We talk open water swimming with Pilar Geijo

Pilar Geijo has to be the happiest person we've ever met. Not just because she has taken her first ever title as the overall winner of the womens FINA Open Water Grand Prix series. Every time we talk get the chance to chat with Pilar she leaves you smiling and with the urge to go out and swim for the shear joy of it. So we thought we'd give you the chance to get to know the new queen of open water swimming. We've said it before and we'll say it again... we love Pilar!

Pilar collecting her spoils at the FINA Grand Prix in Roberval, Canada

blue70: So congratulations on claiming the No 1 spot on the FINA open water Grand Prix series! You have progressed so fast – 23rd in 2008, second last year – when did you believe you could take the series win this year?

Pilar: Firstly, Thanks a lot!!
In 2009 when I was second on the ranking Grand Prix, this was actually the first time that I could attend all the races of the circuit (ten races) - it was also the first time that I participated in long races so this represented a big challenge for me.In 2010, it was the second time that I decided to take part of the circuit, so I had more experience. In the middle of the year after the race in Mexico where I won with a high level of competitors I realized that it was possible to win the series. After the races in Canada where I won both, the difference of points with the second girl ranked were enough to let me imagine that the possibility to win the series could become true.

The result has come a little early this season after racing was cancelled due to the death of Fran Crippen in the men’s 10k race in Dubai. How has his death impacted on the open water swimming community? I imagine you are all very close?

Fran's death was really very sad for the whole community of the swimming. I was in Dubai and it was terrible to hear about this news. I had not had much opportunity to talk to him because we take part in different circuits, so we didn’t attend the same races. Anyway, the people I have spoken with that did know Fran have given me wonderful comments of what a good person he was.

You are the first Argentinean woman to win a FINA open water swimming title – who inspired you to become a competitive swimmer?

I learned to swim in a club called GEBA where I meet Alfredo Camarero who was an Argentinean open water swimmer in the 50´s; he was a World Champion in 1955, and 1956. I meet him when I was 10 years old. He always told me his experiences, and he always used to say me that my personality and my good humor will help me to swim in open water. I remember that he told me "if you want to be a different swimmer, you MUST do different things, things that the other don’t do".

What age did you start swimming, and who taught you?

I learned to swim at the age of 6, and started to compete at the age of 8 in the swimming pool.

When did you decided to pursue open water racing (rather than pool), and why?

At the age of 15 I participated for the first time in a competition of Open Water and it liked me very much.

I used to compete in swimming pool (800, 1500 freestyle) and I had very good results, anyway I always liked the long distances and the swimming pool was short for me! So I tried with open water, and I love nature and the open water was the perfect scene to be near to nature.

What do you think has been the key to your success?

Patience, conviction, dedication, a lot of training and a lot of love. And the most important key: Enjoy the activity that you do!!!

When did you know you could achieve the level of success you have?

The most important thing to have success is to have clear your goals. Sometimes you have to take important decisions and that have risk. The important thing is that you close your eyes and think: "What do I really want for me??” that’s going to help you to focus on your goals.
This year we had very clear our goal and we decided don’t stop until we achieve it!!

Pilar rocking her Carbon Race goggles at training

What makes you want to succeed at swimming at the highest level - what drives you to want to be the best?

I have a lot of personal reasons that makes me want to have success. It was more than 15 years that I’m a swimmer, and during this long way I had found a lot of situations that I had to resolve, a lot of obstacles to overcome. I love to improve myself. During this long way I meet a lot of people that really wish for me all the best, and they have only love for me. All the support of my family, my mum, my dad, all the dedication of Diego (I was his first elite swimmer and it was a big and important decision for him to start coaching me).

All these loving people give me the power to have success, because I know that with good results or bad results they will be always supporting me… The best part of a good result, is not only the title, the best part is to share your happiness with the people I love. This is a big reason to want to be the best!!!

Your husband is your coach so this must be a fantastic achievement for him too – how long has he been your coach?

Yes! For Diego is too the best achievement in his profession and this is for me an extra happiness. We are together 5 years ago, and we are working together in the swimming pool for the last 3 years!! The best 3 years of my sports career!!! :)) It is very funny to share the trainings!

