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Mt Everest Pre Summit

Thu, 17 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

From Mt. Everest, by Marty Schmidt

Hello again, our team went for a good trek up the Khumbu Ice Fall glacier today, feeling good and ready for our summit climb. When we came back to our BC, Tim mentioned to us that the weather and wind reports were looking good for the 20^th of May. The whole team got very excited about this news and we are now preparing our loads and gear for an earlier start to camp 2, possibly leaving tomorrow or the next day. Once we leave BC, we are heading for the summit. The weather window only opens for a few moments and we need to be in position. What this means is that when the Jetstream winds pick up and the monsoon weather starts to push onto the mainlands, right in between these two major forces sits a window of no wind and no storms…..this is what we are after when we attempt the summit of Everest

So for now, please know that we have done our work to prepare for the summit, we are now sitting in BC for one more day and heading out for this amazing adventure to begin. We all send our very best to everyone following us upon Everest this season, this include all my clients around the world and with the www.peakfreaks.com web site. While climbing towards the summit I will be on radio with Tim who is down in BC and he will send all the information onward so that you know what we are up to, OK, promise.

All our best from the Hiamalayas. Cheers, Marty.

Posted in: In the Media

Mt Everest Continued

Thu, 10 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Mt Everest Expedition 2012

By Marty Schmidt, Em's Power Cookies fan

Hello Everyone, Namaste from Everest Base Camp. It is the 2^nd of May, 2012 and I am sitting in our comfortable home away from home of Peak Freaks standards where we have green carpet, great dining tables, hot showers, the ability to washing clothes…….all the conveniences of any home on this earth. For our place at this moment, we have one of the most beautiful views in the world…..looking up the Khumbu Ice Fall towards Mt Everest, flanked by Pumori and Nuptse, a stunning 360 degree view.

For the past week our team have been working hard up the ice fall to camp 1, then slept 4 nights at camp 2 while pushing our minds and bodies towards camp 3 at 7,200 meters. This was the test that we needed to accomplish before coming back to BC to get a complete rest before making our final ascent to the summit of Mt Everest, Sargamatha, “ The Goddess Mother of this Earth”.

The ice fall to camp 1 has been challenging, more this year than other years. At the very height of coming into camp 1, on the left hand side which comprises the West Ridge, lays large Seracs which have been calving off ever since we arrived in early April. This section is forever changing every time we climb through it. Our team has been hitting the timing just right and making it through with no one getting caught. We all know that we have to get through this part two more times, once up and one more time down. The next section of the climb is through the beautiful Western Cwm, the Valley of Silence, from camp 1 to camp 2 at 6400 meters. A few days ago there was one of the largest avalanches that has happened in this area since Western climbers have been coming here, from the early 1950’s. It launched off the huge North Face of Nuptse, from it’s summit area and came thundering down to the Cwm, washing across the whole valley and up the other side. Amazingly only 2 people were affected by this natural disaster. One person was knocked down but was able to continue climbing to camp 2 and the other person was blown multiple meters by the blast into a crevasse, landing 20 meters into this deep cave. I was on my way to camp 1 to get some gear and with several other climbers we were able to help rescue this person, taking about 1.5 hours to extract him and Sked him to where a chopper could pick him up and fly him to Kathmandu. We hear that his is doing alright now.

Next, we climbed to 7,200 meter to camp 3 on the Lhotse headwall. This climbing is straight forward in many ways at a consistent angle for close to 700 meters. Unfortunately , this year, we did not get the winter snows that should have come and made this entire wall solid with blue ice and many stones exposed. These stones are the issue right now, already hurting several people from other teams. We made it to this high point and returned back to camp 2 safely. What we are discussing now around all the camps is the safety for climbers heading to the upper slopes. One hand, this is mountaineering, we have always had these situations while heading towards the summits of this planet. On the other head, there are a lot of commercial expeditions with climbers that may feel that they are way out of the comfort zone and may wish to return home safely without heading to the summit. We are just past the midpoint of our expedition and our Peak Freak team is looking good for our summit bid around the 15^th of May. Unfortunately we have lost a few clients due to sickness and not acclimatizing well and we all send our very best to them and sad to see them go. This is also the big 8000 meter realm and not everyone on this earth is meant to stand on these summits. They gave their very best shot and they took the step forward and tried to understand this realm, this is what counts in the long run of life…..get out there and take a step into the unknown……do your best whatever you wish to do and you will know that you are truly living.

Living at 5,300 meters is magical and peaceful. Most of the team went down to Pheriche, 4,200 meters, to rest for a week or so until we give them a call to come up for the summit bid when the weather is right and the fixed lines are in. I will head down valley tomorrow to deliver this email to Denali so he can send it out to you all. Just wanted to say thanks for following this great adventure upon the world’s highest mountain. Looking forward to sending more words to you all with this adventure and many more that follow this one. Like with Kilimanjaro with the Katz family in June and my wonderful West Rib of Denali expedition following Kilimanjaro. I also wanted to send my very best to my sister Doris from NYC for a wonderful Birthday on the 4^th of May, thinking of you sis. And one more thought, to my Dad, who is stuck in bed for 8 weeks with a busted up knee, he is 86 years old and retired only last year and never took a day off work for sickness……..incredible. Heal well Dad, thinking of you and sending all my best from the slopes of Mt Everest.

Thanks again everyone, cheers, Marty.

PS, thanks again to my sponsors…..Macpac, Oasis Sun, La Sportiva, Intel, San Disk, Black Diamond, Annies, Em’s Bars and Cookies, MSR, Life Force.

Posted in: In the Media

FREE ENTRY GIVEAWAY for 3D Rotorua

Mon, 07 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT

As a treasured sponsor of the Expand-a-Sign 3D Rotorua Off-Road Winter Multisport Festival www.3drotorua.co.nz, we have 1 FREE ENTRY to give away to 1 lucky Em's Power Cookie fan! the value is up to $150 depending on which event you enter.

All web orders received by noon on Friday May 18 will be included in the draw, and the winner announced on our Facebook Fan Page by 3:00pm that day. You must add the coupon code: 3D when you check out so we know you want to go into the draw. You can order as many times as you like, and each order will go into the draw under your name.

The lucky winner can use the prize to enter any one of the ten events that are on offer on event day – June 3^rd 2012. entry cut-off is Thursday May 31.

The event includes $10,000 cash and $75,000 in spot prizes to giveaway. There are free colour 20 week generic training programmes are available on the event website www.3drotorua.co.nz to assist those who are interested to get fit and successfully complete the event they chose to enter.

Remember all web orders received by noon Friday May 18 will go into the draw.

Good luck!

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

Mt Everest 2012 by Marty Schmidt

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Namaste from Namche Bazar, Nepal

By Marty Schmidt, Em's Power Cookies muncher

This place of trade from the old days to the now major hub of modern ways for trekkers and climbers from around the world is always wonderful to come back to. Our team arrived yesterday from Monjo, feeling fit and happy after arriving to this altitude of 3,450 meters. With beautiful views of the Himalayan foothills, one can just sit, be still and enjoy the moment.

We just had a great rest today which included a day walk to the upper towns to visit the Hillary Hospital and the Hillary School. A lot of work from people around the world has been happening here since the 1950s, having big influences from the expeditions that came here in the past to modern teams that are still coming to this magical land.

Our team of 12 clients and 3 guides, from 9 different nations are working well together, with everyday preparing for the higher mountain. We leave for Pingboche tomorrow, having a Lama Blessing for our team along the way. We’ll sleep beneath Ama Dablam, one of the most beautiful mountains in the world. After this it will be 2 more lodge stays with Dingboche and Loboche, before heading into our Base Camp at the foot of the Khumbu Ice Fall. With all this behind us, we will work hard and get sorted with our camps during the next 6 weeks so that when summit attempt is upon us all, we will be ready. Our camps will be; camp 1, 6000 meters; camp 2, 6400 meters; camp 3, 7100 meters and then with the highest camp 4 being at 7900 meters.

