# Is Lionel Sanders Ready For The Norwegian Method.... Again?

An episode of [The Triathlon Hour](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1595443343), 5 May 2026, 1 h 30 min.

Audio: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2640942/episodes/19697971-is-lionel-sanders-ready-for-the-norwegian-method-again.mp3

There's SO much to catch up on. For starters, everyone is talking about Lionel Sanders rejoining The Norwegian Method - we give our opinions on it. We then recap Singapore T100 & bring you some details of what is bubbling behind the scenes with the big name pro's and the T100. Greg & Appo give us the play-by-play on what happened in their sprint finish for 1st at St Anthony's triathlon (warning: it's hilarious) and we bring you up to speed on lots of other things that are happening in the triathlon world at the moment! Nerd Belts Discount code - TTH26 (for 15% off) Click here to buy yourself a Nerd Belt - Or just search "Nerd Belts" on Google and find them that way. Pillar Performance: Use the discount code TTH15 to get 15% off your first order with Pillar Performance at their website or if you're in North America use the TTH15 discount code at The Feed. Try NOMIO for yourself. Discount code - TTH15 (for 15% off). In Europe - https://drinknomio.com In America - go to thefeed.com and search “Nomio” In Australia - go to aidstation.com.au and search “Nomio”

## Transcript

[0:28] SPEAKER_03: Yes, welcome back.
[0:29] SPEAKER_03: Another week here on the Triathlon Hour.
[0:31] SPEAKER_03: I know you've probably not missed any of us, but we're forcing ourselves back in your ears all the same.
[0:37] SPEAKER_03: The whole team's here.
[0:38] SPEAKER_03: What we're planning to do today is give you a little bit of a catch-up and rundown on everything that's been happening in the triathlon world over the past month or so.
[0:47] SPEAKER_03: As always, Vicky Holland, she's the best thing to ever happen to this podcast.
[0:51] SPEAKER_03: So I introduce her first.
[0:52] SPEAKER_02: Oh, you're so kind, Jack.
[0:54] SPEAKER_02: Let's uh let's talk all things triathlon again.
[0:56] SPEAKER_03: The most opinionated man in triathlon.
[0:58] SPEAKER_03: And sadly, for all of you out there who hate on him, he has actually proven that he's a decent triathlete.
[1:04] SPEAKER_03: Now we're going to talk about that later on in the show.
[1:06] SPEAKER_03: Greg Harper's here.
[1:07] SPEAKER_05: Thanks for having me, Jack.
[1:08] SPEAKER_05: And yeah, if I'm not a good triathlete still, that means Apple's also kind of shit because he barely beat me.
[1:14] SPEAKER_05: So I guess I guess that means I'm sorta okay.
[1:17] SPEAKER_03: Well, you've introduced him, but the the man who won$10,000 at St.
[1:21] SPEAKER_03: Anthony's Triathon stole$5,000 away from his co-host's family.
[1:26] SPEAKER_03: Sam Appleton's here.
[1:28] SPEAKER_04: It's actually funny.
[1:29] SPEAKER_04: The amount of people that were like, wait, sprint finish with Greg?
[1:33] SPEAKER_04: Greg, Greg raced quite well.
[1:35] SPEAKER_04: And I was like, yeah.
[1:36] SPEAKER_04: But Greg should know, you know, he's got a kid and Vicky's got a kid.
[1:39] SPEAKER_04: You know what kids do.
[1:40] SPEAKER_04: They play with their food, they like to toy with it a little bit.
[1:42] SPEAKER_04: So yeah, I was just uh playing with my food a little bit before having my fill.
[1:49] SPEAKER_03: Yeah, the amount of messages I've got being surprised that Greg's actually good.
[1:53] SPEAKER_03: That was the main takeaway from St.
[1:55] SPEAKER_03: Anthony's and your face in the sprint finish that also got a lot of attention, Apo.
[2:00] SPEAKER_03: That is something we're gonna talk about today.
[2:02] SPEAKER_03: We're gonna get Greg and Apo to give us a bit of a breakdown and race recap from St.
[2:07] SPEAKER_03: Anthony's triathlon, obviously, because they went head to head and it was a really fun race.
[2:11] SPEAKER_03: We're gonna talk about Lionel Sanders off the top of the show and his new coach, Mick Aliden.
[2:16] SPEAKER_03: We're gonna we're gonna go into all of that.
[2:18] SPEAKER_03: We're gonna talk about T-100 Singapore.
[2:20] SPEAKER_03: Vicky obviously commentated that race.
[2:22] SPEAKER_03: We feel like it didn't get a lot of coverage.
[2:25] SPEAKER_03: Not many of you probably watched the full thing from start to finish.
[2:28] SPEAKER_03: So Vicky's gonna give us a full breakdown of that race, everything that happens.
[2:31] SPEAKER_03: We're gonna ask her some questions.
[2:33] SPEAKER_03: Discuss some things that are going on behind the scenes at the T-100, which are kind of a big deal in the professional triathon world that that most of you haven't really heard of.
[2:42] SPEAKER_03: And um, yeah, then then a few little quick bits here and there.
[2:45] SPEAKER_03: So, like I said, guys, um my uh Lionel Sanders, new coach, Mikkel Eden.
[2:50] SPEAKER_03: Well, kind of a new coach, going back to an old coach.
[2:53] SPEAKER_03: Apo, let's start with you.
[2:55] SPEAKER_03: What do you make of the situation?
[2:57] SPEAKER_03: Talk to me about um the the decision from Lionel to go back to Mikkel Eden under the Norwegian method.
[3:03] SPEAKER_04: So originally my I my thought was that Lionel's just having us all on.
[3:07] SPEAKER_04: He's just, you know, having a bit of a laugh.
[3:10] SPEAKER_04: Like I was sure that he was just like baiting his audience for engagement, just being like, because you know how Lionel, he's a he's a flip-flopper, right?
[3:18] SPEAKER_04: He has a good race, he changes his complete, you know, training theory, has a bad race, changes his training theory.
[3:25] SPEAKER_04: And I just thought he was like having a bit of a joke with the audience, but it actually turns out it's not a joke, and he has gone back to uh McCall Eden, and um I just don't it's just it's just funny, like it's just coming all full circle and like I want to see Lionel do really, really well, but there was a reason why he left McCall in the first place, and it's just funny that now after his he was so confident going into Texas, right?
[3:56] SPEAKER_04: And he was adamant that he was the fittest he's ever been, and by all accounts his training was great, like he published a lot of it on YouTube and things like that, and it looked like he was going well, but when the when the race happened, it w he he was just well off the mark.
[4:09] SPEAKER_04: So he's gone in and um you know, cleaned house a little bit and he's back on onto the McCall approach, so I don't know, it's interesting.
[4:18] SPEAKER_04: Um we'll see we'll see where it leads him, and I guess we'll find out.
[4:21] SPEAKER_04: I what is he planning on doing placid, I presume?
[4:24] SPEAKER_04: So, you know, what's he got?
[4:26] SPEAKER_04: About three months or something?
[4:28] SPEAKER_04: What is it now?
[4:28] SPEAKER_04: It's May 3rd, so yeah, two and a half months.
[4:32] SPEAKER_04: So we'll see what happens.
[4:33] SPEAKER_05: I've got a question.
[4:34] SPEAKER_05: What was the exact timeline of McCall and Lionel?
[4:38] SPEAKER_05: And how long did they work together?
[4:40] SPEAKER_05: Did you do you guys know for exact time purposes on that?
[4:44] SPEAKER_04: I think he coached him for Kona 22 because that was I remember me, Lionel, and Colin Chartier, friend of the show, um, were all pretty close to each other um in uh in that race, like well back, like late, like almost 30th place.
[5:02] SPEAKER_04: But um I know they were all I know McCall was coaching Colin and Lionel for Kona that year.
[5:07] SPEAKER_04: I don't know how long it went for though.
[5:09] SPEAKER_04: So I don't know, did Lionel have great results under McCall previously?
[5:13] SPEAKER_03: My memory of the entire Mikhail Lionel's timeline is that it started just before the World Championships in St.
[5:21] SPEAKER_03: George, where Lionel came second.
[5:23] SPEAKER_03: Obviously, Christian Blumentfeld won, Braden Curry came third, and Lionel and Braden Curry had that kind of epic finish for the podium positions.
[5:30] SPEAKER_03: I'm not sure exactly when, like what date they started, but it was before that, I'm pretty sure.
[5:34] SPEAKER_03: So early 2022, and then ran all the way until after Kona that year, where that was a pretty iconic addition of Kona when it comes to Lionel Sanders' career.
[5:44] SPEAKER_03: Like obviously, him and Colin Chartier were main training partners, and this was just before Colin Chartier tested positive for EPO, and they did that training series out in Kona where they basically destroyed each other's races, they were training really hard, and you just saw it playing out in front of your eyes.
[6:00] SPEAKER_03: So I do think that's the big question to ask is why did Lionel go back to Mikkel Eden?
[6:06] SPEAKER_03: Is it purely because of the success of Christian, Gustav, and Kasper Stoyners?
[6:11] SPEAKER_03: Because if you look at it on paper, I don't know if it was Lionel's best year.
[6:15] SPEAKER_03: Like he he had some good results and he also had some really bad results.
[6:19] SPEAKER_03: He came third at the Collins Cup, but he had a really bad day at the US Open and then Kona.
[6:24] SPEAKER_03: Um, he didn't really win much.
[6:25] SPEAKER_03: I think he won one 70.3 that year, which is is nothing for Lionel.
[6:29] SPEAKER_03: He's had seasons of winning four 70.3s, and he's had a lot of success under another coach, David Tilbury Davis, in the past.
[6:35] SPEAKER_03: But for some reason, it seems like he doesn't want to go back to David.
[6:40] SPEAKER_03: Like it always felt like he didn't enjoy that relationship fully, or there was something about that coach-athlete relationship that he didn't love, even though outside looking in, it seems like maybe it was the most successful one he's had.
[6:51] SPEAKER_03: Um so I do I do find it really interesting that Mikhail's the guy he's gone back to rather than try something new or go back to David Tilbury Davis.
[6:58] SPEAKER_02: But isn't this just what Lionel does?
[7:00] SPEAKER_02: Like he flits between any different training method, or you know, he's he confuses me.
[7:11] SPEAKER_02: As a human, he confuses me.
[7:12] SPEAKER_02: The hype around him also confuses me.
[7:15] SPEAKER_02: I guess I have to put my hands up and say that I've never been someone who's avidly followed his YouTube, and so I didn't get hooked in, you know, a decade ago when he became like the greatest triathlon YouTuber on the planet.
[7:29] SPEAKER_02: And sort of because of that, I've always kind of viewed him from this like, why is everyone so in love with this guy?
[7:35] SPEAKER_02: Like I never really understood it.
[7:39] SPEAKER_04: How dare you, Vicky?
[7:42] SPEAKER_04: 75% of the audience.
[7:43] SPEAKER_04: She's on her main pool.
[7:44] SPEAKER_05: She's like, look at my Olympic medal.
[7:46] SPEAKER_05: Like, who's Lionel Sanders?
[7:48] SPEAKER_05: Like, oh God, Vicky.
[7:49] SPEAKER_05: God, you should you shouldn't get it, okay?
[7:51] SPEAKER_02: Okay, hang on.
[7:52] SPEAKER_02: If you listen to what I'm saying, I didn't say that.
[7:55] SPEAKER_05: Vicki hates Lionel, guys.
[7:56] SPEAKER_05: Vicky hates Lionel.
[7:57] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[7:58] SPEAKER_02: Let's just start that now.
[7:59] SPEAKER_02: Let's start that rumour out there.
[8:01] SPEAKER_02: No, I don't I don't know Lionel.
[8:02] SPEAKER_02: I literally don't think I've ever met him.
[8:04] SPEAKER_02: I've been at the Collins Cup at the same time as him, and I don't think we exchanged any words.
[8:10] SPEAKER_02: And other than that, everything I see is just these snippets that I get from online, and it's like, he's he's so I can't say any other word.
[8:20] SPEAKER_02: He's so confusing to me.
[8:22] SPEAKER_02: Like, I can't understand why he doesn't stick to one thing.
[8:25] SPEAKER_02: I don't understand why he hates training outside, I don't understand the hype around his YouTube quite as much as everyone else does.
[8:35] SPEAKER_02: Um yeah, I just find him an intriguing character.
[8:39] SPEAKER_02: I also can't understand his run style, but he's so fast.
[8:42] SPEAKER_02: You look at it and then it's like it's so fast.
[8:44] SPEAKER_02: I don't understand.
[8:45] SPEAKER_02: There's so much about Lionel that I guess I just don't understand.
[8:49] SPEAKER_02: So that's why I just, yeah, I find I find him difficult to sort of um have that kind of I think a lot of people have their, you know, their little statue of Lionel on the mantelpiece that they just like worship.
[8:59] SPEAKER_02: And I can't fall into that.
[9:02] SPEAKER_02: You're one of them, Greg.
[9:03] SPEAKER_03: I get the vibe, Greg and Apo, that Vicky is um labouring under the illusion that her Olympic bronze medal is more important than Lionel Sanders' 2016 YouTube videos, which it's not.
[9:13] SPEAKER_02: Um guys, guys, guys, I've been getting some serious flack in the WhatsApp group this week, and I'm not entirely sure why.
[9:23] SPEAKER_02: I think Greg's words were imagine respecting someone who's only got a bronze medal.
[9:28] SPEAKER_02: I mean absolute cheek of it.
[9:31] SPEAKER_05: Well, that's breaking the circle of the trust of the WhatsApp group.
[9:34] SPEAKER_05: You don't bring those messages to light.
[9:36] SPEAKER_02: You've been throwing me under the bus all week, mate.
[9:39] SPEAKER_02: You get it on the podcast.
[9:40] SPEAKER_05: Jack says you can only punch up and not punch down.
[9:42] SPEAKER_05: So I'm the low on the totem pole, and I can just spit my mouth whenever I want.
[9:46] SPEAKER_05: I can just punch, punch, punch at Vicky, but she can't punch back because it's fucking mean if she does.
[9:52] SPEAKER_03: No, it does seem like there's been a definitive shift since Greg came second at St.
[9:56] SPEAKER_03: Anthony's.
[9:56] SPEAKER_03: He's a lot more chirpy toward the stuff.
