Kellogg's Nutri-Grain Ironman New Zealand
- Welcome to Kellogg's Nutri-Grain Ironman New Zealand. With about 16 hours to go before race time the athletes and organizers are gearing up for the big day ahead. Right now it looks like we're in for some rain during the day tomorrow, but the good news is that the winds should be coming from the North, which means that the lake should be relatively calm.
Our race coverage will begin at 6AM local time, which is noon EST. The pros will start at 6:45, with the age groupers heading off 15 minutes later. 
Mike Reilly will be announcing his 100th Ironman tomorrow!
Event Director Jane Patterson chats with Kevin Mackinnon about the tragic events in Christchurch and the effects on the athletes and the race.
Mike Ramsay and Tony Jackson have both done Ironman New Zealand 26 times. They truly are Ironman legends.
Enjoying Lake Taupo.
The press conference featured many of the race favorites.
Petr Vabrousek is competing in his 100th Ironman race this weekend.
- Good morning from rainy Taupo!
Right now we're experiencing what I would call steady rain showers - the word is that the rain is likely to get heavy at times through the day. At about 4 AM this morning it was pelting down here in Taupo, but it's definitely eased since then.
The temperature right now is 17 degrees Celsius (62 F) and the expected high is 18 C (65 F).
The winds are expected to get up to about 11 mph (18 kph) and are coming from the NNW. That means the lake should be relatively calm this morning, which will no-doubt be good news for the athletes today. - Mike Reilly's 100th Ironman. To read a story on "the voice of Ironman" and this momentous day, go to ironman.com
- Courageous Christchurch Competitors. It was 12:50 pm on Tuesday, February 22. Christchurch, New Zealand's Vaughn Sweetman (pictured furthest right along with Kevin Mackinnon, second from left, and Nigel and Jennifer Hughes) had his 20-month-old son Gray in his arms - it was naptime for the little guy. His wife, Micky, was with their 3-month-old daughter, Ava, who was lying on the floor after having her diaper changed. Suddenly things went crazy. Everything started to move. The walls started to shake, the floor began to rise up and down. Vaughn managed to get under a doorway as he watched things start flying off the walls and around the house. Micky desperately tried to get to Ava, who was rolling around the floor. For a fleeting moment she couldn't get to her daughter.
To read more, click ironman.com - We're getting close to the start here in Taupo. After two days of worrying whether or not the helicopter that will be providing a lot of our live pictures would even be able to get up in the air, it looks like we're getting some areal shots of the swim start. The pros are working their way to the water right now - we should be about 5 minutes away from the pro start and 20 minutes away from the age group start.
- They're off.
Lots of umbrellas out this morning.
The traditional Haka before the event begins
- The rain is making communications a bit of a nightmare this morning. We've got a great spotting crew on hand - hopefully we'll be able to hear from them as the day goes on!
- Hiroyuki Nishiuchi is in the lead right now, with Brent Foster right on his heels. Then we have Terenzo Bozzone and Cameron Brown just behind them.
- Brent Foster holds the swim course record here in Taupo - he swam 44:47 in 2004. Monica Caplan holds the women's course record - she went 46:30 in 2005.
- Foster moves to the front. The 44-year-old Kiwi has taken the lead and has a slight gap on Terenzo Bozzone. Trying to hang on to Bozzone is the former Japanese Olympian, Hiroyuki Nishiuchi, and on his feet is Mathias Hecht. Then there's a gap of about 10 seconds to Gavin Scott. About 30 seconds behind the leaders is a large pack that includes Cameron Brown and our women's leaders, Jo Lawn and Samantha Warriner.
- The 44-year-old Foster now has a lead of 1:10 on that chase group with Brown, Lawn and Warriner.
- The age group race is off!
Heading to the water earlier this morning
- Foster is now clear of the men chasing behind - he's 20 seconds up on a group that includes Bozzone, Nishiuchi and Hecht. They're now 40 seconds up on Gavin, and 1:10 up on the group that includes Keegan Williams, Cameron Brown and Samantha Warriner. Mirinda Carfrae is now swimming with Jo Lawn 20 seconds behind Warriner.
- Foster on record pace - the former world surf lifesaving champion has hit the halfway point at 22:02, well ahead of his 2004 record pace.
- Bozzone, Hecht and Nishiuchi are 1:30 behind the fast moving Brent Foster.
- At 2:02 behind the leader we have Brown and a group that includes Samantha Warriner. We've also learned that Maki Nishiuchi is swimming in that group, too.
- Carfrae is in a group that includes many of the main contenders - Lawn and Bevilaqua are also in that group - they're about 2:40 behind the fast-swimming Foster.
- The gap has grown to 1:40 between Terenzo Bozzone (along with Nishiuchi and Hecht) and the group that includes Brown and Warriner. They're about 40 seconds up on the group that includes Jo Lawn and Mirinda Carfrae.
- Michelle Mitchell, from Australia, is also in the group with Carfrae, Lawn and Bevilaqua.
- Foster's lead has grown to 56 seconds over Bozzone, Hecht and Nishiuchi.
Getting ready to go
- Bozzone now enjoys a lead of 2 minutes over the man he's trying beat here today, Cameron Brown. Then there's another minute to the third chase group that includes Carfrae, Lawn and Bevilaqua.
- Cameron Brown has been doing pretty much all the work at the front of the second chase group - he's about 2:20 behind the man who is likely to provide the biggest challenge to him achieving an incredible 10th victory here at Kellogg's Nutri-Grain Ironman New Zealand.
- Turning the last buoy - Brent Foster is on his way in, with Terenzo Bozzone 1:10 back.
- Mirinda Carfrae is sitting smack in the middle of her group, enjoying an excellent draft. Jo Lawn is off to her right. The two will likely start the bike next to each other this morning. Let the fun begin!
- Foster is out of the water - it doesn't look like he got that record time, but we'll get the accurate split shortly.
- Terenzo Bozzone is out of the water now, with Nishiuchi and Hecht close behind. Last year the 26-year-old flew through the first half of the race here, enjoying a lead of 9 minutes at the halfway point of the bike. He faded from there, though, and would have to settle with second. Today we'll see what he learned from that experience.
- Warriner is out of the water now and on her way to her bike. This is her first official Ironman - I believe she's done an Ironman distance race. Despite her relative inexperience, no one is selling Warriner short - she is very much a race favorite here today.
- Brown appears to be about three minutes behind Bozzone as he heads to the transition.
- Warriner will have a good lead over her main rivals here today - the group that includes Carfrae, Lawn and Bevilaqua is just getting out of the water. Once they exit the water here they have a long run to T1 - about 400 m worth of running!
- Keegan Williams managed to beat Cameron Brown out on to the bike. Both will find themselves about three minutes behind Bozzone.
- Carfrae is on her way to the bike course - she's managed to get out of T1 a bit ahead of Jo Lawn, and a bit behind Maki Nishiuchi.
- Carfrae is 1:58 behind Warriner as she starts the bike here.
