The journey to New Zealand started for me way back in 2019 in the pre-Covid era. The 2020 Ironman 70.3 World Championships were slotted to be hosted in Taupo and it was my sole mission for the year to qualify for that race giving me and Herchel a “reason” to go to New Zealand. It’s been so long now that I can’t remember what race I did to qualify, but I got the slot….and then Covid hit. The race was cancelled. In 2023 they announced the race would again take place in Taupo for 2024, and it was again my mission to get that qualifier.

We left cold, dreary Nashville for New Zealand on December 3rd and arrived in Auckland to sunny warmth on December 5th. We spent the first night in Auckland before heading to our first longer destination: the Coromandel Peninsula.