[9:58] SPEAKER_03: Oh, he's he's full of it, isn't he?
[10:00] SPEAKER_05: I mean, someone got second at a race and someone got third.
[10:02] SPEAKER_05: I don't know.
[10:04] SPEAKER_07: Okay, yeah.
[10:05] SPEAKER_07: Same, same.
[10:06] SPEAKER_03: It's like when Zorg Noddy calls himself the eight-time champ and Christian's only won one.
[10:11] SPEAKER_03: That's it's kind of the same vibe.
[10:13] SPEAKER_03: All right, practically speaking, what changes do you think we're gonna expect to see?
[10:17] SPEAKER_03: Is this is this really just a simple case of Lionel's gonna do less VO2 max, more volume, more controlled intensity under Mikkel and the Norwegian method, and therefore hoping that makes him better at Iron Man?
[10:29] SPEAKER_05: I'm worried about the swim training because the Norwegian swim training method is bad.
[10:33] SPEAKER_05: Like Christian even said, I think on the podcast with you, Jack, that his swim has like sort of regressed and he's really not gotten better.
[10:41] SPEAKER_05: And I don't know, I don't see that Lionel going to McCall, he's not going to be focusing on, you know, you and I like to talk about swimming, his ultimate limiter, which is his 100 meter speed, or you know, 200 meter speed, however you want to look at it.
[10:53] SPEAKER_05: That's Lionel's ultimate limiter, and until that is improved, his threshold will be shit, and he'll always be shit at an Iron Man swim if his speed is shit.
[11:03] SPEAKER_05: So I don't really think the Norwegians grasp that from a swimming perspective, and I don't really see this coach-athlete relationship helping us swim.
[11:10] SPEAKER_05: And if he comes back five minutes out of the water, then he'll never sniff the the front of a of a major race.
[11:15] SPEAKER_05: So I just don't really see anything changing long term.
[11:18] SPEAKER_04: Yeah, it's definitely going to be more volume, right?
[11:21] SPEAKER_04: Like Norwegian method and McCall's approach is very volume heavy.
[11:27] SPEAKER_04: I know he used to coach Rudy von Berg, who I um see out here in Boulder, and Rudy used to do quite big days under McCal.
[11:35] SPEAKER_04: So I definitely think he's in for a lot more volume, yeah, probably more um threshold and intensity um control and things like that.
[11:44] SPEAKER_04: But Lionel's gone on record often saying that he doesn't enjoy those long training weeks, right?
[11:51] SPEAKER_04: Like he's not a 30, 35-hour week guy.
[11:53] SPEAKER_04: He likes the shorter 20-hour a week, sometimes even less.
[11:58] SPEAKER_04: I know he was racing great 70.3s a couple of years ago off like 17-hour a week average, but yeah, I don't I don't know.
[12:06] SPEAKER_04: It's just um I think I don't know if this is gonna work for Lionel because he has tried this before, and um you know, I'd like to be proven wrong, but uh yeah, time will tell.
[12:15] SPEAKER_04: And uh we'll just have to see what happens.
[12:18] SPEAKER_04: And I guess like I said earlier, placid will be um, you know, the big test, the big tell all, and two and a half months, right?
[12:24] SPEAKER_04: Like that's quite a long time.
[12:25] SPEAKER_04: Like it's not like McCall has five weeks to get Lionel ready for an Iron Man.
[12:29] SPEAKER_04: Two and a half months is a long time, especially he is already very fit.
[12:33] SPEAKER_04: He did a full Iron Man training build for Texas, so he is already very fit.
[12:38] SPEAKER_04: He just might need some refinement, so we'll see.
[12:40] SPEAKER_03: He was so far off in Texas, though, and I think I've been saying it for a long time on the podcast.
[12:46] SPEAKER_03: I think Lionel Sanders needs to realise that the level he can get to at 70.3 is never going to add up with the level he can get himself to at Iron Man.
[12:56] SPEAKER_03: I just mechanically speaking, I just don't think he has the potential to ever be anywhere near as good an Iron Man athlete as he is a 70.3 athlete.
[13:05] SPEAKER_03: I think he's a mechanics break down.
[13:07] SPEAKER_03: I think he breaks down at a neuromuscular level, I think he swims not at the level that it has to be now, so he's gonna he has to ride really hard, dynamics don't suit him, and I just don't think he's ever gonna be a great marathon runner.
[13:20] SPEAKER_03: He's he's never broken 240 for the marathon.
[13:23] SPEAKER_03: And to win an Iron Man World Championships, I think now you you've got to run closer to 225 than you do 235.
[13:30] SPEAKER_03: So Lionel essentially needs to take like five minutes off his swim, like 15 minutes off his marathon, and probably has to has to you know start riding quite a lot better as well.
[13:41] SPEAKER_03: I think it's a bridge too far.
[13:43] SPEAKER_03: So for me, I just think he's focused on the wrong thing, and now he probably can because he has all the money in the world as far as a triathlet is concerned.
[13:51] SPEAKER_03: He's already won so much that it's probably hard for him to find motivation to go and just win another 70.3.
[13:56] SPEAKER_03: But at the end of the day, I don't think it matters whether he's coached by Mikkel or self-coached.
[14:00] SPEAKER_03: I actually don't think he was doing a horrid job being self-coached, which is maybe a bit of a controversial hot take.
[14:06] SPEAKER_03: I don't think that we're gonna see some miraculous shift just because he's got a coach on board.
[14:10] SPEAKER_03: And I know everyone like to like likes to say, oh, he just needs a coach, he just needs a coach.
[14:14] SPEAKER_03: I don't see it like that.
[14:15] SPEAKER_03: I think he's got himself being self-coached to be one of the best 70.3 athletes we've ever seen.
[14:21] SPEAKER_03: And I think he's maximizing the physical potential he has, because I think he is so, so limited in his physiology and his mechanical ability.
[14:29] SPEAKER_03: So I don't I don't see this really having much of an impact at all.
[14:32] SPEAKER_03: And it takes me on to our next question.
[14:34] SPEAKER_03: Uh what do you guys predict will be the biggest race Lionel wins this year?
[14:38] SPEAKER_04: Does he win a pro series?
[14:41] SPEAKER_04: Like what are his chances of pro series, Boise and Happy Valley?
[14:46] SPEAKER_04: I guess he is he doing Happy Valley?
[14:48] SPEAKER_04: We're not sure, but I don't know.
[14:51] SPEAKER_04: Maybe maybe Dallas was it, maybe like just a non pro series North American, 70.3.
[14:57] SPEAKER_04: I'm saying Boise.
[14:58] SPEAKER_05: I think he can get it done.
[14:59] SPEAKER_05: Uh that's like late July.
[15:01] SPEAKER_05: He'll I feel like it's gonna be the least competitive pro series race in uh North America this year, potentially.
[15:08] SPEAKER_05: So that's why I'm kind of like thinking maybe he go for that.
[15:10] SPEAKER_05: Like, you know, if if Yellow shows up to Happy Valley, like no chance in hell Lionel can win.
[15:15] SPEAKER_05: But if if Lionel's kind of if it's more of a North American field, I feel like he could win that pro series race still.
[15:20] SPEAKER_05: But it has to be sort of like a weaker quote unquote, like an Eagle Man or something last year.
[15:25] SPEAKER_04: But don't forget, Placid's July 19th, so those two are very close.
[15:30] SPEAKER_05: He'll probably walk the marathon, so then he'll be fresh for boys.
[15:34] SPEAKER_02: Savage.
[15:36] SPEAKER_02: Um, I mean you make a good point, Greg.
[15:38] SPEAKER_02: It depends who turns up, right?
[15:39] SPEAKER_02: Like at any race, it depends who you're competing against.
[15:42] SPEAKER_02: But for me, I don't see a way at the moment that he wins a pro series this year.
[15:47] SPEAKER_02: I think he will clean up on some of those other North American uh 70.3s, but I'm I'm just not sure I see him winning a pro series because at the moment pretty much all the pro series have a strong field.
[15:59] SPEAKER_02: Like there are people turning up to those who are serious competitors, and yeah, I'm just not sure.
[16:05] SPEAKER_02: I I believe that he'll get it done against them right now.
[16:08] SPEAKER_03: I think I agree.
[16:08] SPEAKER_03: I think I don't think he's beating Yalla at Happy Valley.
[16:11] SPEAKER_03: I don't think he's getting uh it's us it's so hard to see him winning um Lake Placid.
[16:17] SPEAKER_03: Again, he's gonna have to beat Yeller to do that.
[16:18] SPEAKER_03: Um, some other people are probably gonna show up.
[16:20] SPEAKER_03: I don't think Sam Long's gonna do uh Lake Placid, but no doubt some other Europeans show up and some big hitters, maybe a Matthew Marquart style turns up to Lake Placid.
[16:30] SPEAKER_03: Yeah, Foley, if Foley turns up to Lake Placid, that's gonna be a tough guy to beat.
[16:34] SPEAKER_03: I think Placid's gonna be a hard one.
[16:35] SPEAKER_03: I think Yeller Geans goes into that the favourite.
[16:37] SPEAKER_03: If he is gonna win an Iron Man this year, it's gonna be Placid.
[16:40] SPEAKER_03: But yeah, I mean we could look back at the year and Dallas be the biggest win of his of his entire year, which in my opinion would be a bit of a sad, a sad state of affairs for Lionel.
[16:50] SPEAKER_03: So I hope he wins something else.
[16:51] SPEAKER_03: But at best, um Lake Placid or Boise, I would say.
[16:55] SPEAKER_03: But I think even both of those are probably a little bit ambitious.
[16:58] SPEAKER_03: Boise's the big one, the big chance.
[17:00] SPEAKER_03: I think he he probably could win that.
[17:02] SPEAKER_03: Um and then Apo, you kick us off as again.
[17:05] SPEAKER_03: Let's let's project forward to Kona.
[17:07] SPEAKER_03: What do you expect him to finish at Kona?
[17:09] SPEAKER_03: Give us uh give us an actual placing.
[17:11] SPEAKER_04: I'm not uh I'm not convinced he's gonna qualify.
[17:14] SPEAKER_04: He's got to qualify at placid.
[17:16] SPEAKER_04: How many slots is there?
[17:17] SPEAKER_04: Do you guys know off the top of your head?
[17:18] SPEAKER_04: It's probably four, yeah.
[17:21] SPEAKER_04: Four slots.
[17:22] SPEAKER_04: Um you know, there's gonna be a lot of people slotting into a placid, hungry for those last remaining spots.
[17:29] SPEAKER_04: And yes, it could roll to like um, but you like Yellow's going, right?
[17:33] SPEAKER_04: Like he needs a slot, so there's one if he can execute a good Iron Man.
[17:37] SPEAKER_04: There's always a couple of other people that are looking for last-minute slots that can race well at Iron Man, and I think Lionel would have to, and going off Texas, like he's not in a position to qualify, so you'd have to make some drastic improvements to qualify at Placid, in my opinion.
[17:53] SPEAKER_05: If there's no Lionel vlog in Hawaii, think how upset Vicky's gonna be.
[17:59] SPEAKER_05: He has to qualify.
[18:01] SPEAKER_05: Um so I'm putting my place at 11th.
[18:04] SPEAKER_05: I think Lionel quali qualifies in Kona or 11th in Placid.
[18:09] SPEAKER_05: Look, I still believe in Lionel.
[18:10] SPEAKER_05: No, no, no, in Kona.
[18:11] SPEAKER_05: I think yeah, I I just think he can even with a swim deficit, can just do a good bike run.
[18:17] SPEAKER_05: I still believe that in Lionel, and he did get second there before, and I think he knows how to hurt more than anyone too, which is underrated in in Kona when when when things go bad.
[18:26] SPEAKER_05: So I still believe, but I mean that's not a top 10, right?
[18:29] SPEAKER_05: I mean, I'm saying 11th, and you're like, whoa, that's high.
[18:32] SPEAKER_05: It's not even a top 10, so it's not that crazy.
[18:35] SPEAKER_05: I mean, 11th through 30th is like kind of a wash.
[18:37] SPEAKER_05: Like a lot of those guys aren't having good days.
[18:40] SPEAKER_05: What?
[18:41] SPEAKER_05: If you get 20th in Iron Man Kona and down, and you're not having a good day.
[18:47] SPEAKER_05: Like, none of them expect it to be that.
[18:49] SPEAKER_05: Everyone who shows up to that start line wants to get near the top 10.
[18:52] SPEAKER_05: Everyone in the in the field.
[18:54] SPEAKER_04: Yeah, but I think 11th.
[18:56] SPEAKER_04: 11th is still a really good receiver.
[18:57] SPEAKER_05: I know, Apple.
[18:58] SPEAKER_05: I've been there and raced, okay, as a pro, okay?
[19:00] SPEAKER_05: I know.
[19:01] SPEAKER_05: The blanket statement of 11th to 30th is all awash.
[19:06] SPEAKER_04: That's that's insane.
[19:07] SPEAKER_03: It meant to be like 20th to 20th plus, they're not having good days.
[19:10] SPEAKER_03: Yeah, but you said 11th to 30th.
[19:12] SPEAKER_05: Okay, alright, whatever.
[19:13] SPEAKER_05: Yeah.
[19:15] SPEAKER_05: Rewind the tape.
[19:17] SPEAKER_05: Run it back.
[19:18] SPEAKER_02: Can we just clarify?
[19:19] SPEAKER_02: I don't hate Lionel.
[19:22] SPEAKER_02: I just am not in on the mystique that he seems to bring to the triathlon world.
[19:29] SPEAKER_02: And given what I've seen so far this year, I I struggle to put him in the top 20.
[19:34] SPEAKER_02: And Apro might be right.
[19:36] SPEAKER_02: We might not even see him qualify.
[19:37] SPEAKER_02: So I I think I plucked for 22nd.
[19:39] SPEAKER_02: Still, still further than halfway up, but yeah, I just think, and it's a phrase we use all the time, that the level is so high, and I haven't seen anything that makes me think this year he can he can get it done.
[19:54] SPEAKER_03: I hope he doesn't qualify.
[19:56] SPEAKER_03: I really, really hope he doesn't qualify.
[19:58] SPEAKER_03: I think it ends up being a better year for him.
[20:00] SPEAKER_03: I do not want to see the same thing I've seen.
[20:03] SPEAKER_03: I feel like I've seen it six times where Lionel goes all in on Iron Man and has a disappointing year.
