KEY POINTS:
Jo Lawn is talking records - given the right conditions - as she heads into her seventh straight New Zealand Ironman tomorrow.
Chasing the five she needs to edge ahead of ironman legend Erin Baker - who won four times between 1986 and 1994 - Lawn is not
taking victory as a given. But she feels that in the right conditions she can beat her own records for the cycle leg and overall race time.
"I feel they are both within my sights," says Lawn, who will race the 180km double out and back course to Reporoa on the same time-trial cycle used by Tour de France riders.
"In the seven years I have raced Taupo my equipment has improved almost beyond recognition. For about three years I have ridden a full disc on the rear wheel but obviously not last year [because of the weather-shortened race]."
Lawn set her cycle record of 5h 8m 15s and the overall mark of 9h 17m 56s in 2003.
With what she reckons is a pretty good preparation behind her, Lawn is ready to chase those times.
She is over the painful rib injury which curtailed her training but could not stop her taking an impressive victory in January's Tauranga half ironman.
"I have had Chris Pilone as my coach for the last couple of years. That has meant less work than I used to do but it is now more specific and aimed at racing the ironman. It is certainly more about quality than quantity," says Lawn.
She concedes she is unlikely to lead the women's field out of the water, describing rival, third-seeded American Hillary Biscay as an amazing swimmer.
"She's a shark," says Lawn.
But the New Zealander wants to be first off the bike and in a position to set the pace on the run.
"I hope to go under 3h 10m for the run for the first time," says Lawn, who has been in Taupo for the past week.
"It took me a while to break 3h 20m. In the past few years I have been around 3h 10m-3h 11m. I'm in good run shape so we'll wait and see what happens."
Lawn has put last year's shortened race firmly behind her.
"You can't ponder on things like that. The first time we saw the lake was when we came off our bikes and headed out on the run. It [the lake] was absolutely horrific," says Lawn.
"There is no way we could have swum in that.
"It was very disappointing.
"I felt especially sorry for those first-timers who had worked so hard for their big day but in the end they had no option but to make the call they did."
COURSE RECORDS
Swim (3.8km): men, Brent Foster (NZ) 44m 47s (2004), women, Monica Caplan (US) 46m 30s (2005).
Cycle (180km): men, Steve Larsen (US) 4h 26m 45s (2003), women, Jo Lawn (NZ) 5h 8m 15s (2003).
Run (42.1km): man, Clas Bjorling (Sweden) 2h 42m 01s (2004), women, Lisa Bentley (Canada) 3h 1m 58s (1999).
Course: men, Cameron Brown (NZ) 8h 20m 15s (2005), women, Lawn 9h 17m 56s (2003).
TOP SEEDS
MEN
1. Ain-Alar Juhanson (Estonia)
2. Cameron Brown (NZ)
3. Torbjorn Sindballe (Denmark)
4. Luke Ball (Australia)
5. Rene Rovara (France)
6. Shingo Tani (Japan)
WOMEN
1. Jo Lawn (NZ)
2. Heather Golnick (US)
3. Hillary Biscay (US)
4. Kim Loeffler (US)
5. Suraya Oliver (Britain)
6. Gina Ferguson (NZ)
