Icebreaker - Pure Merino

Hey Icebreaker,

Once again this year I decided to put myself through a whole heap of pain for no apparent reason! Specifically on this occasion it was for the Peak to Peak Multisport race in Queenstown. The Peak to Peak starts at the Remarkables Ski field at the highest peak with a small run in ski boots quickly followed by a ski leg down the black run Homeward Bound.

After jumping the fence it’s on to the Mountain Bike for a blast down the access road, followed by a flat section along to Frankton Beach. Here is where the real race starts, a 9km kayak around into Queenstown bay, from this point you don the running shoes and run out of town towards Coronet Peak, at the base of the hill you jump on your bike and have the lovely ride to the top!

All in all it’s a solid day at the office!!

This year I travelled up to Central from Dunedin on Friday and then set about getting all of the gear needed ready for the next morning. I decided that I would wear a IcebreakerGT 200 long sleeve top the whole way from start to finish along with my other cycle gear.

With a dedicated support crew of Dad, my girlfriend Amy (Thanks for coming from Christchurch) and local lad Tom (I promised him Subway for helping me) we set off to Queenstown to the start of the race.

At 12:10pm on Saturday the chaos began. The ski wasn’t too bad although poor snow cover made some parts interesting! Then onto the Mountain bike all was good although in retrospect I should have chosen different tyres as parts of the road were greasy!

Into the kayak all things started well until I went to take a drink from my lifejacket, nothing happened… I came to the conclusion that there was a kink in the hose (later revealed that there was) so I was stuck drinking straight Leppin, which sat uncomfortably in my stomach!

Onto the run and I quickly downed a large portion of water from my Fuelbelt and then tried to get into a steady pace, my left leg had gone numb in the kayak, so I invented a new running style! Not sure how efficient it is though! The run didn’t really improve much, my legs felt heavy the whole time and my stomach was trying to get rid of some Leppin any way possible.

Onto the last ride and I started to push pretty hard, I had borrowed a bike with lighter wheels and lower gears than mine to make the uphill as easy as possible. Lucky I had! Through all the pain I managed to get to the top, and with Tom running the last few km’s beside me to make me go faster!!

Finally crossing the finish line I had been out there for 2hr54min, which in comparison isn’t heaps but it hurt!! I managed to be 1st junior male, and improved my time by 15minutes from last year, next year I have to jump up to the Open male section, but I will be better prepared than ever!

My clothing choices were perfect for the conditions, I never got to hot or cold, and even I was surprised I didn’t smell at the finish!! Here are a couple photos from the final hill climb, excuse the pain on my face!!

Thanks Icebreaker!!

- Blake Luff, Icebreaker Fan

Icebreaker is supporting the 2010 Czech Seakayak Expedition which sets off on the 24th of July to East Greenland. Here is a short update from the team prior to their departure:

The first Czech seakayak-expedition in the coastal areas of East Greenland has the ambition to journey about 200-kilometers in the system of local fjords and islands.

Greenland is a place where local residents (Inuits) have been using kayaks as an aid in hunting whales and seals for over two thousand years. We’d like to meet them and compare our experiences. For this purpose, we developed a completely new type of sport seakayak.

Areas that we´d like to visit are some of the most photogenic parts of the planet, so the whole project is designed not only as a sport, but also  as an ethnographic and documentary expedition. The expedition has already had lots of media interest in magazines, newspapers, and for talks on radio stations.

Icebreaker has provided us with premium quality merino underwear to keep us toasty warm in severe conditions of the Greenland. BF150 and BF260 tops and leggings paired with brand new RealFleece jackets and super, super warm and comfortable Hike socks will be our best fellows on the trip.

The three experienced paddlers on the team are:

Petr Novotný: photographer and journalist (more than 200 professional travel and outdoor publications in several journals in the country); organizer and popularizer of many first sea kayaking expeditions (including I. Czech expedition to Iceland 2002, as many others - almost always the first ones - trips to the region Skagerrak, Stocholm skargard, Aland - Sweden, Sardinia, Corsica, Cyclad islands - Greece, Costa Rica, Panama, Tasmania, Madeira). A former contestant on a wild Water (USK Praha Dukla Brandys), an international instructor rafting and canoeing IRF trip leader.

Standa Klokočník: Author and designer of the Czech-art prototype sea kayak. Instructor Guide and the sea kayaking, since 2003, passed 22 missions.

Jan Kolanda: Long-term representative of the Czech Republic in the many water sports; Canoe racing - multiple champion and participant in the World Cup marathon, the participant surfski Ocean Racing Australia, quadriathlon - world champion and winner of several World Cup races. Participant in a number of sea kayaking expeditions. Professional guide in Australia and the Pacific.

Check out the photos below of preparations and stay tuned for an update on their expedition.

The Speight’s Coast to Coast traverses the South Island of New Zealand from Kumara Beach on the Tasman Sea to Sumner Beach on the Pacific Ocean. Over either two days (individuals or two person teams) or the one-day event (individuals only), competitors cycle 140 kms (three stages of 55km, 15 km and 70 km), run 36 km (including a 33 km mountain stage that crosses the Southern Alps) and kayak 67kms of the grade two Waimakariri River through the Grand Canyon of New Zealand, the Waimakariri Gorge.  Icebreaker is sponsoring this event in 2010, and a bunch of us are competing.  Here’s an excerpt about the lead up from one of our team members:

So why am I doing the one day Coast to Coast?  Mainly I believe, because it is a fantastic opportunity to learn about myself.  I know that to get there I have to push myself to my physical and mental limits.

So with only weeks separating me and the start line, do I feel ready?  Well yes I think I do, but I am sure there will be some nerves and doubts…  But that is part of why I’m doing it really.  We face challenges because they test us and make us stronger.  In the act of thinking about the question of “am I where I want and need to be?”,  I have to reflect on where I was when I was told I would be on the Icebreaker Team.  I was nowhere fit enough (7kg heavier than I am now), and I had no kayak or decent road bike.  All I really had was a desire to find a new challenge and a giant opportunity.

So now here I am, metaphorically putting the last strokes of the first rapid that we call preparation.  The next rapid is more of the same but longer and I know from experience that to do well in a race, a rapid or life in general you need to be prepared, relaxed and focused on where we are going.  Bring it on!

- Dave Tait, Speight’s Coast to Coast competitor - Team Icebreaker