Like I mentioned in the past dispatches, communications are not going to be like they were in the past, being limited to use. But I will get words out to my son Denali, with cell phone calls, text messages and with emails when I drop down valley to an internet café. He will then post these words out to you all.

Thanks for following along with us as we ascend towards the 8000 meter realm upon Mt Everest. I will try to post a photo from our trek in, but not sure how slow the system will be, not sure if it will get out. I send great thoughts and many blessing to all of you from the Himalayas.

Cheers, Marty.

PS, I want to give thanks to my son Denali, who is generously giving some of his valuable time between his studies to get these dispatches out to you. Thank you Denali for your help, I know that I appreciate it and I know everyone else does as well. Also like to give many thanks to Daan at Macpac for helping with my past dispatches from around the world. Thanks Big Daan.

Posted in: In the Media

Life After Racing

Thu, 15 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Life After Racing

The 2011 Speight's Coast to Coast was my "finale" - my last effort at the great race. I had a perfect "mental" day in terms of my race plan execution and finally achieved that ultimate space of truly mastering my thoughts while under the stresses of top-level competition. I can genuinely say that I enjoyed the whole day! I was good enough for 3rd place; if only my body held up as good as my mind did. I guess that is why they say sometimes, that experience and cunning can outweigh youth and strength... But in my case I was beaten by youth who were quite simply, raising the bar.

It is always interesting to look back and reflect at past acheivements and use all of our experiences to add to our tool box of life. In the eight years of racing "The Longest Day" Coast to Coast I can draw analagies of learning between sport, family, business and life in general. The times when you think you are being psyched out by the competition can be easily overcome by simply doing a shift in perspective. And all of the sudden, that insurmountable task seems totally achieveable. You just have to change your perspective, that's all. And the beauty is, we are all capable of mastering our own thoughts.

In the last year, I have been focusing my efforts on my business Em's Power Cookies. Instead of putting my life and husband on "the back burner" while I trained for C2C, this past summer I was able to get out and promote my business in earnest. Also we have a block of land, and the dream is to build our family home here. Planting trees, and tending to the goats has definitely taken priority over those long training hours. Though, heaving on the end of a shovel can certainly bring it's own rewards!

I still get out and mix it up a little on the race courses. Last weekend I went to the Motatapu MTB race, with (delusional) thoughts that I may still be competitive, pretty much 100% relying on "muscle memory" to compensate for my lack of training. As the gun went off and the pace quickened, I soon realized that the dozen or so rides over the last year wasn't really going to cut it. And my muscle memory seemed to have amnesia. As I reflected during the ride, I chatted with other riders, and smiled, and truly enjoyed the experience. I realized that a part of me, the old "racing Emily" was gone, at least for now... This was a little sad for me. But as priorities change, we have to accept who we are for the now. Nothing more, and nothing less. We have to be on the spot, and our lives are about choices we must accept. We cannot go back, only forward. So this day, that was my reality and it was staring me in the face.

We get to choose what we are and what we do. We are lucky! What we were in the past, although our past experiences form the fabric of ourselves, does not really matter. What is important is NOW.

Cheers

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

2012 Motatapu Report by Gavin Mason

Mon, 12 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT

An insight to the 2012 Motatapu mtb race, by Gavin Mason 2012 Men's Elite Champion

I was looking forward to this years race, it had been a couple of years since I had raced the mtb event, as the previous year I gave the off road tri a crack.

A big thanks to R&R Sport for the tremendous support for this event and many others, also Giant bikes, they go fast and last… and Icebreaker for keeping my feet warm and my torso toasty....

I had not been feeling the love on the bike with my previous couple of events still over shadowed by the Coast to Coast one day hang over. So to be honest if I got on the stage at the end of the day I would have been more than happy.I knew with the quality of the field competing that I would have to race smart and savvy to be in the placings, with the likes of Brent Miller, Mark Willams and the boys from Invercargill all at the head of the elite pack it was going to be game on. Taking the race a tad seriously, I read the rules to find out specifically what the compulsory gear was, to save on weight/improve comfort, so much so, I didn’t apply the sweet cheeks to save a few more grams… :-) Although no waxed or shaved legs, I am a multisporter at heart…

As per previous motatapu events I bike out from Wanaka, a good 25min spin of the legs. It always amazes me biking out, the number of bikes, and the quality of bikes on the back of cars…With the rego stuff done and the bikers gathered, I had a natter to none other than Em the power cookie her self whilst waiting at the gate, also gave Willy a bit of stick, and generally tried to lighten the mood a little.

A skidding VW ute and a grumpy race director later we the elite field where off and racing. Turns out I didn’t get the email about the pace, I shot up the road, thinking the boys will come with me and get it going, but oh no, they all just sat in the bunch, hmmmm I thought, 1^st km do I make a brake, blow up 15kms into the race and grovel to the finish?, or play some games?, so games it was. I let the bunch roll up to me, sat back 5^th wheel and waited for the 1^st hill.

Up the hill the pace didn’t seem to really increase, well I kept up I should say, wasn’t blowing like a steam train, so I got down the next hill quick smart knowing the slight advantage would give me a buffer if the hurt box came calling, but it never came. Up past the homestead and I was still in touch with the lead 8 guys. GOLD, So now the plan was to hang on to the lead bunch as long as possible.

The woolshed was fast approaching(32km to go) and the start of the nuggety short sharp climbs. I found I still had good legs on me up theses and over the top was looking back to see if the bunch had got smaller, as the ability of the group to roll through was limited to 3 guys. I thought the “save ya legs for later team” where getting ready to make a move. But nope they were slowly popping off the back

The river crossing at roses hut saw me leading the charge of down the hill, this is where I chose to apply my god given ability (being heavier) and bomb off down the track, into and through the rivers. The extra speed the Giant xtc 29er gives is CRAZY, you got let it go and ride aggressively which is good times.

With 10ish kms to go, the bunch had re formed to 5ish I felt good, so it was go untill ya blow time. I dislike sprint finishes, so it was time to kick it up a gear and see who came to ride and who still had good legs. With a slight tail wind and a hard fast, sometimes muddy track. The runners and slower tri/multisport mtbers made it interesting but fast riding. I could either use my brakes or shot the gap and hold my speed. I think you know what of the two options I chose….

The boys had got down to 4, Mark, Brent, Tim and myself. I aimed to ride my own ride, hard and fast as I could go… staying in front gave me the best lines on the descents. It was all on for the last 6km. It was onto the Masetown track it was still a very real bike race. The 1^st of the major rivers saw me falter. I rode in, but had to get off and lost 10-15meters on the boys, back on the bike and a few river crossings to go, I past Brent in the next river as he stopped and had to get off.

Bit more of a peddle and into another river crossing. This turned out to be the key moment. I had spotted a line out through this river crossing the weekend before when I took my lovely girlfriend(Nadia) in to show her the river crossings(as she competed in the weekend warrior section). I went river left, cut across and was able to accelerate across the gravel bar, as it was shallow, meanwhile the boys went up the guts and found the deep water. Quick dismount through the channel I was in front by 15m, wow, 1 river to go, in I went, it was deep, off I got, ran up the hill, cyclo cross 101 remount I was back on smartly, the last creek to go, I was in front.

I just kept on trucking riding strong, I couldn’t hear anyone right behind me, so rode hard and fast, last water feature to negotiate, full noise and a mass of water and ginger horse power I rode onto the start of the grass, 50meters to go…..

Around into the finish chute, I had a quick look back, Mark was 5odd meters back, and Brent similar back. I almost sat up to enjoy the last few meters, but within the split second I spotted a biker approaching down my left hand side, two ish peddle strokes later I remember just flying through the air, and sliding out the backend of the tent, thinking what the hell was that.