[20:08] SPEAKER_03: I want to see him go and just win eight 70.3s and make heaps of cash and make our year fun.
[20:13] SPEAKER_03: Like Kona, yes, it would be good for the vlog series in the lead up, and it gives us something to talk about when it comes to Kona, but I just feel like I literally feel like I can close my eyes and see what's going to happen in Kona with Lionel.
[20:26] SPEAKER_03: Like I can literally picture him being six minutes back in the swim, not riding as well as you think he's going to, not making up really any ground on the front group.
[20:35] SPEAKER_03: In fact, Laidlow and Yaller and Schomberg and all those blokes are just riding off the front and the Norwegians, and then Lionel walks the last half of the marathon.
[20:44] SPEAKER_03: Like I feel like I can literally close my eyes and predict the future with that.
[20:48] SPEAKER_03: So, in a way, I hope he doesn't qualify and instead sticks to what he's really good at, which is being one of the best 70 point athletes athletes the world's ever seen, and goes and does Nice 70.3 world championships.
[20:59] SPEAKER_03: Because I think he's a genuine chance to have a good race there.
[21:01] SPEAKER_03: The descending isn't crazy at the 70.3 Nice course.
[21:05] SPEAKER_03: It's it really isn't, it's pretty manageable.
[21:07] SPEAKER_03: So that's what I want to see.
[21:08] SPEAKER_03: Um, enough Lionel Sanders chat for us today.
[21:11] SPEAKER_03: Let's keep an eye on it, see how it plays out.
[21:13] SPEAKER_03: We're gonna do a lead-in pod to placid and a recap pod of placid anyway.
[21:18] SPEAKER_03: So we're gonna be talking about this in a lot more detail um in about two months' time.
[21:22] SPEAKER_03: Vicky, you are on the ground at T100 Singapore.
[21:25] SPEAKER_03: Give us a race report.
[21:27] SPEAKER_03: What happened?
[21:27] SPEAKER_02: All right, I'll just try and summarize the event.
[21:30] SPEAKER_02: So, for those who don't know, it was the first of the men's races for Singapore.
[21:36] SPEAKER_02: We'd only had one female uh for the T100, sorry, we'd only had one race so far.
[21:40] SPEAKER_02: It had been women's only in Gold Coast.
[21:43] SPEAKER_02: So this was the first men's only race.
[21:45] SPEAKER_02: Um, big headline was that Hayden was racing, and of course, when Hayden's in these races, we kind of have an idea of what might happen.
[21:53] SPEAKER_02: Um the swim was pretty soft, to be honest with you.
[21:56] SPEAKER_02: Some of the athletes even said afterwards that they found it really, really easy.
[22:00] SPEAKER_02: But it was kind of the theme of the of the day that everyone was just worried about going too hard at any one point, overheating.
[22:08] SPEAKER_02: It's really easy to do that in the water.
[22:10] SPEAKER_02: The water temperature was as close to the borderline as it could as it's ever been in terms of uh if they have water temperature of over 32 degrees, no swim.
[22:19] SPEAKER_02: And it was like 31.9 the day before.
[22:22] SPEAKER_02: It was ridiculously hot in there.
[22:24] SPEAKER_02: So with that, with that, no one was willing to push the pace.
[22:29] SPEAKER_02: And so it ended up being led by Sam Dickinson and Menno Coolhouse.
[22:33] SPEAKER_02: Um, Hayden was right there, right where he needed to be.
[22:36] SPEAKER_02: I think he came out about seven or eight seconds down.
[22:39] SPEAKER_02: You know, 16 of them were all within one line.
[22:42] SPEAKER_02: Uh that's 16 out of 20, remember, because only 20 in the field, so not very split up at all in the swim.
[22:49] SPEAKER_02: And then once they got out onto the bike, Hayden went to the front pretty much straight away.
[22:53] SPEAKER_02: Um, and the only two who sort of tried to hang in there were Menno and uh Matty Hauser, but that didn't last especially long, with Hayden putting in quite a sizable gap to everyone else.
[23:05] SPEAKER_02: It actually sort of looked like maybe um Menno let a little bit of a gap go to Hayden, and then Matty Hauser sort of tried to go round and bridge it and then just decided to back it off.
[23:15] SPEAKER_02: And I know from speaking to Matt Hauser beforehand, he didn't want to burn too many matches too early.
[23:20] SPEAKER_02: He'd never raced the distance, he'd never raced in those conditions, like he just was wanting to keep it as under control as he could for as long as possible.
[23:29] SPEAKER_02: Uh so coming into T2, Hayden was all his own.
[23:32] SPEAKER_02: I think he was about two minutes 2.15 up on Sam Dickinson and uh Matisse Marger, who were the next two.
[23:40] SPEAKER_02: Uh, they were riding together pretty much the whole time.
[23:45] SPEAKER_02: Um then we got onto the so uh notable things from the bike.
[23:49] SPEAKER_02: I should say, I think most people probably the thing they took away from the race was that Hayden now does magic tricks on the bike.
[23:55] SPEAKER_02: Uh bottle popping out of his rear bottle cage and onto his saddle and just perched there behind him on the saddle.
[24:01] SPEAKER_02: I mean, I I thought it was AI, it was absolutely insane.
[24:04] SPEAKER_02: Um, and it was just perfect that the camera was right there, and Hayden sort of reached round, grabbed the bottle, took a sip from it, gave the camera a knowing little look, and then popped the popped the bottle back in again.
[24:14] SPEAKER_02: It was it was it was quite good TV that bit, I thought.
[24:18] SPEAKER_04: That's the bottle shenanigans we want to see from Hayden.
[24:21] SPEAKER_02: That's exactly right.
[24:23] SPEAKER_02: Um, and the other thing to say is that Sam Dickinson at one point his chain fell off.
[24:27] SPEAKER_02: It slipped off on the inside of his uh of his ring, of his chain ring, and he couldn't get it back on again.
[24:33] SPEAKER_02: And uh everyone knows that you can often do that while you're riding, you can just click through the gears and it can come back on again.
[24:39] SPEAKER_02: And hey, what happened is that his shram blips weren't working, and apparently this was happening to loads of the athletes because of the hot and humid conditions.
[24:47] SPEAKER_02: So he was trying to change gear and nothing was happening.
[24:49] SPEAKER_02: So he was click, click, clicking, and then all of a sudden it'll go through like four gears at once, and that's what happened, that's why his chain came off.
[24:57] SPEAKER_02: So he lost a little bit of time there, but still came off the bike.
[25:00] SPEAKER_02: As I said, about two minutes down on Hayden and onto the run.
[25:04] SPEAKER_02: Well, Hayden was unchallenged, doing some of his nose breathing again, making it look really hard.
[25:08] SPEAKER_02: Most exciting thing for him on the run was that he was wearing his very stylish bucket hat, as I'm assured it's called, a bucket hat with a whole cups cut in the top for a bit of extra ventilation.
[25:19] SPEAKER_02: And Sam Dickinson running in second, Matisse Majorier in third.
[25:23] SPEAKER_02: Matisse overtook and looked really strong, and then just a couple of kilometers later started limping.
[25:28] SPEAKER_02: So we know he's got a little bit of a something going on in his heel, but haven't heard any further updates on that.
[25:35] SPEAKER_02: So that meant that Sam Dickinson re-overtook for second.
[25:39] SPEAKER_02: We then had um, of course, Mika Newt, who'd kept himself pretty quiet throughout this race, I'd say, in third, Menno Coolhouse in fourth, and Matt Hauser rounding out the top five.
[25:50] SPEAKER_02: Now there was chat that it was the hottest edition of Singapore yet, and the only person who looked like they were in cruise control was Hayden.
[25:57] SPEAKER_02: I mean, he won by six minutes.
[25:59] SPEAKER_02: Uh, people raced it a huge amount more conservatively than I've seen, but I think that's because in previous editions, people have had such spectacular blows that I think everyone was just a little bit too scared to go out there and really just like throw caution to the wind.
[26:14] SPEAKER_02: And it seemed like people were racing it more like an Iron Man, where they were just really taking it slow and steady and accepting that if they went too hard, they would blow up, or maybe other people would fall off the pace if they just were patient with it.
[26:27] SPEAKER_02: So that was um kind of the way it went, really.
[26:29] SPEAKER_02: And I think the thing looking forward is that the women's start list is now out for Spain, and I would say that start list is looking pretty exciting, a lot better than Gold Coast was.
[26:42] SPEAKER_02: Gold Coast probably didn't attract as many of the big stars as we'd hoped it might do, whereas Spain looks like it's gonna be a big improvement on that, and I'm hopeful that San Francisco will be the same.
[26:52] SPEAKER_02: I know, for example, Yellow Geans has talked about going to San Francisco, but I still really feel like we would love to have some big big old big, big stars like you know, the Norwegians turn up.
[27:03] SPEAKER_02: That would be really pretty special.
[27:05] SPEAKER_05: Do they still have contract for Singapore?
[27:07] SPEAKER_05: Because it seems like it might be time to go away from this venue.
[27:11] SPEAKER_05: I mean, when you talk about conditions like that, like it doesn't make for exciting racing.
[27:15] SPEAKER_05: I mean, we'll talk about them, but like Matt Hauser gets on the start line and sits in on the swim.
[27:19] SPEAKER_05: I'm like, that's not what I want to see.
[27:22] SPEAKER_05: Like, I want Hauser to get out there, push the swim, like with Schaumburg.
[27:25] SPEAKER_05: That's the only way someone could ever like challenge Hayden if Hayden's getting out at the front of the race.
[27:30] SPEAKER_05: So it doesn't seem like Singapore is like quite the right conditions for exciting racing.
[27:35] SPEAKER_05: And then, you know, the water temperature, I mean, the race was almost a doathlon, essentially.
[27:40] SPEAKER_05: So I know they have contracts with cities and they have to fulfill them and stuff, but uh this early season travel across the world to the hottest race you could ever do, it just doesn't seem like it sets up the athletes for success for the rest of the year either.
[27:52] SPEAKER_05: So yeah, maybe it's time they kind of like put Singapore in the bag and and move on from it uh uh for from for a venue because it doesn't seem like it really facilitates exciting racing.
[28:03] SPEAKER_03: I think especially with a weak field, right, Greg.
[28:06] SPEAKER_03: Like when the field lacks depth, look what happened.
[28:08] SPEAKER_03: Like it was uh absolute snooze fest watching Hayden off the front of that race, and it felt inevitable the whole day.
[28:16] SPEAKER_03: So I was a fan of Singapore.
[28:18] SPEAKER_03: I'm not now, I agree with you.
[28:20] SPEAKER_03: Like I understand that a lot of what the T-100 do is financially driven.
[28:25] SPEAKER_03: They need cities who pay them to be there, but I still think that that's actually a fallacy.
[28:31] SPEAKER_03: I think that they'll get more money if they go into triath on hot grounds.
[28:35] SPEAKER_03: Like, why not have a German race?
[28:37] SPEAKER_03: Why not have two races in Australia?
[28:39] SPEAKER_03: Why not make London a bigger deal?
[28:41] SPEAKER_03: Why not have races in America at this time of year?
[28:43] SPEAKER_03: I really think that model of chasing cash from cities and going to like all these different big cities like the F1, it's just I just don't think I think we're seeing that it's actually not a model that works for Trithlon.
[28:56] SPEAKER_03: I think we've got to go to Triton um hotbeds and and kind of try and build communities because there was no crowd, right?
[29:02] SPEAKER_03: There was no one there.
[29:03] SPEAKER_03: Watching it was like a weird thing to watch.
[29:05] SPEAKER_03: But the roads and the streets were legit empty, empty, empty, empty.
[29:10] SPEAKER_03: And and it was kind of it was just kind of a boring, sad, sad state of affairs for the T100.
[29:15] SPEAKER_03: And I know we're trying not to shit on the T100 this year, we're trying to support the T100, but I do think there's some really obvious things that that aren't working, and I do think that these single sex races aren't working.
[29:27] SPEAKER_03: I think their field sizes aren't working because there's not enough enough depth.
[29:31] SPEAKER_03: I think the cities they're going to aren't perfect.
[29:34] SPEAKER_03: Um, so yeah, I didn't like much about Singapore.
[29:37] SPEAKER_03: I thought it was a really impressive showing from um Hayden Wilde.
[29:40] SPEAKER_03: I thought Mick Anute was awesome.
[29:42] SPEAKER_03: I think it was great to see Maddie Hauser step up into the distance.
[29:45] SPEAKER_03: Well, what do you guys think?
[29:46] SPEAKER_03: Was that better or worse than what you expected from Maddie Hauser?
[29:49] SPEAKER_03: Because for me, I think it was about exactly what I would have predicted, you know, like not great, not bad, just just pretty, pretty alright.
[29:56] SPEAKER_04: Yeah, I kind of agree.
[29:57] SPEAKER_04: I think I would have loved to have seen him challenge Hayden, but I think like Greg alluded to, the conditions in Singapore just don't lend itself to fast aggressive racing.
[30:06] SPEAKER_04: It almost like neutralizes everyone, right?
[30:09] SPEAKER_04: Because they're so scared of overheating and the heat and um no one wants to blow up.
[30:14] SPEAKER_04: And I think maybe initially the T100 thought that Singapore, oh, really hot, um, you know, hard conditions are gonna make for great racing, but it's actually done the opposite, I think.
[30:25] SPEAKER_04: Um but yeah, Maddie, fifth place, I I yeah, I kind of agree with you, Jack.
[30:30] SPEAKER_04: Like not phenomenal, but not bad.
[30:33] SPEAKER_04: I just think a bit of a you know, came and went, which is not bad.
[30:37] SPEAKER_04: Like fifth is good, but you know, I would have loved to have seen him challenge Hayden, and maybe we'll get that if Maddie focuses on um a T100 in the future.
[30:46] SPEAKER_04: Um, but yeah, we'll see.
[30:47] SPEAKER_03: Yeah, needs to fix his bike position, get his bike sorted.
[30:50] SPEAKER_03: But I think Singapore just rewards fitness, not speed.
[30:53] SPEAKER_03: And Maddie House is a speed guy right now.
[30:55] SPEAKER_03: I think like um, like you guys talked about, it's more akin to racing like something between a 70.3 and an Iron Man than it is like something between an Iron Man 70.3 and like a sprint distance, you know?