Pilar and her husband and coach Diego Tricarico

What do you think it is about his coaching that has worked so well for you?

Diego is very professional, his knowledge are of a high level, and all of these things give me a lot of reliance.

We have an excellent relationship and this allow me to have fun everyday in every training.

What is it about open water swimming that you love the most?

What more I like about the open water is that everything is unpredictable, different situations can appear that you will have to go solving - trying to take the best decisions.
Not only you have to be a good swimmer, but also you have to pay much attention, and be very attentive to the various movements and situations during the competition.

To succeed at this level you must be doing some huge hours in the pool and in the open water. What does the your average training week look like?

I train an average of 5 hours per day in the swimming pool. 2,5 hours per morning, and the rest during the afternoon. (Average of 15km per day)
Everyday after the training session I made a session of stretching and also 3 times per week I work gymnasium for 2 hours.

Where to from here? What are your goals in open water swimming?

I still have on my mind to be part of the Olympic Games, I was so near to qualified in 2008, I was really strong that day but I think that anxiety played against me. Today I feel that I manage much better my emotions.

And of course – what are your favourite blueseventy products for training and racing?

I love all blueseventy products, I become part of blueseventy team this year and I’m very proud for that. They provide me the best products of the swimming market, blueseventy have innovation, experience, and elegance!!!

For training I like to wear nice swimsuit with funny colors that makes feel comfortable + beautiful, (I prefer the Flair swimsuit in pink!!)

For racing, I need the best swimsuit and I am lucky to have it! The neroTX Kneeskin is comfortable and this is very important for open water swimmer because the races are sometimes longer than 8 hours and we need to feel good!!

Thanks for your time – we can’t wait to see what you do next!

see us at The Running Event

There is a reason blueseventy continues to be the leading wetsuit in all run speciality stores across the country. Today we are headed to one of our all-time favorite places - Austin, Texas for the 2010 Running Event, an interbike for running. If your attending or representing a store at this year's event then we welcome you to stop by booth #725 this Wednesday and Thursday to say hi, see our wonderful gear, meet our fantastic employees and most importantly, find out why blueseventy is the only choice for your store. See you in Big Tex.

Just another day at the UK office...

It might be starting to snow in the UK, but that doesn’t mean we hole up in the office with a nice cuppa and a jaffa cake. Nope, we’re out doing photo shoots and video analysis in all weather (with tea in a thermos).

Here are a few shots that Julie took on some recent shoots with Ross Davenport, and also some video analysis work with the team at Swim Smooth. Julie from our UK office tells all…

Here are a few shots that I took on the photo shoot with Ross - as you can tell I’m not very good with the phone camera – lucky we had a pro doing the proper shots!
The photo shoot was for the awesome new Axium Wiggle suit, and took place at a very beautiful nature reserve in Nottingham.
It was a great afternoon and Ross was very willing despite the weather. It was cold and raining, but never once did he complain about being frozen (and I know he was)! At one stage we asked him to remove the wetsuit to his waist, which he dutifully did, but even just watching I felt very cold and did up my coat!!! I did try to give him warm thoughts (telling him to think he was on a warm sunny beach in the med) but I don’t think it helped…

When you work with people like Ross and Dave (our photographer), no matter what the good old English weather does you always have a great time. And with a great product what more can anyone ask for - we have it all at blueseventy!! Your jealous now aren’t you? No you can’t have my job.

Anyway, next it was a video shoot with the guys at Swim Smooth, who are filming clips for blueseventy, as well as a coaching course. Ross and Mark (TFN TRI Team) played starring roles (no star on the dressing room door - pffft!).
Ross did the first shoot, with the aim being to record an example of a good strong stroke, and of course Ross gave a master class. We had an audience with a few coaches’ present poolside, and all said it was a real privilege to have been able to see Ross swim and chat with him about what makes his stroke so good. And I might also add that he makes our Jammers look very good too!!!!!

Next up was Mark swimming in the Axium wetsuit. The aim was to show how the suit affects body position the water, using some buoyancy exercises.