Turns out willy wanted to sprint for 1^st palce…which made for a dramatic/spectacular finish.

So in 1:52:43:92 I won the Motatapu mtb race, Mark Williams in second in 1:52:43:93

But its onwards and upwards from here. 17^th March South Island Secondary school adventure racing champs in Cromwell, 40 x4 person teams…. Will be fun to help out and be a part of, then 24^th 25^th 26^th sees the Goldrush multisport race take place, looking forward to getting out to my first big event, then look out winter cyclo cross season is coming, mud skinny tiers and funtimes….

Cheers

Gavin

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

Tim Taylor Completes Epic NZ Kayak

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Hey folks. Well it’s been a couple of days since I arrived back in Tauranga and life is starting to return to normal. All of my gear has been cleaned and dried for the final time, so with this done I thought I’d get a final trip report written up for you all.

When I last did an update I was up in Waipu. It seemed that this scheduled day off was timed perfectly with some dirty weather, so I enjoyed a couple of days tucked away safely at Sharkskins sponsor, Tim Curran’s family batch. I left these comforts on Friday the 24th and was heading towards Towharanui some 60km in the distance. The paddle itself was actually pretty standard but a real highlight for me was paddling past Mangawhai. I have some great memories from here with the lads on summer missions so I had a quiet little reminisce as I paddled past. Arriving at Towharanui, I was feeling pretty buggered but I was greeted by a beautiful series of golden beaches which was fuel enough to help keep the motor running until I got camp sorted (or so I thought). I knew there was a campground here of some description so I set off to find it but annoyingly this is where I started to run into a bit of trouble. It started with a park ranger on a quad bike who for some reason, though he was a cop and could tell people what to do. I was sitting next to Waverly when he rode up full of steam, so I told him what I was doing and had what I done today. He proceeded to ‘lay down the law’ and tell me that there would be no way that I would get into the campground as it was already fully booked (by this stage I had already checked out the campground and knew that it was less than ¼ full). I don’t usually like rangers (for this sort of reason) but I chose to stay calm and just casually said “well if it’s a problem I’ll just camp on the beach like I usually do. I’ve just paddled 60km and I don’t have the energy to go anywhere else.” Now here’s where I got really pissed off because he replied “no, you can do that because I’ll be coming back later and I’ll move you on.” If ever my true Kiwi blood boiled, it was just then...beaches are still public property as far as I know and no one can dictate what to do on them in this country! Rather wisely he chose to move on just then but he continued to give me a dirty eye every time he rode past. The saga was not finished however. Being the good citizen I am I went down to see the camp hosts to try and get things sorted. They did confirm that the campground was full but told me that this place was run by the Auckland Council and they have a supper weird booking system. Apparently you can book you tent site years in advance and because of this the place is usually solidly booked 6 months out. However, as it only cost $10 a night, many people choose not to turn up (say if the weather looks bad or if they just forget) so the place can be nearly empty but unable to take any more people. This ‘camp couple’ were sweet with me staying because they could see what I had just done but said to head down to the rangers office and just pay my $10. As it turned out, the office was 2km away down a gravel road so that was a fun walk in bare feet, especially when I found there was no one there but there was a weird sort of telephone that connects you directly with the Auckland Council so you can pay by credit card. Once again I was met by a brick wall when the council chap said “sorry, the computer sais it’s fully booked and won’t let me put in your credit card details so you won’t be able to stay.” Dang, is this council screwed up or what! After another 2km walk back, the camp hosts thankfully could see my problem and I was allowed to finally collapse for the day....this saga had been more draining than the whole days paddling. A massive thanks to Jena and Amy who later came out to cheer me up.
The following day, the weather was absolutely blowing its tits off so I was forced to stay an extra day at this screwy place. With nothing better to do, I went off for a walk and discovered that this whole area is inside a predator-proof fence and is a massive council park. I did a really nice walk out and around the peninsula where I could see the huge whitecaps that were rolling through the Hauraki Gulf. If you are after a sweet little day trip from Auckland, I would thoroughly recommend this place as there was multiple, easy walking tracks that take through both bush and farmland, with views that are pretty spectacular. On the coastal side of things, there is a big marine reserve out in front of the campground and I was fortunate enough to later go out for a snorkel with a family I befriended. It was amazing to see 20+ pound snapper swimming right up to you for a look and rows of crayfish tucked in under the rocks...all in about 2 metres of water.

Sunday the 26th was to be a huge day out on the briny deep. Instead of following the coast in towards Auckland, I chose to shoot straight across the gulf. This was a risky strategy because I would be out in the middle of the ocean and if the weather cut up rough there would be nowhere to hide. It would however save 3 days worth of paddling if I had chosen the safe option and headed into Auckland. So in a ‘no guts, no glory’ style, I valiantly paddled out into the Hauraki Gulf. Haha, in actual fact I was totally terrified and I kept looking back to see how it was to the safety of Kawau Island. Luckily for me I had picked a beautiful day and while it had started out choppy, it gradually eased off to be totally calm and blistering hot. When I was right out in the middle, I spied a plane circling around and as it got closer I identified it as Dad’s new Robin. They missed me the first few times but eventually saw me and did a few circuits around me that were at altitudes which I’m sure would have had mum squealing haha. It was good to see them but I was quietly pissed off that they could cover distances in minutes that would take me days...ahh the joys of kayaking.
Arriving at the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, I chose to carry on. My plan had been to head into Fantail bay which is on the Hauraki Gulf side but I figured it was just as easy to aim for the tip and go around to the other side. This would take a bit of distance off the next day’s paddling and as it was still only early, I didn’t mind doing a bit more. Eventually I ended up in Stony Bay which is a cute little bay that is pretty much at the end of the road on the eastern side of the peninsula.

Monday the 27th I had probably my hardest days paddling of this second leg. Early in the morning the wind got up and was to spend the entire day battling into it. At times it was gusting well over 20 knots which is usually my ‘get off the water limit’ and during the whole day it stayed above 15knots. To give you an idea how strong this is 10 knots is when whitecaps form, 15 is when these grow to ½ metre breaking waves, and 20 is when I struggle to actually go forwards even if I am paddling at 100%. The only thing I had on my side was a case of ‘get home itis’ which I had developed overnight when it dawned on me that Tauranga was only just around the corner. All day I pushed hard, using every ounce of energy that I had and every piece of shelter I could find. By lunch time I was at Whangapoua so I pulled in and went up to the dairy for a much needed energy fix. I was desperate for a pie but finding none I settled for a coke, a bag of chips and a packet of chocolate chippy biscuits. Haha this has to be about the most unhealthy meal that I have ever had but my body was screaming for energy and I figured a big ‘injection’ of sugar would be the easiest way to go about it. As it turns out, this feed was perfect and I easily powered on for the next few hours in ever increasing winds. I ultimately arrived in at Otama Bay which was my scheduled stop for the night. I was stoked to reach it because I had worked hard all day, showing that my body was capable of punching at this high level for long periods of time.