[31:06] SPEAKER_03: Like it kind of more suited to someone who's a bit fitter and a bit slower, not someone who's a little bit less fit and a bit faster.
[31:13] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, I think Matt really wanted to have a go at a T100.
[31:17] SPEAKER_02: I think he's seen what's going on in the sort of middle distance scene and he wants to have a pop at it, and I think that's really admirable.
[31:24] SPEAKER_02: And they gave him a wild card, and he he didn't have another race plan that weekend because he wasn't going to the short course opener at Samarkand.
[31:32] SPEAKER_02: So for him, that was actually a much better travel day as well, and it kind of fitted for him for the year.
[31:38] SPEAKER_02: So he thought, yeah, I've only had a few weeks prep, but I'll I'll give it a good go.
[31:42] SPEAKER_02: Um, but as you've quite rightly said, in those conditions, he's not gonna turn up and put himself in an absolute hole and potentially trash his short course season as well.
[31:54] SPEAKER_02: Like he kind of had to go there and be conservative.
[31:56] SPEAKER_02: He's also never raced longer than for two hours, and this was you know a three and a half hour race in extreme conditions.
[32:04] SPEAKER_02: And again, Greg, you said it.
[32:06] SPEAKER_02: Matty Hauser in the race, you want to see him taking out that swim, you want to see him stretching it out and making it hard for someone like Hayden.
[32:12] SPEAKER_02: Whereas that was totally not his game plan for the race because he thought, I'm not risking that, I can't risk that.
[32:19] SPEAKER_02: This is a bit of fun for me on the side of my my short course racing.
[32:23] SPEAKER_02: I'm not coming here and screwing myself over in the first 20 minutes of the race.
[32:28] SPEAKER_02: So I just think it was unfortunate that the one that we got to see Matt Hauser at was probably not the one where he could kind of just swing for it.
[32:36] SPEAKER_02: This was one where he had to be very sensible, if you like.
[32:39] SPEAKER_02: Whereas at a different location, maybe he could have, you know, really gone for it a bit more.
[32:43] SPEAKER_03: Vicky, let me ask you about someone, but first, let me just read you a few results from 2024.
[32:50] SPEAKER_03: Second at T100 London, second at T100 San Francisco, won the challenge championships, won challenge Wonica.
[32:59] SPEAKER_03: Do you know who I'm talking about?
[33:00] SPEAKER_02: I do.
[33:01] SPEAKER_02: Do you want me to say?
[33:03] SPEAKER_03: They finished 13th at Singapore and about 20 minutes behind Hayden Wilde.
[33:08] SPEAKER_03: Kyle Smith, what in the world has happened to this guy over the last two years?
[33:14] SPEAKER_02: He's had just such an up and down time.
[33:16] SPEAKER_02: He has, yeah.
[33:17] SPEAKER_02: He had, I think he broke his collarbone, I want to say, at the end of last year.
[33:20] SPEAKER_02: So he's had, like you said, 2024 was insane.
[33:24] SPEAKER_02: It was like the year of Kyle Smith, it was a massive breakthrough year, multiple podiums, didn't quite get the win, but was second, I think, in the overall T100 series.
[33:34] SPEAKER_02: So it was a really big year for Kyle, having at the beginning of that season not got a contract, he was getting, you know, wild cards, he he was he was on a massive upward trajectory through that season.
[33:46] SPEAKER_02: And then 2025 hit, and in his own words, he sort of felt like he had to push harder, go harder, change things up a little bit, try and show that now was the time he was gonna win.
[33:56] SPEAKER_02: And it totally backfired he uh I think in Singapore last year he didn't even get to the start line.
[34:02] SPEAKER_02: He was there, but he he'd overcooked his heat prep, I think maybe.
[34:05] SPEAKER_02: Then there was other issues later on in the year with mechanicals, with penalties, with illness, then the crash.
[34:11] SPEAKER_02: It just seemed like 2025, absolutely anything that could happen to Kyle happened to Kyle.
[34:17] SPEAKER_02: And so at the start of this season, you know, we're like, okay, what kind of Kyle is coming out in 2026?
[34:23] SPEAKER_02: And I think the what the impression I got anyway is that he's still very much in conservative build mode, and that he didn't want to go all in for this race, knowing what that cost him last year by going so hard and getting sick before the race.
[34:37] SPEAKER_02: So that's the intel that I got as for what else might be going on, like whether there's other things behind the scenes we don't know about.
[34:44] SPEAKER_02: Well, I I don't know.
[34:46] SPEAKER_04: I wonder if um he did focus on the Iron Man, um, Iron Man New Zealand.
[34:52] SPEAKER_04: And yeah, that was a while ago, but I don't know.
[34:55] SPEAKER_04: Like it's just getting harder and harder to just um flip-flop between both Iron Man and middle distance racing, isn't it?
[35:02] SPEAKER_04: And I think um, you know, unless you're Christian Blumenfeld, um it's yeah, not many people can do it.
[35:10] SPEAKER_04: And you know, Lionel, we were just talking about him, a great example, one of the best at 70.3 to ever do it, and yeah, just not at the same level over Iron Man.
[35:19] SPEAKER_04: And yeah, perhaps Kyle went in for the Iron Man and then came up a little short on training and fitness for the speed needed for a um T100, perhaps.
[35:28] SPEAKER_05: I don't know.
[35:29] SPEAKER_05: So I got a question for you, Appo.
[35:31] SPEAKER_05: What is the Boulder Stroke and Stride?
[35:34] SPEAKER_05: And how is the atmosphere at that compared to the atmosphere at T100 Singapore?
[35:40] SPEAKER_05: Because I see that here in the show notes.
[35:43] SPEAKER_04: Boulder stroke and stride, you've never heard of it.
[35:45] SPEAKER_04: The classic Thursday afternoon uh swim run event at Boulder Reservoir.
[35:50] SPEAKER_04: Um put on by the local tri-club, you know, it gets about 20 people spectating.
[35:59] SPEAKER_04: The atmosphere's great.
[36:00] SPEAKER_04: Um it was just a little joke because the atmosphere didn't look great in Singapore, but I wasn't gonna bring it up because we're trying not to bash on the T100.
[36:07] SPEAKER_04: But we kind of touched on it too.
[36:09] SPEAKER_05: The Singapore, yeah, you know, with it, they might have to move on from it.
[36:12] SPEAKER_05: Um now looking at the prize money, I was really shocked because I knew the prize money was good for these races, but it's actually very, very good.
[36:20] SPEAKER_05: Um, so I'm I'm glad that the T100s are really paying people in the prize money this year, and you know, it's it's really amazing for the professionals.
[36:28] SPEAKER_05: But I don't know, as a pro, and I'm not really at that level, but it just seems like a pain in the ass to even like try to enter these races, and that like it's a little bit exclusive, and they need some more bodies on the start line.
[36:40] SPEAKER_05: Now, I don't think it would have made a difference at a T100 Singapore, because you know, like Jack said, in these these hot conditions it'll just get spread out.
[36:47] SPEAKER_05: But I really think they need to tighten those things up, get some more bodies on the start line for some of the other races, and yeah, just make it more of a fun place.
[36:55] SPEAKER_05: Jack always said that last year.
[36:57] SPEAKER_05: The fun place, the fun place.
[36:58] SPEAKER_05: Like we want a more fun place for for the T100, and I think they can yeah, keep rolling because they're paying like really, really good prize money.
[37:06] SPEAKER_05: I mean, Apple was trying thinking about going to Singapore, and then he's like, nah, I'm gonna go to St.
[37:11] SPEAKER_05: Anthony's and steal from Greg's family.
[37:13] SPEAKER_05: So it's just like yeah, uh, you know, it's it's selfish of him, but you know, they're I I'm happy for the T100 paying those athletes, and and I hope they can continue to do that because it's it's good for everyone.
[37:24] SPEAKER_03: It's amazing prize money, Greg.
[37:26] SPEAKER_03: Each race this year is$275,000 per race.
[37:30] SPEAKER_03: It's$50,000 for the win,$40,000 for second,$30,000 for third.
[37:34] SPEAKER_03: Uh I'm not sure what fourth is.
[37:37] SPEAKER_03: And I know, I know even if you come 20th, it's still three and a half thousand dollars.
[37:40] SPEAKER_03: So it really is a good payday no matter where you finish, and potentially one of the best paydays you're gonna have for the year if you finish on the podium.
[37:48] SPEAKER_03: So it doesn't seem to be attracting everyone, though.
[37:51] SPEAKER_03: That's the funny thing.
[37:53] SPEAKER_03: And I guess this it kind of segues me into the next thing I want to talk about, which is there are murmurings like behind the scenes in the triathon world right now that the T100 aren't paying people.
[38:06] SPEAKER_03: And I just wonder how big an impact that is happening to the top of the sport.
[38:11] SPEAKER_03: So obviously, someone like Apo isn't affected too much by that.
[38:16] SPEAKER_03: Now they do owe Apo a small amount for the 2025 end-of-season bonus, and and that hasn't been paid, but it's nothing compared to say what they owe the Taylor Nibbs, the Yallagins, the Lucy Charles Barclays, these kind of athletes who finished at the pointy end of last year's standing.
[38:34] SPEAKER_03: So I do wonder if that's a big reason why we're not we're not seeing a lot of these athletes showing up to the races so far, and even maybe bigger than that, not even talking about going to do most of those races, like at most going to go and do one this year, because by all reports, they have paid pretty much none of the 2025 end of season bonuses, which is somewhere in the ballpark of two to three million dollars total that they probably haven't paid from from what we're being led to believe by the athletes.
[39:06] SPEAKER_03: They also haven't paid any, uh, as far as I can tell, maybe, maybe a couple of athletes, but as far as I can tell, they haven't paid many, if any, for the the grand final at Qatar last year, which was a lot of money as well.
[39:19] SPEAKER_03: And I'm not sure they've paid any anyone for races this year as well.
[39:23] SPEAKER_03: I I really don't fully know the details, but there are just a lot of murmurings behind the scenes that athletes, particularly the best athletes, are owed quite a lot of money from the T-100.
[39:34] SPEAKER_03: And I do wonder if that's just something that's not being talked about, but is a big deterrent from stopping the stars like your Lucy Charles Barclays and your Sam Laidlow's and and and these kind of athletes from going to the races this year.
[39:48] SPEAKER_04: Surely it's got to have some factor into that when people are making season plans, right?
[39:53] SPEAKER_04: Um like they're still getting good people racing.
[39:58] SPEAKER_04: So, you know, I have faith that the PTO will will pay and they will come through with the money, but yeah, it is getting to the point now where it's starting to drag on a little bit, and I'm sure there is people that um, you know, will jump into a T100 when it suits them, but are probably not going to prioritize it and um you know really go out of their way to do an event if they're still owed money from you know 2025 or um yeah, six to twelve months ago.
[40:29] SPEAKER_04: Like it's it is a long time to wait, so I'm sure it is having an impact on some people's decisions, but yeah.
[40:35] SPEAKER_04: I can't speak for them, obviously, but I'm sure it's floating around in people's minds.
[40:40] SPEAKER_05: I heard that they owe quite a bit of money to a commentator from 2024, but have since let go.
[40:46] SPEAKER_05: But those are just murmurs behind the scenes.
[40:48] SPEAKER_05: I don't know too much about that, but we'll just I'll just leave that here.
[40:51] SPEAKER_04: No comment.
[40:52] SPEAKER_04: You're talking about Jan?
[40:54] SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
[40:56] SPEAKER_02: To be clear, not me.
[40:58] SPEAKER_03: Jan wasn't there in 2024, was he?
[41:00] SPEAKER_03: He was a 2025 operator.
[41:02] SPEAKER_03: Oh, yeah, he was 2024.
[41:04] SPEAKER_02: What are you talking about?
[41:04] SPEAKER_02: It was me, you and Jan.
[41:06] SPEAKER_03: Yeah, that was 2024.
[41:07] SPEAKER_05: That was the fucking dream team, dude.
[41:09] SPEAKER_05: Honestly.
[41:10] SPEAKER_05: Sorry for the swearing, but God, that was the peak of commentary for T100.
[41:15] SPEAKER_05: Thanks, Greg.
[41:16] SPEAKER_05: Vicky, you're still good.
[41:17] SPEAKER_05: So you're still the good Vicky.
[41:20] SPEAKER_03: There have been some discussions behind uh your backs, Apo and Greg, about a potential uh Jarn, Fredino, Vicky, Holland uh, and myself dream team reunion to to commentate some races or do some things maybe on our own accord, not not involved with uh with uh the T100.
[41:38] SPEAKER_03: But watch this space.
[41:39] SPEAKER_02: Starting a new friendship circle.
[41:41] SPEAKER_02: Watch this space.
[41:42] SPEAKER_05: Ridiculously, I'm not a part of any of that.
[41:43] SPEAKER_05: All you guys are commentators.
[41:44] SPEAKER_05: Apple on the commentary.
[41:46] SPEAKER_05: Are you kidding me?
[41:47] SPEAKER_05: Apo.
[41:49] SPEAKER_03: You know the funniest part too, Greg, is everyone loves Apo in the commentary.
[41:53] SPEAKER_06: Oh my god, so much!
[41:55] SPEAKER_03: Apo's so good.
[41:56] SPEAKER_03: That's like the top Spotify comment.
[41:58] SPEAKER_03: He's just wanted to say Apo, I really enjoyed Apo's commentary.
[42:01] SPEAKER_03: He was there for about 60 minutes of a 10-hour stream.
[42:05] SPEAKER_03: They love him.
[42:07] SPEAKER_04: I'm the impact player.
[42:08] SPEAKER_04: I come in, make the impact, and then I leave.
[42:11] SPEAKER_04: That's uh all right.
[42:13] SPEAKER_04: Shall we move on from uh from Singapore?
[42:15] SPEAKER_04: Anything else to to touch on?
[42:17] SPEAKER_04: I'm excited to see where the T100 goes, right?
[42:20] SPEAKER_04: Um I think it is proving to be like the split gender races are not a success.
[42:27] SPEAKER_04: And especially when you have the men's race be so not boring, but you know, won by Hayden so convincingly that it's not that interesting to watch.
[42:39] SPEAKER_04: Like usually when you have the um the two genders on the same day, you're like, alright, at least I've got the women's race to look forward to next or something, or vice versa.
