Tri club putting the fun into fundraiser
FOR some, Cairns Crocs Triathlon Club’s final event of 2017 will be a welcome end to the multi-sport season.
But for others, such as Tobi Schnell, the Tri de Femme is a short hiatus and a bit of a laugh as he eyes a bigger prize just around the corner.
He will contest the 40-44 category at the Busselton Ironman in Western Australia, hoping to improve his 12-hour effort in Cairns.
But around all the training there has been plenty of time for fundraising for an event to give him a bit of perspective for the battle ahead.
“It’s a great way to get involved both ways with the event and the sport,” Schnell said,
“We’ve done fundraising. We’ve had people at work been affected just within our company. We sponsor the event and it’s nice to get involved in a good cause.” The Bicycle Centre Cairns Tri de Femme, running at Smithfield on Sunday, will mark the end of the 2017 season for many athletes. The main event is run over an allability format: 3 laps (150m) swim in the pool; 2 laps (5km) on the bike;
Tri de Femme race director and triathlon coach Renee Ker said it was great to have the more advanced athletes like Schnell joining forces with beginners for the end of year celebration.
The event will include individual and team relay components for athletes of all levels in a short format at Smithfield before an auction to assist the fundraising effort, while participants across all races will also be getting into the spirit of the pink theme to raise awareness.
2 laps (1km) run around the oval to the finish. The Junior triathlon includes: 1 lap (50m) swim in the pool; 1 lap (2.5km) on the bike; 1 lap (500m) run around the oval to the finish. The Team Relay Triathlon will
“It was such a fun event at the start of the year we thought we’d incorporate the relay at the end of the year as well so our more advanced athletes can have a bit of fun as well,” Ker said.
Cairns Crocs Triathlon Club president Nick Carling said the big focus was building the team spirit of an individual pursuit and on participation to fundraise as much as possible.
“It’s about celebration and fun and introducing new people to the sport, and trying to consist of three randomly selected participants each doing the Tri de Femme course. After racing ends, the club will hold their Christmas party and an auction for the fundraiser. All funds raised go to the Breast Cancer Foundation. cater for everyone as well,” he said.
“We usually run it earlier in the year but this year we decided to have it as our finale and … bring everyone together and have a few laughs and try to entice some new beginners to jump in.
“It’s raising money for the Breast Cancer Foundation and there will be a sea of pink out there.
“It’s mainly focused at women and beginners to get them involved in triathlon, but also men and kids can do that as well as long as they get into the theme.
“People can ride whatever bike they want, they can ride a unicycle if they want, but as long as they’re wearing a helmet it’s all good and they must have a big smile on their face.”
Carling said the year had been enjoyable watching younger athletes build through the season and some showed the benefits in the Noosa Triathlon earlier this month.
“Everyone who went did really well, especially some of the juniors who went along. They’re really starting to show their experience and they had that experience through the local triathlons,” he said.
The Crocs will break for two months but Carling said the wise approach from many would be to brave the summer heat and humidity to get a head start on 2018. through the sides and rear will help control foot motion. This is important especially if you have had previous ankle and knee issues.
Tread on the bottom of the shoe is another factor to consider to ensure adequate grip.
The varied conditions of trails can place increased demands on our bodies, in particular the lower body.
Inclines and declines place different loads on muscles and joints with running downhill a particularly demanding action.
When starting out it is advisable to run up inclines/steps and walk down to reduce this eccentric impact.
Exercises such as decline board squats, single leg squats and eccentric calf exercises will help to strengthen your quads and calves.
If you have had previous ankle or knee issues, consider the use of taping or braces to reduce the risk of re-injury. Tom Maher is director of Cairns Total Physio. Check out our story about the new Bald Possum trail run tomorrow.