Tuesday the 28th and I was up early and paddling in the darkness for the first ½ an hour. I had got into the habit of being on the water not long after 6am and I absolutely love this pre-dawn time of the day because it is generally cool and calm – perfect paddling conditions. I also really enjoy watching the sun coming up over the eastern horizon and the feeling of knowing that I am already charging when most people are probably only just waking up. My target for the day was Tairua which was a relatively short run of about 40km away. I crossed Mercury Bay with ease but by the time I reached Hot Water beach, the effect of the previous big day was finally catching up to me. I didn’t really care because I was now close enough to Tairua to cruise a bit and let the body relax.
I was due to meet a mate of a mate somewhere out from Tairua who was supposedly going to paddle in with me and look after me for the night. Just out from Neaves Bay I spied a kayaker charging along so I headed his way. I must have paddled directly at him for a good 5 minutes and even waved out a couple of times but whoever it was, was definitely on their own mission and I thought that they must just be someone doing a training mish. I carried on and came into the Tairua harbour just as a dirty southerly front rolled in and proceeded to drop the temperature and a mass amount of rain. Sheltering in the local dive shop I eventually established that the fast guy was probably my contact for the night. As he had to come back at some stage I just waited around and n hour or so later John eventually paddled back in. Haha he had almost got to Hot Water beach before turning around which is a good 30km paddle return. I had a great night with John and he cooked up some awesome feeds to keep me fuelled for my final day.

Wednesday the 29th was to be my final day on the water and what a day it was. On my plan I had indicated that I was going to take 2 days to do this final stretch back to Tauranga but that ‘get home itis’ had well and truly infected me and I made the decision to risk it all and just see if I could make it After all, if I did make it I wouldn’t exactly need any energy reserves for the next day. With a really dodgy forecast this was a bit of a gamble but I was on home turf now and I knew that I could take certain risks along this stretch of coast and get away with them.
Out on the water I made myself one hard rule which was that I would only stop on the hour for my designated snack stop. Nothing else. Knowing I had a long day ahead of me, I put on my ‘tunnel vision goggles’ and really just chewed up the miles. I rigidly kept to my no stopping rule which was hard because I was passing some beautiful coastline and because my body was often screaming in pain (particularly my legs). Passing Whangamata not long after 10, I knew I could make it back to Tauranga. Out to my port side (left), I had the Bay of Plenty’s silent sentinel, Mayor Island, watching my progress and occasionally I could see the top of the Mount come into view between swells. These both gave me a huge boost mentally.
I was out from the Bowentown Heads at around 3pm and after dodging the bar area, I really cranked up the pace. From the Heads to the Mount is a distance of 25km and the closer I got, the faster I went. It was as though the view of the Mount was spurring me on and I was amazed that my body could actually keep up with this pace after such a long day. Out from Karewa Island, I could see something heading towards me and I said to myself “if its kayakers who have come to paddle with me, they had best be prepared to paddle hard because I’m not stopping now!” Luckily it was a boat and it turned out it was some old friends who had come out to guide me in. Bob Ockwell had guided me out of the Tauranga Harbour when I first left on this journey and when he pulled up alongside he said “I told you I would meet you when you got back.” I just replied, in a cheeky fashion “there’s a definite lack of fishing rods on that boat haha.”
By the time I came into the Tauranga Harbour I was buggered. I still had to paddle up to the Wairoa River and as the tide was almost fully out this was an extra distance of about 15km. It also meant that I had to paddle into an outgoing tide for the last hour. Getting a final spurt of energy, I powered up the harbour, overtaking a bunch of yachts that were racing (there wasn’t much wind so they were going pretty slow). Finding the Wairoa channel is always a problem at low tide as floods each year often change it or completely fill it up with sediment. This time was no exception and I ultimately had to drag Waverly through a series of shallows before I found the deeper water. I was now on my home river and I allowed myself to relax and just enjoy it. I met old family friends Mark and Marie McGarver, who had paddled down to join me, and together we paddled the final few kilometres of my journey. Passing under the train bridge we were greeted by camera flashes and cheers. I stopped for a few minutes before heading the final distance up to the main bridge. It was now completely dark and a simply amazing evening in its own right but the welcome I got totally blew me away. There were dozens of people cheering me in and I was a bit shocked by it all...this had just been a kayaking trip to me so I never expected that sort of reception when I got home. So I have to say a MASSIVE thanks to everyone who welcomed me in. I will never forget the cheers, the handshakes, and all of the big hugs that I got...I was totally in awe of it all.

The final tally for the day was 87.5km for 13 hrs 45mins. It was the 3rd longest day distance wise that I have ever done but it was the longest I have ever done time wise and I was completely buggered. It was a great way to end an awesome trip. For the record, I spent a total of 112 days on the water for the entire expedition, covering an average of 49.4km per day. My longest day was 95.8km and the total distance I paddled was 5529.3km.

I would just like to say another MASSIVE thanks for all of the support that I have received during this whole expedition. I met hundreds of people, received hundreds of emails and I was always blown away by the level of love and encouragement that I received. Like I said, this trip was a just a big kayaking trip to me and I always thought I was just doing something that I do best i.e. If I didn’t do it I just wouldn’t be working to my potential and I would ultimately be letting myself down. I never realised how much this trip would mean to other people so I am really stoked that I was able to give you all something. Your support and encouragement was your way of being part of it and I can confirm that it definitely helped so thanks for coming along for the journey.

The next big thanks are to all of my sponsors. I was blessed with an amazing group of sponsors who had my back all the way through. The gear, the financial support, and the physical support that they provided was crucial and I could never have done it without them. Please consider all these brands when you next come to buy a bit of gear or have your next adventure because I can recommend all of them. All of the equipment that I used has been thoroughly thrashed, abused and otherwise treated badly...and all of it survived. So if I can’t break it then no one can! Most of these companies are NZ locals so help another Kiwi out and give them some business.

So what’s for the future? Well my next big project is starting my very own kayaking business. This will be based around my second big love, kayak fishing, and I hope to be taking people out on their own little kayak fishing adventures around the Bay of Plenty. I figure I may as well try to get paid for kayaking haha. Keep an eye out for ‘NZ Kayak Adventures’ coming to a shore near you and on this website as I will be using it for both the business and for any new kayaking adventures. There will also be the book, which I hope to get sorted over the next few months. I guess you all will know about the adventures that I’ve had but this will be the definitive version and it will have all of the photos, so keep an eye out for that too.

As always, I will be available through the usual channels if you ever want to get in touch but until then everybody, get out and enjoy a slice of NZ and enjoy what this amazing world has to offer.

Paddle hard,
Tim.

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

Richard Ussher Coast to Coast Report

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Coast to Coast 2012 Multisport World Championship

It is always a rather nervous time heading into Coast to Coast, reports abound in the media of just how great everyone else is going and often about how much better other peoples chances of winning should be.

For Elina and I this year we’d had the luxury of no race in Abu Dhabi before hand so a few extra weeks in which to refresh and start a proper build up

The start of the race is always chaos starting in the dark on Kumara beach and right from the gun the pace was on. Braden Currie pushed the pace and instead of the usual line of competitors for the first time we actually ended up with a small break on the run.

After a hurried transition onto the bike we set off at top speed. We had a small group of 6 athletes formed already and Dougal Allen was especially keen to push on as James Coubrough was missing from the 6 despite being one of the first to the bikes. He’d also made it clear he wanted to try and take the sting out of the quicker runners legs and despite some of those runners forming part of our pack everyone was happy enough to roll through at a good tempo.

About half way through the ride our 6 became 4 and the pace backed off a little with less legs to help at the front.

Still given the light headwind blowing we had still made excellent time by the first transition and the first defining leg of the race began.

Braden Currie was quickly into his stride and started putting some time into us immediately but I was relieved to see the gap was opening relatively slowly. I had company in the chasers spot with Jeremy McKenzie and Dougal Allan seemingly glued to my heels, so much so that when I tripped and fell one time they literally tripped over me.

We could still see Braden whenever we had a good line of sight and at Big Boulders it was still less than 3 minutes. James Coubrough had now joined our chase group and was looking super fresh despite having caught up nearly 4 minutes in the first hour. I was feeling really comfortable and with Braden’s gap now seeming to stabilize I was happy to keep the same pace and let the other dictate if they wanted to go faster.

Just before the top of Goat Pass I suddenly noticed that James and I had gapped the other two and shortly after I let James go up the steeper section towards the hut.