[42:49] SPEAKER_04: But now it's just kind of like when Hayden's winning by so much, it's like I don't even really care to keep watching this, and you just you know turn it off and forget about it a little bit.
[42:58] SPEAKER_04: So I think that's where the split genders is hurting the T-100.
[43:02] SPEAKER_04: But I'm confident that they'll get better fields at races like um San Fran and Um and the Spain list.
[43:10] SPEAKER_04: Like they're closer to the hotbeds of um, you know, more populated professional triathletes, right?
[43:18] SPEAKER_04: Like Gold Coast and Singapore.
[43:19] SPEAKER_04: It's a long way to travel for the Europeans and the Americans.
[43:21] SPEAKER_04: So races in America and Europe generally will attract deeper, more competitive fields.
[43:26] SPEAKER_04: So yeah.
[43:27] SPEAKER_04: I don't think it's all doom and gloom.
[43:29] SPEAKER_03: Last time we were at Singapore, Kate Waff did win it by even more than Hayden, though.
[43:33] SPEAKER_03: So maybe it would have been just as boring.
[43:34] SPEAKER_03: But they clearly just had to do that financially.
[43:36] SPEAKER_03: The split sex as races, if if you buy that, it's to highlight like each individual sex, it's clearly just because if they had men and women, it would have put a lot more financial pressure on.
[43:46] SPEAKER_03: So they split them up, have less races, it means they have to pay less cash at the end of the day.
[43:50] SPEAKER_03: I'm pretty sure that's why they're doing it.
[43:52] SPEAKER_03: I almost feel like 2026 is a write off.
[43:54] SPEAKER_03: The T100's gonna be kind of boring, but we're gonna get around it.
[43:57] SPEAKER_03: I'm gonna watch every one of the races with very low.
[44:00] SPEAKER_03: pressure on my eyes like I'm just going into their races expecting nothing and if we get a great race then that's a really big surprise and that'll be a good thing.
[44:08] SPEAKER_03: But you know like I'm I don't expect I don't expect to have massive fields or crazy racing or anything like that and and I'm hoping to be pleasantly surprised.
[44:29] SPEAKER_03: Nerdbelts was born out of necessity by pro triathlete Steve McKenna who discovered that proper hydration and fueling were critical to his success.
[44:36] SPEAKER_03: But the problem was that traditional fuel belts were really really frustrating to use.
[44:41] SPEAKER_03: Steve went from struggling to finish his Iron Man races to all of a sudden winning multiple Iron Man events by increasing his fluid intake so he knew he had to come up with a better way than just tucking a Gatorade bottle down his tri suit because it was so important to his performance.
[44:55] SPEAKER_03: Next minute his sister sewed together his belt idea and when people saw his little DIY belt during uh his victory at Iron Man Australia demand for it kind of exploded in in Australian triathlon and what started as a belt for him and only him that was not for sale to the public quickly grew a bit of a cult-like following down in Australian triathlon and within a few years nerdbelts has probably become the the belt that most pro triathletes trust and race in like Sam Long, Jason West, Jake Burtwistle, Joe Skipper, Jamie Riddle, Ari Clau, and heaps more all people whose run is probably their strength if anything or very close to most of those people being um the strength of their runs.
[45:36] SPEAKER_03: So yeah and and I think a good part of this story of Nerd belts is that Steve then reluctantly stepped away from racing to fully focus on refining the the nerd belt product using all of the customer feedback to create a new generation belt that's taken no bounce at any pace you run in to the next level whether you're a male, a female, whether you're fast, whether you're not as fast.
[45:58] SPEAKER_03: They really have refined the nerd belt to not bounce for anyone where you wear it.
[46:03] SPEAKER_03: The solution is that there's now a practical high performance solution to your fueling and hydrating during race day or even just like your training needs like carrying your your phone as well and some and some car keys and that kind of thing.
[46:17] SPEAKER_03: They all the belts you can carry 600 mil of fluid you can put your phone in them you can put six plus gels is my experience I've I've also fit my key my dog poo bags in there at the same time as all of this and you don't even notice it really like you you maybe do like 1% for the start of the run but before long you literally don't notice the nerd belts on your hips at all.
[46:38] SPEAKER_03: It kind of just blends in it's it it really has become a really refined product in 2026.
[46:43] SPEAKER_03: And and I think a big thing in triathlon now is that fueling on every run is how you can train more consistently and avoid like the fatigue and and rid the fluid combination as well the the dehydration that can derail performance day in, day out in training.
[46:57] SPEAKER_03: So rather than riding the roller coaster of sometimes feeling great, sometimes feeling shit, nerdbelts really does help you recover quickly and so that you feel better not only in that session that you're doing but the next day and the next day and the next day.
[47:10] SPEAKER_03: So if you want to get yourself a nerdbelt I highly recommend it.
[47:13] SPEAKER_03: They're so good for training they're probably even better for racing use the discount code TTH26 for 15% off when you do buy anything from nerdbelts on their website and all the details for that the discount code the website etc are in today's show notes.
[47:39] SPEAKER_03: I want to move us on I want to make a big call and the more I think about it I the more I think maybe it isn't a big call compared to when I first like thought about it.
[47:49] SPEAKER_03: But I believe that Solvig or as uh she tells me her name is now pronounced Solvay Love Seth has overtaken Taylor Nib and Lucy Charles Barclay as the number one long course female triathlete in the world and I just wanted to get your guys' thoughts and opinions on that and anything you want to you want to throw back my way about maybe debating that let me know but I'm pretty confident Solvay's the the number one long course female triathlete on the planet right now.
[48:17] SPEAKER_05: No just no she needs to win more world titles I think and she hasn't squared up against Lucy and Taylor this year like all at their best.
[48:29] SPEAKER_05: I mean I feel like one time it's like oh she's not a one trick pony obviously but I feel like she has to s to stamp it and say this is my world now she needs to go to the biggest stage this year and beat them again and say what up motherfuckers sorry I keep swearing today I don't I don't know why I keep doing it.
[48:46] SPEAKER_04: I think I think Sulvay has Taylor's um you know Taylor covered over the Iron Man distance because I'm presuming that's what this is like if you're just talking about long distance um then Iron Man I think she's got Taylor covered but I don't know I think Lucy is still the queen of uh Iron Man in my eyes so maybe another year or two of winning the big races she I I think you can make that call but I think it's just a little bit too early to make it right now.
[49:19] SPEAKER_04: And I think we've got to throw Cat Matthews in there as well like that like that big the big four right Taylor, Lucy, Solvay and Kat, I think Laura Phillip Yeah I mean I guess you should Laura just doesn't race as much as these other women though right so it's kind of hard to like she's Laura explodes on the scene for a couple of months you know usually around the European champs and then the Ironman world championships and has great races but we're seeing Kat and Taylor and Solvay race you know four or five times a year.
[49:53] SPEAKER_03: So I reckon that's underselling Laura Phillips she won Iron Man Hamburg last year beat Kat Matthews head to head won Challenge Roth won the world championship six months before that like she's pretty good at this one apple yeah yeah you're right you're right we should put her in there the big five you're right I mean if you had to take anyone out you'd take out Kat but we we we don't have to debate all of that right now Vicky the only thing is that Kat came second and Laura came third at Kona last year.
[50:21] SPEAKER_04: I don't think you do I think you take out Taylor when you're talking about Iron Man I think you take out Taylor.
[50:27] SPEAKER_02: She was winning the Iron Man World Championships last year at 39.3 kilometres like she was bloody close to being the world chant if there's a Mount Rushmore if there's four names only and one's got to go I think it might have to be Taylor that's a big call as well look I think on current form yes she is the best Iron Man athlete in the world and of course she is the Iron Man world champion so that rings true right but to be elevated into that same level that that that stratosphere if you like that we talk about Taylor and Lucy Charles Barclay I think she needs to win a few more races just as you guys said really and I think we beat all four of them kind of routinely those other other big four that we've mentioned that Taylor, Lucy, Kat, Laura like I think at the moment she's so new into this distance I don't think I can yet sort of say that she is like the all around undeniable best.
[51:30] SPEAKER_02: I think it's still a bit she's she's up there she's one of them I'm just not sure I can say like it's conclusive yet.
[51:36] SPEAKER_02: And right now I mean obviously just a few weeks ago Taylor beat her in Oceanside and Lucy Charles Barclay is 70.3 world champion but if we're talking purely Iron Man she's probably the best but Lucy hasn't raced yet this year cat we didn't get that showdown in the end in uh in Texas or I I do think Solvay probably would have had her on that day so yeah I I just don't think it's conclusive enough for us to kind of put that label firmly on her.
[52:04] SPEAKER_03: I think the the big thing is that Taylor Nib hasn't won an Iron Man race yet has she Apo the others have all won an Iron Man race and Solvay obviously won Texas where she beat Taylor Kat beat Taylor at Texas the year before and then Solvay won Placid last year in the Iron Man World Championships I just think the run that Solvay is on right now is generational and maybe still not quite getting the credit it deserves.
[52:28] SPEAKER_03: Her win at Placid last year was bloody good and her win at the Iron Man World Championship, say what you want it was a really really good performance and then Texas like what she did at Texas was scary good.
[52:39] SPEAKER_03: Kat wasn't beating her like she dropped Kat.
[52:42] SPEAKER_03: She just had plain and simply dropped Kat.
[52:44] SPEAKER_03: I think Kat finishes second or maybe third that day I think she probably has a pretty good battle with Taylor Nib maybe maybe gets her because Taylor did have some rough periods during that marathon despite still having a really good marathon but I just I just I just keep thinking and reflecting on that Texas race and and I just can't help but feel like Solvay has stepped up another level and has kind of gone like past everyone.
[53:07] SPEAKER_03: I I just the one is I wonder about Lucy Charles Barclay who we haven't seen and we know how good she is at Kona but Solvay's 27 years old and I feel like that win in Kona at 26 I just feel like she's still got so much development left and I think we saw that with her run at Oceanside and with her race at Texas.
[53:25] SPEAKER_03: And I just want to I just want to kind of put it out there that I'm gonna be surprised if Solvay doesn't win the Iron Man World Championships again this year.
[53:33] SPEAKER_03: And I don't know are we looking at the next Danielle Reef here is this the person who's just going to win the next five of these is is that too stupid and too early of a call I can see it happening.
[53:42] SPEAKER_04: I can see it like she has stepped up like she won Iron Man World Championships last year and her Texas result seems to be a step up on that so I think at the moment she's in the drive the box seat right um so yeah I could see her definitely being the favourite into Kona this year but uh we'll have to see like um like Vicky was saying we haven't seen Lucy race you know we haven't seen Laura race and Kat got the flat tire so we haven't seen you know three of them at their best yet so it'll be interesting to see them all come together at Kona but I think it's hard to say right now that she is the favourite for Kona but I could definitely see her doing the double like back to back.
[54:25] SPEAKER_03: Shall we move on to the most anticipated segment of today's podcast which is what we've all been waiting for for a couple of weeks.
[54:32] SPEAKER_03: Vicky was practically begging to do the podcast last week and I'm pretty sure it's just because she wants to hear about St.
[54:37] SPEAKER_02: Anthony's we waited a whole week for this Jack's just not been as up for this as I thought whereas I've been absolutely waiting.
[54:44] SPEAKER_03: Come on guys Vicky wanted to do a dedicated podcast last week where all we talked about was the St.
[54:51] SPEAKER_03: Anthony's Olympic distance non-drafting race recap.
[54:54] SPEAKER_03: She wanted that to go out like nothing else just that's gonna be short.
[54:58] SPEAKER_02: Yeah we were just gonna do a short hit right people in the comments can you please tell us if you would have if you would have been excited and really like anticipating a rundown of St.
[55:08] SPEAKER_02: Anthony's if we drop that on Monday morning I want people to tell us whether they're on my side and they would have been up for that or whether they're like nah whatever just a two-bit race in Florida we don't care.
[55:20] SPEAKER_03: Let us know okay appo and Greg take us take it away tell the story of um the battle of St.
[55:26] SPEAKER_05: Anthony's triathlon leave nothing out well hey first off I think I got a shout out to a lot of pretenders because we got a lot of like calls at the race be like oh podcast is great and I feel like all the comments on social media like are so funny and everyone's in on the joke.
[55:42] SPEAKER_05: So uh yeah shout out to all the listeners and like making it fun.
[55:45] SPEAKER_05: I mean people were like oh St.
[55:46] SPEAKER_05: Anthony's this why wasn't this televised I'm like oh there's like 16 people in the field so yeah that's probably why but uh yeah I don't know I think I feel like the champ has to take it away and then I'll I'll chime in but I just want to come out and say Apo came out we're in St.
[56:02] SPEAKER_05: Anthony's I'm like alright we're hanging out I'm like hey you want to go for a run he's like oh I got this calf niggle and I'd been hearing rumors of this calf niggle from Jack and Apo and he said he didn't run all race week and comes and wins a sprint finish.
[56:16] SPEAKER_05: I I think he Sam laid load me like I think he was full of shit and I don't think he was actually injured.
[56:22] SPEAKER_05: He probably just hit his Strava run and ran from his uh his place he was staying in yeah and I just I didn't think he would do me like that but you know I guess that's the mind of a 20 time champ he just uh he he big dogged me he big dogged me in every way shape or form and it doesn't feel good but I feel like I learned a lesson.
[56:37] SPEAKER_04: So honestly Apple thank you much to learn you have my young Padawan no I did I did actually legitimately not run all week because I have I've had this ongoing calf problem it just like seizes up and it gets really tight it's not necessarily like an injury but it's just like a completely seized muscle so I didn't yeah I took a whole week off running leading into the race um and it was fine it was great.
[57:05] SPEAKER_04: Fresh legs for the win um but uh St.
[57:09] SPEAKER_04: Anthony's man that's a great race it's like I did this race in 2016.
[57:14] SPEAKER_04: I don't know why it took me 10 years to come back because they like really look after the pros.
[57:19] SPEAKER_04: Like Greg can speak to this like the race briefing goes for like 15 minutes.
[57:24] SPEAKER_04: They just you know no bullshit they just get to the point and it's catered right like actually catered.
[57:30] SPEAKER_04: They had like spaghetti bolognese, lasagna pasta salad like this thing was fucking they had like big coolers and eskies full of like cold drinks.
[57:42] SPEAKER_04: I was like this is like this is what it's like to be a pro.
