2 p.m. on March 31st in North American,
NBC will be televising the 70.3 World Championships at 2 p.m. I finished 2nd in that event which took place
3 weeks after the Ironman Hawaii. Enjoy!
Thank you so much for your support. I will race happy and I will love every minute of it. I am grateful this
gift of sport, health and wellness and I am lucky for this opportunity to push myself to my limits in one of
my favorite places in the world. I can’t wait to see what happens! Cheer loud. Lisa
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