It was nice to be finally running by myself, and the rhythm seemed to come a bit easier, I could see James as we headed down around 30-40 seconds ahead and I was also still catching glimpses of Braden so I felt like things were reasonably under control. Prior to the race I’d had expectations that I could be giving up as much as 10 minutes on the run and that was looking unlikely with less than an hour to go.

I actually caught up to James again on the downhill from Dudley’s knob and we ran together for a while before I decided he was going just a half step faster than I wanted to and let him gradually pull away again.

It is always nice to finish the run and get on the bike, or maybe it’s just the extra food you can stock up on in transition. My support crew bundled me through and onto the bike where I set off after the front two.

I was feeling good and moved back past James halfway through. There was still a chilly headwind blowing but at least it was warmer than the top of the run. It was already becoming clear that we would be battling the wind for the entire paddle.

Running down to the kayak I saw Braden paddle off as I was crossing the bridge and a couple of minutes later I was off in pursuit. For some reason my drink system wasn’t working, the result of a leak or poor connection maybe but to get any drink I had to suck as hard as possible and take in a few drops as I was mainly just sucking air. I also managed to take the worst line possible at one split and when the river came back together 5 minutes later I had James right back on my tail.

I had almost lost sight of Braden as well and a small amount of nervousness set in while I tried to keep James behind and catch back up to Braden. They were both going well and it wasn’t until the Gorge that I finally caught up to Braden and almost simultaneously started to put more of a gap on James. I had a quick chat with Braden and then set off to try and eke out some time on them both by the end of the paddle.

By the time I reached Woodstock I couldn’t see anyone behind on the longer straights and I was ready to start winding it up over the last hour. There were a few two-day competitors in some strange places on the river but they all seemed in good spirits as they closed in on Gorge Bridge.

It is always a great reception for the athletes as you finish the kayak section. My crew hauled me out of the kayak and I tried to do my best running on the spot impression as we made our way up the hill to the waiting bike and the last section of the race. It sounded cold in Christchurch so a few extra layers went on as well as a bit more food before it was off for the final 70km.

We still had a headwind, not super strong but enough to make sure it always felt like riding up a false flat. I eased into the ride and focused on staying smooth and keeping the cadence up, plus a little in the tank incase I ended up with company from behind. The kilometers were ticking over though and averaging 40kph I felt it would be hard fro the chasers to put any serious time into me.

By the outskirts of Christchurch there were a lot of people out supporting the race and the numbers only grew as we headed through the city – I think it was possibly the most I’ve seen out cheering the race on ever and was a huge lift every time I passed by a group.

I still had no idea what was going on behind me and so had to keep the pace high and hope that I was still making some time. It is definitely a cool feeling whizzing through Christchurch with a little police escort but I always feel a few nerves inside the last 20 kilometers when I’m always hoping I won’t suffer a flat tire or any sort of mechanical.

By the causeway the road was deteriorating somewhat and I had to be extra vigilant to not hit any slumps in the road or obstacles, definitely not the most comfortable ride on a TT bike but I also knew I could ride on the rim if I needed from 3km out so the realization a 5^th win was close was starting to sink in. I was able to relax and enjoy the final couple of kilometers and it was just as magic a feeling running up the sand to cross the line as the previous 4.

Behind me there had been some big changes on the final ride with Dougal storming through from 4^th to 2^nd with his customary huge final ride with Braden grabbing 3^rd from James.

It was great to see the young guys really have a crack this year, it definitely made for an interesting race and one that I’ll remember for being one of the more tactical that I have done.

Apparently as I was finishing Elina was just finishing the kayak and learnt that I’d got the win, she was having her own stellar day and had opened up a lead approaching 25 min by the end of the kayak.

It was till quite a nervous wait on the beach for me as we heard occasional time splits but nothing concrete.

Just under 2 hours after I finished I saw one very happy Elina come running down the finish chute and claim her first title on the original course and shed 5 years of frustration in the process.

I’ve always maintained if she got the chance to have a normal build up without a major race in December, which we had typically had, then she would be able to show what she was really capable of, and this year she did just that winning by 38 minutes.

It had been talked about often enough, the chance to be the first husband and wife to win in the same year, and to have it finally happen meant a happy household all round!

Behind her it sounds like Fleur Pawsey had a rough day with stomach cramps but she fought like a true champion all day to claim second ahead of a fast finishing Rachel Cashin and AR World Champ team member Mimi (Myriam Guillot)

Will we be back next year ?– we certainly wouldn’t discount it despite what the media said – I think it is hard to be enthusiastic about returning when asked 30 seconds after finishing and every muscle in your body hurts – it already doesn’t seem like it was so bad and I know the young guys are itching for another shot at knocking me off the top spot.

I also wanted to do something for the next generation of Multisporters in Christchurch after all the community has been through in the last 18 months and I’m after suggestions.

Along with Andrew Martin and our new company Flow Kayaks we are going to auction off my race boat within the next couple of months and will donate all the proceeds to a cause that we think is most deserving, and that will provide the greatest benefit, so if you have any thoughts please let us know. We’ll put all the ideas together and once decided on will list the kayak on Trademe

The boat is pretty unique in that it has been paddled to 3 victories in the Coast (2008, 2011, 2012) along with lots of other race victories around the country. At the moment the boat is going to be kept in original condition as it was at the end of the race last weekend but we can also tidy it up if the auction winner would like - the choice will be theirs.

So finally a huge thanks to our support crew who were amazing, all the people who cheered us on and to our sponsors who make it possible for us to prepare and race at our best.

SUBWAY® RESTURANTS www.subway.co.nz

GIANT www.giant-bicycles.com/en-nz/

R&R SPORT www.rrsport.co.nz

CHAMPION SYSTEM www.champ-sys.co.nz

LEPPIN www.leppinsport.com

INOV8 www.highbeam.co.nz

NEWTON www.dcmsport.com

ROLF PRIMA www.rolfprima.com

AR PAGE www.arpage.co.nz

BLUE SEVENTY www.blueseventy.com

3^RD EYE www.3rd-eye.co.nz

WILDSIDE TRAVEL www.wildsidetravel.co.nz

Posted in: In the Media

Fleur Pawsey Coast to Coast Report

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Coast to Coast 2012 – Fleur Pawsey

The Longest Day sure lived up to its name this year – it was one hell of a long one!

Before I get stuck into a race report, I need to thank few people. I was without doubt the best prepared I have ever been for a Coast to Coast effort, and it was entirely due to the hard work and huge generosity of a few special people.

Richard Greer of Complete Performance did a fantastic job coaching me, making sure I was physically and mentally ready for the start line. With the mind and body sorted, Emily Miazga (creator of Ems Power Cookies and Bars) stepped in to help with my food. She developed a coeliac friendly gluten free cookie bar for me to eat while racing and training, which turned out to be so good I actually had to hide my stash so as not to overindulge before race day! Finally, Len and Kate from Legend Paddles put their hands up to be chief support crew, as well as very generously providing me with a new paddle to use on the river. Thanks team!

With all that support, I’d love to say that I was able to put it all together and have a blinder on race day. Unfortunately the story is a little different.

Things started according to plan. The early morning dash off Kumara Beach was comfortable and I had no issues getting myself exactly where I wanted to be on the bike ; riding alongside the main contenders in the womens race while the faster men were having their own race further up the road. Elina Ussher, Rahel Cashin, Myriam (Mimi) Guillot and I pulled into transition at the same time and my crew excelled themselves with a super slick gear change over. For a brief minute or two I had the glory of being race leader.

