"It's not ideal. I specifically said I would not do it because I was training for this, but everyone pulled out and they turned to me to save the day."
Piddington is happy his portion of the race is relatively short considering he has a 50km tune up planned for the day before.
"Thankfully it's only 5km so I can walk and it'll be alright."
Joynt said she will have the tides on her side during the kayak leg and joked she may attempt to come to an arrangement with a power station regarding creating a little bit of well-timed extra current.
Yet Geek-a-watts are likely to face stiff competition from inside their own office buildings.
Drats - an acronym of the first names of Ross Mahon, Shayne McConingly, Tim Roberts, Angus Bell and David Maris - boast a fair amount of big race experience.
Bell's 2007 King of the Mountain record of 18:45 still stands, while Irishman McConingly recently completed the Rotorua to Taupo 100km Flyer.
"I hadn't done it before and I only started cycling in February," said McConingly.
"This is my second event so I thought it would be good to see what it's like."
He testified to multisport's ability to inspire strong reactions in people. "I hear it can be quite addictive or people don't do it again, ever."
Piddington agrees.
"If you look in our office there's always people cycling, running, mountain biking or kayaking. This is a really good opportunity to bring everyone together because people are already doing it anyway. It's something to do as a team."
What's involved
Kaimai Classic course, from McLarens Falls Park to Te Puna:
5km off-road run, 17km mountain bike, 11km kayak, 26km road cycle, 11km run.