After the wetsuit session, Mark swam in blueseventy TriDistance shorts to get some video analyses of his swim stroke and provide feedback which he could use to further refine his technique. This video analysis is a fantastic tool for improving technique, and Mark felt he learned a lot from the session. The guys also gave him a CD of the session so that he can continue to use it in his training sessions. Not doubt the knowledge will be put to good use at Clearwater!


You can learn more about Swim Smooth by visiting their website swimsmooth.com

Rich Abrahams shatters records at Kevin Nash Memorial Meet

In the Denver swimming community the Kevin Nash Meet is a short course meter (SCM) warmup for big winter competitions. But no one told Rich that.

Even a 4 hour hike the day before didn’t seem to slow him down. Rich competed in the 50 and 100 SCM freestyles and the 50 and 100 SCM butterfly events, and of course, wearing his NeroTX jammers.

One of Rich’s specialties, the 50 freestyle had an existing world record of 26.68. Unrested, Rich smashed the record with a time of 26.14. In the 100 fly he set a new United States Masters Swimming record of 1:07.54 breaking the old record of 1:08.36.

He just missed records in the 50 fly and 100 free but Rich feels “…confident of breaking (them) in Long Beach when I am rested and tapered.”

Great job Rich and can’t wait to cheer you on in December!


Rich is swimming A LOT faster in blueseventy!

blueseventy sponsored teams rock IM Florida

blueseventy sponsored TeamTBB & Sport Beans/NTTC put together solid performances at Ironman Florida to take top honors.

On the women's side

Team Sport Beans/NTTC pro Jessica Jacobs became the first American woman to win Ironman Florida! Her 9:07:49 clocking for the 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike, and 26.2-mile run was just off the course record and was the second fastest time ever by a woman in the twelve-year history of the event. Jess did so with the day's fastest women's bike split (4:52:30, 22.97 mph) and fastest women's marathon (3:04:52, 7:03 per mile pace).

Team TBB's Erika

Csomor of Hungary, a two-time ITU World Duathlon Champion and 4th at the Ironman World Championship in 2009, finished 2nd. Fellow blueseventy athlete Kim Loeffler of the USA rounded out the podium. This is the second Ironman win in 2010 for the Sports Beans/NTTC team. Ben Hoffman won Ironman Lake Placid in July.

TeamTBB's James Cunnama capped off an amazing season that saw his first major win (Alpe D’Huez Triathlon), first full-distance win (Rev3 Cedar Point), first 70.3 title (Austin) and now his first Ironman title on Saturday.

He did so after suffering a flat on the bike that cost him time, but made up the ground with a smoking fast 2:43:09 marathon. Portuguese pro Pedro Gomes finished second and blueseventy stud Dirk Bockle backed up a top-ten finish at Ironman World Championships last month with a 3rd place in Florida and showed off that ITU form in the gulf by winning the swim.

Deventio girls are swimming faster in blueseventy

We’re not just about the Olympics and World Champs and all that razzmatazz (word of the day - try and get that in a facebook update!). Anywho – we heard about some great success from three pretty sharp swimmers from the Derventio eXcel swim squad who clocked some great results at the UK School Games which took place in Sunderland.

Evie Keane (16), Emily Allsopp (16) & Jodie Hawksworth (14) were all part of the England Central Team who won the overall swimming title after a very close fought 2 day programme and a highly dramatic final event; which saw the leaders by a very close margin, England North, being disqualified and handing the title to the Central team .

The three Derventio girls all performed exceptionally well in their NeroTX suits, with each of them taking medal places. In the individual events, Jodie was in top form in the breaststroke, bagging the silver in the 100m and bronze in the 200m; Emily also took bronze in the 200m backstroke. In the relays, Evie swam excellent legs in both the 4 x 100m & 4 x 200m freestyle, ensuring her team secured silver medals in both events.

The Sainsbury's UK School Games is an event for the UK's elite young athletes of school age. About 1600 athletes compete across ten sports in a four-day Games environment designed to replicate the feel of major event such as the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games and Commonwealth Games (but with more chaperones I’ll bet).