It wasn’t to last though; I was quickly joined by Elina with Mimi chasing hard not far behind. As we headed up the Deception Valley Elina began to pull ahead, and I was more than happy to chase rather than lead the way. Mimi is a spectacularly fast mountain runner so I mentally prepared myself for her to fly past and run ahead too. That didn’t happen and I soon found out why. In an apologetic voice Mimi asked if she could follow me through the run as she did not know the way. She is one of the kindest and most generous people I have met on the adventure racing circuit and I was happy to actually be able to help her out for a change. She repaid the favour by physically pushing me up some of the steeper parts of the track and by checking I was remembering to eat and drink… old adventure racing habits die hard!!

Once over Goat Pass I had hoped to kick into a higher running gear and pick up some speed, but my body was going into battle with me on that one. My legs seemed a little shaky, and adding to the mix the expected pain in my long suffering dodgy right knee was being countered by a brand new pain in my left heel. With all this going on I decided my best strategy was to run conservatively and focus on getting myself to the kayak in reasonable shape. I felt like I had some sort of double sided limp going on as I finally got to the end in a time that was slower than I would have liked. It was disappointing but not disastrous; Elina was only eight minutes head so I still had a race on my hands.

The 15km bike ride and 1km shuffle down to Mt White Bridge were a boost for my spirits. It was awesome to see plenty of friends and familiar faces on the riverbank, and I felt relatively cheerful getting into the boat. The sun was shining, the air was fresh, and my Sharp 6 kayak is such a fun boat to paddle down the Waimak. I set off in pursuit of Elina feeling strong, and thoroughly enjoyed myself until I realised that, well, I wasn’t enjoying myself anymore. In a long and intense race it can be so hard to pinpoint the moment where things start to go bad. My recollection of the paddle is a bit hazy, but I do know that by the Iron Bridge I was beginning to have a hard time eating and drinking, and by Woodstock it didn’t really matter as whatever I ate and drank clearly was not going to stay down. Add to that a total snafu at the Horseshoe Bend ‘shortcut’, and my paddle had gone pear shaped.

Transition couldn’t come soon enough. When it finally did I gave my crew the torturous experience of watching Mimi saunter past me in transition to move into 2^nd place, while I made a very necessary visit to the portaloo!

I was feeling pretty delicate as I prepared to set off on the final bike ride, and I knew I was going to have to race carefully if I was to see the finish line. Here Em’s gluten free cookie bars proved their weight in gold. I ditched my normal last ride lollies and gels, grabbed a couple of bars which had far more appeal to my sorry stomach, and set off down the road. My journey down Old West Coast Road went something like this: in my head I counted ‘one, two, one, two’ over and over and over as it seemed the only way of keeping my legs turning around. Every ten minutes I had a bite of bar and if I could manage it a sip of water, and every 15 minutes or so I had a unintentional wobble and weave on the road, as if my body just wanted to remind my head that it was absolutely smashed and really wouldn’t mind just lying down in the ditch on the side of the road.

Somehow this management method actually worked, and by the outskirts of Christchuch the cookie bars had kicked in and I had begun to feel human again. I’d overtaken Mimi to regain 2^nd place, and while a win was clearly out of the question the day was looking brighter.

I felt quite emotional riding down the causeway and toward Sumner. There is no better reminder of the year we have had in Christchurch than the lumps, bumps and scars on that section of road. As I rode into Redcliffs I caught a glimpse of the house I had been living in a year ago, now red stickered and awaiting demolition, and rode past the ruined and deserted homes of former neighbours. It was a reality check; a reminder that whatever the outcome of the race it is only that, a race. A reminder of how lucky I was to have had the opportunity to be on the start line, let alone at the finish and in 2^nd place. So it was with a huge grin and a feeling of exhausted relief that I finally ran down the finish chute to take the runner up position in the 2012 Longest Day.

My congratulations must go to Elina on a dominant and impressive win, and also to Rachel and Mimi who gave me a great race and took out 3^rd and 4^th respectively. I’d like to thank my super support crew who put in a huge effort for me before, during and after the race, and I’d also like to thank the following sponsors for their support and generosity:

- Complete Performance www.completeperformance.co.nz

- Em’s Power Cookies and Bars www.powercookies.com

- Legend Paddles www.legendpaddles.co.nz

- Icebreaker www.icebreaker.com

- R&R Sport www.rrsport.co.nz

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

C2C Nutrition Webinar

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Posted in: Em's Blogs

Powergirl's Picks for 2012 Speight's C2C

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Click this link to view the NZ Herald article by Emily Miazga:

http://www.powercookies.com/resources/images/2012C2C_NZherald.pdf

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

Jo Lawn 7x Time Ironman NZ Champion

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Jo Lawn - 7x NZ Ironman Champ and #1 Em's Power Cookies Fan!

Late last year, I was at the ITU Triathlon World Cup Expo at the Auckland Viaduct. I spotted Jo Lawn across the crowd of people chatting with friends. I had never seen Jo in real life before, and she looked really beautiful, relaxed and engaging. So part of me wanted to go up to her and give her some Em’s Power Cookies to try, but I was a little shy (believe it or not!). Next thing I knew, Jo and her husband Armando were standing in front of our booth exclaiming, “OMG… are you EM??? We LOOOOVE your cookies… they are just the best…!!!” etc, etc. I was really flattered, surprised and humbled to have the great Jo Lawn paying me such wonderful compliments about my cookies. Jo and Armando also had a real appreciation for my business, and respect as a small entity trying to make it in the tough competitive market. Meeting Jo and Armando really made my day, and further affirmed that my cookies truly are “the goods”.

Since then we have started supplying Jo with some sponsored product and here are some of her thoughts and feedback:

“Lovinggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg my cookies..... They are soo good...... I even had a Chocolate Oat Explosion the night before my Tauranga race!! It obviously worked a treat. I have been having some stomach issues when I race, so I try and eat pretty plain foods the day prior to racing. Your cookie was awesome, pretty much one of my only races that I haven't had to stop for the bathroom!!!! Yippee.....”

“Armando and I have one every morning and then after swimming and then on the bike!!!! I think I need to order some more!”

“The feedback is going awesome. People want to buy your cookies everywhere!!! Even a request from a mate in Aussie!!!!”

Thanks Jo – you’re amazing! I wish you all the best in getting Ironman NZ title #8 Em’s Power Cookies will help you get there for sure.

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

Mokihinui Track Restoration

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Recently, we had over 40 volunteers descend upon our local Buller, West Coast Region to work on the Mokihinui Gorge track. We sponsored Cookies to all the volunteers and boy, they sure needed the energy! In the past this track has been quite formidable, and unrideable to say the least. After the efforts of these keen volunteers, the restored track is amazing and now anyone can enjoy it safely, while taking in this breath-taking part of NZ. The track will form the last section of the Old Ghost Road, which is part of the NZ Cycle Ways project. It will be complete in 2013, and already a UK magazine has rated it as one of the best rides in the world! Here are the stats for the weekend:

41 volunteers on day one, and several new people arrived on day two
The track is mostly cleared, and 96% rideable to Andersons Creek - total distance 6.5 km
Chainsaws were hugely valuable. Special thanks to the operators, Peter, Dave and Dave
The Old Ghost Road team have got funding to employ a digger to forge ahead to the Suicide Slips, and then they will get a couple of suspension birdges built across those formidable obstacles
By next year,Meridian will have won or lost their environment court hearing (Sept this year). Either way, the track will hopefully be formed all the way to Mokihinui Forks

Thanks to:

Ground Effect for tools
Emily for Em's Power Cookies
Dave for Calenders
Ghost Road Trust for BBQ
The Kennett Brothers for helping to make this happen

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

Cramping Q&A

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

A customer recently emailed me with a question about cramping and endurance racing. Here is the story:

Hi Em, just watched your webinar on the Speight's site, great info thanx. Understand the carbs vs weight from Ironman last year but am concerned re cramp - I experienced this after about 11 hours (30 odd k in run at IM) expecting a 15 hour day on my 1st C2C have been supplementing with magnesium this year to counter, do your Cookies offer any support in this area?

