Do you have the time?
Time is not what it used to be for training and recovery because of the age of my children - 9 and 5 years and 21 months. It's busy at home all the time.
Parents turn into taxi drivers ...
Yes ... and I love that. My eldest [Lucy] has her cross-country running, swimming, horse riding, flute playing ... she has a schedule. I love getting involved with it all.
You appear family-oriented ...
I was one of the few who took the family on the road which logistically was very difficult and financially very expensive. I was lucky my wife Neri was so supportive - she resigned as an emergency nurse so we could travel for a decade together. I felt for other athletes who wanted the same but couldn't afford to. It was a great investment in my family and the 9- and 5-year-olds have wonderful experiences to remember. I would have got homesick and felt guilty otherwise and it helped my performances because I was more settled emotionally.
Did this reflect something from your own upbringing?
Maybe it did although I haven't thought of that before - my parents separated when I was very young. I didn't want my kids thinking anything was more important to me than them. People said I needed to be more Rocky Balboa-style, go off on my own, and certainly in the last few years it was hard because after long training sessions I'd play with the kids rather than sleep and recover. Maybe it was detrimental to my performances, but it certainly enhanced my performance as a father.
Your career high point was ...
The 2005 Battle of the Sexes in Minnesota which had a US$200,000 ($255,000) first prize. It was the highest paying race ever at the time, over the shorter Olympic distance. Our first child was just 8 weeks old and I had guilt issues, wondering if my competitive career meant the family would suffer. Winning that gave us financial stability and validated not using my physiotherapy degree. That race was a who's who and winning made me feel I belonged on that stage.
Low point?
I got chicken pox and missed both selection races for the 2002 Commonwealth Games and realised I wouldn't go to the world champs either. I then found a little niche and sponsors competing in America and shelved the Olympic idea. It was a low point but also a turning point.
Childhood hero?
Greg Welch. The first race I saw was the Hawaiian Ironman. He won it in 1994, the year I started doing triathlons at 21. He was from Sydney, near to where I lived. Welch and Michellie Jones were often on TV in those days. Greg took me under his wing and still helps me to this day.
You were a late starter in triathlons ...
I played soccer from 7 to 20 but the game was very ethnic-based in Australia then with riots, people not going to the games. There was a lot of politics involved and I just wanted to play. I was in junior national league sides but after 16 I went back to local soccer. My coaches liked the way I was still full of running at 90 minutes and all that training helped me when I started in triathlons, no doubt.
Ironman ... how do you deal with the pain?
You need to find ways to love it, or at least embrace it. The thing about sport is that you are in control of the pain - you can stop at any time but then you must deal with the pain of failure. You have to work out what's more important.
What do you miss most?
The social life, catching up with friends and family. When you are training, there is nothing else. At my peak, I was doing 40 to 45 hours training a week although you can't do that all the time.
I've heard the question: Are triathletes addicts, athletes or both?
People get addicted to the training, the endorphins that it releases. The training some people do doesn't make sense. I've been guilty of it at times, just wanting to do more. Our sport attracts a lot of Type A personalities - almost obsessive, compulsive nutbags. People train when they are tired, sick, injured. Sometimes the things that make you good can also undermine you if you can't rein them in.
How has your motivation changed?
As a young athlete, it's all about yourself and validating your own existence. But having a family probably makes you more driven because you are not just racing for yourself. My wife resigned her job and Lucy was partly home-schooled by Neri, which presented some struggles as it is hard to mix the nurturing teacher and parent who must implement discipline. I became motivated to honour the sacrifices my family made.