L-R: Emily Allsopp, Evie Keane, Jodie Hawksworth

got wetsuit withdrawals?

You don't have to swim to get some rubba-loving.

We know that when you can't be out swimming in the open water that you miss the feel of a wetsuit against your skin, and the protection from the elements it provides you... We know how much you love your blueseventy wetsuit, but lets face it, you can’t really rock out for coffee in it now can you?

Well we have the perfect solution for you – we’re giving you a fantastic 50% off our Nero Jackets so you can keep warm and toasty on land; without having to wear your wettie down the street. Because to be honest, that just looks kinda strange.

Click on the appropriate store link and enter the promotional code rubbalova at checkout to get 50% off your Nero Jacket.

USA Online Store
NZ Online Store

Xena takes win at Noosa

Team TBB's Caroline Steffan (aka Xena) takes yet another win on her path to complete global domination.

In a bit of a change from her normal long distance racing, Xena raced in the standard course, draft legal Noose Triathlon, which attracts huge entries including the sports top ITU racers.

Caroline biked her way to the front of the field and held on to take the win over young Aussie Ashleigh Gentle and fellow blueseventy athlete Nicky Samuels (who led out of the swim), and only 3 weeks after her 2nd place finish at IM Hawaii.

We suspect that her nickname of Xena depicts a warrior-like plan of complete global domination. So far in 2010 she has clocked wins in IM 70.3's Geelong, Singapore and Switzerland, won the ITU World Long Distance Championships in Germany, and placed 2nd at IM Hawaii, IM South Africa, IM Frankfurt and the Noumea Triathlon. Man her airmiles points must be getting her some sweet upgrades!

All Leanda, all of the way!

Our lovely Leanda Cave scored her 2nd 70.3 victory over the weekend at IM 70.3 Miami.

Leanda had her best swim at the event in her new PZ3TX, and led out from the water closely followed by fellow blueseventy athlete Nina Kraft, and Kelly Williamson. The trio had nearly 3mins on the remainder of the field when they hit the bike course.

Not happy with just smashing the swim, Leanda also set her new race-best time on the bike, and also punched out a solid half marathon to take record the fastest bike and run splits.

Fantastic work Leanda – and just 3 weeks after a top 10 placing in Kona!

For the full race report check out slowtwitch.com

PZ3TX blackmarket exposed!

Okay so “exposed” may be a little too strong, but we have discovered that our new PZ3TX is not just fast in the water, but a little too fast out of transition too. And not in a Rasmus Henning “just so comfy I forgot to take it off for the bike” way either.

The PZ3TX has obviously developed a market in the seedy underworld of Ironman.

We’ve now become aware of at least half a dozen swim skins that “disappeared” from the transition at Kona. The thieves targeted all and sundry; pro’s and age groupers alike. Even third place getter Marino Vanhoenacker was not immune to the epidemic (they really should have got him to sign it before they pinched it – that would have certainly boosted it’s street value).

Our R&D department is currently working on GPS tracking systems and we have entered discussions with the US Treasury about some kind of label minting system in order to reduce the chances of a potential counterfeiting ring developing.

Marketing Manager Dean Jackson commented “due to the new swimskin rules being so late to be approved, we only had the PZ3TX on the market just one week before IM Hawaii. But people should be aware that we will have more suits on the market shortly, and there is no need to resort to theft to secure one”.

Rhodsey models the PZ3TX at our store in Kona. Then he ran like he stole it. He did't.

We're following the swallow...

Being that it’s nearly the end of the week, it’s a great time to surf the net and read some blogs. Well our ‘recommended reading’ this week is the latest update from British triathlete and blueseventy fish Jodie Swallow.

Jodie has had a fantastic year to date, scoring numerous wins across a range of distances. She’s clocked up wins just recently at the Tongyeong World Cup in Korea, the Geneva ITU European Cup and Alpe De Huez. She’s also been runner up at IM 70.3 Singapore, the ETU Long Distance champs, and the Tizzy World Cup, plus scoring a tough top 10 finish at the London Dextro WCS race. Anyone would be happy with that resume of results!