With cramping the best prevention is hydration with fluids that have enough sodium: aim for 400mg/L concentration. Horley’s Replace is the best sports drink, and nuun is a fantastic electrolyte replacement to add to water when you don’t want/need the carbs (it contains nil carb).

In C2C, anytime you’re drinking I highly recommend using a good sports drink or nuun rather than plain water. During the race, the mtn run will pose the biggest risk because you’ll just drink from the rivers (plain water) so make sure whatever gels you use have a decent amount of sodium – around 100mg per serving. My Cookies and Bars have added salt and baking soda so there’s about 185-200mg per serving. This is a good amount to take with 200-300 mL plain water, but I don’t put magnesium in.

Generally with magnesium there is some research to say it can help w/cramping. But I think this refers more to your baseline magnesium that you have in your system going into the event. You don’t lose magnesium through sweat-losses in the amounts like sodium. So I’d focus on the sodium as per my recommendations.

Here are the 4 things to prevent cramping:

1. Adequate hydration: 200-300mL per 15-20 mins

2. Adequate sodium – whatever you’re eating/drinking make sure you’re close to about 400mg sodium per L

3. Train for the event – sometimes cramping is simply a consequence of fatigue from pushing hard in a race you’re not used to

4. Stay warm – I find being cold can exacerbate the onset of cramping

Hope this helps you!

Cheers

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

Type 2 Diabetes Q&A

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

A customer recently emailed me with good questions. Here is the story:

Hi I am just wondering what the sugar content of the power bars are? I have Type 2 Diabetes and need to watch what sugar and fat content of food is. I am planning on a large ride in a few months and have been recommended I try your product but would like to know a little more about what is in it. Thank you.

The bars and cookies are all about 28-35g sugar per 100g. Much of this comes from natural sugars (mix of rice syrup, dried fruits, honey) depending on the flavours, and brown sugar is the only added sugar I use. The most important aspect with diabetes blood sugar control of the glycaemic index. All my products are based on rolled oats and have a moderate protein and fat content so the GI is LOW. (I used to be a Certified Diabetes Educator when I was practicing as a Dietitian in the US.)

For sports nutrition needs they will be perfect for you. Remember as you’re exercising, you will have improved insulin-sensitivity so you may even have to adjust any meds you may be taking to lower doses.

The fats come from the coconut, dark chocolate (saturated, but healthy types), sunflower oil and peanuts (in the peanut bar only) and almonds (apricot bar). So no bad fats, expect the Original Cookie has a small amount of butter.

I’d say the Peanut Choc Bomb is the best for you: it has no added oils – so the fat comes only from the crushed peanuts, and dark chocolate. And there is no added sucrose – just honey and rice syrup.

Hope this helps you. Cheers!

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

Cycling Kit Sneak Preview

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

We are just in the final process of placing our order for some great-looking new cycling kit. If you would like to order any please get in touch with us ASAP. We have to place our order by Feb. 3. $100 NZD each per top or shorts (not bibs). For sizing, see the Tineli website www.tineli.co.nz. disregard the women-specific sizing - we're going for unisex!

Cheers! EM

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

Product Testing in the Mtns

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Kelly Creek, Arthur’s Pass, NZ. Jan 2012

Hey. We’re just sitting here in Arthur’s Pass. And it’s Jan 2012, Jan 4. I’m just wrapping some of these bars. Mitch and Fleur Pawsey about to go through the run and the river today – a back to back workout. And I’m just developing this GF Bar for Fleur because she’s a Coeliac. And I might call it my “Flower Power Bar” or maybe my “Fleur Bar” because Fleur’s going to eat these on the Longest Day of this year’s Coast to Coast. And if all goes well, hopefully she’s this year’s Champion. It would be really good for her and good for the Bars. But they’re really yummy. They’re made with (censored…) … And they just taste divine. I’ve got one here I haven’t wrapped yet. This is the way I used to do it! But you can see the texture and the “moistness”. They’re really, really, good. And even if you’re not a GF person; they’re still really yummy!

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

Em's Recipe #11 High-Pro Recovery Smoothie

Mon, 19 Dec 2011 00:00:00 GMT

I just whipped this smoothie up for my husband who is doing a 5 hr training ride in preparation for Coast to Coast. Recovery nutrition is very important especially for long sessions and even more especially is the session was hard.This smoothie provides approx 90 g carb and 17g protein which easily meets post-recovery requirements within 30 minutes of the training session.

Put all ingredients into blender and hit the GO button:

2 ripe bananas (50g carb)
1+ T. peanut butter (nil carb, 8g pro)
6 Brazilnuts (nil carb, 8g pro)
1 T. honey (15g carb)
1c chilled rice milk (26g carb, 1.5g pro)

For an even more decadent tasting smoothie, try using frozen bananas. This smoothie is 100% vegan and gluten free. Enjoy and happy training!

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

Lake to Lighthouse Ussher Race Report

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 00:00:00 GMT

Lake to Lighthouse 2011

Well it’s no secret it has been a busy few months of racing and the Lake to Lighthouse was a bit of change of scene after mainly 2-4 hour races.

I’ve also been super busy launching a new company called Flow kayaks, which I formed with Andrew Martin. Andrew has made my race boats for years and has also been one of the major contributors to improving my paddling since moving to Nelson nearly 7 years ago. In the past few weeks we finally saw the plans go from the computer to the water but it definitely took a major toll on the training leading into this particular race.

We literally finished the first boat, which Elina would be paddling, on the Thursday morning about an hour before we had to leave for the ferry. Elina got 5 minutes in it to make sure it floated before we had to scarper to make the ferry. We were in Picton not more than 5 minutes before we drove onto the ferry – good timing!

Day 1 – Waikaremoana

If there was a single day of racing on our calendar this year which I was dreading it was this one. It isn’t that it is a bad course, far from it, but after racing and training for events no longer than 4 hours to be faced with a 5+ hour run as just one section of the day I knew there was the potential for disaster.

The day started with a grind on the MTB’s up the gravel road from Tuai to the main lake, before we followed the undulating track around to transition 1 at Home Bay.

I had company this year with Trevor Voyce and team cyclist John Gray and we all raced into the TA together.

Onto the paddle and I quickly tried to get the jump on Trev, I figured any extra time I had at the start of the run would be a good thing and as I chased down Sam Clark from the first team I managed a small gap. Sam and I battled it out throughout the kayak leg and arrived with a couple of minutes over Trevor.

It sounds as though we got through before the wind started coming up but further back in the field there was apparently plenty of action including a few swimming lessons.

Onto the run and I was freezing cold for the first 30 or 40 minutes, the southerly was certainly keeping the temperature down.

I was feeling pretty comfortable, I could see Sam Clark close behind for the first hour or so before he gradually slipped back. It wasn’t long though before I caught sight of Trev not far behind. It was almost exactly 2 hours in and although I had hoped I’d make it to the hill before he caught up we weren’t too far from the transition.

I picked up the pace a bit or Trev slowed up and we ran stride for stride to the end of the first section of the run.

Once loaded up with more drink, food we set off again, stride for stride. John Gray from the lead team had swapped his MTB for his running shoes and came flying past us both, oh to have fresh legs at that point!

I managed to up it a little and I was surprised to gap Trevor slightly. My dabble off the front ended soon after when I stepped out of my shoe running through some mud and Trev, who’d only be a few meters back anyway cruised on past.

We soon hit the climb and I was thankful that the pace wasn’t any harder than it was as I struggled up onto the top of the Panakeri range with Trev cruising along behind me. The body was definitely starting to suffer. It appeared that muscle memory was lacking for a run of this length and the 90-minute runs I’d been surviving on between races just weren’t enough to have me firing for so long on the feet.