[57:46] SPEAKER_04: Anyway it was it's just a great race and um I think like I said in the intro a lot of people were surprised by Greg's race but to be honest I wasn't surprised like Greg Greg's a good athlete I know he gets a lot of shit online but um you know I've seen this guy's striver he can run um he did finish ten minutes behind the win last year at St Anthony's ten minutes?
[58:09] SPEAKER_03: Yeah no no no or was that the year before?
[58:14] SPEAKER_03: That must have been the year before and it wasn't over ten minutes I think it was like ten minutes and six minutes or something he's been off the off the win so I think it actually is a bit of a a surprise to see him fighting for the battle in the sprint finish but I kind of knew it going in because I knew that what shape you were both in and I actually had said to to some people that I thought Greg was the favorite to win and so talk to us about how the race actually played out.
[58:37] SPEAKER_05: When did you get dropped on the swim apple because the the swim start is actually it's actually crazy.
[58:43] SPEAKER_05: You have to run in shin deep water 50 meters and then do a hard right turn.
[58:48] SPEAKER_05: So like if you have long legs you're like at a like a massive advantage so I just started on the far left even though it's a right turn I just wanted to clear water because I knew when I dove I would probably be in like 10th place and I end up making it to the buoy in like second but I was kind of cooked.
[59:03] SPEAKER_04: I didn't come around the front and push the swim until about halfway and that's when it really started stringing out and that's when everyone got dropped for me and then there was there was more people getting dropped so basically you're a really good swimmer yeah yeah I mean it's a sweet I was never in contact to be honest I so the the start happened and I don't know what I just like I'm not that tall right so I can't run as some as long as some of the taller people and I got bashed around that first turning boy like you said it was 50 meters it was kind of a dumb way to start the race like they should have started us parallel to the beach so we can just swim straight across um but anyway and I just got caught in the melee a little bit and worked my way up never felt that good I could see the leaders um like you and I don't know I thought I was a little bit closer than I was I think on the results it was like 40 seconds I was hoping it was going to be a little bit um a little bit less than that but um yeah I had to work pretty hard on the bike to catch up.
[1:00:04] SPEAKER_05: So did anyone try to come with you?
[1:00:06] SPEAKER_05: Because like there were people around you but you kind of bridged up solo.
[1:00:09] SPEAKER_05: I mean Jeremy Macklin had bridged up as well but you didn't really take anyone with you and then you caught up to me and Mark essentially at what was that mile fourteen or fifteen and then we rode the rest of the way together.
[1:00:20] SPEAKER_05: Mark Dubrick Mark Dubrick Mark the Shark um yeah I rode pretty hard I had to ride hard to catch you guys so then when I caught up I wanted to rest on the back a little bit but then you called me through and I was like man I'm not coming I'm not getting on the turn before that I saw I looked back and I'm like oh there's someone there he's caught up and I was like almost dropped at that point because I was having some saddle issues and I had to dig really hard to get back and I'm like oh there's someone behind oh he's already caught up like so let me do a stretch and a U-turn and I just like go lazy out of the U-turn I'm like go ahead brother like head and then it's Apo and I'm like oh it's my boy and he's like who's off the front I was like oh it's Macklin you know he's this young kid I actually coach him in swimming um but I knew he wasn't gonna be a threat on the run he's quite a good cyclist um so then Apo actually kind of led me and Mark back into transition.
[1:01:08] SPEAKER_05: I thought hey if you caught up this way like just keep going dog you got it hey hey keep going buddy little tiger you're doing so good were you guys keeping eyes on Trevor Foley on the bike?
[1:01:18] SPEAKER_03: Like were you worried about how how much ground he was making up on you?
[1:01:22] SPEAKER_04: Well he didn't actually make up any time on me.
[1:01:25] SPEAKER_04: I actually rode faster than Trevor he just had a great swim.
[1:01:28] SPEAKER_04: I was actually really surprised Trevor only lost a minute or less than a minute to me in the swim so like a minute and a half to you Greg which is a great swim for Trevor.
[1:01:37] SPEAKER_05: Yeah if if you had told me 145 for Trevor like oh he's gonna be in the mix I wasn't worried about Trevor uh truthfully I didn't think he would see the front of the race all day and I didn't think of him as a threat to win personally and I thought I could get off the bike and potentially outrun him.
[1:01:53] SPEAKER_05: I know that he can is a faster runner on paper but I don't think he's quite in that like speed oriented um phase or he doesn't quite have what he had at one point.
[1:02:02] SPEAKER_05: Now if he trained for a 10k for the next three months I'm sure he would whoop me but that's not where he was at so I didn't really consider Trevor like a big threat in the race um truthfully.
[1:02:11] SPEAKER_05: That's no disrespect to him at all.
[1:02:13] SPEAKER_05: But yeah I I didn't know and when we got when I got off the bike I had a really good T2 and I I saw me and Sam and then we saw at the turnaround and I was like oh Mark hasn't even kind of caught up he had a bad T2 and I was like oh dude just me and this geriatric next to me uh going for the win.
[1:02:30] SPEAKER_05: I'll I'll easily take him in a sprint.
[1:02:33] SPEAKER_04: I almost Greg dropped me like twice on the run and I don't know what he was doing because we got to halfway we got to the turnaround and he put in like a little surge through this aid station and I was like oh whatever and then he gapped me by like it must have been 10 meters and then I didn't even change pace and then he I just slowly reeled him back in.
[1:02:55] SPEAKER_04: Like I feel like Greg made some tactical errors like he had me on the ropes a couple of times.
[1:03:00] SPEAKER_05: I definitely did well I would I felt like I could run harder but the second I ran harder I was like oh this is too hard and then I would settle back down and I almost had to like recover at a slightly slower pace and then you would catch back up and like okay we're just like chilling again.
[1:03:14] SPEAKER_05: I was like oh I'll go to the front and then I just that was like on repeat and then it comes down to the sprint I'm like oh I've been dropping this guy all day pretty much I'll easily take him and then he like he like puts his grit on his face it's like he's like taking the biggest poop of his entire life and he just like sprints around me and like I didn't even know he had it in him but I guess that's what a champion does and I don't know I just your arm was like did you see his arm flailing?
[1:03:40] SPEAKER_05: I'm like this guy's he's looking like Phoebe from friends like watching this like crazy run.
[1:03:45] SPEAKER_05: I'm like Apple just like a freaking oh my god and I I was just shocked and he literally mentally and physically dominated me over the course of like three seconds and I just gave up immediately I just got I was actually surprised there was no fight like I was surprised at how not easily but like how yeah how quickly you were dispatched away no no I tried to go on the inside I tried to go on the inside and Greg fucking runs me up onto the fucking curb and never named him dude I literally thought about that and I was like oh I'm gonna just the big dog yell at him I was like oh hell yeah I just I held him off this is my race and then he's just like oh I'll just go around the other side too dude I was like okay fine so I literally went up onto the curb like off the course and I was like do I just should I just overtake him here like on the curb and then I was like no I don't want to like get disqualified.
[1:04:44] SPEAKER_05: So then I jumped back down behind him and just went around and yeah on the first on the first heel clipping and you know some of you may have seen me post on Instagram about this Apo was kind of like muttered under his breath like oh sorry but on the next two bloke didn't even say anything I'm just like dude can you back up like honestly like I know you love me and stuff but get off me.
[1:05:06] SPEAKER_03: You're literally on top of me was there any discussion between you two on the run at all like any words exchanged?
[1:05:13] SPEAKER_05: Nothing I don't think no nothing just that like brief like half sorry from clipping me at like mile one but then he just continued to do it.
[1:05:20] SPEAKER_03: I think I did it twice two more times three times total reoccurring character on the podcast father of Greg Dean Harper he he was uh apparently once again not I'm not saying shit talking Apo, which we know he's made a habit of doing in in past races but he did he he has made it known since that Greg was the one pushing the pace and Apo the wily veteran in Dean's words probably raced like a bit of a pussy that's that's what Dean was saying that that Greg was the one pushing the pace and making the race and Apo just sat on and did none of the work and then took five thousand dollars away from his son.
[1:05:59] unknown: You
[1:06:00] SPEAKER_05: Want to hear a funny thing?
[1:06:01] SPEAKER_05: My dad was like, Oh, I'll give you guys splits out there.
[1:06:03] SPEAKER_05: And we're running by with like a mile left, and he's like, You're one second behind Apple's like, hell yeah.
[1:06:18] SPEAKER_04: That is good.
[1:06:19] SPEAKER_04: Um Yeah, there was no words out there.
[1:06:23] SPEAKER_04: There was all uh once the gun goes, there's no friends out on the course.
[1:06:26] SPEAKER_03: No, was it fan afterwards?
[1:06:27] SPEAKER_03: What was the chat once you cross once you crossed the finish line?
[1:06:30] SPEAKER_02: And have we got a photo?
[1:06:32] SPEAKER_02: Have we got have we got a photo of uh any abuse going on, you know, in the same vein as Ari and yourself at uh Oceanside?
[1:06:40] SPEAKER_04: No, there was only love.
[1:06:42] SPEAKER_04: But I could tell that Greg was pissed.
[1:06:44] SPEAKER_04: Greg was pissed.
[1:06:46] SPEAKER_04: I thought he would have I thought he would have been stoked.
[1:06:49] SPEAKER_04: I was like, this is the best race of his career, and the man is fucking livid.
[1:06:54] SPEAKER_04: I couldn't believe it.
[1:06:55] SPEAKER_05: I mean I had anger like deep in my bones because I feel like I should have beaten you on the day personally, but I was still happy.
[1:07:03] SPEAKER_05: But it's it's weird.
[1:07:04] SPEAKER_05: Like I said, if you beat me by 30 seconds, I probably would have been more like hell yeah, like that was a great race.
[1:07:09] SPEAKER_05: But like losing in the end when and maybe I shouldn't have let my mind go there, like I'm like, I could I can do this, like I can win this race.
[1:07:18] SPEAKER_05: Like I I don't really know, I haven't been in this position and to get that like kind of taken away from you, and like you earned it, obviously, but that's like where your mind is at.
[1:07:25] SPEAKER_05: So I just was like upset with myself about how I played it because I mean whatever you won on the day, like to say that oh I should have beaten you on the day because of tactics is like a cheap shot because you won the race, but I was like, oh, I feel like I could have done better.
[1:07:39] SPEAKER_05: And I honestly I feel like I could have raced the whole race better.
[1:07:42] SPEAKER_05: So I mean that's just that's just how I honestly feel.
[1:07:45] SPEAKER_05: I feel like I actually executed like a B plus race and I wanted to execute an A plus race, so um yeah, that's just the truth of the matter.
[1:07:52] SPEAKER_05: But afterwards it was fun, it was all love.
[1:07:56] SPEAKER_05: We're like hanging out.
[1:07:57] SPEAKER_05: We we did this like recap for the someone was filming for like three minutes, and I don't know, I feel like we were laughing the whole time.
[1:08:03] SPEAKER_05: Like it was a good time, and I'm like, I got this guy to come to the race, and then he just out sprints me for the win.
[1:08:09] SPEAKER_05: Like it just kind of sucks.
[1:08:11] SPEAKER_05: So uh I I felt like we had had good vibes.
[1:08:14] SPEAKER_05: And Apo looked like a lost puppy looking for me at the award ceremony.
[1:08:18] SPEAKER_05: He's like, Hey, where are you?
[1:08:19] SPEAKER_05: And I could see him in the middle of the field, he's like texting on his phone, like loner.
[1:08:23] SPEAKER_05: And I'm like, hey, I'll I'm I'm coming, don't worry, sweetheart.
[1:08:25] SPEAKER_05: So um it seems like Apple's really uh grown fond of me, so that feels good for me.
[1:08:30] SPEAKER_03: It's it's funny how 12 months ago before this podcast, Apo refused to reply to your messages, Greg, and wanted nothing to do with you, and now he's begging for you to hang out with him at a race.
[1:08:44] SPEAKER_04: Oh Greg did try to ruin my race the day before, though.
[1:08:48] SPEAKER_04: We went for a pre-race swim, and um we did like 1500 meters, and he's like, Alright, I'm just gonna do five by two hundred, just smooth.
[1:08:58] SPEAKER_04: And then I was like, Oh yeah, I'll do.
[1:08:59] SPEAKER_04: You know, I can do another easy K.
[1:09:02] SPEAKER_04: And then he's like, Yeah, I'm gonna do these leaving on 220.
[1:09:07] SPEAKER_04: I'm like, it's not that's not smooth.
[1:09:10] SPEAKER_06: It was yards, dude.
[1:09:12] SPEAKER_04: It's a threshold, mate.
[1:09:13] SPEAKER_04: And then he's like, no, no, just easy, smooth, relaxed.
[1:09:17] SPEAKER_04: And then he fucking proceeds to do five by two hundred, coming in on like two oh five, leaving on two twenty.
[1:09:24] SPEAKER_04: Yes, it's yards, but that's still like two fifteen in meters, leaving on two thirty.
[1:09:31] SPEAKER_05: No, no, no.
[1:09:32] SPEAKER_05: It's it's a little slower than that.
[1:09:33] SPEAKER_05: I don't know what to say, Apple.
[1:09:35] SPEAKER_05: I'm super fit swimming, so like I just did what I should do.
[1:09:38] SPEAKER_04: And I couldn't show any weakness, so I'm swimming, I swam a kilometer at threshold.
[1:09:43] SPEAKER_05: I mean, I really wasn't impressed, honestly.
[1:09:47] SPEAKER_05: I was swimming next to him, like, oh, this guy's getting dropped tomorrow.
[1:09:51] SPEAKER_05: No chance.
[1:09:52] SPEAKER_05: And honestly, I've never met someone who has a shittier turn than Apo.
[1:09:57] SPEAKER_05: Like, I feel like when he's pushing off the wall, it's like this the laziest push I've ever.
[1:10:01] SPEAKER_05: I'm like, how is this guy so good at biking?
[1:10:03] SPEAKER_05: Like, his legs are weak as hell.
[1:10:05] SPEAKER_05: Like, I've still got push-ups.
[1:10:07] SPEAKER_05: I'm like getting a body length on the turn, and I'm like, dude, you're so shitty at flip turns.
[1:10:12] SPEAKER_05: Holy moly, man.
[1:10:14] SPEAKER_05: Um but you don't need flip turns in the open water.
