Drill Sergeant: He’s Tough

Mark Turner – Coaching Director Online Programs

Mark is a leading triathlon coach with a strong intuition and a sixth sense for reading his athletes. He brings the secrets and experience of many years of coaching and racing to his training sessions. No challenge is too big for him, he loves getting people to think bigger and aim higher.

Sweat and red faces (Mark spent 13 years in the Police) are a given when working with him. He has an amazing ability to throw anything at his athletes and you never know what to expect when you turn up to his training sessions.

An ability to push the right buttons and a nature that is difficult to disagree with ensures that all his athletes find new limits but keep coming back for more.

Mark has completed multiple Ironman events including 3 in 3 days for charity in 2008. He placed in the top 10 at the Age Group World Champs in 2009 and has an Olympic Distance PB of 2:01. Mark has coached beginners doing their first Ironman through to Kona qualifiers, World Championship representatives and age group winners. He specializes in helping people maximize their training time with busy lives.

Otherwise: He loves watching movies, managing the AFL umpires, reading triathlon magazines,  holidaying in Noosa and coming up with new training sessions. He comes up with new ideas all the time, if only there was more time to implement them all.

The Scout Leader: She Runs the Show

Suzanne McCarthy – Admin

Without the uniform, Suzanne plans and organises all events, training camps and beginner courses at Tri Nation Triathlon. The whole operation would fall apart without her and she will have the answer to any question you have. This includes the first and last names of every squad member, sometimes also the next of kin and family dog.

She is known as the camp mother due to the hours she spends in the kitchen baking, organising and cleaning. Though don’t expect to see her cleaning any other time but at camp!

Suzanne loves welcoming new members to the group and when she is not busy coordinating our coaches or helping new members get started, you can find her coaching the odd triathlon session.

Whilst not currently competing, Suzanne has a strong history in triathlons having completed six Ironman events including a PB of 10:10 and a half Ironman PB of 4:52. She has also competed for New Zealand twice at the Age Group World Champs in 2009 and 2012. She is expecting to make her comeback at Noosa Triathlon 2016.

Otherwise: Suzanne loves walking her Labrador Kona and cuddling her cat Mac. Her favourite part of the day is post-training session coffee as it’s a good reason to get out of bed in the first place. She is a staunch Kiwi and refuses to bend to husband Mark’s pressure to become an Australian Citizen.

Mr Tech Savvy: He’s Smart

Brad

If you love the latest bike gadgets or talking power output then a coffee with Brad is a great way to start your morning. A subscriber to New Scientist Brad is up with the latest research around the world and loves everything numbers.

By day Brad is a town planner but bikes and figuring out techy challenges are what gets him really excited. He picks up the nitty gritty details, which your average human would simply overlook and has the goods to fine-tune anyone’s swim stroke.

A very handy man and someone you need on your team!

But he’s not just smart and good looking but he can more pretty fast when he wants to. Brad is a 2017 Kona Qualifier and five time Ironman finisher with a PB of 9:41, a half Ironman PB of 4:31 and an Olympic distance PB of 2:04.

Otherwise: Brad loves spending time with his wife Sarah and kids April and Owen. He can also help you race fast with his race wheel company Pace Wheels.

The Social Butterfly: She Knows Everyone
Kristin

If you want to know what is happening in the squad Kristin is the one to ask. With her ear to the ground and friends with everyone Kris is the go to girl on the latest news, social events and even gossip.

Not just the social butterfly, Kris is an awesome athlete having racked up four Ironman’s and multiple other triathlons. A formidable runner she is often seen leading the team through the Wednesday morning intervals. Kristin has a strong coaching history with many years coaching girls hockey. As a athlete with Tri Nation for many years Kris joined the coaching team a couple of years ago and loves to help out the ladies in the team.

Otherwise: Kristin is know as being Queen of the sock game and always one of the last to leave the party.

The Smiling Samoan: He’s Chilled

Ray

Ray loves to welcome new members to the Tri Nation team and help them get started in triathlon. Having decided to change from a fun loving touch player to a swimming, cycling and running triathlete Ray has now done it all with Age Group World Championships and 2 Ironman events now under his belt.

He has a passion for helping all aspiring triathletes particularly those back home in Samoa. A couple of times per year you will find Ray collecting used shoes, goggles, tri suits, cycling kit and all things triathlon to send home to the Samoan community.

You will most often see Ray on pool deck where he loves to explore people’s challenges and champion them to success. He just loves to be around cool people and connect with them on an exciting journey.

Otherwise: Ray loves hanging with his young son Daniel and wife Jacqui, socialising and spending time back on the island.

The Wise One: He Knows Everything
Todd

Ask Todd anything from how to change a tyre to the best coffee shops and he’ll not only have the answer but he’ll likely go out of his way to show you. A true gentleman Todd loves to see people improve – not just by getting faster but by becoming better skilled and improving their knowledge.

Todd loves triathlons and has been competing for many years – one of the familiar faces around the local races. He has raced at several Age Group World Champs including in the off road triathlon.

Otherwise: Todd loves and chat and is a regular at post training coffee.