As we passed Panakeri Hut I grabbed some water from the aid station and as I did Trev bolted. I gulped down some water and bolted after him. I wasn’t making much of an impression on his lead and he gradually slipped further and further ahead while I became aware my body was starting to have a pretty serious meltdown. There was less than 10km to go but the track was broken and covered in drops and roots requiring far more co-ordination than I was able muster by this stage and as a result I did several ungainly face plants.

The weather had also taken a turn for the worse with a massive hailstorm passing through and the temperature plummeted.

It was all I could do really to put one foot in front of the other for the remainder of the run, which for me was more like a painful hobble. I finally saw the transition below and mustered a jog the final flatter 500m to my waiting bike.

It was the greatest feeling once I got to the downhill and I could see the kilometers ticking off quickly with no effort on the part of my legs. I finally arrived back at the finish line in Tuai, utterly exhausted and defeated. When I arrived I was welcomed back by the most fearsome Haka I have ever seen, which I fully felt like I didn’t deserve.

Trev had put almost 18 minutes into me in the last 10km and I realistically felt my race for first was over.

Day 2 – Tuai to Wairoa

Over night I came to terms with the fact I was highly unlikely to win this race, after being so thoroughly destroyed yesterday it was easy to have lower expectations on myself but the closer it got to the race start the more I felt like to hell with it – lets see what I can do. More than anything I decided I had to go down swinging and to show all the people who showed so much support the first day and throughout each and every race we do just what I can do.

The race started and I went – from the gun as hard as I could. I looked back after 200m and I had a gap already. Team rider John Gray made it across the gap and the two of us disappeared up the road with a clear gap behind.

I was already getting pretty loose on the gravel downhill’s, the thought briefly flashed across my mind that I was probably going to die in a bike accident of my own making today – I quickly dismissed the idea and dug even deeper.

As we hit the first major climb I dropped John and it was comforting to be out on my own, egging myself on like some deranged soul. The climb gets really steep and by the top I couldn’t see anyone – I had already made up I guessed at least 2 minutes. The downhill’s that followed I truly scared myself, the road was rutted and washed out from rain, as well as being extremely slippery in places there were drops and holes that could easily break a bike, and a person it you plowed into them. Somehow I managed to keep the bike upright and was right back into hammering for every second I could.

The last climb is super steep, only just rideable and my legs were so thrashed by the top I thought maybe I’d overdone it, but I was in the right frame of mind well and truly now and it became a game to just see how much I could punish myself and keep pushing through.

Arriving at the TA I grabbed my TT bike and headed off up the hill, 400m up in 4km or thereabouts. My power meter was showing good numbers and the legs accustomed quickly to the change of position.

The downhill on the other side is a blast and I was regularly approaching 90kph. I still had no idea where Trev was in comparison to me so it was head down as I tried to blast my way to the next TA as fast as possible.

A few cars started passing me and some were yelling splits that I couldn’t really hear over the noise of the wind through the helmet but everyone was looking pretty excited, maybe I was pulling back enough time to at least make it exciting.

The other thing that was getting exciting was where was my support crew? I had only about 8km to go the kayak transition when they went whipping past – relief!

Into the kayak and more than half the day was done already. I was still feeling good but ultra aware that the kayak could be the make or break if it was getting close. I was disappointed to see there would be no assistance from the current today; the branches in the water indicating it must be nearly slack tide.

I keep concentrating on the process, ticking over, making sure the food was going in, checking the GPS for speed and digging for that little extra. It was empowering to be racing with such purpose instead of just going through the motions to get to t he finish. Sam Clark from the top team was eating into my lead and by the time we reached the final TA he was right behind me. John once again took off like a cut cat while I tried to cox the body into one last effort.

After about 10 minutes of running the road joins the river and runs parallel to it, I hoped I would see Trev, which would mean the race, would be getting close. Sure enough just as the river came into view so did Trevor. I’d been running 10 minutes 20 seconds, I figured he had about exactly that to the finish of the paddle meaning I now held a slim overall lead – it was all on

Knowing Trev would be at his best on the run gave me the determination to dig even a bit deeper. I made it up the main climb feeling good, the co-ordination on the rough tracks incomparably better than the previous day.

With 6 kilometers to go the track flattened a little and it was now a matter of letting loose until the finish.

The body was by now well and truly feeling the effects of the day off the front and yesterdays struggle added in for good measure. It became a struggle between the mind and body with the GPS the gauge on who was winning the battle. Before long I was breaking the final kilometers into 500m blocks just to make the task manageable.

Finally the finish came into view and this year there were no high 5’s or smiles, it was full gas right through the tape to an almost instant collapse.

Now all I had to do was wait. In many ways I would have been content whichever way the result went, I’d had a great day and could have done no more, it was a day I could be proud of and that was what I’d set out to do more than anything at the start of the day.

As the minutes ticked past 5 then 10 then 15 minutes the anticipation grew. Alan on the microphone started teasing the crowd, and me, that he could see the quad bike that would be filming Trevs last few steps, but still no one could see his imminent arrival. As the clock ticked past the 18-minute mark a weary satisfaction washed over me and a few short minutes Trev made it to the finish line. He’d obviously had a rough day and had left it all on the track also.

It was a great race from Trevor, it was by far the hardest I have been pushed in a Multisport race for a long time and made the racing that much more fun and the satisfaction was far greater as a result of such close competition.

In the women’s race Elina was unstoppable, again and was right in the race for the 3^rd step on the men’s podium, just missing out by a few minutes on the final day. She gave the new “Rockstar” kayak a good workout and gave it the seal of approval (once she’d checked the kayak times!)

We had a fantastic weekend at the race again and with plenty of less extreme options becoming available as part of the weekend f racing hopefully the race will see greater numbers in 2012

A huge thanks to all our sponsors and supporters, there’s just one last race this coming weekend in Lorne near Melbourne to decide the series of the Anaconda races before a few weeks of proper recovery. I’ll be making some plans over that time on what the racing calendar will look like over the summer too.

SUBWAY® RESTURANTS www.subway.co.nz

GIANT www.giant-bicycles.com/en-nz/

R&R SPORT www.rrsport.co.nz

CHAMPION SYSTEM www.champ-sys.co.nz

LEPPIN www.leppinsport.com

AR PAGE www.arpage.co.nz

INOV8 www.highbeam.co.nz

NEWTON www.dcmsport.com

ROLF PRIMA www.rolfprima.com

GARMIN www.garmin.com

BLUE SEVENTY www.blueseventy.com

3^RD EYE www.3rd-eye.co.nz

SUJON www.sujon.co.nz

EM'S POWER COOKIES www.powercookies.com

Posted in: Em's Blogs, In the Media

Em's Recipe #10 Tahini Salad w/Strawberries

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 00:00:00 GMT

Last night we did the naughty and had fish and chips. Afterwards we felt pretty gross, yet unsatisfied. What is with that with junk food?

Our neighbour had given us some lovely fresh organic salad greens, and they were sitting on our table looking at us saying "eat me". So I decided to whip up this salad with a few things I had on hand, just to cleanse our palettes. Here is what happened:

Dressing:

1 T. Tahini (sesame seed paste)
Generous splash of lime juice (I didn't measure but I think it was about 2 T.)
Small splash of olive oil (maybe 1/2 T.?)
Sea salt and cracked pepper

Whip up with a spoon in a small deep cup.

Salad:

Large plate of salad greens - anything but iceberg lettuce. Rocket would go nice with this
5-6 large strawberries, sliced
1/2 large red onion, diced
1 carrot, shredded

Arrange the salad on a big plate, and top with the dressing and enjoy! This took only about 5 minutes to make up - super easy and a perfect spring/summer treat that served its purpose for us nicely as our apperitive!

Enjoy, EM

Posted in: Em's Blogs