But I digress… Jodie’s latest blog covers a trip to Essex, tales out of school, a lost passport and her wins at Tongyeong and at the last French Grand Prix of the year. So grab your cup of coffee and enjoy a read. Work’s overrated anyway…

Jodies blog - www.ifollowtheswallow.co.uk

Photo credit: Jero Honda / triathlon.org

Rowdy Gaines and Team Blu Frog Set Masters World Record

Rowdy Gaines led teammates Keith Switzer, Marc Middleton, and Scot Weiss in a World Record performance at the Rowdy Gaines Masters Classic in Orlando, Florida earlier this month.

The relay team went into the event with laser focus - set on smashing the current 200 SCM (short course meter) freestyle relay World Record of 1:40.17. The team was led off by Rowdy himself splitting a blazing 23.95, followed by Switzer at 24.85, Middleton at 24.96, and Weiss bringing it home in 25.03. Together they clocked 1:38.79, decisively taking down the old record - in blueseventy of course!

The boys gave a master class on setting World Records in blueseventy

Greg Louganis is swimming faster

Last month famed Olympic gold medalist diver Greg Louganis took the plunge in the pacific for the first annual Swim for Equality, a 1.7 mile swim held in Malibu on September 25th. Greg Louganis and his swim partner, Greg Armstrong, along with more then 50 swimmers helped raise almost $130,000 in funds for awareness of LGBT equality in California.

More Information Can Be Found Here

special deal for the State NZ Ocean Swim Series!

Given that's it raining sideways here in NZ half the time, it's a little hard to get all excited about the coming summer, but our friends at the State NZ Ocean Swim Series have just made it that little bit easier... Check this out!

blueseventy followers - $5 off your State New Zealand Ocean Swim Series Entry

The State New Zealand Ocean Swim Series is a six-race ocean swim series taking place on some of New Zealand’s most beautiful harbours and beaches. Whether you are a first-time ocean swimmer, competent recreation swimmer, or going all out to be your age group champion there’s something for everyone. Each event* will host four event disciplines - the 200m State OceanKids, ‘Give It A Go’ 300m ocean swim for individuals or teams, ‘Step It Up 1000m’ ocean swim or ‘I’m Going Long’ ocean swim ranging from 2.6 to 3.3km. *Harbour Crossing 2.8km only

The next two events are coming up really soon -Harbour Crossing, Auckland City, 21 November 2010 and the Russell to Paihia, Bay of Islands, 11 December 2010. Take the plunge and enter the State New Zealand Ocean Swim Series. Visit www.oceanswim.co.nz for more details and as blueseventy follower you can get $5 off your entry fee when you enter online using this special code: blueseventyfan10

Lucy Gossage post Kona

You all remember our friend Lucy Gossage we posted about on Sept. 7th with her update on Ironman World Championships prep. Well she checks back in post race. Here's the scoop:

Race day came and I have never felt more ready for a race than I was for this one. I felt prepared to give it everything, and was up for the challenge of seeing what I could do against the best athletes in the world. All the British names I recognised from ironman racing were there which was cool though a bit scary - it's rare to actually have to race each other in ironman!

The swim was as expected - fist fight for 20 mins and then I managed to find some free water. Lou and I didn't start next to each other but somehow ended up swimming the last 15 mins or so on our own, side by side, exiting the water together! It made me chuckle thinking our coaches would be having a field day seeing how close together we were after the swim! The blue seventy PZ3TX swim skin was clearly fast as I exited the swim far higher up in the field than I had expected. (YES! nice plug Lucy. Thank you!)

The bike was awesome. Yes it was hot and yes it was windy but in a way I was pleased as I wanted the 'real' Kona experience. I was adding nuun tablets to water from the aid stations which helped me stay hydrated despite the tough conditions.

