May was a quieter month for racing but for those that did race it was a fruitful one.
Redbull Wing 4 Life
A great event for a great cause raising money for people with spinal cord injuries. Christine Seymour, Travis Hill and Andy White got out there for the unique night time format. Travis lead the charge completing just under 30km while Christine hit 18.74km for her run. Andy showed great support by running this event with friends and enjoying a cold, wet Melbourne night.
Ultraman Australia
Ultraman lived up to it's name with some amazing performances by all athletes competing in the event. In a starting field of 54 athletes, MEC was fortunate to have 2 lining up at the start. Leanne 'Croc' Keating had a fantastic preparation and was more than ready to tackle this event and was joined by MEC coach Michael Harvey for the 3 day triathlon.
Peoples true characters are revealed in times of distress and this was never more apparent for Leanne at this event. Suffering from what can only be describe as serve motion sickness during the swim leg Leanne's paddler made the call to bring her into the beach at the 6km mark. Barely coherent from being so sick The Croc lived up to her name somehow pulling herself together enough to throw the leg over her bike and begin the 145k day 1 ride. An incredibly brave and inspiring effort showing what can be done with a strong (an in Leanne's case stubborn) mindset. Leanne went on to complete day 1 bike along with days 2 and 3. Well done Leanne on carrying on and completing the rest of the event and showing yourself and others what is possible.
Michael had a good 3 days in Noosa that started with a swim course record. He finished 4th after stopping for a flat tyre late on the first day. With a strong day 2 ride, which was backed up with the double marathon on day 3 he managed to get home and finish 7th overall. His race report which has been on the back burner while getting the Cairns IM and 70.3 crew ready will be out next week.
Milkman Triathlon
Heading overseas to the USA, Hartley Wess has rejoined forces with his coach after a spell from long distance racing. Hartley is preparing for Ironman Florida at the end of the year and is 70 years young in 2017. Last week Hartley lined up for his first sprint tri in about 10 years and came away with 3rd in his age group. A fantastic effort which shows us all that age is just a number in your head.
We now turn our attention to the Cairns Ironman and 70.3 tomorrow where MEC has 8 athletes ready to go. We wish them and the rest of the athletes competing the best mechanical luck.