[1:10:16] SPEAKER_05: That's right.
[1:10:17] SPEAKER_05: We had a agecooper come up to us, this is after the awards.
[1:10:21] SPEAKER_05: Apo has this giant check in his hand.
[1:10:23] SPEAKER_05: Shout out to Max.
[1:10:24] SPEAKER_05: And he walks up to Apo, gives him his phone.
[1:10:26] SPEAKER_05: He's like, Hey, can you take a picture of me and Greg?
[1:10:30] SPEAKER_05: Greg put him up to this.
[1:10:34] SPEAKER_04: Greg is like Greg whispering to him.
[1:10:36] SPEAKER_04: He's like, I want you to ruin this guy's ego if I go to go go ask for a photo from um from that guy.
[1:10:43] SPEAKER_05: And then Apo's like, Oh, don't you want a photo with the winner?
[1:10:46] SPEAKER_05: And then he was like totally just trying to take the piss out of Apo, and he listens to the podcast.
[1:10:50] SPEAKER_05: And I was like, dude, you're a legend.
[1:10:52] SPEAKER_05: It kind of went over both of our heads at the time, but I was like, dude, that was a funny moment.
[1:10:56] SPEAKER_05: So yeah, I told Max I would shout him out on the pod.
[1:10:59] SPEAKER_05: So good on you, Max.
[1:11:00] SPEAKER_05: And then we go out to Dungeon.
[1:11:02] SPEAKER_05: Apple's walking around with this giant$10,000 check in public, right?
[1:11:07] SPEAKER_05: And people are people are coming up to him, like, whoa, like you win that check, and Apple's like, yeah, yeah.
[1:11:12] SPEAKER_05: And like, I feel like the first couple of times my dad's like, yeah, he this guy was like second, you know, like the as a dad would.
[1:11:19] SPEAKER_05: Never once was Apo like, oh yeah, me and this guy battle it out.
[1:11:23] SPEAKER_05: He's like, Yeah, I fucking won.
[1:11:24] SPEAKER_05: Like showed him the check, and took photos of people.
[1:11:27] SPEAKER_05: Not once did he give me any sort of credit, like I was possibly there in the race.
[1:11:31] SPEAKER_05: He just is like, oh yeah, this is my crew.
[1:11:33] SPEAKER_05: This guy, you see, is he's wearing a backpack?
[1:11:35] SPEAKER_05: Yeah, he's holding my stuff.
[1:11:36] SPEAKER_05: I'm like, all right, thanks, mate.
[1:11:38] SPEAKER_04: There was that guy who wanted a photo of like him passing me the check.
[1:11:42] SPEAKER_04: Like some random people just having like bottomless mimosas at downtown St.
[1:11:46] SPEAKER_04: Pete.
[1:11:47] SPEAKER_04: Nothing to do with a triathlon, just wanted to pass me the$10,000 novelty check.
[1:11:53] SPEAKER_03: Hilarious.
[1:11:54] SPEAKER_04: Anyway.
[1:11:55] SPEAKER_04: What else was I supposed to do?
[1:11:56] SPEAKER_04: I didn't have a car to put it in.
[1:11:57] SPEAKER_04: I I had no option.
[1:11:59] SPEAKER_05: Yeah, it was pretty funny.
[1:12:00] SPEAKER_05: He I I will admit, Apple was like, Oh, I feel awkward.
[1:12:02] SPEAKER_05: I'm like, yeah, I'd feel awkward carrying around this giant cardboard check around in public.
[1:12:07] SPEAKER_03: I think the takeaway though is that Greg is actually a good triathlet, despite what Aaron Royal says.
[1:12:12] SPEAKER_03: Aaron Royal hates Greg and and pretty much believes he's not even a good swimmer, let alone a good triathlet.
[1:12:18] SPEAKER_03: But I do I do think that Greg proved to a lot of people at St.
[1:12:21] SPEAKER_03: Anthony's, like, say what you want to beat Trevor Foley and Mark Dubrick at a race like that by as much as they did, like it was big margins that that Greg beat those guys by, and they're world-class guys.
[1:12:33] SPEAKER_03: I I was super impressed.
[1:12:34] SPEAKER_03: I wasn't surprised.
[1:12:36] SPEAKER_03: Um, Greg's training's been going really well the last kind of three, four months, and I wasn't surprised at all.
[1:12:40] SPEAKER_03: And I think Greg's gonna keep um having some some really good races this year.
[1:12:44] SPEAKER_03: Uh Apo did have to fight so hard for it that he's actually been sick literally, pretty much since the moment he crossed the finish line until now.
[1:12:53] SPEAKER_03: He's had like a 10-day sickness that he can't shake because Greg made him work that hard.
[1:12:57] SPEAKER_03: So um Greg's gonna be towing the start line at Gulf Coast, and I'm expecting big things from him.
[1:13:02] SPEAKER_03: Yet to yet to be seen whether Apo makes the start line.
[1:13:04] SPEAKER_03: Greg might have defeated Apo and ruined his entire season, but at least he got the check.
[1:13:13] SPEAKER_00: Every time I get started, you pull me up fast.
[1:13:21] SPEAKER_03: I think one of the most underrated ways to be a faster athlete is to just be healthier.
[1:13:26] SPEAKER_03: Most people enjoy the training required to get fit.
[1:13:29] SPEAKER_03: Like most people are really good at that, but so many of those people never quite get as fit as they could because their sleep or diet or lifestyle doesn't allow them to get the most out of themselves.
[1:13:39] SPEAKER_03: And that's where pillar performance can help you if you are one of those people in a big, big way.
[1:13:44] SPEAKER_03: You can get their triple magnesium powder and instantly improve your sleep quality.
[1:13:48] SPEAKER_03: You can get their protein powder and start having that after sessions or at night time so that your protein intake is higher, you recover faster, but also just so that you're less likely to crave bullshit junk food.
[1:14:00] SPEAKER_03: Like we all know what it's like when you go for a run or a ride and you come back and you eat everything in sight, or at night time you haven't eaten enough during the day, so you snack on junk at night.
[1:14:09] SPEAKER_03: Just start taking pillar performance's protein powder after your sessions and after dinner, and those cravings go away.
[1:14:15] SPEAKER_03: Um, their collagen really helps prevent injuries, it's a brilliant product.
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[1:14:22] SPEAKER_03: They've got ultra omega, ultra B active, and immune C, which will all just improve your health.
[1:14:28] SPEAKER_03: And you can get all of these products, take them together, and overall be a better, healthier version of yourself and allow yourself to get the most out of your training you're doing.
[1:14:36] SPEAKER_03: Be the fittest version of you that you've ever been.
[1:14:38] SPEAKER_03: So if you do want to get any of that, then head over to Pillar Performance's website, use the discount code TTH15 for 15% off, or if you're in America, go to thefeed.com forward slash pillar and same thing.
[1:14:50] SPEAKER_03: Use the TTH15 discount code for 15% off, and all those details are in today's show notes.
[1:14:58] SPEAKER_00: Every time I get started, you pull me up.
[1:15:07] SPEAKER_03: Alright, couple of quick shout-outs.
[1:15:09] SPEAKER_03: Matthew Marquart and Daisy Davis for their wins at Iron Man South Africa.
[1:15:13] SPEAKER_03: Um, Katrine Christensen and Joe Skipper in second place.
[1:15:17] SPEAKER_03: The Joe Skipper not getting his Kona slot story is actually like kind of funny as well.
[1:15:21] SPEAKER_03: And people who have listened to this podcast won't be surprised.
[1:15:24] SPEAKER_03: Joe Skipper notoriously disorganised.
[1:15:26] SPEAKER_03: It's not a shock to anyone that he didn't uh turn up to the award ceremony to claim that Kona spot, but great to see him back on a podium, the big fella.
[1:15:34] SPEAKER_03: Um taking a break from his political career to do an Iron Man as well.
[1:15:38] SPEAKER_03: You don't see Donald Trump doing that, so shout out Joe.
[1:15:41] SPEAKER_03: Uh, for those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, Joe Skipper is running for his local uh council member or whatever it's called in the UK Vicky.
[1:15:49] SPEAKER_03: Joe Skipper's a politician.
[1:15:51] SPEAKER_03: That's the that's the story there.
[1:15:52] SPEAKER_03: So um vote one, Joe Skipper, and Danielle Blymel and Tristan Olgy um in third.
[1:15:58] SPEAKER_03: Um and Jake Burtwistle and Natalie Van Cooverden winning Iron Man 70.3 Western Western Sydney yesterday.
[1:16:04] SPEAKER_03: Um shout out to both of those guys.
[1:16:06] SPEAKER_03: Um Trent Thorpe and Ali Salthouse came second, and Jared Osborne and Regan Holyoke, bloody Regan Holyoke.
[1:16:14] SPEAKER_03: Fuck off, Regan um came third.
[1:16:17] SPEAKER_03: No, love Regan.
[1:16:19] SPEAKER_03: Um so shout out to all those guys in some other races that have happened.
[1:16:22] SPEAKER_03: And what other races?
[1:16:23] SPEAKER_03: Oh, 70.3 Valencia.
[1:16:24] SPEAKER_03: Sam Lade though won his first ever 70.3.
[1:16:27] SPEAKER_03: I'm actually I've forgotten who who won the female race there.
[1:16:30] SPEAKER_03: Oh my god.
[1:16:31] SPEAKER_03: The Swiss chip, um the Swiss um woman, Katia Sha Sha.
[1:16:35] SPEAKER_03: She won that, I think.
[1:16:36] SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and Sophie Evans came second, and Lena uh Miser came third.
[1:16:42] SPEAKER_03: Meisner came third.
[1:16:43] SPEAKER_03: Um, yeah.
[1:16:45] SPEAKER_03: Uh shout out to all those guys.
[1:16:46] SPEAKER_03: There's been some good racing happening while we're away.
[1:16:48] SPEAKER_03: Um, Vicky, we we weren't gonna do Spotify comments for this.
[1:16:52] SPEAKER_03: We're like, it's been so long since Texas, but you said no, we have to do Spotify comments, and I agree.
[1:16:58] SPEAKER_03: We want to do Spotify comments every time we do one of these group podcasts.
[1:17:01] SPEAKER_03: So any comment that you leave on today's episode, the next one of these that we do, we're gonna read out quite a few of your Spotify comments.
[1:17:08] SPEAKER_03: So anything you've heard from today's episode, any opinion you have, any piss taking you want to do directed at any of us, particularly Greg, um, any opinions, any questions, any discussion points, chuck them in the the Spotify comments of today's episode.
[1:17:22] SPEAKER_03: We love reading them, it's awesome.
[1:17:24] SPEAKER_03: Um, so kick us off with the Spotify comments that came after the Texas recap pod, Vicky.
[1:17:29] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, well I mean this one is just essentially goes to what you've just introed there, and it's by Alonzo Morandra98, and he said, Great episode as always.
[1:17:38] SPEAKER_02: When are listeners' comments coming back?
[1:17:40] SPEAKER_02: And also can't wait for YouTube recording, it's about time.
[1:17:44] SPEAKER_02: So, with regard to the comments, I think we touched upon it.
[1:17:47] SPEAKER_02: We we do love doing it, it's usually like our favorite thing.
[1:17:51] SPEAKER_02: We just howl at some of the things that you guys say to us.
[1:17:54] SPEAKER_02: Um, as for YouTube recording, I'm not sure anyone needs to see us.
[1:17:58] SPEAKER_02: Um, I'd probably have to make more of an effort than I currently do if I thought we were being on YouTube.
[1:18:03] SPEAKER_02: But I mean that's that's a jack decision.
[1:18:04] SPEAKER_02: What do you reckon?
[1:18:05] SPEAKER_05: Vicki, you look gorgeous.
[1:18:06] SPEAKER_05: You're fine.
[1:18:07] SPEAKER_04: Greg would have to put some clothes on for us to go on YouTube, for one.
[1:18:11] SPEAKER_05: No, Apo, do you know how the YouTube algorithm works?
[1:18:14] SPEAKER_03: Also, Greg flirt flirting with Vicky on the podcast.
[1:18:17] SPEAKER_03: Tone it down, guys.
[1:18:18] SPEAKER_03: You're both married.
[1:18:19] SPEAKER_03: Um was that about?
[1:18:23] SPEAKER_03: Gorgeous.
[1:18:24] SPEAKER_03: It's not gorgeous.
[1:18:26] SPEAKER_05: You guys wouldn't Jack, you wouldn't understand what being like a married man, like just like, you know, Vicky's always looking gorgeous.
[1:18:31] SPEAKER_05: She's a gorgeous woman, and yeah, so she doesn't need to change to be on this podcast.
[1:18:35] SPEAKER_05: That's just facts.
[1:18:36] SPEAKER_03: Look, I feel like you could have said any word.
[1:18:38] SPEAKER_03: I feel like gorgeous was the thing that made it go from a friendly compliment to straight flirting.
[1:18:45] SPEAKER_02: I also feel like it's a downright lie.
[1:18:47] SPEAKER_02: I don't know if anyone's seen me in the last six months since I have my child, but gorgeous is not a word that I'd be using.
[1:18:53] SPEAKER_02: But thanks, Greg.
[1:18:54] SPEAKER_02: I do really appreciate it.
[1:18:55] SPEAKER_02: That was very sweet.
[1:18:56] SPEAKER_04: Of course.
[1:18:57] SPEAKER_04: All right.
[1:18:57] SPEAKER_04: Wendable says.
[1:19:02] SPEAKER_04: Wendable says, there were a ton of comments in the live chat about how great Apple's commentary was, and I completely agree.
[1:19:09] SPEAKER_04: So I've just cherry-picked that one.
[1:19:10] SPEAKER_04: Um, you know, a bit of a boost me up, pump my own tires.
[1:19:13] SPEAKER_04: So thanks, Wendables.
[1:19:14] SPEAKER_05: And Apple's out$20 for paying Wendables to write that comment.
[1:19:18] SPEAKER_03: I'm moving us straight on.
[1:19:20] SPEAKER_03: Phil Brown says, for what it's worth, Stoyners is pronounced Storness.
[1:19:25] SPEAKER_03: It's definitely not Stoinas.
[1:19:27] SPEAKER_03: Phil, that is just the most ridiculous, stupid, uneducated, ill-informed comment I've ever read.
[1:19:34] SPEAKER_03: And um I don't know how to say this person's name.