After my race at the Vitruvian I decided not to use any gimmicks so raced without a heart rate monitor or speed and just according to feel. I suspect because of this I biked harder than I have done before in an ironman (and paid for it on the run!) but there's no point going to Hawaii and not giving everything so I don't think that was a mistake. However, it did make the run hard - really hard..... I felt rubbish from the start and there were times when I was tantalisingly close to walking - I had dropped/lost my salt tablets and the special needs station with the spare ones was at 18 miles which seemed a very long way away. Furthermore, I was having to stop several times behind bushes (or imaginary bushes!). I did have visions of not making it, and there were so many times when I wanted to quit but knowing I was up there in my age group was enough to let me summon every ounce of physical and mental strength I could find to keep running. I hadn’t done all that training over the last 9 months to give up in the last hour….. I think the last 4 miles were the hardest as you can't let up, even right to the end - seconds count in Hawaii. The phrase 'Race to the line' is never more pertinent than there. Running down the finish chute knowing I’d given everything I had was incredible and I hope will be a memory I’ll treasure for a long long time.

Needless to say I’m mighty chuffed. I've conquered Hawaii, conquered my psychological battles in Germany and finished smiling. In fact I'm still smiling. And probably will be for a while! I feel very privileged to have Lou Collins as a training partner and am so pleased she salvaged a problematic bike with an absolutely superb run to claim the 25-29 world champion’s title. For two amateurs from Nottingham, I think we did our home club (TFN) proud!

Lou Collins & Lucy Gossage showing off some hardware

Lucy Gossage finished the 2010 Ironman World Championships in just over ten hours to claim fourth place in the 30-34 age group. Lou Collins closed with a 3:11 marathon to take the top podium spot in the 25-29 age group. Congratulations to Lucy & Lou!

Are you a top age group athlete? Did you know blueseventy is currently accepting 2011 sponsorship applications thru mid-Dec? Well now you do. Do something about it.

NZ surf lifesavers collect medals at World Champs

Nope, they aren't handing out medals for saving lives on the beach (though they should - big fat gold ones every time) but they do hand them out for being exceptionally fast at the Surf Lifesaving World Championships currently underway in Egypt. The New Zealand team have been competing against the worlds best in the pool, with the beach events to come.

The NZ team have had some great results in the pool including a Gold and NZ record for blueseventy athlete Samantha Lee in the 4x50m obstacle relay, a Silver and NZ record in the 200m obstacles, and a bronze - 100m rescue medley. Samantha also helped the Kiwis score another Gold in the 4x50m obstacle relay.


The aptly named ‘golden girls’ sporting the neroTX are Julia Toomey, Rachel Clarke, Ayla Dunlop-Barrett, and Samantha Lee.

With the completion of two very long days in the pool, New Zealand is currently in 3rd place with 340 pts, behind Italy (420 points) and Germany (378 points). Not to be forgotten are beach specialists and arch rivals Australia currently sitting in 4th on 313 points.

the underpants run in Kona

Yes, starting at endurance maximus, it's on like Donkey kong...

Kona Slowtwitch Gathering

If your on the big island this week be sure to slot in your calendar a stop to the 2010 Kona Slowtwitch Gathering at the Muscle Milk house powered by blueseventy. Wow, that's a mouth full. In case you didn't get it....

.... looks so much better in picture form.

This is an annual tradition passed down from the ages held every year in Kona prior to the Ironman World Championships. Triathlon's largest online forum (Slowtwitch.com) with the help of blueseventy and Muscle Milk/CytoMax will present this year's event at the Muscle Milk house located right off Ali'i Drive. It's cool event where age groupers, pros and industry folk all live in peace and harmony (at least for the 3 hrs). We welcome all to stop by on Thursday anytime from 3 to 6 in the afternoon. There will be some light snacks, drinks and some free swag.

Muscle Milk House (2.3m from pier)

76-6168 Alii Dr

Kailua, HI 96740

Thursday, October 7th

3 - 6 PM

Slowtwitch Link

Xena conquers China

Team TBB's Caroline Steffen (aka Zena) has been doing a bit of globe trotting on her lead up to Kona with a trip to China for the ITU Long Distance race in Weihai. Judging by her blogg it's been a fantastic trip... although we're glad she didn't need to use the 'support vehicle' - I'd take my chances walking back. (Click here to see her blogg and great travel pics)

Xena dominated the majority of the race consisting of a 3k swim, 80k bike and 20k run.

