Christchurch physiotherapist Brendon Vercoe drew inspiration from his patients at a spinal unit to take first-day honours in the two-day section of the Speight's Coast to Coast yesterday.
The 27-year-old painted the words ''kia kaha'' above each knee to remind him where he drew his inspiration from and what success for him in the two-day race would mean for a lot of his patients.
Vercoe spoke of the determination and strength he witnessed in his patients' endurance and the tough times they faced. One of them had spoken to him of his grandfather and the strength he and other soldiers got from the words ''kia kaha'' during the war.
''So I wrote them [the words] on my thighs and wrote them on my boat. It's certainly helped me along the way,'' he said.
Vercoe's progress will be keenly followed today by his patients and fellow staff members alike.
''This is for them,'' he said.
The Queen Charlotte Classic early in the season, in which he finished 10th, was the only lead-up event Vercoe contested in his preparation. However, he was encouraged by such a good result first up and so early in the season and his path to a second crack at Coast to Coast glory was set. He competed in the two-day section three years ago, finishing eighth.
Since that result in 2011, Vercoe has trained hard over the course, spending a lot more time focusing on his kayaking and running over Goat Pass.
''It was pretty tough out there today, to be honest,'' Vercoe said of the slippery conditions leading up to the pass.
Just below the hut at Goat Pass, he took a tumble off one of the large boulders and slipped backwards, winding himself in the process.
But, true to the meaning of the words written on his legs, Vercoe overcame this and strong challenges from Rob Nesbitt (Methven) and Pete Smallfield (Wanaka), who were in the peloton with him over the 55km bike leg between Kumara and Mingha and then snapped at his heels on the run in Deception Valley.
The three worked well together on the bike and did not allow themselves to get sucked into the breakaway tactics up front.
Unfortunately for Smallfield, a bad 2m fall backwards just above Big Boulders ended any chance he had of snatching the lead from Vercoe. Nevertheless, Smallfield struggled through the remainder of the 33km alpine run, battered and sore, to finish the first day in eighth place and 31min 28sec behind Vercoe.
Vercoe kept extending his lead as the battle for minor places behind changed. Byron Munro (Christchurch), who was 5min off the pace at Goat Pass, ran himself into contention to finish the first day just 5min 52sec behind Vercoe. Nesbitt found a second wind to hold on for third, 2min 54sec further back.
Vercoe goes into the final stages to Sumner today confident of a top performance on the 67km water stage and 70km cycle to the finish.
''I'm confident,'' he said.
''That was my weak point from my last Coast to Coast and it's been a focus of mine since then to build on that.''
Vercoe is far from being concerned about low river levels for what many regard as the make-or-break stage of the iconic race.
''Everyone is paddling on the same river. So I don't see any disadvantages. I've paddled it a lot over the last month or two. I think the big difference really is that you have to be a lot more confident of getting in the right flow. And you've just got to run a few of those bluffs.''
Vercoe will go into today's race full of confidence in his ability to recover overnight with food and rehydration, along with work from a personal physiotherapist in his support crew.
His tactic for the kayak and cycle legs to Sumner: ''Just go hard and keep it simple.''
Holding a more than useful 14min 40sec lead in the open women's section is Ireland's Fiona Dowland, from Canterbury's Hilary Totty. Fellow Cantabrian Hollie Woodhouse lies third.