[1:19:37] SPEAKER_03: They comment a lot.
[1:19:38] SPEAKER_03: C-H-R underscore ma.
[1:19:40] SPEAKER_03: I always say shamar.
[1:19:42] SPEAKER_03: I don't know if that's what it is, but that's what it is in my head.
[1:19:44] SPEAKER_03: Says, guys, is this true what Phil Brown says?
[1:19:46] SPEAKER_03: Have we been misled?
[1:19:48] SPEAKER_03: No, you haven't been misled.
[1:19:50] SPEAKER_03: Phil Brown trying to pretend like he knows more than he does, it's definitely not Storners.
[1:19:54] SPEAKER_03: Where are you getting that from?
[1:19:55] SPEAKER_03: Just because that's how he says his name.
[1:19:57] SPEAKER_03: He obviously doesn't know how to say his name properly.
[1:19:59] SPEAKER_03: He's not a true European like me.
[1:20:01] SPEAKER_03: I don't know if you know this, Phil, but I spent six months in Europe last year.
[1:20:05] SPEAKER_03: I became quite cultured and uh diverse, and it's definitely Storner's.
[1:20:10] SPEAKER_03: Move on.
[1:20:13] SPEAKER_02: Mic drop.
[1:20:14] SPEAKER_02: Uh 1126 says, Whoever joins the pod next is going to look soft after 40-hour caffeine kings, Jonas and Christian.
[1:20:23] SPEAKER_02: Only Benjamin Zorganotti could pull it off.
[1:20:25] SPEAKER_02: So that's obviously in relation to the two interviews that Jack's released recently with both Jonas Schomburg and Christian Blumenfeldt, who both love a good coffee and love a lot, a lot of training.
[1:20:37] SPEAKER_04: How do they tolerate that much?
[1:20:38] SPEAKER_04: Like I have if I have three coffees, I get like I get like sweaty, anxious, like nausea and stuff.
[1:20:46] SPEAKER_04: So those that they're just built different.
[1:20:48] SPEAKER_04: And speaking of Ben Zorgnotti, I think he's uh he's on the Gulf Coast start list.
[1:20:53] SPEAKER_04: So uh cheeky little showdown with the Zorgmeister.
[1:20:56] SPEAKER_03: We definitely have to get you guys and Ari to take photos and videos with Benjamin Zorgnotti, the people's champ.
[1:21:02] SPEAKER_03: Keep in mind, this is the guy who won the inaugural pretender of the year last year.
[1:21:08] SPEAKER_03: Come on, like this is this is an important guy in the podcast history.
[1:21:11] SPEAKER_03: So make sure at Golf Coast this week you make him feel very welcome to the United States of America and uh and get some content with him that we can post on Instagram, please.
[1:21:20] SPEAKER_05: Alright, Healthy Eyes365 says, Has Greg started his routine of seven to eight double express espresso to keep up with Jonas yet?
[1:21:28] SPEAKER_05: And I don't know if you know this, but I actually just bought a new espresso maker after listening to the podcast, and that's not a joke.
[1:21:37] SPEAKER_05: So I'm not quite there yet, but I've been um yeah, upping my levels, and that's the that's the truth.
[1:21:42] SPEAKER_03: This is a bit of a sour point for me, Vicky.
[1:21:45] SPEAKER_03: As you know, I've um I've talked about this on the group chat, uh, so it's not a surprise to you, but um, you know, my boys, they made quite a bit of money at St.
[1:21:53] SPEAKER_03: Anthony's for this race that we just heard about.
[1:21:55] SPEAKER_03: And do you think Greg considered at one point, you know, sending, you know, just a hundred bucks my way to say thank you?
[1:22:00] SPEAKER_03: No, he went and bought a fucking five thousand dollar espresso machine.
[1:22:05] SPEAKER_03: None for his family, none for his coach.
[1:22:08] SPEAKER_03: I'm just gonna buy a coffee machine.
[1:22:11] SPEAKER_01: Priority.
[1:22:12] SPEAKER_04: What'd you get, Greg?
[1:22:13] SPEAKER_05: I got an espresso.
[1:22:14] SPEAKER_04: Of course you did.
[1:22:16] SPEAKER_05: Yeah, well, I don't know, I'm gonna not gonna go into the backstory, but I will say this Jack actually got me extra money that we uh I got Venmo'd from Friend of the Show because there was a bet going on, and Jack bet Justin Reality uh Trevor vs.
[1:22:32] SPEAKER_05: Greg, and the winner got a hundred bucks, and Jack said, just Venmo it to Greg.
[1:22:37] SPEAKER_05: So I don't know.
[1:22:38] SPEAKER_05: I mean Jack could have that hundred bucks in his pocket, but he chose to give it to me.
[1:22:42] SPEAKER_05: Wait, what's the backstory on this?
[1:22:44] SPEAKER_05: That's so that's the kind of guy Jack is.
[1:22:46] SPEAKER_05: That's the kind of guy.
[1:22:46] SPEAKER_04: So Justin thought that Trevor would beat you, and Jack thought that you would beat Trevor, and there was a hundred dollars on the line.
[1:22:52] SPEAKER_05: I believe so, Jack.
[1:22:53] SPEAKER_03: Yeah, yeah.
[1:22:53] SPEAKER_03: We just had a little friendly bet that was Justin was supposed to keep secret, but didn't keep secret.
[1:22:58] SPEAKER_03: Uh I I bet a hundred bucks on Greg.
[1:23:00] SPEAKER_03: Uh Justin bet a hundred bucks on Foley, and uh Greg won.
[1:23:04] SPEAKER_03: So I was owed a hundred bucks.
[1:23:06] SPEAKER_03: Um and he was supposed to keep it secret that that a hundred bucks came from me.
[1:23:09] SPEAKER_03: But uh moving on.
[1:23:10] SPEAKER_03: Chili Most says the short answer, no, long answer, no, was hilarious from Christian Blumenfeld.
[1:23:18] SPEAKER_03: Mark that down for an end-of-year pretender award.
[1:23:21] SPEAKER_03: Um, yeah, that was one of the best moments.
[1:23:23] SPEAKER_03: I'm gonna, I think I'm gonna do like an end of year podcast about all the best moments from the podcast in 2026.
[1:23:30] SPEAKER_03: I've always wanted to do that, but I've always been too lazy.
[1:23:33] SPEAKER_03: Whereas this year, I've been clipping the best bits as I go and I'm already putting them into a podcast.
[1:23:39] SPEAKER_03: So every time there's a good picture on a podcast, I clip it and I add it to this podcast that I'm making.
[1:23:45] SPEAKER_03: And that that Christian Blumenfeld answer, for those of you who haven't listened, I'm sure I'm assuming you have.
[1:23:50] SPEAKER_03: It's our most downloaded episode in two years, the Christian Blumenfeld podcast, by the way.
[1:23:54] SPEAKER_03: Um, it did really, really good numbers.
[1:23:57] SPEAKER_03: Um, yeah, he he answered a question about can Lionel Sanders win the iMan World Championships?
[1:24:02] SPEAKER_03: Short answer, no.
[1:24:03] SPEAKER_03: And then I said, What about the long answer?
[1:24:04] SPEAKER_03: And he went, No, it was bloody hilarious.
[1:24:08] SPEAKER_04: It was funny.
[1:24:09] SPEAKER_03: If you haven't listened, go back and listen.
[1:24:12] SPEAKER_04: All right, last uh Spotify comment.
[1:24:14] SPEAKER_04: Bruno Buco says, What is an under 20-hour training week?
[1:24:20] SPEAKER_04: Sickness, and then I liked this one because I've been sick since St.
[1:24:25] SPEAKER_04: Anthony's, right?
[1:24:25] SPEAKER_04: And it's been exactly seven days since the race.
[1:24:29] SPEAKER_04: And I was doing my training totals, and I've done about nine hours of training in a week.
[1:24:35] SPEAKER_04: So um, you know, Christian Blumerfeld's 20-hour sickness weeks.
[1:24:40] SPEAKER_04: I'm not I'm only uh you know, not even halfway there.
[1:24:44] SPEAKER_04: So I don't know.
[1:24:45] SPEAKER_04: I mean it all depends on what your uh circumstances are.
[1:24:47] SPEAKER_04: So you know, I wouldn't if I was an amateur or an age group athlete, I wouldn't be tuning into these, you know, getting caught up in these hours and what everyone's doing if it's just a hobby, right?
[1:24:57] SPEAKER_03: It's uh but if you want to be good, you should don't count the hours, make the hours count.
[1:25:04] SPEAKER_02: One of the takeaways I got from a lot of the comments actually was people were really interested in like, okay, this is amazing if you're a professional, but like what do you do if you've got like literally 10 to 12 hours of training a week?
[1:25:16] SPEAKER_02: Like, how do you get good?
[1:25:17] SPEAKER_02: So that is a whole different topic, isn't it?
[1:25:20] SPEAKER_02: That's the what we're not advocating that your average person quits their job and trains 35 hours a week uh and just hopes that they become Christian Blumenfeld.
[1:25:29] SPEAKER_02: Well, maybe we are, I don't know, Greg.
[1:25:31] SPEAKER_03: I actually started coaching two age groupers this year, Vicky.
[1:25:34] SPEAKER_03: I've I've been a pro-only coach for a little bit, and uh I really wanted to dip my toe into the age group world and and coach some age groupers just because I feel like I've lost a little bit of touch about what's actually happening out there in the age group world because of only coaching pros.
[1:25:50] SPEAKER_03: You get a very very tunneled visioned view on the sport and the training, and I was like, I just I need to go and immerse myself in the age group world a little bit again.
[1:25:59] SPEAKER_03: And I've really started living by the motto with age groupers in my own head with how I set the training, is I just try and make everything they do count rather than counting everything they do.
[1:26:12] SPEAKER_03: So I really, I really put an emphasis on when they train, making sure it has purpose and is useful rather than the view I would have with a professional, which is you do want to try and do some stuff that maybe is a little bit unnecessary, but adds volume to the program.
[1:26:30] SPEAKER_03: I don't think any age grouper needs to train 30 hours in a week to get the most out of themselves.
[1:26:36] SPEAKER_03: I truly don't believe that.
[1:26:37] SPEAKER_03: I think the benefit of being an age grouper is you have a family, you have a job, you have other things that you're doing.
[1:26:43] SPEAKER_03: So when you train, you can train a little bit harder and not have to train as much.
[1:26:47] SPEAKER_03: And I I've I've found that you don't really lose much from it.
[1:26:51] SPEAKER_03: I I I think the role intensity plays in creating fitness is so, so kind of undersold at the moment in this volume-driven world.
[1:27:01] SPEAKER_03: Um, so any age group are listening to this stuff, I uh yeah, I think you I think you just got to make the training you do count.
[1:27:07] SPEAKER_03: You've got to do a higher percentage of quality in your training versus a pro who should do a lower percentage of quality and a higher percentage of easy training.
[1:27:16] SPEAKER_03: So that's kind of been yeah, my big realization this year, which is an obvious thing that I already knew, but it I've just it's just kind of reinforced it with me that uh you don't have to try and squeeze in every every little bit of training that you can in in the available training time.
[1:27:30] SPEAKER_03: But when you do train, make sure it make sure it has a purpose.
[1:27:33] SPEAKER_04: Wise words, the Jack Kelly method.
[1:27:35] SPEAKER_05: Have you noticed that Jack gets really sensitive if you say it's a cult?
[1:27:38] SPEAKER_05: If you say the cult of Jack Kelly, he's like, it's not a cult, and he gets like very upset.
[1:27:42] SPEAKER_05: I don't know what why that is, but uh yeah, happy to be a member, Jack.
[1:27:46] SPEAKER_03: Both of those age groupers did win their age groups yesterday, so shout out to them.
[1:27:50] SPEAKER_03: At least they actually win races, unlike you, Greg.
[1:27:53] SPEAKER_05: Woohoo! More cool aid for me.
[1:27:56] SPEAKER_03: All right, let's wrap it up there.
[1:27:58] SPEAKER_03: Uh, Apo, Greg, Vicky, that was fun.
[1:28:01] SPEAKER_03: Uh, I apologise to you, Vicky.
[1:28:03] SPEAKER_03: You wanted to do this podcast last week, and I kind of pushed back against.
[1:28:07] SPEAKER_03: I thought, who actually cares about St.
[1:28:10] SPEAKER_03: Anthony's Triton?
[1:28:11] SPEAKER_03: But it ended up being one of the one of the highlights of uh of the podcast so far this year.
[1:28:15] SPEAKER_03: So I've got to bow down to your expertise.
[1:28:17] SPEAKER_03: And Apo and Greg, well done for that race.
[1:28:20] SPEAKER_03: Um what a what a what an incredible sprint finish that was.
[1:28:22] SPEAKER_03: It was actually uh uh like a really, really strong performance from both of you.
[1:28:27] SPEAKER_03: Very entertaining.
[1:28:28] SPEAKER_03: Uh and and uh yeah, it's just it's a it's a pleasure to take part in both of those journeys.
[1:28:33] SPEAKER_03: So um guys, that's it.
[1:28:34] SPEAKER_03: That's today's podcast done.
[1:28:36] SPEAKER_03: We don't know when the next one will be, kind of whenever there's enough for us to talk about.
[1:28:40] SPEAKER_03: So if something happens next week, we'll be on next week.
[1:28:43] SPEAKER_03: If not, maybe we'll take two or three weeks and and let some races happen and then come back in your ears.
[1:28:48] SPEAKER_03: But like I said, um get your Spotify comments in because at the end of the next time we do this, we will be reading a bit more, uh a few more Spotify comments than what we did today.
[1:28:58] SPEAKER_03: Probably 10 to 15 will get read at the end of the next one.
[1:29:00] SPEAKER_03: So yeah, get them in.
[1:29:01] SPEAKER_03: Let's uh let's have some fun in those Spotify comments.
[1:29:04] SPEAKER_03: Greg, Apo, Vicky, thank you.
[1:29:05] SPEAKER_03: Let's do it all again next time.
[1:29:07] SPEAKER_01: Bye.
[1:29:07] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, cheers.
[1:29:08] SPEAKER_01: Cheers, guys, bye.
[1:29:09] SPEAKER_03: Vicki's gorgeous.
[1:29:16] SPEAKER_01: That was creepy.
[1:29:17] SPEAKER_01: You went creepy.

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