Coming out of the swim a little over a minute down on the leader in a swim time of 40:09 once Steffen boarded her bike she was soon out in front and untouchable. Posting a sizzling bike split of 2:01:04 over the 80k course, when Steffen rolled into T2 she had carved out a 13minute lead which would only grow.

Out on the run and the current World Long Course Champion increased her lead with a handy 1:21:24 run split, the quickest of the day. Crossing the line on a total time of 4:03:40 second place was sixteen minutes back.

We're looking forward to seeing Caroline in action in Kona in just a little under two weeks from now. She'll be lining up in the Pro Womens field with fellow Team TBB mates Rebekah Keat, Amy Marsh, Donna Phelan, and Tereza Marcel, as well as Stephen Bayliss and Hiro Nishiuchi in the Pro Men.

Endurance Maximus

Tomorrow, Monday September 27th, the doors to Endurance Maximus will open to the good people and fit athletes of Kona, Hawaii. blueseventy is excited to team up with Endurance Conspiracy, Muscle Milk/CytoMax, Fuel Belt, nuun, Dunning Sportswear, Rudy Project and Inside Triathlon to present a new endurance sports lifestyle-inspired retail collective situated at the heart of triathlon's biggest race.

Created and inspired by new lifestyle clothing brand and organic t-shirt aficionados, Endurance Conspiracy, EMAX reflects the progression of the endurance lifestyle and the like-minded brands, athletes, artists, businesses and individuals that are at its forefront. The idea being, to create a hub where anyone can come and find something unique and different, all the while, feeling comfortable and inspired. EMAX is all about representing the works of those who are leading the pack in redefining a culture.

the view from front doors

“We’ve got some amazing partners and we put a lot of time and effort into building the store out,” says Endurance Maximus founder, Tony DeBoom.“Exclusive products, appearances by top professional athletes, amazing raffle-prizes and an aloha vibe, what else do you need in Kona.”

blueseventy will have new swimwear, tri-distance apparel and the entire range of goggles available for sale starting tomorrow. Then beginning Tuesday, October 5th our new WTC legal swim skin, the PZ3TX, will be available for pick up for those who have pre-ordered the suit.

See you at Endurance Maximus!

Endurance Maximus Triathlon Emporium
75-5703 Ali’i Drive, Kailua-Kona, HI 96740 (Emma’s Marketplace)
Open Daily from 10am to 8pm

one tough cookie

Meet Bryall McPherson. She’s one tough chick.

Not one to let a small matter like losing her arm to bone cancer get her down, the 20 year old kiwi decided to take up swimming and is now training hard to achieve her goal of Paralympic gold. We’re stoked to be able to support Bryall, and plus, her fantastic attitude and her constant new PB's are a great reminder to stop your whinging and just get on with training!

Byrall already holds a number of NZ Paralympic Records for 100 Freestyle (1.19.15), 50m butterfly (36.85), and more look to come with unofficial records achieved at a recent level 2 SC meet in Auckland in the 50m butterfly (36.82) 100m butterfly (1.23.35).

Her recent outing to the 2010 Queensland short course championships (28th - 29th August 2010) also saw her leave the event with three more medals;

50 SC Metre Butterfly Multi-Class 36.89 (Gold)
50 SC Metre Freestyle Multi-Class 35.69 (Silver)
50 SC Metre Backstroke Multi-Class 42.08 (Silver)

To find out more about Bryalls amazing story, check out this piece from Asia Downunder.

See us at Interbike

team blueseventy is packing up to head to the center of the cycling universe - the annual Interbike expo in Las Vegas. We'll be showing off our awesome products and offering sneak peeks at the cool new gear for 2011. Based on the above photo it's safe to say blueseventy is no longer just making athletes swim faster...

All next week if you work in the industry or just hanging out at the show please come on by booth 659 and say Hi to the team!

Gina Crawford sets new course record at IM Wisconsin

blueseventy athlete Gina Crawford pulled out a stunning victory at IM Wisconsin on the weekend, setting new course records along the way.

Gina dropped us an email today with her race report:

Hi blueseventy,
I am happy that I won Ironman Wisconsin in the weekend, setting a new course record by about 10 minutes, which was actually my own course record set back in 2007.

I wore the new Helix suit which I love with the flexible arms. The second half of the swim was crazy as we had to pass what seemed like thousands of age groupers and then we had to get over the other side of them to swim to the exit while they turned around another buoy to do another lap.

I lost the pack amongst the mess but after a quick transition (a very long run up a car park ramp to get to the transition) I was in the lead and stayed there all day. I broke the bike course record and came off the bike with a 13 minute lead and then hung in there on the run.

So I am super happy to be back in shape and in form again after a long winter where I got pretty unfit. I then had spent August in Australia and I felt like I was in good shape for this race.

I now will travel to Hawaii tomorrow and I hope to see you there soon. I caught up with Guy in the weekend and he was telling me all about the new swim suits. Can't wait to try them out!

Cheers,

Gina

Gina posted a bike time of 5.12.50 which put her in a great position to set a new course record of 9.27.26, nearly 10mins quicker than her previous course record she set in 2007. “I felt great coming out of the swim... My race plan is always when I feel good I just push it as hard as I can and I was really happy with my bike. Then I got to the run and finished with a pain in my side with 10 miles to go so I was really happy.”

You can read the full race report on Ironman.com

the rush is on

After only 7 days of accepting pre-orders for our new WTC legal swim skin, the PZ3TX, the men's size small is no longer available for pre-order. We do have men's XS & Medium sizes still available but in limited quantities. You can find the PZ3TX size chart here.

We will be bringing our stock of PZ3TX suits to Kona and distributing them to pre-order buyers throughout the week leading up to Ironman World Championships at Maximus Endurance.

The PZ3TX is blueseventy's fully textile, welded version of the pointzero3, designed to meet the regulations of FINA & WTC. blueseventy continues to set the standard others will try to follow in triathlon swimskins. Using the latest in microfiber textile technology, the PZ3TX draws on years of high performance swimming product development combined with the most recent developments in textile research.

Don't be left behind. Click here to pre-order your PZ3TX for Kona now.

pz3TX and ready for Kona!

Lucy Gossage set a course record of 4:14. 47 at the Vitruvian (half iron distance). The cancer doctor, who splits her time between Cambridge and Nottingham, has got her eyes on Kona. She set Britain’s best female age group Ironman time for two years in Frankfurt (9:53.28) and has received welcome support from bluseventy - she'll be wearing the new pz3TX swimskin in Kona!

“So Hawaii is looming and I’m really starting to get excited. It’s a funny time training wise as everyone else is winding down at the end of the season while I’m building for my biggest race of the year. And trying to think about how on earth I can get used to the heat while the nights are drawing in and the weather is gradually getting colder.....

“Luckily I’ve had a few really fun weekends over the last month, which have helped keep me motivated. The first was the Outlaw Triathlon which I raced as the cyclist in a relay team with two friends Lou (Collins) and Helen (Gorman); the second was the National Club Relays a couple of weeks later. Both are amazing events in my home town of Nottingham with incredible support and to me summed up what triathlon is all about – fun.

“Winning the club relays with TFN teammates Lou, Fez and Amy was probably my proudest moment in triathlon. We’d been talking about having a team for a year or so but Amy (Parkinson) and Fez (Verity Butler) had been injured so never thought it would happen. They were both still injured (Amy had a stress fracture in her foot!!) but decided to race anyway... We all gave 200% in every part of the race and to win such a big event with a team of true friends was a pretty amazing moment. I was on a high all week after it!

“Last weekend I raced the Vitruvian at Rutland Water, a race I’ve done twice before which I always enjoy. I wasn’t sure how I’d feel on race day as I had come off a massive block of training with only five days to recover. Fortunately it seemed to be my day and I had what was probably the race of my life, though I’m still in a state of disbelief and keep thinking they must have got the times muddled up somehow.

“Anyway it’s now just five weeks till Hawaii – so just a couple more weeks training and then time to taper, fly out there and do the best I can. I’ve got no expectations of doing well out there but am really excited about the opportunity to race there once more – and am determined to go out there, enjoy it and throw everything I have at the race on race day. Not long now!!”